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Post by Michelle Benjamin on Mar 1, 2017 12:52:51 GMT -4
I like that this article discusses the struggles that IMGs face without bias; it addresses the issue of passing statistics and debt usually quoted to us by our schools. Although a lot of persons get into medicine for different reasons, including prestige, wealth, family pressure or otherwise, at the end of the day medicine is a calling. IMGs enter medical school knowing that we have to work three times as hard to stay competitive in order to gain the residency spots we dream of. Speaking another language, especially Spanish, is another way we can stay competitive, like Dr.Bajwa. Even if we go to poor, undeserved communities at first, like the article says, if we work hard we can make advances in our medical careers.
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Post by gkittrell on Mar 2, 2017 9:58:12 GMT -4
It should not matter where a medical student is trained, especially since they are taking the exact same certification exams that students in the states are taking. It shows perseverance, passion, and commitment to the profession when one pursues a medical education out of their home country when other options were not available for whatever reason. I would rather be cared for by a compassionate, hard-working physician than one that made a perfect score on the MCAT. Hopefully more residency programs will begin to value this and be more receptive to allowing IMGs to complete the training they've invested so much into.
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Post by S Stephano on Mar 2, 2017 20:44:46 GMT -4
I think it is unimportant where a physician is trained for medical school. The material taught is the same and it will be the student’s own motivation, competitiveness and drive that will allow them to be successful during rotations and residency. With a negative stigma associated with Caribbean schools, many Caribbean medical students are motivated to work harder and set themselves apart from those that they may rotate with in the United States. If residency matching for Caribbean schools is as low as the article states, one may consider that these students are very dedicated to becoming doctors in that they are willing to take this risk.
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Post by tanishajerrick on Mar 2, 2017 22:35:06 GMT -4
Carribean medical schools and US medical schools do have their differences but they all have one common goal and that is to produce well trained doctors to treat and heal the nation. There are sayings that Caribbean students can't be compared to US students but at the end of the day you are expected to know the same materials and respond to health care emergencies the same way. It varies slightly because Caribbean students honor the opportunities giving to them, whilst the US schools see it as a privilege. It is even much better when the student themsleves grew up in the Caribbean and see first hand what needs and skills are required. They get motivated and passionate about effectively practicing medicine. In other situations, like Canadian students it's a case where there aren't enough medical schools in Canada and the competition is steep. So they have to look towards Caribbean schools for an opportunity to fulfill a dream. At the end of the day, the type of Doctor you become and the personality that you have totally depends on the student. Are you doing it becomes you want the money (which you should know by now makes no sense), are you doing it because your parents forced you or are you truly dedicating your service to the betterment of humanity. Your choice, be the person the world needs.
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Roshni Patel AUA Guest
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Post by Roshni Patel AUA Guest on Mar 3, 2017 11:35:24 GMT -4
This article was very refreshing for me because I've always felt that Caribbean medicals school are looked down upon. Although there are many stereotypes and preconceived thoughts that may have been true 20 years ago, most of them don't apply today. More and more qualified students are loosing opportunities to attend US medical schools simply because the competition is increasing, not because they are not qualified. Through my rotations I've talked to many successful doctors who honestly say their college scores and qualifications would not get them into medical school if they applied today. Caribbean medical schools are important because they give students a second chance to do what they want. Although it may be easier to get into a Caribbean medical school it is much harder to stay in. Therefore, the students who graduate have arguably had to work harder and study harder, making them just as qualified. Although the students are attending a foreign school, they have to take the same exams as any US medical student. The Stigma definitely needs to be addressed.
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Post by Sharmaine Brar on Mar 4, 2017 17:37:05 GMT -4
It’s very interesting to see that although the US can acknowledge a shortage of doctors, they still have a stigma on IMGs. I think that all of us can understand that not all medical students who apply for residency should get the spot, but if the residency board directors would chose based on the best students, then they would see more IMGs than they’re willing to give their spots to. There are so many US medical students that aren’t qualified to get the spot over an IMG but they still do solely based on the fact that they attended a school in the US. On the other hand, there are students who graduate internationally that don’t get a residency even if their test scores and interviews are exceptional. In the end we’re all taking the same exams and it should come down to whoever has the best test scores and interviews.
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Post by tamuno belema on Mar 5, 2017 17:31:17 GMT -4
i think at the end of the day the depends on self discipline, hardwork and determination to succeed and make a difference. i agree with what most persons have said in sense that it doesn't really matter what med-school you studied at for me it still depends on how you build yourself. atleast we all write the same standardised exam if u must practice here in the US,so at the end of the day is your work that speaks.
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Post by Ned Kletz on Mar 5, 2017 18:30:34 GMT -4
The part that resonated most with me was discussing the lack of weight that is placed on where you went to school once you are done with residency and you are practicing. It speaks to the fact that everything is equal once you are in the working world and it all comes down to the quality of work you do. In my time doing clinical rotations as a med student, I have certainly seen plenty of residents and attendings who were themselves IMG med students at one time and there does not seem to be any difference in quality of care provided whatsoever.
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Post by Stefan Gordon on Mar 6, 2017 0:41:59 GMT -4
A bad reputation is a very difficult thing to get rid of but usually they don’t come from nowhere. I say this to mean that there is some truth to the notion that sometime in the past Caribbean Schools and IMG students in general were not up to par with the medical schools and students in the U.S. As of 2017 many Caribbean schools have been around at least a decade or more and they have adapted and learned to develop successful doctors in the U.S. over the years. Many Caribbean students also know U.S. medical students and in many cases, they compare notes and share information and often what they find is what they are learning is pretty much the same. In an age of mass information sharing the time is quickly approaching when there will be no such thing as a “Ross University Education” or a “Harvard Medical School Education”, education will simply be “gathered information”. Harvard Medical Students probably use the same books, watch the same videos and perhaps see many of the same PowerPoints as students in many of the top Caribbean Medical schools. So, with many of the same tools in hand what is left is the students’ motivation, capability and the opportunities afforded to the students. In many ways IMGs have proven themselves to be every bit as capable and motivated as AMGs therefore the only remaining variable is the opportunities afforded to each of the two group of students. This puts those who control residency positions in a tough position where they must rely on controversial labels like “IMG friendly residency". These labels will no longer be based on meritocracy and quality but based on regional and geographical favoritism, institutional nepotism and unwarranted in-group bias, which will eventually look very similar to plain old “discrimination”, a very bad word in American Culture. After a while when they decide to “turn up their noses” at IMGs they will eventually have to justify and hopefully come up with a good excuse that doesn’t resemble “discrimination”. They will come up with nothing and will have no choice but to stop doing it . This is happening now.
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Post by SKher on Mar 6, 2017 12:04:05 GMT -4
There has always been a stigma around going to Caribbean medical schools and that stigma still exists when applying for residency. It seems as if people don’t understand that Caribbean schools offer the same basic science classes as US schools, and then we have a lot of the same rotations as US students. The only downfall is that there are too many students and it’s difficult to discern which students will make great residents and which will not, which probably attributes to the match rate for US students being 94% and the match rate for Caribbean students being 54%. But because there is a shortage of doctors, I believe that Caribbean students should be given more chance to succeed in life and offered more residency spots.
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Post by Jenna Lyn on Mar 8, 2017 14:55:40 GMT -4
For a long time there has been a huge discrimination towards International Medical Graduates (or IMGs). There have been questions as to whether they obtain the same education, the reasons behind the decision, and if they will be comparable and able to compete on the level of other US Medical Graduates. As time has passed and more IMGs have incorporated themselves into the US medical system, it is becoming clear that they are in fact, being held to the same standards as the US medical graduates. This is being done by standardization (USMLE) and the completion of rotations in the same areas and hospitals as there US counterparts. Not only are IMGs accelerating through the medical program, a great deal of them are creating establishments and creating jobs for many people. Overall, I feel that the government here has finally realized that there will always be a shortage of doctors as the population rises and that IMGs are a great way to meet those needs. Below is an article of interest and support. journals.lww.com/academicmedicine/Fulltext/2006/02000/Commentary__Coming_to_America__The_Integration_of.13.aspx
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Post by Marjorie Williams on Mar 8, 2017 15:52:04 GMT -4
With our every changing health care system, it is imperative that the medical community in America remain versatile and adaptive. In order for this to be accomplished, residency programs must view the applicant and potential resident as an individual, instead of merely a product of a "unknown" Caribbean school. All perspective applicants should display their tenacity and dedication to medicine regardless of what medical school they attended. If an individual is capable of effectively communicating their aspirations to further benefit the medical community in a certain specialty as well as demonstrate key character traits desired by 1st year residents, this ought to be sufficient in at least ranking the applicant. On the other hand, Caribbean medical schools such as AUA, UMHS and St George's must understand and persistently continue producing high quality students that are both relentless and devoted to bettering their community. It is a two way street and both parties must be open to opposite views. When this is accomplished, America will continue to transform and possibly set a new standard for care.
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Post by sarahs on Mar 9, 2017 18:08:44 GMT -4
This article perfectly describes what all of us students are going through currently coming from the Caribbean. It is definitely considered a second chance opportunity for those who weren’t able to get into an American medical school. There is a strong misconception that just because our grades in undergrad weren’t high enough or our MCAT scores weren’t up to minimum acceptance standards and students still somehow get into a medical school that students are not capable of becoming good physicians. Yes, the schools make it easier to get in, but it is just as difficult to stay in. Caribbean students train, work, and study harder than most American students and it is somehow still harder to achieve a residency opportunity after ending up thousands of dollars in debt at the end of the whole process. This article gives a little bit of hope that this may not be the case in the near future with the doctor shortage increasing at an exponential rate. IMG’s are coming in to fill that gap by wanting jobs wherever they can, including the small rural communities where healthcare is difficult to gain access to.
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Post by J Bass on Mar 20, 2017 15:10:08 GMT -4
This article speaks to the misperception a lot of people have of schools that aren't "top" schools and of the students that attend. As a country we often time get caught up in the rankings or prestige and automatically exclude people or schools that don't have the prestige. Furthermore, our educational institutions put great emphasis on test scores and grades which often time can be misleading. Test scores can't take into account a person's work ethic, passion, or enthusiasm. Grades cannot tell you whether a person genuinely cares about people or solely in the profession to make money. Yes, the for-profit schools may damage some student's credit and cause higher taxes, but most importantly, they also provide people with the opportunity to pursue their dreams. The people who attends these for-profit schools, the kind of people who never give up and have proven they have a love for caring for patients, should be given equal chances for employment here in America.
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Post by P Thakur SGU on Mar 20, 2017 15:16:42 GMT -4
This article positively portrays the motivations, risks, and sacrifices made by Caribbean medical students; while at the same time exposing the competing bureaucratic and financial bodies pulling the strings in the background. Caribbean schools, and FMGs in general, have helped fill the ever expanding gap in primary care for quite sometime. The stigma one faces coming out of foreign programs is unfortunate, as metrics have shown these graduates to be equally competent as their north American counterparts. The designation of these schools as for profit financial institutions, understandably tarnishes the academic value of its students and its graduates by those outside and inside the medical profession. I hope the branding initiative mentioned in the article is successful, as I believe US foreign graduates tread a far more difficult path than people realize, only to be treated as second class professionals when applying for clinical positions.
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