Comments on Duke University Medical School News

July 11, 2011- Like any another medical school graduat , I retain an interest in my alma mater. Today I received two publications from Duke, the summer editions of the DukeMed Alumni News and Duke MedMagazine.

According to these publications,

• Duke Medical School now ranks 5th as an academic research institution. It share the fifth spot with Stanford, Yale, and University of California-San Francisco. Four schools rank ahead of Duke – Harvard University, the University of Pennsylvania, Johns Hopkins, and Washington University in St. Louis.

• Like other elite medical colleges, it is struggling to define its primary care program. It closed its family medicine program in 2006. It is in the process of restructuring its approach to primary care, by emphasizing field experiences rather than in-house training and by educating “change agents,” – clinical leaders and scientists- rather than routine practitioners. It is rethinking primary care in face of rising costs, rampant chronic illess, and government reforms.
• Duke gradates this year selected the following residencies.

 Internal Medicine, 16
 Radiology, 10
 Pediatrics, 8
 Emergency Medicine, 8
 Orthopedics, 7
 Ophthalmology. 7
 Anesthesiology, 6
 Medicine/pediatrics, 5
 Dermatology, 4
 Family Medicine, 4
 Radiology Encology, 3
 General Surgery, 2
 Obstetrics/Gynecology, 2
 Plastic Surgery 2
Total 86

I found these numbers interesting. It is said in general more graduates are seeking residences in the so-called ROAD specialties (Radiology, Opthalmology/Orthopedics, Anesthesiology, and Dermatology), which tend to have high incomes with regular hours.

These figure bear out that generalization -37/86 (42%) are entering these specialties. Another 16 (18%) are choosing non-primary care fields –Emergency Medice,, General Surgery, Obstetics/Gynecology. Otolpayngology, and Plastic Surgery.

That leaves 33 (38%) picking primary specialties – Internal Medicine 16, Pediatrics 8. Medicine/Pediatrics 5, and Family Medicine 4. These numbers may be deceptive. Nationwide, 80% of those entering Internal Medicine end up in subspecialty fields - cardiology, oncology, gastroenterology, endocrinology, and so forth. Duke takes pride in 4 students entering Family Medicine. Last year it was only one.