Recommended electives during prelim year

[EyeDocMD]

---

Members don't see this ad.

Hello everyone,

I just matched to ophtho and prelim and I am very excited!! During my prelim year there are 3 elective months and I was not sure which electives would be beneficial. Some electives that I heard of were neuroradiology, oculopathology, neurology, and of course ophthalmology itself.

Does anyone have any other recommendation?

Thank you in advance!!

 

[Visionary]

Hello everyone,

I just matched to ophtho and prelim and I am very excited!! During my prelim year there are 3 elective months and I was not sure which electives would be beneficial. Some electives that I heard of were neuroradiology, oculopathology, neurology, and of course ophthalmology itself.

Does anyone have any other recommendation?

Thank you in advance!!

I found neuro (stroke team) and derm somewhat beneficial. There was a little crossover with ophthalmology there. Of course, the main goal of intern year is to maximize your general medicine exposure. You'll never get it that intensively again, and (despite the opinions of some) you DO use it. I deal with at least a few general medicine issues every day.

 

[DKofLV]

Hello everyone,

I just matched to ophtho and prelim and I am very excited!! During my prelim year there are 3 elective months and I was not sure which electives would be beneficial. Some electives that I heard of were neuroradiology, oculopathology, neurology, and of course ophthalmology itself.

Does anyone have any other recommendation?

Thank you in advance!!

I think Neuroradiology would be better than neurology itself based on one reason alone...I look at CT/MRIs of the brain/orbit EVERY day in clinic...I didnt learn much of it in med school other than the basics.

However, that being said, the benefit of Neurology is when there are diseases like Myotonic Dystrophy and Myasthenia Gravis that manifest in the eye, you know those well...but my Neurology rotations were mostly stroke/seizure services so they didnt help much with Ophtho.

If I had to pick 3 (This is just my opinion): Neuroradiology, Rheumatology, Ophthalmology...(up to you about switching derm for rheum).

 

[Mirror Form]

If I had to pick 3 (This is just my opinion): Neuroradiology, Rheumatology, Ophthalmology...(up to you about switching derm for rheum).

I'd go with Rheumatology over derm if you're looking for medical knowledge that will correlate nicely with ophthalmology. But Derm is great b/c you actually get to do lots of little mole excisions and stuff. During my internship I didn't get to do too much surgery. So it was great do tons of minor procedures in on my derm rotation.

Neurology would also be a very useful elective, but I'd go with Neuro-radiology of oculopath (if available) instead as well. Having one more rotation where you're not on call q3 will be very nice.

 

[jj326]

Ophthalmic pathology, if available, is a great way to learn some basics and get some exposure to a topic you get absolutely no exposure to during medical school. I also did a neuroradiology month (very helpful) and an ophthalmology month. To echo Visionary, get the most out of your medical rotations. I use that knowledge often and, if nothing else, it really helps to know where consultants are coming from (if they happen to have a clue).

 

[EyeDocMD]

Thanks everyone for valuable opinion. I think I can narrow it down to neuroradiology, oculopathology, and ophthalmology for now.

Thanks again and I greatly appreciate everyone's input!!

 

[medstudentmed]

I found neuro (stroke team) and derm somewhat beneficial. There was a little crossover with ophthalmology there. Of course, the main goal of intern year is to maximize your general medicine exposure. You'll never get it that intensively again, and (despite the opinions of some) you DO use it. I deal with at least a few general medicine issues every day.

What kind of general medicine issues do you address everyday?

Also, why would you guys recommend doing an ophthalmology rotation if you will be doing it everyday once residency starts? (assuming the goal here is to get maximum exposure that is)

 

[jj326]

Whether or not I personally address general med issues everyday, it definitely helps to have more than basic knowledge of how inpatient medicine, emergency medicine, and general surgery relate to problems I see in the clinic, and how my exam changes their management.

As far as doing an ophthalmology rotation in prelim year, it helped me have a foundation for starting a busy clinical rotation. The exposure I got as a med student, no matter how hands on I was, paled in comparison to taking care of my own ophthalmology patients. In the end everyone is on the same level, but it made me feel much more comfortable seeing patients as an intern before I started residency.