A place for residents to emerge from the dark.

  • What is Rethinking Residency?

    Rethinking Residency is a place for residents, current, former, prospective and their families, to emerge from the darkness that is residency training and come together to share their stories and insights.

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    About Rethinking Residency
  • Overcoming Addiction In Residency & Fellowship

    Overcoming Addiction In Residency & Fellowship

    Dr. McKeown tells her story of battling, and overcoming, addiction in both residency and fellowship. She tells her story so that others struggling with addiction or substance abuse can know that they are not alone.

  • How I Switched Residency Programs & Specialties

    How I Switched Residency Programs & Specialties

    The Nitty-Gritty – how I switched career paths two-thirds of the way through a residency program and the questions I asked myself as I contemplated doing a second residency.

  • Stigma, Shame & Psychotherapy for Physicians

    Stigma, Shame & Psychotherapy for Physicians

    Research shows that only 16% of medical professionals under age 55 who are experiencing significant distress will reach out for help. Over age 55, that percentage drops to 6%. There are a number of both internal and external barriers to accessing needed mental healthcare. While they are real and valid, external barriers can sometimes absorb…

  • Beyond Self Care: Coaching and Psychotherapy

    Beyond Self Care: Coaching and Psychotherapy

    Maybe you’re doing all the things. You meditate, eat well, exercise, seek out appropriate social support, set good boundaries, and follow good sleep hygiene practices. But you’re still feeling significant distress. There can be a tendency to push ourselves harder, to berate ourselves for not feeling better despite our best efforts. But this is often…

  • Caring for Yourself as a Physician

    Caring for Yourself as a Physician

    Consider taking care of a child, a pet, or a garden. Do you ignore them for long stretches and attend to them periodically and call that good care? Or does caring for pretty much anything or anyone you can imagine involve paying consistent attention to their needs and taking steps to meet those needs? Self-care…

  • Self Directed Self Care

    Self Directed Self Care

    “When someone is drowning, that is not the time to teach them how to swim.” How does the concept of self-care land on you? Do you envision morning meditations, beach vacations, a dedicated yoga practice, or something else that replenishes and renews you? Or do you experience it as another obligation, just one more thing…

  • Blowing the Whistle: A Guide for Medical and Surgical Trainees

    Blowing the Whistle: A Guide for Medical and Surgical Trainees

    “I sat wondering, Could I take it all back? I could say I made it all up. More and more, it seemed that the whistleblowing would just be met with more blow-back. Everything I did was just being used against me. I wanted NBO to investigate. I wanted someone to take my concerns seriously, but…

  • Reducing Distress by Thinking about Thinking

    Reducing Distress by Thinking about Thinking

    Consider this scenario: I am approaching my house, which I believe to be empty. I hear unmistakable noises from inside. If I conclude that I am interrupting a break-in, I will take precautions. If it turns out to be a surprise party, that’s okay. I may have felt frightened for no reason, but I really…

The Premise

Now Is The Time To Rethink Residency!

Developed over 125 years ago in the US, modern residency training remains largely unchanged from its infancy. This site may not be able to spark a revolution, but helping even one resident is enough to justify the effort.

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