WHAT HATH BROWN WROUGHT? A PRELIMINARY ANALYSIS OF BROWN UNIVERSITY'S FIRST TEN MEDICAL SCHOOL GRADUATING CLASSES

Medicine and Health Rhode Island, Dec 2004 by Aronson, Stanley M

The degree of geographic dispersal, however, is astonishing. The BMS graduates, Classes of 1975 - 1984, are practicing medicine in 43 different jurisdictions [38 states, the District of Columbia and four foreign nations.]

WHAT IS THEIR DECLARED SPECIALTY?

Table 3 summarizes the medical specialties identified by the BMS graduates. Only two of these graduates declared themselves to be general practitioners; the remainder undertook extensive residency training in one or another specialty. Impressively high numbers completed their qualifying specialty Board examinations.

Some gender differences are apparent. The women BMS graduates chose primary care medicine [eg, internal medicine, pediatrics, family medicine] more than have their male colleagues and entered the domain of surgery less [although there are three women BMS graduates who are now fully trained in orthopedic surgery, a formerly male bastion.]

Community activity, undertaken by about 16% of male graduates and 20% of female graduates, was principally invested in church support groups [such as teaching Sunday School, presumably dwelling on subjects other than the taxonomy of geohelminthes], in working actively for local charities and foundations, or in supervising youth groups particularly in athletic activities. Two graduates have volunteered their services to provide medical backup for American Olympic teams; and another Brown graduate is physician to the American Ryder cup golf team.

Some of Brown's medical graduates also elected to devote time to charitable medical efforts overseas. About 5% of respondents devoted a minimum of a month in volunteer clinical activity abroad, and occasionally for intervals up to two years. These recipient nations include China, Nepal, Tibet, Viet Nam, Lebanon, Egypt, Israel, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Mexico, Peru, Brazil, Haiti, Guatemala and Papua.

In general, women graduates are slightly more likely to give their time for charitable causes than men graduates; those in non-surgical disciplines are more generous of their time than those in the surgical specialties; and those in the earlier Classes [ie, 1975 to 1978] are more likely to participate in charitable ventures, possibly because they have had more time to establish their practices.

WHAT ARE OUR GRADUATES DOING IN THEIR FREE TIME?

Despite evidence of rigorous investment of time and energy invested in specialty training [the average graduate has undergone about four and a fraction years of accredited residency/fellowship experience], the great majority of our graduates remain married, with a very low rate of divorce; and have, on average, 2.6 children [male graduates] or 2.2 children [female graduates] hinting at a fulfilling married life.

A question then arises: How does the Brown medical graduate use whatever unexpended time remains after professional and family obligations have been met? Recreational athletics, hobbies such as stamp collecting, passive entertainment such as TV, creative pursuits such as painting, reading, traveling, meditation? The answers were surprising.