Which residency specialties best align with what you learn in medical school?

[Serve Others]

Which residency specialties best align with what you learn in medical school? I'm thinking probably family medicine and internal medicine. Am I off? If so then which one(s) would? Which would you also add?

From my understanding part of residency is applying what you learned in med school. Besides the (learning how to learn/growth as a medical professional) during med school, I guess my question is which medical residencies best allows you, naturally by the scope of the specialty you're in, to make use of those concepts/material from courses you learn during M1&M2? On the other hand, M3&M4 education seems like would broadly apply to any residency as it encompasses more of the learning in rotations and exploring medical specialities of interest. Please correct me If I am wrong.

Hope all this makes sense. Thanks in advance for your time and feedback.

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[bashwell]

Which residency specialties best align with what you learn in medical school? I'm thinking probably family medicine and internal medicine. Am I off? If so then which one(s) would? Which would you also add?

From my understanding part of residency is applying what you learned in med school. Besides the (learning how to learn/growth as a medical professional) during med school, I guess my question is which medical residencies best allows you, naturally by the scope of the specialty you're in, to make use of those concepts/material from courses you learn during M1&M2? On the other hand, M3&M4 education seems like would broadly apply to any residency as it encompasses more of the learning in rotations and exploring medical specialities of interest. Please correct me If I am wrong.

Hope all this makes sense. Thanks in advance for your time and feedback.

I agree with you, OP. I'd say all of them have some "alignment" with what's learned in med school, but the most directly "aligned" specialties are probably FM, EM, IM. Although EM you're not on the wards, whereas in med school you spend a lot of time on the wards. I guess GS to some degree as well.

 

[j4pac]

Most schools have the most required rotations in IM...not to mention that second year most closely related to IM. I'm going IM in a landslide.

 

[BigRedBeta]

Not a residency, but if you're talking application of physiology it's critical care, then anesthesia but anesthesia doesn't incorporate pathophys to the same extent as critical care. While adult critical care is often combined with pulmonary medicine, there is a large generalist component to it as well. This is even more true in pediatric critical care where critical care is not combined with other fields in fellowship training.

 

[akwho]

..

 

[pedstar09]

Might also consider EM (variety of cases) and pathology (all those slides and pictures)

 

[alpinebrook]

If you're talking about medical knowledge per se, then I think pathology would be right up there. It lacks application of clinical skills, but then again, I didn't really learn much hands-on stuff in medical school (not well enough to be proficient).

From my understanding part of residency is applying what you learned in med school.

True... but I once heard someone say that medical school can be thought of as a very long process to get to residency, where the "real" learning begins. I am wholeheartedly expecting this to be true as a I head into my residency this summer.

 

[Law2Doc]

"... but I once heard someone say that medical school can be thought of as a very long process to get to residency, where the "real" learning begins."


Yeah, med school is foundation, and you learn to be a doctor in residency. If you are just looking to just apply med school knowledge you aren't going to be very good.

 

[caffeinemia]

Isn't it anesthesia?

Sit/stand* and look at phone, check vitals every half hour? I'm pretty sure med students excel at that on pre-rounds and rounds in most of the 3rd year clerkships.

 

[Siggy]

A good internal medicine or family medicine physician. By good, I mean someone who doesn't subscribe to panconsultitis.

 

[Psai]

Isn't it anesthesia?

Sit/stand* and look at phone, check vitals every half hour? I'm pretty sure med students excel at that on pre-rounds and rounds in most of the 3rd year clerkships.

Since when do med students do vitals anymore?

 

[caffeinemia]

Since when do med students do vitals anymore?

Since when does anesthesia take a manual bp, hr, or anything? You both read it off a computer, or did they not teach you about EMRs and rounding on your patients at your fine institution.

 

[Goro]

I don't know...maybe all of them?

Which residency specialties best align with what you learn in medical school? I'm thinking probably family medicine and internal medicine. Am I off? If so then which one(s) would? Which would you also add?

From my understanding part of residency is applying what you learned in med school. Besides the (learning how to learn/growth as a medical professional) during med school, I guess my question is which medical residencies best allows you, naturally by the scope of the specialty you're in, to make use of those concepts/material from courses you learn during M1&M2? On the other hand, M3&M4 education seems like would broadly apply to any residency as it encompasses more of the learning in rotations and exploring medical specialities of interest. Please correct me If I am wrong.

Hope all this makes sense. Thanks in advance for your time and feedback.

 

[Psai]

Since when does anesthesia take a manual bp, hr, or anything? You both read it off a computer, or did they not teach you about EMRs and rounding on your patients at your fine institution.

Who said anything about manual bp or hr kid? There's a difference between reading off a computer in real time and reading off what a nurse put into the computer, or did they not teach you that at your illustrious residency program

 

[Serve Others]

"... but I once heard someone say that medical school can be thought of as a very long process to get to residency, where the "real" learning begins."


Yeah, med school is foundation, and you learn to be a doctor in residency. If you are just looking to just apply med school knowledge you aren't going to be very good.

Then what is the substantial benefit of med school besides a LIMITED foundation for some specialities? Is it reasonable to think that there is a better way to structure medical school so that is more advantageous whereas it shortens in educational time or just better tailors to very specialized feels like ortho, optho, derm, neuro, plastics, etc. that potential students will like to explore? The sense that I'm getting is that there is no much overlapping and you will truly learn your skill set and how to be a physician once you start in your residency...isn't then a more intuitive way of getting students to become quality doctors than just having to do 4 undergrad + 4 med + 3-9 residency/w fellowship?

 

[Serve Others]

Thank you all for your replies so far.

 

[HooliganSnail]

Isn't it anesthesia?

Sit/stand* and look at phone, check vitals every half hour? I'm pretty sure med students excel at that on pre-rounds and rounds in most of the 3rd year clerkships.

O man, I was thinking about this same joke, but you beat me to it. Great minds....

 

[Law2Doc]

Then what is the substantial benefit of med school besides a LIMITED foundation for some specialities? Is it reasonable to think that there is a better way to structure medical school so that is more advantageous whereas it shortens in educational time or just better tailors to very specialized feels like ortho, optho, derm, neuro, plastics, etc. that potential students will like to explore? The sense that I'm getting is that there is no much overlapping and you will truly learn your skill set and how to be a physician once you start in your residency...isn't then a more intuitive way of getting students to become quality doctors than just having to do 4 undergrad + 4 med + 3-9 residency/w fellowship?

Med school is (1) foundation and (2) its exposure so you can pick you specialty. You learn a little beyond that, but frankly you can't cover nearly as much ground as you'd think in just four years.

As far as there being a more intuitive way to educate doctors I think you'll see that there's a lot of ground to cover just to get you to the point that you can start learning this job. Other countries skimp on the undergrad or sometimes some of the residency, but our system came later and there are some definite advantages in the way we do things. The goal isn't just to push people through fast, like some vocational school.

 

[bashwell]

Then what is the substantial benefit of med school besides a LIMITED foundation for some specialities? Is it reasonable to think that there is a better way to structure medical school so that is more advantageous whereas it shortens in educational time or just better tailors to very specialized feels like ortho, optho, derm, neuro, plastics, etc. that potential students will like to explore? The sense that I'm getting is that there is no much overlapping and you will truly learn your skill set and how to be a physician once you start in your residency...isn't then a more intuitive way of getting students to become quality doctors than just having to do 4 undergrad + 4 med + 3-9 residency/w fellowship?

1) Actually, what's learned in med school is very much foundational to all specialties. It's not "limited" and there is often considerable "overlap" (depending on the specialty). And medicine isn't just about learning a certain "skill set". There's so much more. Basically, please don't take criticisms of med school to imply that therefore med school isn't relevant to becoming a doctor. It very much is.

2) There are probably better ways do med school. But unfortunately I don't see that happening any time soon. We just have to deal with it as it is.

3) Check out how other nations do med school and residency. For example, see Australia/New Zealand and emergency medicine here.

 

[HooliganSnail]

Then what is the substantial benefit of med school besides a LIMITED foundation for some specialities? Is it reasonable to think that there is a better way to structure medical school so that is more advantageous whereas it shortens in educational time or just better tailors to very specialized feels like ortho, optho, derm, neuro, plastics, etc. that potential students will like to explore? The sense that I'm getting is that there is no much overlapping and you will truly learn your skill set and how to be a physician once you start in your residency...isn't then a more intuitive way of getting students to become quality doctors than just having to do 4 undergrad + 4 med + 3-9 residency/w fellowship?

If you are already unhappy with the system, man are you going to love being a doctor!!!!

 

[gracie369]

Then what is the substantial benefit of med school besides a LIMITED foundation for some specialities? Is it reasonable to think that there is a better way to structure medical school so that is more advantageous whereas it shortens in educational time or just better tailors to very specialized feels like ortho, optho, derm, neuro, plastics, etc. that potential students will like to explore? The sense that I'm getting is that there is no much overlapping and you will truly learn your skill set and how to be a physician once you start in your residency...isn't then a more intuitive way of getting students to become quality doctors than just having to do 4 undergrad + 4 med + 3-9 residency/w fellowship?

No. You need to build off of a solid base. When you go to those pre-med PA meetings...never drink the Kool-Aid.