Rehab

[integratethis]

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[QofQuimica]

This is a tough question. The answer to your question is, both. You will get asked about why you did poorly in school the first time, and you will need to have an answer to that. It may be hard to explain your record without mentioning it, and if you don't give a good reason for the gap in your history, people tend to assume the worst (prison, insane asylum, you get my drift).

However, you will also likely run into resistance if you have a known history of substance abuse, and understandably so. Physicians with substance abuse problems are put into positions of serious temptation, particularly if they go into certain high risk specialties like anesthesiology or emergency medicine where they're handling controlled substances. Anesthesiology is especially high risk; a few anesthesiologists (and nurse anesthetists) die every year from overdoses. So if you are going to be up front about your past, I suggest that you also show insight into this issue and go on record as planning to avoid specialties that give you ready access to controlled substances.

Please note that I'm not merely suggesting what you should say to adcoms; anyone with a history of substance abuse truly should not go into anesthesiology for their own safety and for the sake of maintaining their sobriety. Hopefully that wasn't your dream specialty....

 

[wholeheartedly]

Also note you'll likely have to disclose for state licensure regardless and even though you don't currently have a problem, you could find yourself under the supervision of a monitoring board, depending on the state and how they roll.

 

[fobw]

I'm 15+ years sober and a US MD student. I vote: don't disclose unless/until required.

This conversation comes up on SDN about once a year. Search for "sober" or "sobriety" or "DUI" and ignore anything in pre-allo. There's no wisdom in pre-allo.

If you feel compelled to disclose, do it during your interview, face to face.

One med school out of the dozens I applied to asked about substance abuse history, and I got waitlisted there. I do not believe I was waitlisted for my disclosure, but for my substantial GPA damage. I only got two interviews out of dozens of apps, MD and DO, and had to apply multiple times after doing more school.

The licensing requirements vary by state, and change over time. Some states say "10 years or more" and some say "have you ever" and some say "any arrests etc". The requirements aren't terribly difficult to find by googling <your state> medical licensing board. California's is the easiest to navigate.

Monitoring boards are used for those with recent convictions or infractions on the job, at the discretion of your employer. Monitoring is expensive and they don't do it for something that happened 5-10 years ago - you lose your license or you stop being monitored, one or the other.

Whether a med school accepts you or not is just a blip in a lifetime of staying healthy and sober and honest. Prioritize accordingly. Seek wise adult supervision forever. Good luck.

 

[integratethis]

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