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Physician ID:
270
Hours:
Monday – Wednesday 8:30 AM to 4 PM; Thursday – Friday 10 AM to 4 PM
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.
Location: Los Angeles
This combined inpatient and outpatient US clinical experience will take place in Los Angeles, specifically in Orange County. The inpatient component of the experience will take place at a hospital that is just a few blocks away from the outpatient practice. You will be responsible for arranging your transportation to and from these locations.
Inpatient/Outpatient US Clinical Experience in Pulmonology in Los Angeles
Specialties: Pulmonology
Location: Los Angeles
Price:
Hospital Letterhead: No
Faculty Appointment: No
Information about this clinical experience:
You will be under the supervision of a physician board-certified in internal medicine, pulmonary / critical care, and sleep medicine. Although you will be seeing patients in the office, you will also spend part of your time observing hospitalized patients with pulmonary problems. This physician holds staff appointments at multiple hospitals, including hospitals within the MemorialCare Health System. Following residency training in internal medicine and fellowship training in pulmonary medicine, critical care, and sleep medicine, this preceptor worked for nearly five years as a faculty member at a top medical school in California before leaving academic medicine for a career in private practice.
The hospital component of this clinical experience will be spent at a long-term acute care hospital. This is a facility which cares for patients with complex situations and acute medical needs. These patients are admitted here after discharge from an acute care hospital when they have high medical needs that prevent them from going home or to a nursing home. The most common admitting diagnoses include respiratory disease requiring ventilator support, skin ulcers, sepsis, pulmonary edema and respiratory failure, respiratory infections, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, renal disease, and postoperative infections. You will be involved in the care of these patients. On a typical day, the patient census will include approximately 10-15 patients and, on average, two of these patients will be in the ICU. As many patients on the service will require tracheostomy and/or ventilator care, this will be an excellent opportunity to become familiar with the care of these patients, including ventilator management.
Monday - Wednesday
This preceptor has clinic two to three days per week (Monday through Wednesday). On clinic days, you will start with hospital rounds at 9 AM with the attending and nurse practitioner. Following hospital rounds, you will see outpatients in the clinic with a range of pulmonary conditions. The most encountered problems will be obstructive, interstitial, and neoplastic lung disease. These patients may present with acute symptoms or for monitoring of chronic disease. As you evaluate these patients, you will develop a deeper foundation in the evaluation and management of pulmonary disease. You will also understand the indications for testing in pulmonary medicine (e.g., pulmonary function tests, imaging, etc.) and learn how to interpret these studies. Please note that on these days you will see some patients with the preceptor’s colleagues who are specialized in internal medicine.
Thursday - Friday
On these days, the doctor does not see patients in the clinic. You will begin your day with hospital rounds in the morning at about 10 AM and then join the preceptor’s colleagues in the clinic to see outpatients at Noon. Please note that the colleagues are specialized in internal medicine and not in pulmonary medicine.
During your experience, you will learn the following U.S. medical practices under the preceptor’s supervision (please note that this experience remains within the regulations of California pertaining to the unlicensed practice of medicine):
Taking patient histories under supervision.
Performing physical exams under the physician's supervision.
Presenting patients.
Writing or entering clinic progress notes under supervision (Practice Fusion EMR).
Interpreting pulmonary function tests and thoracic imaging.
Researching the literature to answer clinical questions at the point of care.
The activities above will mostly take place in the outpatient setting. As a result of hospital policies, inpatient activities will be more observational.
Who should consider this rotation:
International medical graduates (IMGs) and students seeking US clinical experience in internal medicine, pulmonology, critical care, and sleep medicine will find this rotation particularly useful.
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.
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.
Testimonials
This rotation has been such a valuable opportunity—not only to deepen my medical knowledge, but also to learn how to interact with patients and caregivers in a primary care setting. Since it was my first rotation, I wasn’t yet comfortable speaking in English, but I truly appreciated how patient and encouraging you were throughout. Following you made me want to become a better doctor myself.
HS