[toc]
Also check- Questions to ask when viewing a house / Questions to ask your unfaithful spouse
Questions To Ask Residency Programs
Where are most past graduates located?
Which type of practices do past graduates go in to after residency?
How do you perceive your program compared to other programs?
What are the program’s strengths? What makes the program unique?
What kind of feedback have past graduates given you about your program?
Which rotations are conducted at which
hospitals and clinics?
What other residency programs are on-site?
Which obstetric procedures are available in the program?
What are the learning processes for training in obstetrics? Which faculty teach obstetrics?
If there is an obstetrics/gynecology (OB/GYN) residency, how do family medicine residents work with faculty and residents in that program? Which residents cover call for OB service?
Could you describe the residency’s relationship with the other departments or services that provide OB care?
How would you describe the program’s OB experience?
How many deliveries does a typical resident handle in your residency? Will I have an adequate volume of deliveries in training to be trained to handle deliveries in practice? Could you describe options to have more or fewer deliveries, and what that might be like?
How many continuity deliveries does a typical resident handle in your residency? Could you describe options to have more or fewer continuity delivers, and what that might be like?
Can you tell me about a resident who has (insert your own educational goals), and how she or he has accomplished that goal?
Does the program participate in Reproductive
Health Education in Family Medicine (RHEDI) certification for pregnancy termination procedures?
If the residency program does not offer training in pregnancy termination, what are the options for me to receive that training?
How and how often is feedback provided to residents?
How would you describe the patient demographics?
What community service programs does your residency offer?
What changes do you anticipate in the program during the next three years?
In what ways is the program an innovator in education?
Can you give me an example of how the program handles X, Y, or Z (Be specific. Ask about scheduling, leadership development experiences, away rotations, navigating different approaches to complex situation, etc.)?
Can you describe the community? What do you enjoy the most/least about living here?
What was the most important factor that made you choose this program?
What is a typical week/month/year like for a resident in PGY-1, PGY-2, and PGY-3?
What is call like? What kind of backup and supervision is provided?
When leave of absence becomes necessary, what happens?
What community service opportunities are available?
How do you and other residents deal with the stress of residency? What does the residency offer in terms of wellness programs?
What do you and the other residents do for fun?
How do you view other residency programs at the institution and what are your interactions with them?
Good Questions To Ask Residency Programs
Which areas or processes are helping you learn the most?
What are the program’s strengths?
In what areas could improvements be made to the program?
What are your plans after graduation?
Could you describe your curriculum as it relates to procedural skills in family medicine?
Which procedural skills training does the program offer?
What is your philosophy regarding procedural skills in family medicine?
How do residents get exposure and training in procedural skills?
How are procedural skills taught? Is simulation used, and if so, for which procedures?
Which women’s health procedures are taught? Is training offered in point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS)?
Which procedures are regularly billed?
Best Questions To Ask Residency Programs
Do residents work with other specialty departments or services for procedural training? If so, could you describe that relationship and your residents’ role?
Does the program have leadership curriculum?
Are residents supported in external or organizational activities?
Does the program support time away from training to pursue leadership opportunities?
Have your residents held external leadership roles? If so, which roles and how has the program made that work with residency schedules?
How has the program balanced accommodating or opportunities that require time away from residency with the curricular requirements of the program? What arrangements could you potentially see making for (state your own interests)?
What is the goal of the international rotation?
Can you describe the field experience (e.g., clinical activities, public health initiatives, community activities, patient education, or other activities)?
What is the cost of international experiences to residents?
What opportunities exist to seek additional funding for international rotations?
Will I have professional liability insurance while participating in an international rotation?
Will my employee benefits (e.g., health insurance, dental insurance, etc.) continue while I am abroad?
Important Questions To Ask Residency Programs
How long are the rotations?
What time of year do residents travel?
Are certain years (e.g., PGY-1, PGY-2, PGY-3) prohibited from participating?
In what country (or countries) do the residents engage in international activities?
Have residents ever designed their own global health experiences? If so, can you provide some examples?
What policies and processes are in place to ensure resident safety during travel?
How many residents have participated in international experiences in the past two years? Can you provide some examples of their projects and experiences?
Who are the faculty involved? What other international experiences have they had?
Whom do I contact to get more information?
Does the program accept medical students for trips?
What are the didactics (e.g., lectures, reading, discussion, debriefing, etc.) of the rotation?
Does the program accept residents from other programs for trips?
Conclusion –
So these are some of the best questions to ask the residency program. You should know that these questions would give you the right kind of insight into the residency program and you would be able to get the best out of it. This would help you know whether or not the residency program is right for you. You can write down these questions and ask them at your meeting or interview for the residency program.
