Jagiellonian Medical English Univ Q/A Thread

[plunderisley]

I am a current student on the 6year program here in JAG. If anyone has any questions, comments, or needs any help with JAG or Krakow in general, post your questions below, and I will try my best to answer them!

[jamey]

At the very least you would have to write some board exams (european/polish/USMLE?) to make sure you know your stuff. obviously the curriculum between Jagiellonian and a chinese medical school differs so to be sure everything was on the same page you would need to write some sort of standardized exam.

I am not sure about repeating your internship, though that its possible.

no, you would not have to learn polish, as the classes and clerkship rotations in the hospital are all in english. the professors and doctors here speak it pretty well too so language wont be a problem.

this however is all providing Jagiellonian would even allow this....so my advice is to email the ladies at the admissions office and ask them these questions. they will be able to help you more.

smeoffice @ cm-uj.krakow.pl


good luck!

I mailed them and they reply me with website links that are offline . I tell this to them and they don't reply.
Could you please tell me in detail ,if possible, about the licensing exam for Poland ? ? (any web address ?)
I started doing my internship here in my affiliated hospital and it is going on well .. so i have some time figuring out about Poland .
Thank you

[Glokta]

So...this whole med school thingy is becoming more real by the minute. Questions keep flooding my mind. Here are a few. I tried to limit them to one subject. Please answer whichever ones you can.

1) What was the average cadaver:student this past year? Plunderisley mentioned 'First year anatomy we were 10 per professor' early in this thread, and Fructis added 'The anatomy course is designed so that a prof and about 10 students stand around a pre-dissected cadaver and (s)he shows what is important. Sometimes it’s difficult to see. You usually don’t get extra lab time in the evenings to practice and memorize the structures.' Is this still the case, or do we actually get to dissect?

2) Is there a 'dress code' for Gross anatomy (Scrubs/Labcoat/tie/etc.)?

3) If there is a dress code, can we wear our own Scrubs/Labcoat or are we required to buy and wear ones with the University's logo on them (some med schools are sticklers about this)?

4) Are disposable gloves provided or is it a good idea to carry our own?

5) What about dissection kits?

6) Should I bring some instruments with me (tuning fork/sphymomanometer/otoscope/opthalmoscope/tape measure/reflex hammer)?

7) Rotten also mentioned earlier in this thread 'One caveat worth mentioning: New York state (and several others, I think) has a rule stating that one cannot spend more than 12 weeks rotating in a country outside the country of their medical school (in this case, Poland). Doing so would preclude you from licensure in NY. Since I am interested in residency there, you can bet I won't be spending most of my fourth year rotating in the US; I will probably do one or two rotations and be on my way back to Poland.' Is this still the case and does it apply in the way he states it? I realize that 12 weeks is a long time, but this is something you definitely don't want to screw up.

[bigndude]

So...this whole med school thingy is becoming more real by the minute. Questions keep flooding my mind. Here are a few. I tried to limit them to one subject. Please answer whichever ones you can.

1) What was the average cadaver:student this past year? Plunderisley mentioned 'First year anatomy we were 10 per professor' early in this thread, and Fructis added 'The anatomy course is designed so that a prof and about 10 students stand around a pre-dissected cadaver and (s)he shows what is important. Sometimes it’s difficult to see. You usually don’t get extra lab time in the evenings to practice and memorize the structures.' Is this still the case, or do we actually get to dissect?

2) Is there a 'dress code' for Gross anatomy (Scrubs/Labcoat/tie/etc.)?

3) If there is a dress code, can we wear our own Scrubs/Labcoat or are we required to buy and wear ones with the University's logo on them (some med schools are sticklers about this)?

4) Are disposable gloves provided or is it a good idea to carry our own?

5) What about dissection kits?

6) Should I bring some instruments with me (tuning fork/sphymomanometer/otoscope/opthalmoscope/tape measure/reflex hammer)?

7) Rotten also mentioned earlier in this thread 'One caveat worth mentioning: New York state (and several others, I think) has a rule stating that one cannot spend more than 12 weeks rotating in a country outside the country of their medical school (in this case, Poland). Doing so would preclude you from licensure in NY. Since I am interested in residency there, you can bet I won't be spending most of my fourth year rotating in the US; I will probably do one or two rotations and be on my way back to Poland.' Is this still the case and does it apply in the way he states it? I realize that 12 weeks is a long time, but this is something you definitely don't want to screw up.

1. Its still about 10 students per cadaver, there is extra lab time in the evenings, a lot of it actually and sometimes not many people go, so you will definitely have enough time. No dissecting, dissecting is pointless since it takes so much time and if you don't know exactly what you are doing you destroy many structures. Pro-sections are much better, many schools in the states have also started to use them for this reason.

2. Labcoat

3. No dresscode, wear your own labcoat, scrubs you won't need until end of 2nd year.

4. Provided (this isn't a 3rd world country)

5. No need

6. You need a stethoscope for 2nd semester of 1st year, the rest if needed is provided

7. Yes, this is still a New York state rule

[Dave_MD]

This is probably obvious but I'll mention it anyway. Even though there isn't a dress code for cadaver lab per se, that doesn't mean you should go in shorts and flip flops with your white coat. Long pants and closed toe shoes are definitely a must. Also, a good penlight in addition to your stethoscope might not be a bad purchase either, if you are buying these items in North America. Even though you won't REALLY need it until second year, it could come in handy in the first year Clinical Skills course.

[Rotten]

So...this whole med school thingy is becoming more real by the minute. Questions keep flooding my mind. Here are a few. I tried to limit them to one subject. Please answer whichever ones you can.

1) What was the average cadaver:student this past year? Plunderisley mentioned 'First year anatomy we were 10 per professor' early in this thread, and Fructis added 'The anatomy course is designed so that a prof and about 10 students stand around a pre-dissected cadaver and (s)he shows what is important. Sometimes it’s difficult to see. You usually don’t get extra lab time in the evenings to practice and memorize the structures.' Is this still the case, or do we actually get to dissect?

It's true; it's about a 10:1 ratio of students per cadaver. I wouldn't worry too much about this though. You *will* learn your anatomy, provided you prepare for class and take interest in the sessions. The anatomy instructors are all very, very good at what they do. If you meet them halfway via your effort, you'll be fine. Also, plunderisley, if I remember correctly was a 6-year student .. in the 4-year program, we had evening sessions (though they were optional) to review the material. I think I went to one or two total, and I did well enough on the practicals to be exempt from the final exam. The cadaver is usually pre-dissected; that seems to just be the way it's done in Poland. Once in a while, they'll bring in a new(er) cadaver, and the students will get to dissect. It's funny, new students get all caught up in anatomy-related worries ... while it's true that gross anatomy is somewhat of a rite of passage for med students, I would add that "forgetting what you've learned in gross anatomy" is every bit of a rite of passage, as well.

2) Is there a 'dress code' for Gross anatomy (Scrubs/Labcoat/tie/etc.)?

Lab coat and normal clothes. If you want to look stupid, by all means, wear a tie. Have fun cleaning the peritoneal juice out of it once your tie dips into the cadaver.

3) If there is a dress code, can we wear our own Scrubs/Labcoat or are we required to buy and wear ones with the University's logo on them (some med schools are sticklers about this)?

Not this med school. Wear whatever. I suggest buying the cheapest, longest lab coat for years 1-3, then buying a nicer short lab coat for North American electives, where you'll be required to wear a short coat.

4) Are disposable gloves provided or is it a good idea to carry our own?

Provided.

5) What about dissection kits?

Not needed.

6) Should I bring some instruments with me (tuning fork/sphymomanometer/otoscope/opthalmoscope/tape measure/reflex hammer)?

You can bring the neuro-related things, though you won't be using them until 3rd year. Leave the sphymomanometer and otoscope at home. The opthalmoscope will be also be useful in Neuro ("The eyes are the brain's window"), and optho (4th year).

7) Rotten also mentioned earlier in this thread 'One caveat worth mentioning: New York state (and several others, I think) has a rule stating that one cannot spend more than 12 weeks rotating in a country outside the country of their medical school (in this case, Poland). Doing so would preclude you from licensure in NY. Since I am interested in residency there, you can bet I won't be spending most of my fourth year rotating in the US; I will probably do one or two rotations and be on my way back to Poland.' Is this still the case and does it apply in the way he states it? I realize that 12 weeks is a long time, but this is something you definitely don't want to screw up.

I originally imparted this advice sometime in my first or second year, I cannot remember exactly. I plan to do a separate thread about this to dispel some myths and clarify some truths. Stay tuned.

Hope I've been a little bit of help. I'm open for further questioning, if there are any remaining ... and I'm sure there are.

[Glokta]

Thank you bigndude, Dave, and Rotten.

Most of my questions are still an unsorted and inarticulate jumble in my head, and so can likely wait until you've shared your post on myths and truths, Rotten, but there is one bothering me now. We all have heard the saying that there are no stupid questions, but there are a lot of inquisitive idiots. Keeping that in mind, here goes:

If NY licensure requires that no more than twelve weeks of rotations be done outside the home country, how does one explain the Caribbean schools?

[devildoc8404]

If NY licensure requires that no more than twelve weeks of rotations be done outside the home country, how does one explain the Caribbean schools?

Depends on the Carib school. If a school is specifically NY-approved, then there is no limitation on the number of weeks of NY rotations. If a school is NOT specifically NY-approved, that's when the limit kicks in.

[Glokta]

Gotcha. Thanks.

That is pretty lame.

[snake55]

I wanted to clear up the much confused 12 week rotation rule in regards to NY state. The rule simply allows the listed schools to participate in more than 12 weeks of rotations in NY state. Thats it. These schools are no more special than any other school besides the fact that they have applied and been approved to do more than 12 weeks of rotations in NY. NY does not have an approved medical school list as other states do ( ex cali).

The rumor that if you do more than 12 weeks of clinical rotations outside the home country of the school you are not eligible to be licensed in NY is simply false. The rule limits only the rotations you can do within NY!!!! Thus you can do 12 weeks of rotations in NY, 12 in Cali, 12 in London if you want. The only difference is if you apply for license in NY (and this applies if you are not licensed in another state) you must submit a document (for each rotation/location) with the hospital certifying that you completed the said rotation. Its a rather simple form. You can look at it on the states license depts website.

I hope that clears up the rumors in regards to this matter.

[bigndude]

I wanted to clear up the much confused 12 week rotation rule in regards to NY state. The rule simply allows the listed schools to participate in more than 12 weeks of rotations in NY state. Thats it. These schools are no more special than any other school besides the fact that they have applied and been approved to do more than 12 weeks of rotations in NY. NY does not have an approved medical school list as other states do ( ex cali).

The rumor that if you do more than 12 weeks of clinical rotations outside the home country of the school you are not eligible to be licensed in NY is simply false. The rule limits only the rotations you can do within NY!!!! Thus you can do 12 weeks of rotations in NY, 12 in Cali, 12 in London if you want. The only difference is if you apply for license in NY (and this applies if you are not licensed in another state) you must submit a document (for each rotation/location) with the hospital certifying that you completed the said rotation. Its a rather simple form. You can look at it on the states license depts website.

I hope that clears up the rumors in regards to this matter.

snake55 you may be a little misinformed. People from our program have written to the New York licensing people. The response that was received was you are not allowed to do more than 12weeks outside of the home country of your medical school if you are not on their special list. It is possible to get residencies in NY having more than 12w if the hospital is willing to gamble BUT if they start doing an audit in NY you may have problems as well as the hospital who gave you the residency