The opinion of current and recent internal medicine residents regarding a fourth year of training and the future of general internal medicine. American College of Physicians National Council of Associates.
OBJECTIVE
To determine the opinion of current residents and recent graduates of internal medicine training programs regarding an additional mandatory year of residency training.


METHODS
A survey was made of 2,000 associate members of the American College of Physicians from five geographic regions.


RESULTS
Of 917 respondents, 70.3% thought a fourth year of training would impact negatively on their choice of a career in internal medicine, and 82.9% believed a mandatory fourth year should not be required of residents choosing a subspecialty career. Furthermore, 58.1% of physicians surveyed thought a mandatory fourth year would discourage individuals from pursuing subspecialty careers. If a mandatory fourth year of training were required, 50.7% respondents indicated that it should consist of ambulatory training in a number of general fields, while 49.6% physicians believed the training should focus on one or two subspecialty fields.


CONCLUSIONS
A mandatory fourth year of training is not supported by residents and recent graduates of the programs surveyed.
Salerno
S M
SM
American College of Physicians National Council of Associates, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.
Cowl
C T
CT
D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D003625:Data Collection; D006801:Humans; D007388:Internal Medicine / Q000193:education* / Q000639:trends; D007396:Internship and Residency; D013997:Time Factors