Tulane a risky choice?

[229141]

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I've heard Tulane is a risky choice for med school seeing as they still have a lot damage from Katrina to their hospitals. Not to mention that the likelihood of future hurricanes is fairly probable.

Most docs I talk to seem to say I'd be foolish to apply to Tulane...kind of bums me out cause I like Louisiana a lot..

Any opinions on this?

 

[ZeusonRoids]

I've heard Tulane is a risky choice for med school seeing as they still have a lot damage from Katrina to their hospitals. Not to mention that the likelihood of future hurricanes is fairly probable.

Most docs I talk to seem to say I'd be foolish to apply to Tulane...kind of bums me out cause I like Louisiana a lot..

Any opinions on this?

I was interviewed/accepted there (but do not attend that school). I feel completely opposite. They have GREAT facilities (a new 15 story corporate building was donated to them by an oil company and it is very "executive" looking). Also, there are MANY great opportunities to be in an area in desperate need of medical care and be a part of the re-building process. Second, although a hurricane could potentially cause that much damage to New Orleans, the city has literally been there for hundreds of years and that was by FAR the most destructive...the chances of another Katrina type incident in your 4 years there are slim. Even if they do have another incident, the school itself will not just leave you hanging with no degree...you will finish your MD at another school or in another school Tulane sets up in a different city.

 

[bkz]

BS, hurricanes can happen in many places where medical schools are located, and NOLA is awesome. Did these people also tell you to not apply anywhere in the southeastern US? Or are you trying to start rumors?

 

[TexasPhysician]

You are speaking to ignorant people. Tulane and New Orleans are here to stay. They have already re-built pretty well, and there is enough of a draw to New Orleans to continue re-building it no matter what.

Second, assume now that a second Katrina DID hit. Tulane medical students would just be moved to other facilities. I believe most went to Baylor and UT-Houston medical facilities to continue their training last time.

Tulane is a great school with great opportunities that already has a proven back-up plan (moving students to other facilities). I don't see what is risky about it. It isn't like the school will disappear when you are an MSIII and leave you stranded.

 

[riceman04]

I was interviewed/accepted there (but do not attend that school). I feel completely opposite. They have GREAT facilities (a new 15 story corporate building was donated to them by an oil company and it is very "executive" looking). Also, there are MANY great opportunities to be in an area in desperate need of medical care and be a part of the re-building process. Second, although a hurricane could potentially cause that much damage to New Orleans, the city has literally been there for hundreds of years and that was by FAR the most destructive...the chances of another Katrina type incident in your 4 years there are slim. Even if they do have another incident, the school itself will not just leave you hanging with no degree...you will finish your MD at another school or in another school Tulane sets up in a different city.

To OP: Of course there is some reason behind being fearful of how another natural disaster can potentially interrupt your medical education; however, wherever you go there is a potential for that to occur (e.g earthquakes on the entire west coast; blizzards, tornadoes, and flooding in the midwest; blizzards and hurricanes on the east coast; and hurricanes, tornadoes, and flooding in the south...granted some occur much more frequently than others).

When Katrina did hit Baylor was gracious enough to allow Tulane to use their facilities...so it is likely...in the event of another disaster you will not be "left hanging (Tulane administration has probably developed a strong contingency plan for WHEN something like this occurs again).

Lastly, if you are interested in taking advantage of opportunities to help rebuild the New Orleans healthcare infrastructure and provide services to a significantly larger population lacking necessary resources, Tulane would be a great place for you to consider (like the bolded statement suggests). The experience you would gain there working in that environment would be unprecedented.

best of luck to you

 

[BlueElmo]

Hurricane or no hurricane, I'm applying regardless.

 

[Arzt67]

There's not much reason to worry about another hurricane in the near future. I'm from New Orleans, and Katrina has been the only major hurricane to hit the city since about the '60s. The risk is not nearly as bad as other parts of the gulf coast. You honestly would have much worse odds going to school in Florida, where hurricane damage happens almost every year. Tulane's facilities were repaired pretty fast and were fine (amazing) when I interviewed there. Having gone through Katrina, I'm sure they have also made extensive plans to minimize the interruption to their students in case of another similar storm, however unlikely that may be.

 

[RL536]

hahah, this is so ridiculous. tulane's medical school is not damaged by katrina. in fact, they are stronger. so many important, reputable people have come to tulane after katrina for the very opportunities that katrina created. there are opportunities, not detriments. tulane university hospital, also, is not damaged. so i don't know where you're getting your information! new orleans has some rebuilding issues, as a city (mainly in the lower 9th ward), but tulane certainly does not share these same issues. in fact, medical students at tulane get more hands on experience during their first 2 years of medical school than, arguably, anywhere else, due to the fact that so many clinics down there are opening up due to the realization that a large university hospital system is not the appropriate way to care for their population.

as far as future hurricane... !!?!?! would you not move to california for the fear of earthquakes or wildfires? what about new york city -- aren't you worried about another terrorist attack?

your concerns about new orleans and, more importantly, about tulane, are naive. that being said, however, new orleans is quite a character of a city, and it's certainly not for everyone. tulane is a great school, arguably an even better school now after katrina due to how many names they have attracted and how they are helping to rebuild the new orleans medical system.

 

[229141]

hahah, this is so ridiculous. tulane's medical school is not damaged by katrina. in fact, they are stronger. so many important, reputable people have come to tulane after katrina for the very opportunities that katrina created. there are opportunities, not detriments. tulane university hospital, also, is not damaged. so i don't know where you're getting your information! new orleans has some rebuilding issues, as a city (mainly in the lower 9th ward), but tulane certainly does not share these same issues. in fact, medical students at tulane get more hands on experience during their first 2 years of medical school than, arguably, anywhere else, due to the fact that so many clinics down there are opening up due to the realization that a large university hospital system is not the appropriate way to care for their population.

as far as future hurricane... !!?!?! would you not move to california for the fear of earthquakes or wildfires? what about new york city -- aren't you worried about another terrorist attack?

your concerns about new orleans and, more importantly, about tulane, are naive. that being said, however, new orleans is quite a character of a city, and it's certainly not for everyone. tulane is a great school, arguably an even better school now after katrina due to how many names they have attracted and how they are helping to rebuild the new orleans medical system.

Hey don't jump on me I personally wanna go to Louisiana...family is all there and huge saints/LSU fan lol. I just heard rumors it could be risky (from Docs who are fam friends and live in the area actually..).

I didn't know they'd relocate to Baylor/other school though...that's pretty awesome they have a good back up plan. I'm pretty sure I'll apply now...NO is badass.

 

[RL536]

Hey don't jump on me I personally wanna go to Louisiana...family is all there and huge saints/LSU fan lol. I just heard rumors it could be risky (from Docs who are fam friends and live in the area actually..).

I didn't know they'd relocate to Baylor/other school though...that's pretty awesome they have a good back up plan. I'm pretty sure I'll apply now...NO is badass.

sorry man, didn't mean to make it sound personal! i think this says also says a lot about the type of unique education that tulane has to offer:

"[Students of the Tulane University School of Medicine] embark on an opportunity to help rebuild one of the great American cities. Most medical schools teach you how to take care of patients; at Tulane, you will be an active participant in the reconstruction of a health care system."

nowhere else... well, other than lsu.

 

[pietachok]

I do believe that one of the benefits of attending an AAMC accredited school is that there is an agreement among schools to absorb displaced students if a school closes unpredictably--whether it's due to a natural disaster, abrupt financial issue, or failure of a new school to succeed.

From what I understand, if something terrible happened to Tulane, you are guaranteed to complete your MD education at another school.

It appeared to me that the wealthiest schools disproportionately accommodated displaced students during Katrina, although many were simply sent to colleges closest to home, too. This meant that some of my friends at various graduate/professional schools ended up at higher-ranked Harvard. Getting straight A's at Harvard, I'd say they got double bang for their buck when job-hunting came around...there was no question for employers that they were as good as any applicant with a "bigger name" degree.