Take offer or stay 3 year in PMSR without RRA

[newfeet]

I'm currently a second year at a program in the northeast. I have the option to receive the PMS-24 certification or the PMSR certification. I've been looking for a job and recently received an offer 90k. I have to purchase malpractice of which 90% will be reimbursed. Health insurance covered. No incentive structure. I can negotiate the offer. Or I can stay for 3 year.

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[dyk343]

I'm with Anklebreaker. You might gain in the short run but suffer in the long run.

 

[newfeet]

I don't agree. My training isn't going to change I will be working the same attendings doing the same type of cases. I picked my program because it was 2 years. Staying now feels like I'm doing a 2 year program in 3 instead of 2.

 

[dyk343]

The point Ankle Breaker made was all of your colleagues will have a 3 year residency. When you go out to find a job later you will be at a disadvantage with a 2 year residency.

But were just pod students and haven't played the game yet. Maybe an attending can weigh in more.

Edit: You're also probably making $40K this year? Why sell early for an extra $50K?

 

[newfeet]

Cause I'm ready to go and I dont personally see the PMS- 24 as a disadvantage if I did I would have ranked PMS- 36 programs higher. PMSR and PMS-24 both lead to ABPS foot surgery certification only.

 

[PADPM]

Cause I'm ready to go and I dont personally see the PMS- 24 as a disadvantage if I did I would have ranked PMS- 36 programs higher. PMSR and PMS-24 both lead to ABPS foot surgery certification only.

Why ask the question if you already have your mind made up?

I believe that despite your comments that your third year will basically be a repeat of your 2nd year, experience is experience. The more cases you perform, the better prepared you will be for future practice. As stated, your colleagues will all have 3 years and you won't. A future employer will not necessarily know the details of your 3rd year repetitive training, because he/she may not even consider looking at you when all others applying have 3 year programs.

That 3rd year will never hurt.

 

[ldsrmdude]

I'm currently a second year at a program in the northeast. I have the option to receive the PMS-24 certification or the PMSR certification. I've been looking for a job and recently received an offer 90k. I have to purchase malpractice of which 90% will be reimbursed. Health insurance covered. No incentive structure. I can negotiate the offer. Or I can stay for 3 year.

I don't think you'd be crazy for only doing 2 years. I understand what PADPM is saying about getting experience, but in the end, you're still going to have the same opportunity for board certification, ie neither way will have you qualified for RRA certification. In my mind, the places that are going to give you significantly higher starting salaries are going to care more about that than whether you did 3 years or 2. We're at the tail end of the period where some DPMs graduated and did 2 years of residency and some did 3. I know podiatrists who had the choice and chose to do 2 years because they wanted to get out and start working earlier. I don't think you'd be any less ready to go out and practice with 2 years residency than a graduate who did his residency 10 years ago when 2 years was what a larger percentage of graduates received. The extra year would not hurt you, but only you can decide how much more it would offer you.

 

[newfeet]

Why ask the question if you already have your mind made up?

I believe that despite your comments that your third year will basically be a repeat of your 2nd year, experience is experience. The more cases you perform, the better prepared you will be for future practice. As stated, your colleagues will all have 3 years and you won't. A future employer will not necessarily know the details of your 3rd year repetitive training, because he/she may not even consider looking at you when all others applying have 3 year programs.

That 3rd year will never hurt.

I haven't made up my mind. I just don't see PMS 24 as disadvantage. So saying that it is doesn't help. If I ended staying its not because I view the PMS 24 as a disadvantage.

 

[g squared 23]

I would apply for fellowships and try to advance your training and education. If you feel like you won't gain much from that extra year, then you're probably right. Experience is always a good thing, but getting a different view on Podiatry from an established authority might benefit you more.

Another option would be to continue with your current program and try to schedule some really solid off service rotations. Not only will you be vastly increasing your knowledge base, you'll also be meeting and hopefully impressing well upon these other doctors in the area that you plan on practicing in.

 

[diabeticfootdr]

Isn't that easier said than done? From my understanding the accredited fellowships are pretty competitive and sometimes it comes down to "who you know" or what program you are coming from. I'm sure there are plenty non-accredited fellowships out there but then one must question the quality of those fellowships which may not have a long track record. Just sayin...

Podiatry fellowship are MOSTLY about "who you know" and only a few are accredited. Accreditation doesn't help the fellow at all, may even be a detriment. It helps the fellowship program by allowing it to be partially funded by CMS (as an extension of residency). The reason why podiatry fellowships aren't eligible for full funding is because they don't lead to anything different than a residency. Residencies lead to a certificate. Fellowship lead to a .... residency certificate? That problem has to be fixed by the profession. Fellowships must lead to a certificate of added qualification (CAQ) by one of the boards, ABPM or ABPS. That CAQ can be in some specialty area of podiatry like sports med, wound care, trauma.

Fellowships, right now, are more about spending a year in mentorship with someone who you want to emulate.

 

[diabeticfootdr]

I haven't made up my mind. I just don't see PMS 24 as disadvantage. So saying that it is doesn't help. If I ended staying its not because I view the PMS 24 as a disadvantage.

I did a PM&S-24. Our residency program was restructured the year I entered.

Ideally, residencies should be standardized to 3 years and lead to same certificate. That's not what happens now. Yes, they're all 3 years, but some 3 years lead to certification in foot surgery and others lead to an additional RRA certificate. How stupid. And it still perpetuates this ridiculous dichotomy in podiatry creating that Mason-Dixon line across the foot, dividing it into forefoot or rearfoot and ankle. (PS what would you think of hand surgeons self-discriminating into metacarpal and phalange surgeons or carpal and wrist surgeons?)

In your scenario, you get a certificate in foot surgery whether you leave after 2 years and take a PMS-24 or you stay an extra year and do a PMS. If you're comfortable, it makes no sense to stay. I don't think that fact alone will impact your future practice, prestige, or income potential.

 

[MadMark]

I'm currently a second year at a program in the northeast. I have the option to receive the PMS-24 certification or the PMSR certification. I've been looking for a job and recently received an offer 90k. I have to purchase malpractice of which 90% will be reimbursed. Health insurance covered. No incentive structure. I can negotiate the offer. Or I can stay for 3 year.

Is 90K base + no incentives the best offer you could find?

 

[newfeet]

Is 90K base + no incentives the best offer you could find?

I'm negotiating and going on other interviews.

 

[newfeet]

I did a PM&S-24. Our residency program was restructured the year I entered.

Ideally, residencies should be standardized to 3 years and lead to same certificate. That's not what happens now. Yes, they're all 3 years, but some 3 years lead to certification in foot surgery and others lead to an additional RRA certificate. How stupid. And it still perpetuates this ridiculous dichotomy in podiatry creating that Mason-Dixon line across the foot, dividing it into forefoot or rearfoot and ankle. (PS what would you think of hand surgeons self-discriminating into metacarpal and phalange surgeons or carpal and wrist surgeons?)

In your scenario, you get a certificate in foot surgery whether you leave after 2 years and take a PMS-24 or you stay an extra year and do a PMS. If you're comfortable, it makes no sense to stay. I don't think that fact alone will impact your future practice, prestige, or income potential.

If I stay the 3rd year I wont have to log cases for the ABPM certification. That's a plus.

 

[newankle]

Get at least 3 years training. FYI I wouldn't even interview you with less than 3 years surgical training.

 

[willingdoc]

Did you try applying for multispecialty/ortho groups where starting salaries can be $150,000 plus? I can imagine that ortho groups would prefer a 3 year residency but I'm not sure.

 

[newfeet]

Turned down the job. Applied and interviewed at other places including one multi speciality group. Just waiting to see what happens.

 

[cg2a93]

I did the same thing, I left after 2 years. I am in private practice and had no ambitions of working for anyone. It has worked out well for me. I think your on the right track. I suspect you have weighed your options.

 

[DrRock44]

I did a PM&S-24. Our residency program was restructured the year I entered.

Ideally, residencies should be standardized to 3 years and lead to same certificate. That's not what happens now. Yes, they're all 3 years, but some 3 years lead to certification in foot surgery and others lead to an additional RRA certificate. How stupid. And it still perpetuates this ridiculous dichotomy in podiatry creating that Mason-Dixon line across the foot, dividing it into forefoot or rearfoot and ankle. (PS what would you think of hand surgeons self-discriminating into metacarpal and phalange surgeons or carpal and wrist surgeons?)

In your scenario, you get a certificate in foot surgery whether you leave after 2 years and take a PMS-24 or you stay an extra year and do a PMS. If you're comfortable, it makes no sense to stay. I don't think that fact alone will impact your future practice, prestige, or income potential.

Dr.R, do you feel that Having the RRA certificate gives one a significant advantage in terms of earning potential and/or marketability?

 

[diabeticfootdr]

It could. The public and most other doctors don't understand our confusing postgraduate training model (albeit it's becoming less confusing). So you'll have to spend a lot of time explaining it, and your explanation of various training levels furthers the dichotomous description of our profession that damages it - since you'll have to describe the 'haves' and the 'have nots'. It's just mind boggling why everyone who does 3 years of PG training wouldn't get an RRA - and in that case, we'd just call everyone foot and ankle surgeons and be done with it!