Surgery versus Medicine Prelim

[anestheticman]

Advertisement - Members don't see this ad

I'm toying with the idea of just forgetting about medicine and transitional years and just applying to surgery prelim years for the following reasons
a) not having to worry about all the $$$ spent and travel
b) knowing I can live where I want and be around friends/family during that busy year where I won't have time to meet new people
c) well surgery was my favorite rotation with glowing comments (along with anesthesia and ICU, etc.) and I don't mind the running around and occasionally being yelled at versus painful long rounds and clinics
d) to remain sane during the interview season.

Another thing I want to know is when a surgery program doesn't fill or get close to filling, is that a really bad sign? Am I suicidal by considering doing this/relying on getting into a program like this simply because of a desirable location for the year?

 

[InductionAgent]

It sounds like you would be happy on a surgical prelim since you enjoy being yelled at, so I'd go for that. While I did a CB year through my anesthesia program, I certainly learned a lot during the surgery rotations. You're going to be taking care of surgical patients as an anesthesiologist, so a surgery prelim would arguably be more germane. When you have sick patients requiring medicine consultation, try actually reading the consultants' notes and treating the consultants with courtesy. They can teach you some things that you might otherwise miss by not doing medicine rotations.

 

[Trisomy13]

30-40 anesthesia applications is a good idea. you will at least get some interviews and more likely than not get more than you expect.

30-40 applications for prelim medicine seems like too many. 10-15 is more reasonable if you apply to prelim positions at less prestigious or community hospitals. even if you get 20 prelim interviews you'll hate going to them after just a few. it's hard to keep up the interest level for a one-year position that will have little impact on your career.

 

[jennyboo]

Honestly you can apply to any prelim you want, whether medicine or surgery. If you can't decide and you have the money to throw away, there's nothing wrong with applying for both. Also, don't delude yourself into thinking that medicine prelims are "easier" than surgery prelims, or that night float is "better" than overnight call. A lot of people think so, but it's not true -- for anyone you ask, the grass is always greener on the other side. You will get yelled at in surgery and you will get yelled at in medicine, although the way they do it is different (so pick your poison). You will work your butt off in surgery and you will work your butt off in medicine, although the work you do is not the same (so pick your poison). Quality of life is program dependent more than it is specialty dependent.

Agreed that 30-40 prelim programs (no matter what specialty) seems like overkill. If your MSPE really says you're gonna be in the bottom 5%, then yeah, you should probably rank a good number of prelims. But it still seems unlikely (not from a population study but from personal guess, though) to go below, say, prelim #15 on your list if you are a US medical graduate.

Some prelim spots are at programs that honestly are begging for residents. The catch is that they're usually begging for categorical residents while the prelims tend to be a little stronger as applicants. But even if you're scraping the bottom of the barrel (and some prelims at noncompetitive programs are REALLY, ummm, challenged) it shouldn't be THAT hard to get a prelim.

If you plan to interview at a lot of programs, spread them out over several months to avoid burnout. Spread them out from November through January.