Duke neuro has really suffered in the past by not being it's own department, but instead a division of Duke internal medicine. Coupled with the crazy malignant internal medicine culture down there, both medicine and neuro have reportedly had trouble filling multiple times within the last decade. Given that the research triangle is a great area to live in, that is concerning.
I know this is a neurology thread, but I can't let these comments slide without a reply, as they're incredibly unfair and misleading. As a Duke medicine resident, I take issue with the assertion that there's a "crazy malignant internal medicine culture" here. This is an unfortunate claim that for some reason is perpetuated on these message boards without substantiating evidence, and is entirely contrary to the experience of myself and my colleages here, and really not based in any current reality about Duke. I've suspected for some time now that this sentiment is based on how things used to be, about 10 years ago, when things indeed were rather hardcore and unfriendly here in many ways. Quite a bit has changed since then. If you're interested in hearing more about the reasons why this rumor isn't true, look at my prior posts and you'll see that I've written quite a bit about it, with lots of substantiating evidence and experience rather than hearsay as is too often the case.
It's also not true that medicine and neuro have "failed to fill multiple times in the last decade," as is asserted above. Medicine and neuro didn't fill just once, last year, and based on the research that was done by our department it was not for the reasons that you're implying. Indeed, it was followed up by the most incredibly successful match Duke has had in at least a decade, in March 2009, including neurology. And last year's match result helped bolster adminisrative and financial support of our programs, such that we've been able to restructure some areas to further enhance resident quality of life and the overall educational experience.
I too have heard people say that the clinical training in neurology is much better elsewhere as compared to Duke (although it's still more of a top program nonetheless), but I've yet to hear anything legitimate said that substantiates this assertion. I'm not a neurology resident but I know at least half of them, and I can guarantee you that they're incredibly well-trained, smart, insightful people. As compared to a place where lots of ivory tower people are doing big money research but ignoring patients and residents, our most famous and fantastic neurologists are actually rounding quite regularly at Duke, including people like Dr. Larry Goldstein, the world-renowned stroke expert. The neurology faculty at Duke are actually some of my favorite people here...it's a really great bunch of smart, personable, and good-natured individuals who enjoy working with the housestaff. They're great teachers too. And regarding the other point raised in the above post, honestly I'm not sure that the structure of the department has any impact whatsoever on residency training, but it is indeed true that neurology has historically been a division of internal medicine rather than a separate department.
It's really a phenomenal program housed within a fantastic institution, and if you let rumors and hearsay dictate your willingness to give it a chance then you're really doing yourself a disservice. Come check it out, and like many other Duke people, you may love it so much that you never leave!
