[seanseanme]

I just finished residency and, based on my experiences, I have three points.

1) This situation seems analogous to the higher rate of suicide in very competitive colleges. Both feature putting people who did very well in the prior stage and then demanding a high level of content mastery in a short period of time. Interestingly, some places a pushing for a 3 year med school experience for primary care to reduce loan burden and get more productive years out of the training. I wonder how this will affect this pressure.

2) I wonder if discussing the harsh reality of medicine - charting, team management, things being beyond your control - rather than emphasizing the 'higher calling' and 'privilege to care' would dissuade those seeking prestige form entering medical school. I think it is a much greater service to have them figure out before school starts and not be saddled with 40-50k of debt that first year.

3) A big transition I always heard in med school was the difference of the trainees in that they value work/life balance much more than the titans of medicine in the past. How to rectify this priority with traditional medical school is a VERY interesting question.