Reinventing Medical Residencies During COVID-19
Download mp3 (1.04 MB)Coronavirus has profoundly changed how we educate and employ a whole cohort of students — including the next generation of doctors seeking residencies.
Medical residencies train students in prospective specialties. Applying for them involves a stressful and pricey process.
Students know distinguishing themselves on board exams or during rotations can help them stand out and acquire letters of recommendation. By curtailing such activities, COVID-19 injects even more uncertainty into an often perplexing process.
To cope, medical schools are considering deferring certain requirements and shifting key deadlines.
Dr. Cheryl O'Malley, associate dean of graduate medical education at the University of Arizona College of Medicine – Phoenix, says the Coalition on Physician Accountability has recommended against traveling for rotations and in-person visits.
"That's really creating a significant change in the usual processes for consideration of programs on the medical student's side and also consideration of applicants on the program side," she said.
In-person visits and interviews provide an essential chance for students and programs to find out if they're a good match. But they also represent a sizable share of applicants' considerable travel expenses — costs some can better afford than others.
"By having the interviews and visits be virtual, it does level the playing field," said O'Malley.
Virtual interviews and visits also make more efficient use of another resource doctors and med students have in short supply: time.
But some experts worry students, now more uncertain than ever about how programs will evaluate them, might apply for even more residencies. That could worsen an already troubling trend of application inflation.
"There's been a lot of creative discussion about how to approach that in a way that doesn't limit choice, but that really eliminates some of the waste," said O'Malley.
Some solutions inspired by current conditions might prove effective enough to keep.
For example, if programs evaluated students more holistically and were less bound to formulas, applicants might obsess less about hitting every requirement or deferring exams.
O'Malley said the medical school has been moving towards more a holistic approach, but it presents substantial challenges.
"We can look at their academic performance; you can look at activities and research that they've participated in. And some of those are really hard to put numbers behind," she said.
O'Malley also emphasized the importance of interpersonal skills and finding the right fit. Remote interviews could support those types of evaluations.
