Specialty: Internal Medicine

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MD2B Connect Physician ID # 216

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Where will the rotation take place: This hands-on inpatient and outpatient audition rotation will take place in New Jersey (20 miles north of Newark). Please note that the preceptor has two offices that are located approximately 10 miles apart but you will not have to travel to both locations on the same day. 

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Hours: Rotators will spend approximately 15-24 hours week with the program director and his residents in the outpatient clinic (there will be 6-12-hour shifts in the outpatient clinic on two separate days and your assigned days will be communicated to you on the first day of the rotation). Every week, one half-day will be spent in didactic sessions. The inpatient component will take place during two weekends of every rotation (typically you will round on Saturdays for 4 hours on average),

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Hours have been provided by the preceptor. Hours are subject to change at the preceptor’s discretion, but the minimum total hours will remain approximately the same.

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What you will do: This is a combined inpatient and outpatient experience during which you will be under the supervision of a board-certified internal medicine physician. He is the program director of the Hackensack University Medical Center Transitional Year Residency Program and Professor of Medicine at Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine. He has a strong background in teaching, having trained numerous U.S. medical students, international medical students and graduates, as well as residents.

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In this rotation, you will work as part of a team, reporting to both the attending physician and residents. This experience can be considered an audition rotation as the program director has chosen students who have rotated with him in the past to become residents in his program. Please note that your chances of being considered for a residency interview will be dependent upon the strength of your clinical performance and the relationships that you build with not only the attending physician but also the residents with whom you work. 

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Outpatient

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In the outpatient setting, you will evaluate patients as part of a team, often accompanying a resident into the exam room for the encounter with the patient. Because the preceptor emphasizes the importance of patient-centered care, you will have the opportunity to see how such care is delivered and practice these techniques throughout the course of the rotation. The attending stresses getting to know the patient so that the treatment plan can be personalized to the patient's unique situation, a key aspect of improving outcomes. Beyond evaluating and treating patients with acute and chronic disease, rotators will note how best practices in preventive medicine are incorporated into outpatient care.  

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Approximately 60-70 patients are seen in a typical 12-hour day. Initially, you will take a more observational role. Once you are comfortable with the processes of the clinic, you can ask the residents to take on a more active role. This will include taking the history and performing the exam. Following the encounter, you will present the case to the attending. Then you will accompany the attending into the examining room where you will complete the patient visit. Please note that you will not have access to the EMR in this rotation. 

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At the end of your assigned day, the attending will often have an educational session during which he will quiz the students and residents on important learning points. He will commonly ask each learner "What did you read last night?" The expectation will be that you are reading regularly and that you will share what you have learned with the group. 

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Didactics

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One half-day per week will be spent in didactics with residents and faculty in the program. Residents from the Departments of Internal Medicine, Family Medicine, Psychiatry, Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation, and Transitional Year Program will attend these didactics. These will be highly educational and are designed to help residents become knowledgeable and competent practitioners in medicine. Through this didactic program, students will be exposed to how residents are taught in residency programs and the role that residents play in educating others. Several hours of this didactic session will be led by the chief resident and will be a board review session focused on helping the residents prepare for their USMLE Step 3 exam. Questions will be presented to the group and a student or resident will be asked to read the question and offer his or her thoughts. Following this session, additional topic presentations will either be given by a guest speaker or the attending. 

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Inpatient

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Two weekends of every month (typically total of 2 days inpatient/month with an average of 4 hours spent per day), you will have the opportunity to accompany the preceptor and his team into the hospital for patient rounds. Please note that during the hospital component of this rotation you will be only observing. 

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Feedback will be given on a regular basis from the residents and/or the attending physician. The supervisors are open to giving feedback and students should not hesitate to ask for it following specific activities such as taking histories, performing exams, presenting cases, etc. Being proactive in seeking feedback will allow you to grow from your experiences and make the most of your learning opportunities. 

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Activities will mostly take place in the outpatient setting. As a result of hospital policies, inpatient activities will be more observational.

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Please note this rotation may have more than 12 rotators at a time.

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​Who should consider this rotation: International medical graduates (IMGs) and students seeking US clinical experience in Internal Medicine; IMGs seeking careers in internal medicine or family medicine.

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How to obtain a letter of recommendation: The rotator should ask the preceptor for a LOR near the conclusion of the rotation. Dr. Desai has provided the physician with guidelines about best practices in letter writing that meet residency program requirements. In some cases, the preceptor may ask the rotator to write a letter of recommendation draft. 

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​During the rotation: Our team will be checking in periodically with you to ensure that you are having an optimal experience. We encourage you to contact us if you have any questions during the rotation.

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See Where Our Students Applying to Internal Medicine Have Received Interviews or Matched

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Read Dr. Desai's Interview with Dr. Roy Ziegelstein (Vice Dean for Education at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and Former Program Director of the Internal Medicine Residency Program at Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center) about How to Match Successfully in Internal Medicine