- Joined
- Apr 5, 2012
- Messages
- 1,759
- Reaction score
- 1,562
It's and open secret at this point that neph programs are indiscriminate on who they take. But the type of people who are choosing this option, are mostly people in desperation, living on false hope and promises that will never materialize. The same program who can't fill spots and have to "sale nephrology", cannot be counted on to give an honest account of market realities. I categorize neph applicants into these groups:
1) Burnt out hospitalists looking for an easy escape, only to find out that they jumped from fire into a volcano
2) People who didn't match their first choice specialty, who took a neph spot based on a cold call from PD
3) residents who didn't want to do hospitalist medicine, who went into nephrology because it's easy to get
4) People who couldn't get into critical care, hoping that doing neph will increase their chances
5) IMGs who couldn't land a residency in the US, hoping to get into the US medical system by doing nephrology
Do you see the pattern? Bunch of desperate people living on hopium that will all come crashing down once reality hits them.
Of course programs are more than willing to encourage this kind of thinking in order to fill their unwanted fellowship spots. Why
do people fall for the same traps year after year!!! Why is it that Nobody learns !!! Let me tell you why. Because of "hope" ; Once you destroy hope, everything comes crashing down.
This is the population of residents who should NOT do nephrology under ANY CIRCUMSTANCES.
By doing nephrology, you HARM your chances of doing cardiology or PCCM. This has to do with the fact that you are using up your GME years and it costs more for a PGY7/8/9 than a PGY4. Granted, there is no law STOPPING a program from taking you on for a second fellowship that is unrelated. However, there usually needs to be a very good reason like you are a top notch candidate who does the research well or nepotism is in play. The hospital and GME department usually would like to save on the GME dollars otherwise.
Unless you have super tight connections and you plan to be a Cardio-Nephrologist and take over the HF division for a large academic institution and do aquapheresis research (I did see one doctor like this in one of the large metro area hospitals, there is NO REASON to accept Nephrology and hope to do cardiology after. Aside from CKD patient having a lot of CAD/CHF and the need for both subspecialties to debate about diuretic dosage, there is VERY LITTLE these two specialties have in common in terms of the day to day practice.
Just ignore the cold calls after you fail to Match into Cardiology or PCCM. DO hospitalist and do more research. Apply more broadly next time. You will get into Cardiology or PCCM. You will be happy.