Questions to ask on interviews

[Vulvapalooza]

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Hey, guys!
Just starting to gear up for my first interviews and I was wanting to know what questions you feel are "absolute musts" to get to know a program outside the obvious CREOG scores, percent of residents continuing on to fellowship....

I have a feeling many of the programs will begin to look the same by the end of all this... I want to be able to differentiate them as best as possible.

THanks and good luck to everybody.

~VP

 

[Diane L. Evans]

CREOG SCORES mean nothing
you need to look at gyn procedure laproscopic procedure #'s and dictatic format. Also go to a program that has a night float. It will give you more time to study. Do they pay for books are their residents to tired to meet you. Have they had dropout in classes and why. Do they fill their slots each year?

Good luck

know the answers to why ob, can you multitask, what would you do if you had 2 urgent situations i.e prolapsed cord and expectant svd.

Diane

 

[community]

Diane:
Is it really appropriate to ask why residents have left the program and why? Is it better to address this question to the residents or the program director? Also, is it okay to ask a program director why only 75% of residents pass their boards or do you think that this is more dependent on the individual who sits to take the exam? I look forward to your response!

community

P.S. I saw in another post that you mentioned Temple as a program to consider because of the night float. Did you realize that they only give first year resident two weeks of vacation? That seems a but evil to me.

 

[ohbee gin]

Diane:
Is it really appropriate to ask why residents have left the program and why? Is it better to address this question to the residents or the program director? Also, is it okay to ask a program director why only 75% of residents pass their boards or do you think that this is more dependent on the individual who sits to take the exam? I look forward to your response!

community

P.S. I saw in another post that you mentioned Temple as a program to consider because of the night float. Did you realize that they only give first year resident two weeks of vacation? That seems a but evil to me.

Why is NF so great? If you are on a q3/q4 sched (like most non NF programs) you get consistent time to run errands, study, etc regardless of the month. If you are NF, you will only have day-time to run errands for 2-3 months in the year. The rest of the year, you will be begging boyfriends/girlfriends/neighbors to pick up your dry cleaning/groceries/etc.

I think there's probably a strong argument for both. Most residents seem to suffer from "the grass is greener" syndrome on NF vs q4 systems.

 

[goodsamob]

I have seen many posts here glorifying night float. I have to agree that it is not necessarily a beautiful thing. At my program, we only do two night float shifts during residency. One each during the first two years, each lasting 6 weeks. (the night float resident covers our high risk service and the ER and is extremely busy) The rest of the time you average 5 to 6 calls a month. (there are 2 juniors on each night, one night float, one traditional call)

I was miserable on night float. Our hours were 7p to 7a (Su-Th) then you stayed until rounds with the perinatologist were finished, sometime between 8a and 9a making for a 13 to 14 hour day. That doesn't mean much time left for sleep, shower, eating, daily life chores, etc. And for the most part it leaves very little time during the week with family. And I was lucky, as I have seen many programs where the night float start at 5 or 6p.

Here's the other thing, as sort of mentioned before. If you are on a straight night float system, you never get a day off during the week, plus you work weekends the rest of the year (Work a few Saturdays in a row in an 80 hour workweek and see how you feel!).

At my program with traditional call I get a few days off in the month, post call. If you have a good call night and get a few hours of sleep you feel like you are playing hookie the next day 🙂

This is a bit of a rambling post, but I think it would be a shame to blow off a program you might be interested in simply because they don't have night float. It's not all its cracked up to be. Just my 2 cents...

GoodSamOB

 

[community]

At my program with traditional call I get a few days off in the month, post call. If you have a good call night and get a few hours of sleep you feel like you are playing hookie the next day 🙂
GoodSamOB

What exactly do you consider "traditional call"?

I was looking at a program that is q3 call for PGY1 and q4 PGY 2 - 4. Are you really saying that something lie this is better than night float?

 

[neilc]

things i consider essential when looking at programs:
1) will i come out well trained? to answer this i look at the case numbers and resident autonomy, as well as didactics and surgical skills training. ask the upper years if they feel prepared for going out in the real world. also, strong minimally invasive training is essential.
2) how happy are the residents? i have found that residents feel happy if they are feel important, and that the hours they work and learn are well spent. if it is a supportive environment, even busy residents seem happy. and, i plan to spend 4 years in this program, and i am not willing to sacrafice my personal happiness for training.
3) will the program get you where you are going? i like to keep in mind that even though i am not currently interested in a fellowship, i should still keep the door open a little bit. it is tough to imagine now what i will be doing in 4 years, and with further exposure a fellowship may turn out to be the right thing. so, keeping that option open is important, which will lead me to certain program types. consider what you think you want to do, and what you may want to do.
4) is the program ok geographically/lifestyle-wise? ask about recreation, cost of living, events outside of the program, schools, or whatever may be important to you and your family.

also, it is important to be sort of flexible with what your perceptions are. two examples...some say go to a program with night float only. this may lead you to pass over some programs with conventional call schedules that are better, and these programs may do a very good job of managing the call, giving you a better experience than night float, and keeping reasonable hours. and be flexible with geography..i recently interviewed at a place where i had never visited, and assumed would be ok at best. i loved it, nice town, great cost of living and a surprising amount of fun to be had. there are surprises out there, don't shut them out.

best of luck!

 

[goodsamob]

What exactly do you consider "traditional call"?

I was looking at a program that is q3 call for PGY1 and q4 PGY 2 - 4. Are you really saying that something lie this is better than night float?

By traditional call I simply meant non night float. Our program, however, is not straight q4. One of the beautiful things about our program is that they (chief residents) make out the schedule 6 months at a time. This way, there are a certain number of calls that need covered over the six months, but not a set number that have to be done by one person in a month. I might have a couple of q3 followed by a week and a half of no call. For me, this is a beautiful thing, knowing I will wake up and go to sleep in my own bed so many nights in a row!

See, not all traditional call systems are bad! 🙂

GoodSamOb