Clerkships, Residencies, and Licensures

[Kirst]

"Spartan is not approved for clerkships. Clerkships are the only thing this
office deals with. The only licensed foreign medical schools at this time
are St. George's, St. Matthew's, Ross, American University of the Caribbean, and Saba (provisional license).

I hope this information is helpful.

Sandra Knight
Commission for Independent Education
Florida Department of Education"

So it seems that clerkships, residencies, and licensures are operating differently in some, if not all states. When you find a hospital for rotations, be sure to call all 3 offices of the state it's in to make sure as a Spartan student 1. you're eligible to rotate 2. what your maximum number of weeks is 3. if clerkships will disqualify you for residency or licensure later on in this state.

Hospitals will have no idea on the state board policies, so you should do your own homework if you want to avoid nightmare situations after your graduate that some of your clerkship don't count, or would be used against you during licensure. I really don't know why they make things unnecessarily complicated like this... to think there are not few, but 50 states!

[aki1]

Hello Kirst,

I was wondering if you can tell me what exactly is a clerkship? I am aware of internship and residency, but not clerkship.

Thanks

Sincerely

aki1

[Kirst]

Hi aki1,

The terms can be a little confusing. Hope the following helps.

Clerkship
Clinical rotations done as a student, typically during 3rd and 4th years of medical school at hospitals shadowing preceptive residents and/or physicians.

Externship
A voluntary clinical service consisting of observation as a non-resident doctor attached to a hospital. No paid salary, small stipends may be available.

Preliminary
One year long clinical training occurring before and leading up to formal residency.

Residency
(Graduate Medical Education or Post Graduate Training)
Through a national matching program, newly graduated MDs enter into a specialty program that is 3 to 5 years or more of professional training under the supervision of senior physician educators.

Internship
The term refers to the first year of residency, but is now obsolete to PGY (Post Graduate Year) 1.

Fellowship
1 to 3 years of additional training in a subspecialty is an option for some doctors who want to become highly specialized in a particular field

Board Certification
Certification ensures that the doctor has been tested to assess his or her knowledge, skills, and experience in a specialty and is deemed qualified by to provide quality patient care in that specialty. There are 2 levels of certification through 24 specialty medical boards- doctors can be certified in 36 general medical specialties and in an additional 88 subspecialty fields. Most certifications must be renewed after 6 to 10 years, depending on the specialty. This is is an optional, voluntary process.

Licensure
A physician still must obtain a license to practice medicine from a state or jurisdiction of the United States in which they are planning to practice. They apply for the permanent license after completing a series of exams and completing a minimum number of years of graduate medical education.

Continuing Medical Education
Doctors continue to receive credits for continuing medical education, and some states require a certain number of CME credits per year to ensure the doctor's knowledge and skills remain current. CME requirements vary by state, by professional organizations, and by hospital medical staff organizations.

http://www.ama-assn.org/