Guest Editorial: In Tonight's Residency Insight, we will begin a series on the potential job opportunities available to residents as they graduate from their residency programs. Tonight's guest editor is Wenjay Sung, DPM, who will be offering his insight and input in post-residency fellowships. Dr. Sung is a graduate of the Dr. William M. Scholl College, North Chicago, IL., and completed his residency training at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC), Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
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Wenjay Sung, DPM
2010-2011 Fellow
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There is no Endpoint
Near the end of my second year of residency at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC), I was actively engaging in interviews with prospective employers. I had just returned from a disappointing two-day job interview when my mentor, Dane Wukich, MD, asked me why I wasn’t going into a fellowship program. He stated that podiatry is a great profession, but the standard deviation among its practitioners was vast. The great divide between an outstanding podiatrist versus a not-so-outstanding podiatrist was troubling and confusing for other professionals. One of the best ways to stand out, at least to an outsider like himself, was to pursue fellowship training beyond residency.
I was struck by his candor. Dr. Wukich had spent nearly three years training me at a rigorous high-powered residency program and guided me into publishing seven peer-reviewed scientific articles with him during this time. I had spent countless nights and weekends in his office going over cases and research projects, and I never once declined the opportunity to work closer with him. I felt I had already accomplished more than enough to distinguish myself, but his words were striking.
Special Conference Video Interview Series |
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Follow this link, or scroll down to the conclusion of this article...as new PRESENT Star and Student-Doctor, Rene Hymel,
interviews your PRESENT Residency Insight Editor, Ryan Fitzgerald, DPM of Hess Orthopedics & Sports Medicine Harrisonburg, Virginia. |
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By this prodding, I retrospectively examined my podiatric career. Like every student on their first day, I was praying to just get through my first week at the Dr. William M. Scholl College at Rosalind Franklin University. Once the first week passed, I pounded my books and notes to get through my first test. The first test lead to the first mid-term which quickly became finals, and soon after I was entrenched with boards.
Once I graduated podiatry school and finished residency orientation, I was again praying during my first week on-call as a post-graduate year one (PGY-1), hoping not to kill anyone on service. I found myself back in the books studying up for my first surgery (a 5th metatarsal exostectomy). The second residency year came, saw, and conquered me just the same as the first year of residency, with PGY-3 looming ahead. And soon after, another graduation awaited.
I suddenly understood. I had been working fervently since my days at Rosalind Franklin. I had pursued research projects and published peer-reviewed papers during residency. I had dedicated a good part of my podiatric career to bridge and advance my profession in the eyes of the other Departments at UPMC.
But why?
I realized Dr. Wukich wasn’t trying to point out that I needed a fellowship; instead, he was pointing out that he knew I wanted one. For someone like me, there would never be an endpoint to my training, my will to improve. I wasn’t in competition with others, but was competing against myself. I had not put in the hours, nights, and weekends of work just to reach an endpoint, but instead, I had put the work in because there wasn’t an endpoint. And I thrived.
Today, I am completing my fellowship training at the Weil Foot-Ankle & Orthopedic Institute and will be joining a multi-specialty hospital group based at a level-1 trauma center in the heart of Chicago. Pursuing a fellowship did not guarantee me fame, fortune, or recognition for all my hard work. It only guaranteed that this would not be an endpoint for me.
If you agree with that statement, if you understand what it means, or if you can relate to what I’m writing; then maybe, you should consider a fellowship. If you’re interested in advanced training beyond residency, then consider training at one of the ACFAS recognized fellowship programs. Please find me at the below email if you have any questions (or just friend me on Facebook).
Wenjay Sung, DPM
Fellow, Foot and Ankle
Weil Foot-Ankle & Orthopedic Institute
1455 E. Golf Rd
Des Plaines, IL 60016
Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @jaysung
FB: facebook.com/wenjaysung
Special PRESENT Res Ed Summit Conference Video Interview |
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Follow this link or click on the image above to view New PRESENT Star and Student-Doctor,
Rene Hymel,
interview PRESENT Residency Insight Editor, Ryan Fitzgerald, DPM of Hess Orthopedics & Sports Medicine Harrisonburg, Virginia. |
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