Basic sciences and clinical rotations are two integral segments of your medical education. Clinical rotations are taught during the final semesters of your Doctor of Medicine (MD) program. This part of your medical studies prepares you for your medical residency as well as your career by giving you practical lessons.
Clinical rotations last for around 72 weeks in most medical schools. They are divided into core and elective rotations and provide you with chances to learn through real-life patient interactions.
As clinical medicine is a crucial part of your MD program that has a huge role to play in your career as a doctor, let’s go through the details of clinical rotations.
What is clinical rotation?
From semesters six to ten of your MD program, clinical rotations are the part where you gain practical experience. Basic science takes you through the theoretical lessons in medical science and lays the foundation for clinical medicine. You have to capitalize on the knowledge gained from lectures and textbooks through real-life hospital experiences.
How long is clinical rotation?
Clinical rotation is a 72-week program in most medical schools. This part of your medical studies is divided into two segments known as core rotations and elective rotations. As the name suggests, core rotations are mandatory for everyone whereas electives can be chosen according to your preference and in line with your future area of specialization.
Core rotations last for 42 weeks and include lessons in internal medicine, surgery, pediatrics, obstetrics, gynecology, and psychiatry. Internal medicine and surgery are taught for twelve weeks each and the rest for six weeks each.
The elective rotations must be a minimum of 30 weeks and the topics can be chosen by the student. Some popular electives include cardiology, family medicine, dermatology, emergency medicine, anesthesiology, neurology, pathology, radiology, etc.
How important are clinical rotations?
Clinical rotation is perhaps the most important part of your medical education, because during them you gain knowledge through practice and interactions. You will be practicing under the guidance of expert doctors in hospitals which will help you learn a lot of valuable lessons.
You will be diagnosing patients and prescribing their treatments and medications, increasing your experience with direct patient care. This will give you confidence for your medical residency and your medical career ahead.
Besides acquiring clinical skills, you will learn professional values, humility, and medical ethics. Interacting with your peers and doctors at the hospital helps you become a better person with high-value standards. As a person dedicated to serving society, these are very important in becoming a successful doctor.
Although clinical rotations can be challenging and tough, having an organized schedule and study plans can help you navigate through the final semesters easily. Find time to study and enjoy some alone time away from the books and hospital to refresh your mind and gather some energy to carry forward. All these can make life easier and worthwhile during clinical rotations.