How to become a doctor in the US - ForumDaily
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How to become a doctor in the US

Фото: Depositphotos

Profession doctor counts one of the highest paid in America. To become a certified doctor, you need to spend about 10 years studying, which costs a lot of money. For Russian-speaking doctors who moved to the United States, there is another option - to confirm the diploma received in their home country. This path is less financially expensive, but also requires considerable effort. ForumDaily figured out how Russian doctors can get the right to work in the United States in their specialty, and talked with those who succeeded.

Towards a medical specialty - through the Caribbean

Maxim Chumak was born in Ukraine. In 1992 he immigrated to Israel, and from there to the USA. Even before moving to America, he was educated as a nurse and dreamed of becoming a doctor.

“When I came to the USA, I was 26 years old, and I understood that if I didn’t go to study to become a doctor now, I would never do it,” recalls Maxim.

To save a little on tuition, he decided to study in one of the Caribbean countries - at the American University of Antigua. Caribbean medical colleges are slightly cheaper and have a more streamlined application process. However, only 4 of them are recognized by all states, and the American University of Antigua is one of them. You also need to keep in mind that finding a place for a residency (analogous to an internship) after graduating from a university in the Caribbean is still more difficult than after graduating from an American college. When reviewing applications, priority is usually given to graduates of American medical colleges, then students who graduated from a medical school in the Caribbean are considered, and then everyone else.

Maxim's training lasted from 2003 to 2008 a year: at first he graduated from medical school and another 2 of the year passed practice in Chicago.

“My tuition cost something like $36 thousand a year. I paid part of the amount myself, and to pay for the second part I took out a bank loan,” says Maxim Chumak.

During his studies, Maxim managed to work part-time as a nurse - he had previously confirmed the relevant education received in Israel in the USA.

After university it was necessary to get into residency. This was not at all easy to do - in some hospitals, as Maxim recalls, the competition was about 900 people per place, depending on the specialty.

In search of a hospital for internship, he visited several interviews. Thanks to his perseverance, 2 weeks before the start of the practice, he received a call from a hospital at the University of Michigan and was offered a place with a contract for surgery 1-2 of the year. Maxim agreed. After working there for a year, he moved to Henry Ford Hospital and changed his specialty to a family doctor. He now works in the Emergency Room of the Memorial Hospital in the city of Hollywood, Florida.

In parallel with this, Maxim was selected to the reserve of the American army, where he received the rank of captain, and served as a military doctor under the contract. When signing the contract, the army gives you the opportunity to take advantage of various advantages, one of which is the repayment of student loans.

After several years of work in hospitals, Dr. Chumak wants to work for himself and is now starting his own practice.

Three options

There are several options for becoming a certified doctor in the United States.

1. Training in the US Medical College

It takes about 10 years or more if you want to become a neurosurgeon or plastic surgeon. Requires substantial financial investments - the cost of training can vary from $150 to $400 thousand.

2. Studying at a medical college in a Caribbean country

Certain Caribbean medical colleges are recognized in the USA. Tuition is significantly lower than in the United States. It is easier to do. Residency can be passed in the American clinic, which ultimately will allow a person to get the desired profession.

3. Medical Diploma

This path is the most budget, fast, but difficult. In addition to passing difficult exams, you need to find a place to pass the residency, and for this category of applicants it is not easy. Without passing the same residency to obtain a doctor's license and practice in the United States is impossible. The positive point in this case is that during retraining the doctors do not acquire huge debts, and from the moment they get a place in the hospital they start to work “in plus”.

Evidence of professionalism

Lyubov Klemin in 1995 year moved to the USA from Ukraine. Together with her husband settled in Chicago. Prior to that, at home, she worked for 11 for years as an obstetrician-gynecologist. In the United States decided to confirm his specialty. She prepared herself for the exams with the help of American medical textbooks. The preparation took 9 months. The exam was called USMLE and consisted of 3 phases, which she successfully passed and started 3-year residency in the hospital under the Match program.

Klemin

Dr. Clemin. Photos from the personal archive

Its essence is that students are looking for a place to complete a residency program, and programs choose their residents. It’s similar to the TV program “Love at First Sight” - whether the interests of the applicant and the hospital coincide or not.

“Nowadays it is very difficult for a foreigner to get into residency,” says Lyubov Klemin. — In my time, this was more realistic, because there was a shortage of doctors in the United States. In addition, it is important for American hospitals that no more than 3 years have passed since the foreign specialist they are considering graduated from medical school. That is, no one is interested in extensive experience here and is viewed rather as a minus.”

In residency, a medical specialist works under the supervision of other doctors, but still as a doctor, not as a student. Moreover, he earns a decent salary for a professional that has not yet been, by American standards, $ 50-60 thousand a year.

“In order to get a residency, I sent out my resume to hospitals. I had 3 interviews related to obstetrics and 3 as a family doctor. I ended up practicing as an obstetrician-gynecologist. Well, after residency, I received a license and started my own practice in Chicago as a family doctor and obstetrician-gynecologist,” says Lyubov Klemin.

Lyubov loves her job and says that she doesn’t see any downsides to being an American doctor. “If you have already passed this difficult path, then it will be easy. And the income is excellent. But the important point is that you should always be aware of the latest research and innovations in medicine. You can't put green paint on a wound, for example, if all the doctors in the US already treat wounds differently. That is, an American doctor needs to constantly engage in self-development. Every year something changes! This is a huge difference compared to the healthcare system in Ukraine,” states Lyubov.

What you need to confirm a medical degree in the USA

  1. Register on the site ECFMG (Educational Comission for Foreign Medical Graduates). Application fee: $65;
  2. Send documents: diploma translation, completed application forms, photo.
  3. Register for the first exam and pass it: USMLE Step 1 Basic Science (Fundamentals of Science: physiology, pathology, anatomy, pathological anatomy, microbiology, pharmacology, embryology, behavioral science, biochemistry, etc.). Cost - $880;
  4. Pass the second USMLE Step 2 Clinical Knowledge exam (clinical subjects). Cost - $880;
  5. Pass the third USMLE Step 2 Clinical Skills exam (a practical exam that tests knowledge using actors). Cost: $1.
  6. After successfully passing the exams, you participate in the Match program, pass interviews in clinics that invite you, and, under successful circumstances, conclude a contract for residency.
  7. After graduating from the residency and passing the exam for a medical license, you become an American doctor.

Good time

Alexander Merson moved to New York from Riga in 90. In Latvia, 13 spent years dealing with blood diseases and malignant lymphomas. He also defended his thesis on this profile.

According to Alexander, the 90s were a good time to confirm a medical degree, because in the middle of the 1980s in America, an outbreak of AIDS began, and the healthcare system was not ready for this. Doctors were required, but they were not.

Merson

Dr. Merson. Photo: from the personal archive

Alexander decided to confirm his diploma. He was trained for exams at the famous Kaplan preparatory courses, which cost $ 1000 at that time. The Russian doctor passed the examinations perfectly and found a place for residency.

“I remember my first month in residency very well. It was terribly difficult. I, as an ignorant person, was put in the worst place - I was an errand doctor and did all the bestial work. I bounced around 3 hospitals where I had a rotation. By the way, one of them was a military man. In the first week, I showed up at home only 2 times, because I finished my shift at 1-2 am and stayed overnight in the hospital. I don't know how I even survived. On the other hand, thanks to this experience, I learned to do absolutely everything: sew up wounds, put a hose in my mouth for feeding, and even stop malaria. I did and saw things that I only read about in textbooks,” the doctor shares his impressions.

When Alexander passed the residency, the law prohibiting the doctor from working more than 24 hours in a row was not yet in force. Thus, he could often be 36 hours on his feet - day shift, night duty and the next day shift.

For his work practice, the doctor received $ 34 thousands per year. This salary allowed his 4 family to exist normally. For comparison - for the apartment, Alexander then paid $ 700.

“I completed my residency in 2 years instead of the required three. The program director petitioned to allow me to finish early. However, New York did not provide a license, and I had to undergo an additional two-year fellowship in blood diseases (hematology),” says the doctor.

In September 1995, Alexander already opened his practice in Brooklyn, purchasing an office where a Chinese doctor had previously received treatment. “I found an advertisement for the sale of the practice in the New York Times. It turned out that the office is a 5-minute walk from my house. It was very convenient and the stated price was low, which allowed me to take this deal. Of course, many clients left after the former owner of the office, but the place was familiar, and they began to come to me,” Alexander shares his memories.

For more than 20 years he has been working as a therapist (internal medicine) in his office. His working week is 6 days: 4 days he sees patients, and the remaining two days are spent filling out government papers. The doctor openly dislikes current US President Barack Obama because of his reforms, which have made life more difficult for doctors.

“I used to go into medicine because I had a great love for it. Things are different now: I spend a lot of time on paperwork after Barack Obama introduced ObamaCare. As the famous US neurosurgeon, Ben Carson, said: “Obamacare is the worst event in America since slavery,” Alexander says frankly. According to him, after the introduction of ObamaCare, many doctors lost their patients, but many audits began to be carried out and the cost of liability insurance for doctors increased extremely, which is why some ended their practice and left the profession.

Alexander hopes that the next presidential election will be won by Donald Trump, who promised to cancel ObamaCare if he wins, and advises everyone to think three times before linking his life with medicine: “This is a very difficult and long way, a loan of $ 200-300 thousand, if you study in the US, and work in crazy conditions. ”

But those who still overcome this path will receive a good bonus - on average, doctors’ salaries start at $100 thousand per year and, according to Payscale, can go up to $ 800 thousands.

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