hey all, so i'm researching prgms to apply to and it seems I don't know enuf yet to tell prgms apart. What makes a good program? What are things I should be looking for in a residency training for anesthesia? I want to appear like I know what I'm talking about when I discuss programs with PDs! tHANKS AS ALWAYS
What Makes A Good Program
- Thread starter foodcoma
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foodcoma said:
Bare minimum stuff I found useful to know about every program:
- Are there any areas where you might have trouble meeting your ACGME case number requirements?
- Are residents sent off site to outside hospitals to acquire their ACGME numbers in any area? If so, how long has this been happening? (In most cases this is innocent, but one program I interviewed at was hiding the fact that their surg. dept in one specialty were disaccredited and barred from doing any surgery in one specific area for a year.)
- Residents' annual performance on the Anesthesia Knowledge Test (AKT). Many programs will show you a graph. If you don't see one, it might be worth asking about.
- What's the board pass rate? Has anyone had trouble passing their boards? If so, why?
Extra stuff that is entirely dependent upon your personal preference:
- Presence of didactics (some like daily didactics, others would hate it) and one-on-one teaching. Do you prefer to be "on your own" to read, or do you want the stuff presented to you as well?
- Presence of academic research
- What do most people do after they graduate from the program? Private practice? Are fellowships easily obtained, if you're interested? Where in the country do graduates move to? Do they stay local or do they often leave the area? Have graduates gotten jobs in competitive markets (if you're interested) and geographic locations?
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That sums it up pretty well.
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some secondary topics I considered once the above criteria had been met:
1) flexible 3rd year? if you have met your #'s (as you should have) by CA-3 year, can you do elective time or research or pre-fellowship training? Many programs offer these types of schedules.
2) fellowship opportunities? if you are interested, its always easier to stay 'at home' for a year than to try and break into a new program.
3) cRNA support? im telling you, plenty of people denigrate this idea, but look at programs where they dont have NA support, and the ones Ive seen work their asses off, with the other possible opprtunity being months at a time in the ophtho room doing cataracts or the ENT room doing PE tube after PE tube after....Im all for working hard, but out of my 65+ hour week, some of those hours would be better served outside the OR (library, lectures, conferences, etc.)
4) All the PD's I found seemed, for the most part, extremely interested in ensuring that the residents got good training, were not overworked, and were able to have a life outside the hospital. This could be a lot of lip service, but if you ever see someone NOT concerned with these things, should raise a red flag.
5) do you like the residents? I had a couple where I did not like the residents and it dropped the programs lower in my list.
1) flexible 3rd year? if you have met your #'s (as you should have) by CA-3 year, can you do elective time or research or pre-fellowship training? Many programs offer these types of schedules.
2) fellowship opportunities? if you are interested, its always easier to stay 'at home' for a year than to try and break into a new program.
3) cRNA support? im telling you, plenty of people denigrate this idea, but look at programs where they dont have NA support, and the ones Ive seen work their asses off, with the other possible opprtunity being months at a time in the ophtho room doing cataracts or the ENT room doing PE tube after PE tube after....Im all for working hard, but out of my 65+ hour week, some of those hours would be better served outside the OR (library, lectures, conferences, etc.)
4) All the PD's I found seemed, for the most part, extremely interested in ensuring that the residents got good training, were not overworked, and were able to have a life outside the hospital. This could be a lot of lip service, but if you ever see someone NOT concerned with these things, should raise a red flag.
5) do you like the residents? I had a couple where I did not like the residents and it dropped the programs lower in my list.
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Stillinscrubs said:
Did you guys find a house, by the way?
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Also, find out about the extra perks such as moonlighting, if the program pays for board exams, etc. If you narrow it down between a few programs the little things may be what tips you over toward a specific program.
I had a very tough time deciding between my top 2 programs because both were equally strong and I liked the location of both. In the end the "perks" helped me choose between the two.
Good luck.
I had a very tough time deciding between my top 2 programs because both were equally strong and I liked the location of both. In the end the "perks" helped me choose between the two.
Good luck.
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So the details regarding educational aspects of programs are relativly easy to obtain. What is harder is "Will you be happy there"? To get a feeling for this toss a couple of these questions at the program director but more importantly talk to residents in the program. Get them in the hallway, by e-mail, wherever but make sure it is in private and hit them with the hard questions.
For program directors + residents.
Have you had any residents leave the program? Why?
As Anesthesia is a competitive specialty and the majority of students applying will have strong academic backgrounds and good reference letters. What criteria do you use to differentiate between students you want to invite to your program vs those you do not?
What differentiates your program from others?
What is there about your program that you are especially proud of?
What areas of your program do you feel needs work?
What is the on-call frequency?
Are there off-service rotations? Is there parachute call?
What is the degree of in OR teaching. Are staff present throughout the day or do the residents run the room?
Questions for residents. The above + below.
What do you feel are the strengths and weaknesses of the different programs, or more specifically, the program you were accepted at?
Are there any schools that are considered to have "bad programs"?
Which schools are considered to have "great programs"?
Beside the program that you were accepted at what other programs did you interview at. Why did you pick this one? What did you think of the others.
What do you feel made you a strong candidate?
Is there anything that you felt hurt your chances with a particular school?
If you could do anything differently what would it be?
Knowing what you know now about your program would you chose it again?
What is the balance between teaching and independence in your program?
Are grand round and teaching sessions run mostly by residents or are the staff involved.
ARE YOU AND YOUR OTHER RESIDENTS HAPPY? ARE YOUR SIGNIFICANT OTHERS HAPPY?
Anything else that you feel that I forgot to ask?
With these open ended questions you can get a feel for the program.
For program directors + residents.
Have you had any residents leave the program? Why?
As Anesthesia is a competitive specialty and the majority of students applying will have strong academic backgrounds and good reference letters. What criteria do you use to differentiate between students you want to invite to your program vs those you do not?
What differentiates your program from others?
What is there about your program that you are especially proud of?
What areas of your program do you feel needs work?
What is the on-call frequency?
Are there off-service rotations? Is there parachute call?
What is the degree of in OR teaching. Are staff present throughout the day or do the residents run the room?
Questions for residents. The above + below.
What do you feel are the strengths and weaknesses of the different programs, or more specifically, the program you were accepted at?
Are there any schools that are considered to have "bad programs"?
Which schools are considered to have "great programs"?
Beside the program that you were accepted at what other programs did you interview at. Why did you pick this one? What did you think of the others.
What do you feel made you a strong candidate?
Is there anything that you felt hurt your chances with a particular school?
If you could do anything differently what would it be?
Knowing what you know now about your program would you chose it again?
What is the balance between teaching and independence in your program?
Are grand round and teaching sessions run mostly by residents or are the staff involved.
ARE YOU AND YOUR OTHER RESIDENTS HAPPY? ARE YOUR SIGNIFICANT OTHERS HAPPY?
Anything else that you feel that I forgot to ask?
With these open ended questions you can get a feel for the program.
thanks for all the great ideas. Actually I was more looking to know about things I could write in an application essay/what I should be looking forward to in a program( a lot of cases/differnt kinds of cases, etc)...please help!
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foodcoma said:
Don't you wish someone could just give you the answer....
But I don't think it works that way. Every department has its own idea of what type of person they're looking for, what type of personality you are and what type of values you exhibit. Your answer and your essay aren't going to fit all or even most of them.
You just have to write the darn thing and hope for the best. But maybe you can choose the type of program you want, then ask around and see if there are some people who are at the program who could tell you what their "thing" is.
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