Advising Medical Students Letters of Recommendation

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Advising Medical Students Letters of
Recommendation

• Felix Ankel, MD
• Regions Hospital
• Saint Paul, MN
• ankel001_at_umn.edu

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Thank you

• Nick Jouriles
• Wendy Coates
• Peter Deblieux
• Bob Loeshke
• Louis Binder
• Carey Chisholm
• Kevin Rogers
• Bob Wahl
• others

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Advising medical students

• Advising and mentoring
• Advising and recruiting
• Importance
• Resources
• Time commitment
• Illegal questions
• Setting up a system

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Letter of recommendation

• Elements of an exemplary letter of recommendation
• FERPA
• Release
• SLOR
• Setting up a system

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Definitions

• Advise Counsel, recommend, notify, inform
• Mentor Tutor, coach
• Recruit Enlist, hire

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Blumstein HA, Cone DC. Medical Student Career
Advice Related to Emergency Medicine. Acad Emerg
Med 1998 569-73

• 104 interviewee questionnaires
• 57 received negative advice from medical school
  faculty
• (applicant too good, low prestige of EM ,
  burnout/stress)
• 45 had EM advisor
• 38 sought informal advice from EP

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State of Emergency Medicine 2004

• 126 Medical schools
• 64 Departments of EM
• 132 Residencies
• 21 Have required EM rotations (1994)
• (Acad Emerg Med 1997 41070-7)

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EM match 2004
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Promotion and Tenure
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Illegal Interview Questions
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Standard Advice

• Read the Macy report on EM
• Become a student member of SAEM, ACEP/EMRA/MSA,
  and AAEM
• Join an EMIG or start one if there isnt one at
  your school
• Get an EM advisor (official or unofficial)
• Shadow an emergency physician
• Schedule an EM rotation at a place with an EM
  residency
• Read Koscove EM. An applicants evaluation of an
  emergency medicine internship and residency. Ann
  Emerg Med 1990 19774
• Read Crane JT and Ferraro CM. Selection criteria
  for emergency medicine residency applicants.
  Acad Emerg Med 2000 754

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Standard packet

• Macy report
• Match statistics
• Crane article
• Koscove article
• Copy of SAEM medical student home page
• Copy of EMRA home page
• Copy of AAEM home page

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System

• EM evening
• Packets
• Ways to contact (phone, e-mail, meetings)
• Expectations

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7 cardinal elements of an exemplary letter of
recommendation

• Authentic Based on adequate first-hand knowledge
  of candidates skills
• Honest Accurate, avoiding exaggeration or
  hyperbole
• Explicit Avoidance of veiled omissions
• Balanced Incorporating both strengths and
  weaknesses

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7 cardinal elements of an exemplary letter of
recommendation

• Confidential Avoid unnecessary or unanticipated
  disclosure
• Of appropriate detail and length Detail relevant
  to the request
• Technically clear Avoid unnecessary abbreviation
  and jargon

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Legal and confidentiality issues encountered in
writing letters of recommendationLouis Binder,
MDVicki Gotkin, JD

• Confidentiality
• Waiver of access to LOR
• Defamation
• Liability for being incomplete
• E-mail and other communication

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Letter of recommendation

• Elements of an exemplary letter of recommendation
• FERPA
• Release
• SLOR
• Setting up a system

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A letter of recommendation system

• Set up student clerkship to have objective
  evaluation system (e.g. shift cards)
• Have students sign a release
• Use SLOR
• Be objective and state facts

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Advising medical students

• Advising and mentoring
• Advising and recruiting
• Importance
• Resources
• Time commitment
• Illegal questions
• Set up a system

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System

• EM evening
• Packets
• Ways to contact (phone, e-mail, meetings)
• Expectations

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Advising Medical Students Letters of
Recommendation

• Felix Ankel, MD
• Regions Hospital
• Saint Paul, MN
• ankel001_at_umn.edu