Residency

Do residents deserve the title of physician?

Physician
March 25, 2023

I was unsettled by an email that our graduate medical education (GME) office recently sent out to all residents at my institution “sharing a friendly reminder that parking spaces identified as ‘physician parking’ are for attending physicians only” and “residents and fellows who park in ‘physician parking spaces’ will receive a parking ticket.” I have parked next to only non-physician (including non-resident physician) staff in those spaces every day for …

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Equalizing the future of medical residencies: standardizing work hours and wages

Education
March 2, 2023

In the United States, work hours are traditionally recorded on a weekly basis, and salaries are paid every two weeks. However, full-time employees (FTEs) work for a full year and receive a W-2 annually. FTEs are usually hired based on an annual wage divided into 26 bi-weekly paychecks. Tracking weekly work hours can lead to inconsistencies in time recording, so it might be better for both employers and FTEs to …

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Proposing solutions to end bias in the medical residency selection process

Education
February 14, 2023

Getting into medical school is arguably the largest barrier to entry into the physician profession, but it is not the only one. Previously, I covered who gets to succeed in medical school and who gets to graduate. In this article, I look at who gets to be a resident.

After completing medical school, the next step for a graduate is residency—the post-graduate training that every new physician goes through to practice in …

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The medical school selection process may be more crucial for shaping the future physician workforce 

Education
January 18, 2023

Every year, thousands of applicants in the United States register for the Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS). Many graduate medical education (GME) programs receive thousands of applications that are reviewed by recruitment teams with fewer than ten faculty members. In recent years, there has been an increase in the number of applications for GME programs and an overwhelming number of interviews for ERAS applicants, even though only a few hundred …

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7 tips to survive night float  

Education
December 31, 2022

My friend texted me the other day that she was thinking of quitting her training program.

Some schedule changes earlier in the year led to her being scheduled for back-to-back month-long night float rotations. She was in the middle of her second straight month of nights and was feeling tired, depressed, and burned out.

Now, this might be a unique situation since night float rotations, on average, are only one to two …

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A letter to residents after the subspecialty match

Physician
December 18, 2022

Dear residents:

I heard the amazing news that each of you matched today. Congratulations! That is huge. You will be outstanding subspecialists!

The best part is that now you can take a deep breath and relax. The stress is over. Hopefully, you matched at your first choice, but please know that if you didn’t, it will be OK. I know the feeling. Although I was lucky to get my first choice for …

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The mistress of medicine

Physician
December 14, 2022

When I married my husband, I had no idea there would be a mistress one day.

When I met the man who would become my husband, he was not yet a doctor. He was 22, a black belt, a waiter in a fancy restaurant, and very handsome. He knew all kinds of things about champagne and paté, cocktails, and sushi.

We met in our college martial arts club. I was 19 and …

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Where do trans and visibly queer people go to residency?

Physician
September 28, 2022

I came out as transgender in my post-baccalaureate years. I grew up in California and was enjoying my time in college at Boulder. Although I had been severely bullied in middle school, there were never any problems for me in the adult world.

Discrimination was not something I thought really existed because I had not seen it.

Blissfully discovering my new self, I began my social transition. I was finally coming into …

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How to change your specialty during residency

Education
September 22, 2022

There are no clear statistics, polls, or studies to know exactly how many physicians each year, or within their working lifetime, switch specialties. But with physician dissatisfaction scores steadily rising, this is becoming a very common sentiment.

First, I want to normalize and encourage everyone to practice self-compassion during this process.

I personally changed specialties early in my career and have numerous colleagues who also changed. We all profess immense happiness in …

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Top tips for new interns [PODCAST]

Podcast
September 6, 2022
YouTube video

Subscribe to The Podcast by KevinMD. Catch up on old episodes!

“New resident physicians who have earned their MD degrees will be heading to hospitals to start their residencies during the last two week in June and the first week in July. What can a beginning doctor do …

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If a program doesn’t care for fellows, could a union?

Physician
September 3, 2022

In my self-righteous youth, I bristled at the thought of physicians unionizing. Certain our collective altruism and professionalism would prevail. Unions were for oppressed laborers, not well-regarded, well-paid professionals. Reading the recent paper in JAMA and 30-plus years in the field have caused me to think again. That, and recently having provided support to a young physician couple with a newborn.

There is nothing quite as messy, all-consuming, and awe-inspiring as …

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It’s time to retake the call room

Physician
August 28, 2022

For years, residents have tried valiantly to extract themselves from the hospital by physically moving out of the premises or reducing duty hours. Now it may be time to return.

Rents are rising, and in the major metropolitan areas where most residencies exist, this is being felt acutely. Salaries are generally static, but rents have risen about 7.4 percent compared to last year. Doctors come into residency with enormous …

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9 ways international medical graduates can boost their residency match outcomes

Education
August 27, 2022

International medical school graduates (IMGs) play an integral role in the health care system of the United States and constitute approximately one-quarter of the physician workforce. In 2022, fewer IMGs registered for Match than in 2021, with a match rate of 58.1 percent. The transition to USMLE Step 1 pass/fail, elimination of Step 2 Clinical Science, and implementation of secondary application will likely impact IMGs in their 2023 Match. Here …

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Who even reads personal statements?

Education
August 20, 2022

The following article is satire.

We’re again approaching that time of year for medical students: ERAS application season. As students whimper and wonder if they’re making the right career choice, as they set their dreams on a specialty but have been told they need a “backup,” while determining their geographical boundaries of where they can possibly think of living for the next three to who-knows-how-many-years. With all this chaos, they must …

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What makes up the ideal residency program for you?

Education
August 2, 2022

As we continue through the summer months, medical students are putting the finishing touches on their elective rotations for their fourth year.

These rotations, also known as audition rotations or sub-internships, enable students to “showcase” their talents, meet faculty and residents and put their best foot forward prior to submitting their electronic application.

A 2016 study showed that rotating improved a student’s chance of matching at that program by a factor of …

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What no one tells you about being a new doctor

Physician
July 26, 2022

We’ve all heard the tired cliché about July being the most dangerous time of the year to go to a hospital. All new interns — freshly minted doctors straight out of medical school — are on the loose. And you better watch out, the tale goes. That’s demonstrably false, and July is as safe as any month for medical care.

But there is still a big reason to worry — not …

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Activism is a part of medicine and we cannot remain neutral

Physician
July 16, 2022

From a new attending and the former resident and fellow physician union president, congratulations on starting your residency! You’ve dedicated decades of your life to medicine, and your years of studying and extracurricular achievement have brought you to this moment.

As you are well aware, residency will be tough. You will likely work long hours while being exploited by your employer as cheap labor, but you’ll be expected to drink from …

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Top 10 things new interns should do

Education
July 16, 2022

New resident physicians who have earned their MD degrees will be heading to hospitals to start their residencies during the last two week in June and the first week in July. What can a beginning doctor do during the first month of internship to get his or her career off to a good start, and in so doing, also learn to provide the best care to patients? Here are 10 …

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I married an MD

Conditions
June 14, 2022

Recognizing accomplishments and a ticket to residency: That was Match Day. But now, at the doorstep of the next challenge, you’d better take a hard look at your most important personal relationship.

That is, if you want to keep your good thing together. Because if you think residency is going to be the start of easy, no-maintenance times for you and your partner, maybe you need to go back to medical …

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The health care system will cause its own physician shortage

Policy
June 14, 2022

A quarter of a million dollars — that’s the amount of debt the average medical student in the United States owes after completing medical school. After all the late nights studying, the endless exams and selfless sacrifice, it’s human nature to expect a historically stable career as the reward — right? I mean, weren’t we all told that “hard work pays off” at some point in our lives? For budding …

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