Dear Dr. Bowman,
I am a 63 year young medical student attending the College of Medicine and Health Sciences, St. Lucia, West Indies. I recently completed the two years of basic medical sciences (a slight update of the curriculum I took at St. Louis University, School of Medicine in the early ' 60s), and have passed step I of the USMLE. I have completed rotations in psychiatry, surgery, and obstetrics & gynecology at Mainland Medical Center (in Texas City) which is in the UTMB system of teaching hospitals.
Prior to this student status, I was a board certified oral & maxillofacial surgeon, trained at Charity Hospital of New Orleans, and had practiced in Alaska and Washington State for about 30 years. I am writing to you per the e-mail contact on the web site for The Medical Educator Group of the National Rural Health Association.
I am hopeful that my foreign student status and age not withstanding, that I might be accepted into a Rural Family Medicine Residency. Being a compulsive runner and passionate downhill skier, I am in very good physical condition and, I have deluded myself into thinking that I will be able to practice Rural Family Medicine back out West for 20 years or so after completing my residency.
I am not satisfied with the depth of clinical experience that I am now getting in my present rotations, and am hoping that in your position in the Rural Medical Educators Group that you might be able to direct me to a hospital or to a source that could direct me to a hospital that would accept a foreign medical student as a "visiting student" to go through rotations which have a strong orientation in preparation for a Rural Family Practice Residency. I realiize that this might be a bit of a far reach, and perhaps other avenues such as a clerkship or an externship or a transfer for someone who is particularly interested in Rural Family Practice might be available? I would appreciate any direction that you might be able to give me. This entire journey has been a bit of a reach for me, but however I can accomplish my purpose, I want to be able to go out into a community where I can very competently contribute to the health and well being of people who are in real need of medical support.
Sincerely yours,
Bryan Saario
Dear Bryan,
I will share this with rural docs and rural med ed folks as you requested. I am not surprised that you are finding it difficult to get the challenges in training that you know will best prepare you. It is interesting that Canadian medical students find the same problem when coming to the US. Of course US medical students are unaware how much they are being short changed by liability issues, lack of continuity and knowing patients, and lack of emphasis on teaching (too many distractions).
We find that the rural experiences are consistently the best, as rated by our students. I will also send you some further contacts in Nebraska.
With your dedication and experience, I know that you will be a real asset for any fortunate enough to work for you for a few weeks, months, or a lifetime.
Bob Bowman
Links to the following
Medical Education Retardation
Web site at www.ruralmedicaleducation.org