Thread: Wyckoff Family Medicine and Wyckoff housing

Hi fellow SMU'ers, anyone know anything bout the 6 wk Family core rotation at Wyckoff, as I have this one coming up in October and have heard some good and some not so good things about it from the blogs of other schools at least a few years ago but was wondering if anyone knows anything bout how it is currently? Will anyone else be joining me here in October-December for 6 wks?

Also, for those at Wyckoff or familiar with this area, could anyone send me any good information on housing for only 6 wks here that's not too crappy or too far from the hospital? Will I be able to park my car at the hospital and at the housing too?

Thanks so much for your time!

Im there from Sept-Oct for 6weeks so I will let u know how it goes. I also have heard alot of bad things about Wychoff from other students but than I also have read that the Family and Peds rotation at Wychoff is pretty good.

I lived at a place in Bay Ridge, but it was closer to Maimonides. Rent was about 800 per month for your own room in a house. The guy you'd be renting from lives with his wife and kid on the first floor. You get full use of the 3rd floor (kitchen and bathroom) which you'd share with another student.

The area is excellent, close to the R train station (77th and 4th). Tons of places to eat in the immediate area, good pubs and bars within walking distance. Parking can be an issue but it's easier than in other places in NY.

I did the 6 wk family medicine rotation at wyckoff and it has thus been my worst rotation so far. It was extremely dis-organized. The student coordinator gave us an attitude during orientation and would some times not let the students know of up-coming lectures or meetings we would have. The lectures she would tell us about would end up getting canceled. The nurses at that hospitals are horrible, would get in to fights with residents, and sometimes would even hide charts from them just to piss them off. If they are like that towards the residents you can imagine how they will treat you, the student. I also got stuck with a dip-sheet DO attending for my 3 wks out-patient. Did not teach much, would make me do stupid scut work. One time he wanted me to take out the garbage piling up in the back of his clinic. I forgot the attending's name. He is russian and a DO instead of an MD. If you get him for out-pt immediately ask to switch unless you like massaging patients' ***** with an electric massage thingy all day long because he does not practice real medicine. It was the only rotation I did their and will never set foot in that hospital ever again. Good luck

Ace, I'm really to hear about your disappointing experience and am happy you never had to go back to the hospital again. I look forward to (hopefully) more positive feedback from StudentDoc on the September experience there. I have heard so much mixed reviews so maybe it's just totally random to who's your attending when you're there, etc. Ace, could you please give the approximate hours of the rotation for the inpatient half and the outpatient half...also, how much night float and overnight call?

FutureMD, could you please tell me how far and how long it takes from your place u stayed at by mainmodes to Whykoff cuz I know there's a few student housing places we can rent right near Whykoff but have heard they are kinda ghetto so I was just wantin to know if the other place you're talkin bout is close enough it's worth it to live a lil further away but in a better area.

Thanks so much for all your answers!

The rotation is split into three 2 week blocks. There is one block of walk in clinic, another block of inpatient at the hospital which is like internal medicine, and the last block is outpatient family doctor.

The walk in clinic is about 4-5 hours a day for two weeks. You basically call patients into the rooms and do HPI's/Physical exams. You can also write a note if you are comfortable doing soap notes. Than you present the patient to the attending or resident. After you do that, you go see the patient again with the attending or resident. Not alot of teaching in the clinic b/c the doctors are busy themselves, but they may ask you questions on physical exams so def brush up on Bates and have an idea of the basic HEENT, Thyroid, CVS, RESP, ABD, MUS SKEL, and CNS exams.

The inpatient service for two weeks is the most hours as its 7AM-3/5PM everyday. Also you are expected to do two overnight calls so basically two 24 hour shifts. Even though the hours seem bad, this is where u get to learn the most. There are 5-6 residents including a chief resident who teaches alot on basic disorders in the family medicine setting. Also the attending DR.N spends about 2 hours each day going over inpatient cases and teaching about those cases.

Basically you go in at 7AM and you are assigned 1 or 2 patients by the chief student. You have to go see the patient's and than do thorough write up including the Soap note and knowing everything about the patients disease. So about the 10AM, the attending DR.N comes and goes over all the family medicine patients with the residents and students. Dr.N does randomly pick students to present there patients so always be prepared b/c he does ask alot of questions not only on the patient, about the disorders the patient has. This lasts about till 12PM and than the students go for lunch n come back around 1:30. In the afternoons, some of things we have to do are round bedside with the attending, do admissions, or just sit in family medicine room and get taught by residents. Def have an understanding of the work up for presentations such as HTN, DM, CHF, ASTHMA/COPD, PNEUMONIAE, SYNCOPE, ALTERED MS, CORONARY ARTERY DISEASE (chest pain), SEIZURES, STROKE. These are the things the attending loves to grill the students on.

The last block for me was shadowing an outpatient doctor. The hours vary depending on what doctor you are assigned. I just went in for 4 hours a day and did really nothing for two weeks besides just watch the attending and ask questions. Try to get Dr.H for this block b/c he is really good and teaches but he does make the students stay 12 hours a day. I did not have him, but he is an amazing teacher b/c i worked with him on my overnight calls as he was the attending on my call days.

Also every WEDS, you dont go to your clinic or outpatient doctor, but you go to LaMarca clinic for group case discussion with DR.M from 9AM-12PM. Every student has to present one case and do one writeup which is graded. Inpatient students do not have to come. In the Weds afternoons from 2-5PM, there is family medicine didactics which are lectures and board question review by the attendings and residents. All students attend this.

Thats about everything you need to know. The rotation is overall pretty good, but some depends on what attending you get for clinic and outpatient. The inpatient part is really good.

Feel free to ask any more questions

starting IM at wyckoff on May 23rd, looking for an apartment nearby and a roomate, if anyone else is looking, please message me, thanks!

I liked the rotation at Wyckoff. Its very well organized. The outpatient stuff is very very light in patient volume and hours. I didn't learn or do a whole lot there but I did learn about how outpatient clinics work plus most of the simple things you run into there. Colds, flus, tineas, hypertension, diabetes, drug seeking behaviour, that sort of thing.

The inpatient is more informative and you learn a bit more. Some high strung, over worked, very friendly residents there. The attending can come off as a **** and he'll anger easily if you do something stupid... which in turn makes you learn how to present a case quite well. He's not as scary as he comes off after you've been with him for a while.

(he reamed me out for not knowing my patient had had a CT scan, their computer system has a different program for imaging FYI, which I did not know, learn how to use it early or else he might give you the same treatment)

As far as housing... Find any place that is near a stop on the L train. The best place in Brooklyn is on Bedford ave. with all the awesome restaurants, bars and hipsters. The rent can be high though. You'll have a lot of downtime for four of the six weeks so you may as well be somewhere fun. The hospital is in a much less cool area.

Hi,
I have an apartment very close to Wycoff Hospital. Looking for a female. Rent is $600/month. It includes water, heat and internet. Its close to all amenities. Message if interested. Available immediately.

One bedroom for rent $450 includes internet, electricity, water. The room is the last room in a railroad style apartment so you will have your privacy. The kitchen and bathroom are shared with me. There is a washer and dryer that you are welcome to use. Perfect for medical students rotating at Wyckoff Heights Medical Center (1 block away) or Interfaith Medical Center. The room comes furnished with a futon, dresser, nightstand, desk and chair. Please give me a call for more information : 7188212028