The internal medicine residency program at McGaw Medical Center of Northwestern University has been listed as one of the most well-regarded postgraduate training experiences in the country.
In what is believed to be the first-ever large-scale survey of physicians regarding residencies, McGaw was one of 10 programs to receive more than 200 nominations. Conducted by U.S. News and World Report, the published results offer new insight into the perceptions associated with graduate medical education.
“We take great pride in our residency programs and it’s always wonderful when one of them receives the special recognition it deserves,” said Eric G. Neilson, MD, vice president for Medical Affairs and Lewis Landsberg Dean. “For graduating medical students, this list provides another source of information to consider when creating their residency preferences.”
The report was released a week before seniors have to rank residency programs in which they are interested. Students are matched to a program based partly on their rank-order and partly on each program’s own ranked list of candidates. On Match Day – March 21 this year – students are told of their residency assignments.
“This list will be one of many variables that perspective trainees will consider when ranking their programs,” said Joshua Goldstein, MD, GME ’02, senior associate dean for graduate medical education. “The leaders in Internal Medicine have a long track record of excellence in medical education and given the quality of our training programs, we are not at all surprised by McGaw’s placement on this list.”
Twenty-four residencies received at least 100 nominations, and 300 others received at least one of the more than 9,000 submitted. The programs at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston and Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore received the most nominations. The survey, distributed by Doximity, an online network of more than 250,000 physicians, allowed recipients to name five programs they believe offer the best clinical training in internal medicine.
U.S. News annually ranks America’s hospitals and medical schools, but has never before looked into the reputations of residency programs. Survey participants came from a wide swathe of the country, providing care at 1,300 hospitals and representing every state except Alaska and Wyoming.
McGaw’s highly competitive Internal Medicine program is comprised of 120 residents. Each year, nearly 4,000 graduating medical students express interest in the residency, which boasts separate tracks for women’s health and research.
“Our program has a longstanding commitment to community health and we maintain an innovative curriculum in simulation-based medical education,” said Aashish Didwania, MD, assistant professor in Medicine-General Internal Medicine and Geriatrics and program director of the Internal Medicine residency at McGaw. “Most residents participate in research during residency and a large percentage graduate to highly competitive fellowships or careers in primary care.”