San Francisco-- city visit and Interview #2

By now, I feel as though I've gotten a good sense of the city of San Francisco. Monday, after my San Jose interview, I drove in (not bad at all!) and spent the afternoon wandering around the downtown area, which is actually very compact and very walkable. High points included:

• Fishermans' wharf with sea lions basking in the sun and nice bay views
  
  
• Chinatown-- you really feel like you are in Asia! It's nuts! (Here is the entrance gate)
  
  
  
  
  • North Beach (or "Little Italy")- lots of nice restaurants including a "place that cooks EVERYTHING in garlic," according to TJ.
  
  
  
  • (I guess this could be a low point) :) Nob, Telegraph, and Russian hills, among others. This place definitely has more hills than Rome. It's a major workout navigating these neighborhoods! I thought this sign was hilarious. In case you missed that you just hiked up a 500 foot hill.
  
  
  
  • Ghirardelli Square, where the chocolate was invented
  
  
  

  It is a gorgeous city, just as my parents (and everyone else who goes there!) have told me!

  Now onto UCSF (Interview #2) ....

  I was a bit hesitant to come to this interview, for from what I gathered at the FM conference, it was a little different than what I was looking for in a fit for residency. It bascially stands to serve the underserved (particularly urban) and is in the heart of the Mission, the Latino district, of San Fran. That population and that mission was in line with my goals; however, I wasn't so sure about the "urban" focus or the lack of focus on OB.

  I did go to the dinner Monday night, at a resident's house, before the interview day, though. But I immediately could sense that I didn't really fit in. It's hard to articulate, but the other applicants, as well as the residents, seemed a little too "chic" for me-- very sophisticated and very city-oriented (they were all from i.e. Philly, Chicago, New York, etc...). Other things that were sort of drawbacks that I learned:

• When asked about the OB experience, the resident replied, "It's pretty light. Not too bad. We do do 14-hour OB nights, though, which is terrible. I never saw my husband."

• When asked about work hours, the residents replied "Yeah, we pretty much put in 80 hours (sometimes 90) per week."

• When asked about time for exercise, "I think I exercised once two months ago."

• On time for friends: "We do our best to hang out, but sometimes I don't see my intern classmates."

• On procedures: "It's not very heavy into procedures."

• On the electronic medical record (well, lack thereof): "No chance of this happening in the near future."

• On cost of living: "I pay $1500/month for a tiny hole-in-the-wall."

Then I proceeded to get lost about 12 times trying to drive home to Palo Alto and was just frustrated. So, needless to say, I was sort of tempted to not go to the interview today. But I went. It was difficult, actually, because I felt as though I already could tell I didn't fit. But I felt obligated to check it out.

I did interview with two very nice people who were very surprised I'd interview here after training (for medical school) at Mayo. For here, at the county hospital that is "The General" (or San Francisco General), all patients are uninsured/covered with Medicare/Medical. Stuff does not always get done in a timely manner. Patients often do not show up for appointments. It can be frustrating. OB is definitely a weakness, as is inpatient pediatrics. It seems almost 180 degrees from Mayo.

I do have to say, though, that residents were happy. They all really love San Francisco and living in the city. They say that, after training here, you could never be overwhelmed anywhere else one might practice. Not sure I'm quite ready to jump into that next year. I want to see the light of the sun, the smiles of my friends, and the green of the trees....