Surgery to Family medicine

[AnonymousSurg]

I am currently a categorical general surgery PGY1 who recently had a change of heart and would like to pursue family medicine. I started having second thoughts about surgery shortly after match day, and now think that my personality is better suited for family medicine. I really loved my FM rotations as a medical student and I miss the patient interaction that you get in family medicine. I have a couple of questions before I consider re-entering the match this year. Ideally I would like to match somewhere in the upper midwest/great lakes area: MN/WI/IL/MI.

What sort of family medicine programs should I be looking at? My USMLE scores are good step 1 >240, step 2 >250.
Is it seen as a red flag if I am already a resident?
What would be the best way to go about getting LORs?

Thanks in advance

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[cabinbuilder]

Why are you going through the match again. Can't you transfer? Are you sure your director will let you go? They will have to "release" you willingly.

 

[AnonymousSurg]

Why are you going through the match again. Can't you transfer? Are you sure your director will let you go? They will have to "release" you willingly.

I was under the impression that I would need to go through the match again if I wanted to go into a different specialty

 

[Ericslv]

I was under the impression that I would need to go through the match again if I wanted to go into a different specialty

Are you sure it's not just 1st year surgical blues. The reason I ask is because the personality profile of an FM doc and surgeon are very different. You pursued surgery and got into it. To me that means you had the personality profile to fit the doctors with whom you met at your rotations and interviews. So what makes you believe you are a better match for FM? I'm not coming down on you. Just some food for thought.

With that said, with your scores it would be relatively easy to match FM. You can also call around and see if there are any open spots that you can start in off cycle. But those are the questions that directors could want you to answer.

But you should really think about why you want to go into FM because once you have made the switch there is no going back.

 

[LUCPM]

We have had at least two residents from surgical specialty who were able to successfully transfer to our program in recent years. They didin't go through the match again. For whatever reasons they transferred, they both said the worst day in FM was still better than the best day in surgery.

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[AnonymousSurg]

Are you sure it's not just 1st year surgical blues. The reason I ask is because the personality profile of an FM doc and surgeon are very different. You pursued surgery and got into it. To me that means you had the personality profile to fit the doctors with whom you met at your rotations and interviews. So what makes you believe you are a better match for FM? I'm not coming down on you. Just some food for thought.

With that said, with your scores it would be relatively easy to match FM. You can also call around and see if there are any open spots that you can start in off cycle. But those are the questions that directors could want you to answer.

But you should really think about why you want to go into FM because once you have made the switch there is no going back.

I 100% agree that FM and surgery are completely different fields and take very different personalities. I think that is what my issue is. I liked the OR as a student and really thought that I could convince myself that I had the surgeon personality, but now as a resident I realize that's not the type of person I am.

 

[Ericslv]

I 100% agree that FM and surgery are completely different fields and take very different personalities. I think that is what my issue is. I liked the OR as a student and really thought that I could convince myself that I had the surgeon personality, but now as a resident I realize that's not the type of person I am.

Then you should have no problem getting into FM. Since you have surgical skill and some affinity for procedures (because you liked the OR) then you can focus on some of that post residency. Good luck with everything.

 

[cabinbuilder]

I was under the impression that I would need to go through the match again if I wanted to go into a different specialty

I transferred into a surgery program directly after doing intern year. I did not go through the match twice. I looked on FREIDA (not sure if that still exists) and looked at spots that were unfilled and called programs applied directly through the program. Not through the match.

And, no, I'm not a surgeon. I went back to FM almost right away kicking myself for ever leaving FM in the first place.