Help from the nursing community for a recent medical graduate.

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Hi all,

As the title states, I'm a recent medical graduate that graduated this past December. Only problem is, I can't get a residency. Unfortunately, I didn't pass the step2ck twice in my third year and after all rotations were done. However, I passed it with a great score the third time around and graduated. I was then in limbo about what I should do. The medical world isn't very forgiving for people in my situation, so I had to think realistically about my options. I thought to myself "Should I stay in medicine and try for the step 3? or look for careers outside?" I think I spent two months looking for jobs in regulatory affairs before I decided to just study for a few more months and then take the Step3. Took it in July and passed with no hiccups and that basically completes all the examinations.

However, now I'm just kind of stuck. I don't see the interview trail for residency looking too good right now, and so I'm looking for suggestions from the nursing community about what routes I can take to enter into specific fields. The main caveat and hurdle also seems to be licensure in some of these fields; without postgraduate training in residency (1-3 years depending on the state), I'm not eligible for licensure in any state, which means I'm kind of just stuck with a degree.

One area I got interested in, and seems to be open to physicians, is the area of clinical documentation, or basically a clinical documentation specialist. However, I feel like this is for physicians that have been in either post-graduate training or as an attending for years after. So I guess my question is are there any opportunities for me, as a recent graduate, to be able to get into this field? and if so, how would I go about? or what is a proper route? I do have two years of acute care clinical experience prior to medical school if that's worth anything.

I chose this area because it actually utilizes a lot of what we've learned in terms of the complexities of diseases, diagnoses, clinical exams, and therapeutics. Not only that, but it would give back to the tax-payer (being burdened by med school debt), so that there's no loss conferred from the degree. All that would be needed would just be having ICD knowledge, which we were familiar with anyway during clinical rotations and shouldn't be all that difficult to pick up.

What about other opportunities as well? like clinical informatics? or clinical coordinators?

I mean, I have no problem starting from the bottom, the only issue hindering me there is time out of school and having a professional degree which makes me overqualified.

Thank you all for your time and sorry for the long read.

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I don't know too much about physician world, but I do know it's pretty hectic and full of bs (ER docs are not very discrete lol) just like in the nursing world, we may not see it too clearly just like the CNAs and medics don't see the horse crap in our world... I'm certain there are numerous physician-based anonymous forums, have you tried them?

Best of luck doc!

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Taratale,

Thanks for the reply! Yes, I have gone to a few boards, however, the conversations usually devolve into "carib=bad, you're on your own" attitude, which is something I'm all too familiar with now, and so there's really no guidance offered or solution proposed. Or it's basically that not many physicians have gone this route. Hence, I thought I might be able to get a more clear and less castigating opinion from the nursing community :).

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Specializes in Emergency & Trauma/Adult ICU.

Life is not always a linear path. Keep pursuing residency opportunities in all areas of the country and maybe consider a specialty that you haven't considered as yet. There have been unmatched residency spots in recent years.

I do agree that clinical informatics may be another possibility. Check out the websites of prominent EHR vendors.

In the short term, you might seek out a position as a medical scribe. It's not going to pay commensurate with your education, but it might give you a little financial breathing room and provide you with networking opportunities to pursue your next step.

Just my two cents - but stay away from soul-crushing, mind-numbing regulatory affairs.

Good luck to you.

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Taratale,

Thanks for the reply! Yes, I have gone to a few boards, however, the conversations usually devolve into "carib=bad, you're on your own" attitude, which is something I'm all too familiar with now, and so there's really no guidance offered or solution proposed. Or it's basically that not many physicians have gone this route. Hence, I thought I might be able to get a more clear and less castigating opinion from the nursing community :).

So you are img. I see. You know I heard back in the days DOs were considered less than MDs or something like that but now there's practically no difference so I hear, it's quite unsettling that imgs receive prejudice even before getting an opportunity, but what can we do such is this world (sigh), and you know even better how political and strong minded the physician communities are. Honestly I have never met an img, but I believe in one's abilities rather than where one went to school; maybe this is similar to bsn vs adn thing we encounter often but I'm a rn so I can't tell.

Don't give up doc. You are still a physician. :)

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don't give up, there are many hospitals that will take you in a bit for you to complete your residency, may be they are not located in a very desurable places but that is your sacrifice. I'm telling you for experience, my husband is a Foreign graduate physician and had to take those steps several times, it took him 10 years to have eveything back after coming from our country but he got it and he even completed a fellowship. What that means is that DOn't give up after all you have studied and paid. Go back to ERAS and apply for this upcoming 2015. Then when you be working at a hospital don't be mean with the nurses around, remember we helped you whe you were down......:)

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There are quite a few new grad imgs in Canada who are in situations similar to yours, some are working in clinical research and some are still looking for work. I think you are on the right track asking for suggestions on forums, have you tried looking in a forum specific to non-clinical physicians jobs?

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don't give up, there are many hospitals that will take you in a bit for you to complete your residency, may be they are not located in a very desurable places but that is your sacrifice. I'm telling you for experience, my husband is a Foreign graduate physician and had to take those steps several times, it took him 10 years to have eveything back after coming from our country but he got it and he even completed a fellowship. What that means is that DOn't give up after all you have studied and paid. Go back to ERAS and apply for this upcoming 2015. Then when you be working at a hospital don't be mean with the nurses around, remember we helped you whe you were down......:)

you know i was actually curious about that. i work at dallas and there are gazillions of foreign doctors (majority are primary care physicians), most of them being indians and africans. how does this go about?

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simple but not easy though. They come here, present their school papers to the ECFMG, they get validation after thousands of verifications then get ready for the steps 1-2 before they have to have at least one yr of residency in order to apply for step 3, now this has been removed. Apply for a residency, for indians and Africans I don't know how it is but for hispanics, very hard usually having to go to undesirable area hospitals in New York, Puerto Rico, NEw Orleans and you named where they are foreign doctors friendly and where hispanic population is big so they need doctors in public hospitals who speak spanish. It does not matter anything you have to do if you are decided and aimed to your profession. It is never late or hard, my husband has a friend that started his residency after passing all of the above when he was 50, yes 50 years old!! Don't give up, go to the hospitals in person to the graduate medical education department, volunteer, offer to start as an intern,

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Specializes in Critical Care; Cardiac; Professional Development.

What about joining the military and finishing your training there?

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Have you applied out of state or in rural areas? Also check with the Public Health Service. That is government and takes new grads. Apply every where. Just keep trying. Also look into administration type jobs in nursing homes and hospitals. The administrator in training program is offered through nursing homes and rehab centers. Also look into insurance companies for case management type jobs.

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