Required knowledge on US medical system

[BuildingMyOwnLuck]

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Hey guys, I'll be going to an interview soon but since I'm Canadian I'm not too well versed in the US system. How much should I research into it? Basic knowledge or in depth pros cons and current issues? And if latter, anybody knows any good resources (apart from interview feedback page)? Thank you.

Sidenote, if they ask me any questions on opinions of US healthcare vs Canadian, should I refrain from saying that I like the Canadian system better? I'm not sure how against the med schools in states are to the more socialist style healthcare.

 

[Dr panda]

Following (there is nothing wrong in liking Canadian system, American one is far from the best)

 

[82Scout]

I don't think you are expected to have a very complex understanding of the medical system or actual medical conditions. You will learn a lot about these things in medical school. Even the questions I was asked that pertained to the medical system were really more ethical/critical thinking questions that didn't really require any prior knowledge. You can always ask follow up questions to gather more information if you are uncertain of something.


In my experience it can't hurt to study up on current hot topics, but I don't think its needed. The one thing you should never do is make statements or speak on things that you don't have a clue about.

 

[marcosma]

I was really nervous about this going into interview season, but it has yet to come up in any interview. At all. In any capacity!

 

[deleted987519]

I was really nervous about this going into interview season, but it has yet to come up in any interview. At all. In any capacity!

So far, I have only received one, but pretty easy IMO, "Name one problem in healthcare and propose a solution"

Definitely not as hot of a topic as I thought

 

[Cornfed101]

I was really nervous about this going into interview season, but it has yet to come up in any interview. At all. In any capacity!

+1

 

[Blueprint Med School]

It's not going to hurt you to familiarize yourself with the major aspects of both healthcare systems. If you can show a genuine interest and have insight that is beyond "I spent 2 days Googling things in order to prepare for my interviews," then that will only be in your benefit. But I've never heard of an interviewer ask about specific topics in healthcare or news.

It's not bad to prefer another healthcare system. I'm sure many American physicians would consider our healthcare system flawed as well, but as long as you can justify it in a civilized way, then you're golden.

Kevin W, MCAT Tutor
Med School Tutors

 

[mdloading]

I think you should definitely brush up on the US healthcare system. Also Canadian (but US permanent resident), and it’s been a talking point in a couple of my interviews literally i think because of my citizenship (and probably also because I’m interested in health policy). But it always starts out “so your Canadian i see...what’s your thoughts on x,y,z topic in healthcare. I would say to be safe have one or two pros and cons about each system even if you heavily favor the Canadian system. Good luck!

 

[CatDad26]

I had it come up three times in interviews so far. Once was what is a current issue in healthcare and what's an idea to fix it (MMI style). The other two times were simply what are some issues in healthcare and we just have a nice conversation after I identified one or two.

I am from the US and still knew barely anything leading into the application cycle. I used kff.org to read up on current healthcare trends and issues. Also just a simple google search into top issues in healthcare.

You dont need to be an expert in these though, that is not the point. Just be somewhat familiar, understand the issues, and be able to converse a little about it.

 

[wehhe14112]

I've had it come up in a couple of my interview as well. I didn't really know anything about health care policy going into the application cycle, so I just did some quick google search so that I had some talking points in case it came up. At one of my interviews this worked out and we had a pleasant conversation, but at another interview my interviewer was an expert on health policy and wasn't afraid to call me out for not having a deep knowledge about health issues.