tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1443604033352190779Sat, 19 Jul 2008 07:03:33 +0000http://www.usmletomd.com/tips4match/noreply@blogger.com (Digitaldoc, MD)Blogger109125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1443604033352190779.post-4426117250158952554Thu, 17 Jul 2008 04:13:00 +00002008-07-16T21:47:04.914-07:00Fellowship Without ResidencyAnesthesiologyThanks to a pilot program designed pretty much on the same lines as the alternate pathway for board certification for Non-US trained Radiologists that I blogged about before, IMG anesthesiologists (i.e. IMGs with MDs in Anesthesiology in a Non-US country ) too can now qualify for American Board certification in Anesthesiology after Direct fellowships in US without having to do a residency again .http://www.usmletomd.com/tips4match/2008/07/img-anesthesiologists-planning-direct.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Digitaldoc, MD)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1443604033352190779.post-6791409630994821531Sat, 12 Jul 2008 15:48:00 +00002008-07-12T10:04:23.156-07:00The American Heart Association (AHA) provides Basic life Support (BLS) and Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support (ACLS) training and certificates to healthcare providers in U.S. , which includes physicians, nurses, paramedics, medical technologists , etc. This post is in response to many queries from IMGs wondering if doing such courses in advance would improve their residency-seeking resumes http://www.usmletomd.com/tips4match/2008/07/does-bls-acls-certification-improve.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Digitaldoc, MD)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1443604033352190779.post-7495633441608942035Sat, 12 Jul 2008 05:04:00 +00002008-07-13T17:21:14.277-07:00Every time I see an animal with the capability to ruminate, it makes me a little jealous - wouldn't that be a great thing to have for us humans too ? ..... I could use that to quickly gobble up stuff before my morning rounds, and then bring it out again and ruminate peacefully on my drive to the hospital - that way save time, make more time to sleep and.....what ? did I gross you out ? LOL...no,http://www.usmletomd.com/tips4match/2008/07/direct-fellowship-without-residency.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Digitaldoc, MD)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1443604033352190779.post-3742316528562651243Wed, 11 Jun 2008 21:50:00 +00002008-06-12T09:31:21.949-07:00 Recently, the Association of Family Medicine Residency Directors (AFMRD) published some detailed 'Tips-and-Tricks' for Program Directors to judge and pick the best candidates before placing them on the rank order lists (ROL) - and they were not talking about your USMLE Scores, but character: "Character is the trump card. It doesn’t matter what your USMLE scores are if you lack the character to http://www.usmletomd.com/tips4match/2008/06/program-directors-guide-to-judge-your.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Digitaldoc, MD)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1443604033352190779.post-4694732775232612514Sun, 08 Jun 2008 20:50:00 +00002008-06-08T15:02:32.235-07:00I've been hibernating for more than a month now, from USMLEtoMD.com that is, without any new articles, not moderating nor responding to blog comments, emails and to forum posts either - possibly making some of u think that I might be cold-blooded - both biologically and metaphorically ;-) Well, break time is almost wrapping up for me and my desktop reminder system has begun beeping http://www.usmletomd.com/tips4match/2008/06/usmlebuddies-is-back-so-am-i.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Digitaldoc, MD)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1443604033352190779.post-4530558182042963465Sun, 13 Apr 2008 07:51:00 +00002008-04-13T01:05:14.817-07:00CAFWhile ERAS is certainly getting better each year with new features, a lot still remains to be desired - like, having all residency programs mention their selection criteria, USMLE score cut-offs and visa policies uploaded and visible through MyERAS itself - hmmm...on second thoughts, that would put the IMG friendly programs list blog out of service ;-) After the NRMP match is over, all that http://www.usmletomd.com/tips4match/2008/04/why-to-save-caf-after-residency-match.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Digitaldoc, MD)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1443604033352190779.post-8766489063578759114Tue, 01 Apr 2008 06:10:00 +00002008-04-01T22:43:04.054-07:00Today was a rainy, cloudy, gray and a thunderous day here in the Midwest and I simply had to take a refreshing walk in the breezy thunderstorms ! And though I enjoyed waddling and splashing in the tiny street-side streams more than I enjoyed waddling in the Pacific waters off the San Diego beaches few years ago, I couldn't help sensing an anxiety of July looming over the horizon - the http://www.usmletomd.com/tips4match/2008/03/nice-books-before-residency-begins.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Digitaldoc, MD)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1443604033352190779.post-5069042749205428664Thu, 06 Mar 2008 09:06:00 +00002008-03-06T09:18:55.871-08:00After writing those lengthy strategy plans for the 2008 residency Match and then again for the 2009 residency match, I finally had a stroke of common-sense and figured I could rather put my Javascript programming skills to use and automate the process...yeah laziness is setting in as my age is headed northwards :-P So, instead I am gonna leave the new IMG folks at the mercy of the http://www.usmletomd.com/tips4match/2008/03/try-out-nrmp-residency-match-planner.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Digitaldoc, MD)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1443604033352190779.post-3165278125208636241Thu, 28 Feb 2008 08:31:00 +00002008-02-28T00:47:28.927-08:00 With the Rank Order Lists now submitted for the 2008 Match, how many of you feel like that guy on the picture above - a unique mix of anxiety, excitement, wishing others luck and hoping for good luck for self ? If not yet, you will pretty soon... as the Match day nears ;-) Long time ago, when I was low & depressed, a good friend presented me with an excellent book called "Being Happy" by http://www.usmletomd.com/tips4match/2008/02/good-luck-to-2008-residency-match.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Digitaldoc, MD)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1443604033352190779.post-2352349026325208146Thu, 21 Feb 2008 01:20:00 +00002008-02-20T17:39:44.866-08:00...Which makes me take a brief trip down my memory lane to my med school days when I was often amused to see some medical students smoking away in hiding and urging me to 'not tell others' :-) , especially during stressful late-night emergency rotations. Various Studies done in the past to reveal smoking habits amongst physicians have shown a big variety of results like: - Psychiatrists show thehttp://www.usmletomd.com/tips4match/2008/02/no-residency-fellowship-at-cleveland.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Digitaldoc, MD)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1443604033352190779.post-6072069555822686556Wed, 13 Feb 2008 07:13:00 +00002008-02-13T00:32:26.703-08:00California LetterPTALIn case you missed it on the the USMLEtoMD forums, this is the email-response from the Medical Board of California (MBC) that a reader had posted about his query on applying for the California Letter (PTAL) without a Social Security Number (SSN) - for example for those on B1/B2 visas: The MBC will accept applications without a social security number (SSN) under the following conditions: 1. http://www.usmletomd.com/tips4match/2008/02/applying-for-california-letter-without.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Digitaldoc, MD)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1443604033352190779.post-4230202249346256661Thu, 31 Jan 2008 14:13:00 +00002008-03-09T16:10:38.617-07:00PrematchesThis unique query came from a reader and warrants a post on it's own, as it aids understanding of the system. A "Deadline" for getting / accepting prematch offers, meaning the last date for getting any prematch offers from residency programs would technically be the same as the deadline for a program to change the quota of positions they submit to the NRMP match program. This quoata-change http://www.usmletomd.com/tips4match/2008/01/deadline-for-prematch-offers-from.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Digitaldoc, MD)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1443604033352190779.post-5067036031954628251Mon, 21 Jan 2008 07:59:00 +00002008-01-21T03:00:22.702-08:00Clinical ResearchI am gonna let this thread build up over time - as of now, I am putting up cues posted on the Harvard Medical school website: "Foreign medical graduates who have not obtained ECFMG certification can be admitted to the United States for the purpose of observation, consultation, teaching, and for research not involving responsibility for patient care. These applicants should identify an area ofhttp://www.usmletomd.com/tips4match/2008/01/tips-for-imgs-seeking-us-clinical.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Digitaldoc, MD)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1443604033352190779.post-6800283335136193141Tue, 15 Jan 2008 10:18:00 +00002008-01-15T02:33:00.211-08:00Fellowship Without ResidencyThis is just a short post to bring it to the attention of direct fellowship seekers that passing the USMLE Step 3 prior to start of training is a requirement for fellowships, irrespective of your need for a H1b visa. Most (or maybe all) fellowship programs need incoming candidates to be eligible for state licenses before the start of the fellowship and hence Step 3 will be needed whatever your http://www.usmletomd.com/tips4match/2008/01/usmle-step-3-direct-fellowships-without.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Digitaldoc, MD)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1443604033352190779.post-2271172946248915626Fri, 11 Jan 2008 09:02:00 +00002008-01-13T03:54:15.372-08:00BasicsI have heard someone make the weirdest pronunciation of the term - "ACGME" LOL - For those who do not know, ACGME is an acronym and stands for : "Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education" I have already mentioned before that the term "Graduate Medical Education" implies Residencies and Fellowships. The ACGME is basically a private, non-profit organization that certifies the quality http://www.usmletomd.com/tips4match/2008/01/importance-of-acgme-accreditation-of.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Digitaldoc, MD)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1443604033352190779.post-1399487054220980964Wed, 02 Jan 2008 14:59:00 +00002008-01-02T08:16:56.949-08:00Letter of RecommendationDocuments for MatchLORThe other day I was reading about black-holes and how things never come out from them, including light - and somehow writing about waiving LORs reminds me of them ;-) - you will see why. To 'waive' is to forgo, forfeit or give up or 'waving goodbye to'... While waiving your right to see those letters of recommendation has its merit of adding more authenticity to the document, there are some http://www.usmletomd.com/tips4match/2008/01/disadvantages-of-waiving-ur-right-to.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Digitaldoc, MD)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1443604033352190779.post-9161693923681400422Wed, 26 Dec 2007 12:00:00 +00002007-12-26T04:00:32.383-08:00This will probably be the shortest post on this blog - just a quick reminder that you do not need to sweat over making your Medical Student Performance Evaluation (MSPE) / Dean's letter to ERAS-ECFMG for scanning before applying - a situation that candidates still in medical school or recently completed medical school might encounter. a 1. Whether your medical school provides you with a Dean's http://www.usmletomd.com/tips4match/2007/12/mspe-deans-letter-submission-date-to.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Digitaldoc, MD)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1443604033352190779.post-1870099088160871604Fri, 21 Dec 2007 22:39:00 +00002007-12-21T15:10:46.619-08:00Family MedicineSpecialty DiscussionsFamily medicine residency program directors tend to be cautious about applicants with good reason - residents switching over to other specialties after the first year and has been especially true for IMGs. It gets tough to sift out applications of truly interested applicants in Family Medicine from those that are using the Family Medicine as a "Route" to clinical experience to help get into http://www.usmletomd.com/tips4match/2007/12/improving-chances-for-family-medicine.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Digitaldoc, MD)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1443604033352190779.post-3934714013642975406Thu, 20 Dec 2007 08:12:00 +00002008-01-20T13:42:07.885-08:002009 MatchI must rather start with an apology for being late in writing about planning for the 2009 NRMP Residency Match. While writing up the 2008 Match plan last year, it was the lovely Fall season with red-yellow-brown trees lining the roads, but now as I walk the December streets, I see the same trees playing dead and roads lined by snow-doped vehicles that look more like frozen food :-P I like http://www.usmletomd.com/tips4match/2007/12/planning-for-2009-nrmp-residency-match.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Digitaldoc, MD)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1443604033352190779.post-530364472915815238Thu, 13 Dec 2007 02:40:00 +00002007-10-21T14:21:36.326-07:00ERAS ApplicationsLet's begin with a quote by Arie De Gues to give ourselves a good context why this post is important: “The ability to learn faster than your competitors may be the only sustainable competitive advantage.” Which is pretty reflective on what Aristotle had once said, ''The secret of business is to know something that nobody else knows''. Having said that, back to our topic : 1. Apply on time:http://www.usmletomd.com/tips4match/2007/12/application-strategies-lessons-from.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Digitaldoc, MD)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1443604033352190779.post-4910885177078627745Thu, 22 Nov 2007 04:34:00 +00002007-11-21T22:56:42.115-08:00 I am gonna waddle in some untried waters here..., writing and researching about Nursing for IMGs, so do bear with me as I perfect the post in time - but any start is good..ain't it ?. As the IMG competition has heated up exponentially, double 99s and US experiences have become commonplace. A most amusing new strategy that I have been noticing with increasing frequency is IMGs using Nursing http://www.usmletomd.com/tips4match/2007/11/nursing-route-to-residency-for-imgs.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Digitaldoc, MD)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1443604033352190779.post-2259596979298164564Thu, 15 Nov 2007 09:12:00 +00002007-11-15T01:28:53.943-08:00This post should rather be a part of my upcoming blog about USMLE, Residency and fellowship basics - but since the designing isn't done yet, I am sticking it in here for a while :-) Thought this might be of interest to you resident-to-be guys and perhaps even current residents/fellows. What decides the amount of leave (vacation, sickness, maternity, paternity) you can take during those residencyhttp://www.usmletomd.com/tips4match/2007/11/leaves-of-absence-rules-during.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Digitaldoc, MD)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1443604033352190779.post-5169261187615584882Tue, 13 Nov 2007 02:55:00 +00002007-11-12T22:40:49.405-08:00This is a follow-up post to an earlier post about emailing directly to residency program directors requesting them to reconsider your residency application after a rejection. That article ain't much if you can't get your email directly to the program director and / or chairman, since as we already covered how the emails listed on MyERAS are usually first screened by program coordinators. Time tohttp://www.usmletomd.com/tips4match/2007/11/searching-unlisted-email-addresses-of.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Digitaldoc, MD)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1443604033352190779.post-8944067686553940707Fri, 09 Nov 2007 07:19:00 +00002007-11-08T23:21:41.718-08:00ERAS ApplicationsAfter boiling down your list of residency programs to the ones that you are eligible, some of you may find that you are eligible to many programs but the amount of money you can spend is strictly limited. In such not-so-uncommon scenarios, thinking of the number of positions one applies to instead of focusing on the number programs has two advantages - a. higher chance of interview b. You get a http://www.usmletomd.com/tips4match/2007/11/number-of-residency-positions-vs-number.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Digitaldoc, MD)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1443604033352190779.post-315793915827580642Sun, 04 Nov 2007 08:11:00 +00002007-11-04T17:44:09.340-08:00Internal medicineTwo things generally contribute most to the competitiveness of a fellowship specialty : Post-fellowship Salary levels and/or Lifestyle. Also its good to know that in the US, the more 'procedural' specialties get paid better since insurance guys reimburse procedures higher than just physician consults...example : Cardio guys have the catheterization, GI guys have endoscopies and Nephro docs got http://www.usmletomd.com/tips4match/2007/11/most-competitive-fellowships-after.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Digitaldoc, MD)