Would you be concerned?

[JustPlainBill]

Ok, so here I am in my very first elective of 4th year. Cool. Checking out a program supposedly ranked very high in Texas...Cool again.....

We're rounding on a patient while on the FP medicine service when the 3rd year resident asks what sulfasalazine is for....and is not pimping anyone.....

A little while later, a second year resident asks about omnicef and 'what is it? What's it for?'......

Now, I know that they're busy and are having work thrown at them and just trying to stay sane....more in the paperwork aspect of healthcare and I'm closer to the Step 2 type of info....but would that concern anyone else?

BTW - I know that I have major deficiencies in my knowledge and am busily trying to plug as many of them as I can before residency starts and I'm on deck but I'm asking if I should draw conclusions about the 'strength' of the program based on this sort of thing......

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[andwhat]

Ok, so here I am in my very first elective of 4th year. Cool. Checking out a program supposedly ranked very high in Texas...Cool again.....

We're rounding on a patient while on the FP medicine service when the 3rd year resident asks what sulfasalazine is for....and is not pimping anyone.....

A little while later, a second year resident asks about omnicef and 'what is it? What's it for?'......

Now, I know that they're busy and are having work thrown at them and just trying to stay sane....more in the paperwork aspect of healthcare and I'm closer to the Step 2 type of info....but would that concern anyone else?

BTW - I know that I have major deficiencies in my knowledge and am busily trying to plug as many of them as I can before residency starts and I'm on deck but I'm asking if I should draw conclusions about the 'strength' of the program based on this sort of thing......

where is the spam filter?????

 

[thethom]

Relax, happens everywhere. Learning all the trades and even generics is a work in process for everyone. I did my surgery core at a Yale hospital, and when talking to one of the attendings I mentioned benztropine as one of the meds a patient was taking. He didn't know what it was. Does that imply something to you? No, relax, choose a program that you feel you fit in well with, theyre all about the same in the end...

Ok, so here I am in my very first elective of 4th year. Cool. Checking out a program supposedly ranked very high in Texas...Cool again.....

We're rounding on a patient while on the FP medicine service when the 3rd year resident asks what sulfasalazine is for....and is not pimping anyone.....

A little while later, a second year resident asks about omnicef and 'what is it? What's it for?'......

Now, I know that they're busy and are having work thrown at them and just trying to stay sane....more in the paperwork aspect of healthcare and I'm closer to the Step 2 type of info....but would that concern anyone else?

BTW - I know that I have major deficiencies in my knowledge and am busily trying to plug as many of them as I can before residency starts and I'm on deck but I'm asking if I should draw conclusions about the 'strength' of the program based on this sort of thing......

 

[MedicineDoc]

Relax, happens everywhere. Learning all the trades and even generics is a work in process for everyone. I did my surgery core at a Yale hospital, and when talking to one of the attendings I mentioned benztropine as one of the meds a patient was taking. He didn't know what it was. Does that imply something to you? No, relax, choose a program that you feel you fit in well with, theyre all about the same in the end...

Epocrates should be a feature on your phone as well as the supposed residents in your story who had some questions about a couple of well known drugs.

 

[John Deere Gree]

do you know what Myfortic is? Do you know the trade name of all the statins? Do you know the microbial coverage of all antibiotics?

Doubt it. Pharm (and medicine) takes practice to learn. If you haven't been exposed too much to a certain drug, then it's likely you don't know/won't remember the pharmacology of that given drug.

People learn different things at different times. That's part of residency. You'll learn that next year.

No need to be concerned.

 

[ShyFly]

The learning curve during internship is ridiculous... You don't worry!

 

[JustPlainBill]

Ok - perhaps I misworded my question and offended a few. Not trying to
be a jerk....sorry if I offended anyone.....

I guess I should have asked a generic type question which has been
bugging me for a while.

How do you judge the strength of a program? In this particular program, I felt comfortable that the residents can ask those types of questions and not get berated for asking. Later on in the day, the attending showed us an EKG and asked us about it. People felt free to put out their opinions and were corrected in a 'I want to teach you this' type of fashion, rather than a 'You *****, you should know this' type of fashion. I felt pretty good about that sort of environment. I just don't know how people judge a program as 'strong' or 'weak'......can anyone help out?

 

[EdibleEgg]

Ok - perhaps I misworded my question and offended a few. Not trying to
be a jerk....sorry if I offended anyone.....

I guess I should have asked a generic type question which has been
bugging me for a while.

How do you judge the strength of a program? In this particular program, I felt comfortable that the residents can ask those types of questions and not get berated for asking. Later on in the day, the attending showed us an EKG and asked us about it. People felt free to put out their opinions and were corrected in a 'I want to teach you this' type of fashion, rather than a 'You *****, you should know this' type of fashion. I felt pretty good about that sort of environment. I just don't know how people judge a program as 'strong' or 'weak'......can anyone help out?

It's nearly impossible to give a list of "top programs" because the needs of individual residents are so variable. The first step in judging a program is making an assessment of YOUR needs and goals. Are you interested in OB, inpatient medicine, or procedures? Are you limited geographically? Are you aggresive, or do you need ready-made learning opportunities? Are you interested in academics? There is tremendous variability among different programs. Be sure to ask about recent graduates and hard numbers.

It probably is a good idea to look at the "academic" side of the program, but I wouldn't judge that on a couple of poor responses during rounds. There will be strong and weak residents in any program, and everyone slips up occasionally. Scores on inservice exams and board pass rates are probably a better marker of that sort of thing. More importantly, look at the learning opportunities in the program. Are noon conferences common and quality, or are they thrown together to fill in the minimum requirements. The "I want to teach you" mentality you speak of is tremendously important.

There are several other things you can examine. If there is an associated med school, do any students stick around? What percentage of residents are FMG's? (No bashing here, one of the best residents in my class was an FMG. I would let her care for my family, but if most residents are FMG's year after year, it could be a negative.) What is the turnover rate for faculty (if they are unhappy, you will be unhappy)? Opposed vs. unopposed. The list is long, but don't underestimate the value of a gut feeling that the program is a good fit.

Hope that helps.