Tell me about yourself.

1. Background
- My name's Daniel, originally from Orange County, California but have lived in a number states.

- There are no other physicians in my family, so for a lot of my childhood I always dreamed of becoming a
professional musician.

- It wasn't until taking my AP bio class in high school, where I had an eccentric, passionate biology teacher who
made me really interested in science and biology.

- As a biology major in college, I naturally befriended many individuals on the premedical track, and through many
volunteer and research experiences in college I solidified my desire to pursue a career in medicine
-as I saw that it was a perfect way of using my interest in biology and anatomy to be a more direct help to
people.

- In medical school, while I went through many phases in my desire to pursue a particular specialty, I knew for a fact
that I wanted to be a surgeon. As similar to piano and guitar, I love the idea of working with my hands and
developing skills in dexterity and hand eye coordination to potentially fix medical conditions.

- I eventually fell in love with ENT during my first ENT rotation,

2. why are you a competitive candidate. SUMMARIZE CV

- although it was one of my last rotations, I was determined to give myself the best possible chance of becoming a
competitive applicant

- took a research year with Dr. Albert Park at the UU, where I primarily investigated CMV-induced sensorineural
hearing loss through clinical, basic, and translational research

- worked on many different projects which ultimately resulted in a number of abstracts and publications and gave
me the opportunity to do an oral presentation at the Academy

3: why did you apply to this program?

- I am here today applying for your ENT program because:
- Downstate:
- love to be able to give back home program, my first ENT rotation here is what inspired my
journey into this field in the first place
- been in NY since college, almost a decade now, so this is where I feel the most at home
- i feel like it would be an excellent fit for me to pursue residency

Why ENT?

- My decision on specialty was not an easy one. Early on in medical school thinking to become an orthopedic
surgeon, b/c into sports and weightlifting and all that. Got into orthopedic research early.

- Reading more about the field, I didn't find that the subject matter really excited me personally, and it felt more like
extra work as opposed to something I genuinely enjoyed learning about.

- Fast forward into third year,

- Didn't really feel that click until my ENT rotation. ENT I feel is one of those subjects that I believe to be criminally
undertaught in medical school curriculums, early on studying things like auditory pathway, physics of vocal cord
motion, functional facial plastic surgeries for the first time didn't feel like "studying" as it did moreso like I was
reading material that I was genuinely fascinated in, similar to how I would look up pieces of music I wanted to learn
or look up youtube videos on tutorials on how to do my favorite lifts, I was reading about .

- I find myself really drawn to specialty of the senses, things like smelling, hearing, tasting that we were take for
granted in life and don't really think about how much of a life-altering impact it would have to lose function in those
areas.

- Going through the rotation really hooked me onto the spetialty: to be able to treat conditions where people lose
functionality in these essential areas
- That kind of initial, genuine fascination with the subject along with the ability to make such a life-altering
impact with surgeries like vocal cord injection or removing nasal or throat foreign bodies, along with the
unique aspect of using novel, futuristic technology (CO2 lasers, cochlear implants) had me immediately
hooked onto the specialty.

- decided soon after to take a research year to validate my career choice - doing a lot of those basic science projects
like performing hearing testing in mice, dissecting temporal bones, messing with robotic cochlear implantation in
guinea pigs - really validated that ENT is a career I could practice for the rest of my life without getting tired of it

Talk about research year

- My main research focused on investigating CMV-induced sensorineural hearing loss in mice, which involved
assessing various biological outcomes as a result of CMV infection and antiviral treatment response through
acoustic brainstem emission and distortion product otoacoustic emission hearing testing, immunohistochemistry,
and flow cytometry.

- Along with basic science work I was involved in other clinical projects that involved chart review, organizing
REDCAPs, handing out patient surveys, things like that.

- Translational projects included cochlear implant insertion tests on guinea pigs using a magnetically-steered robotic
system and the development of a murine model of cholesteatoma implantation for exploring potential non-surgical
treatment options.

- I learned very highly dexterous techniques animal tissue harvesting and microdissection of mouse temporal bones
that I thought were very cool and fun to be able to learn and master and really validated my choice to go into ENT.

- Additionally, I was the sole research fellow for the lab so I was in charge of assigning roles to students, teaching
both medical and undergraduate students how to do some of the basic lab techniques that were required, and
presenting findings and lab updates on a weekly basis.

- As a resident one of our most important jobs is to be good mentors and leaders for medical students.

- It was a really invaluable experience and ultimately culminated in doing my first podium presentation at the
Academy, and quite a few publications. I'm actually currently in the process of finishing up a first author manuscript
and have been accepted for a poster presentation and ARO in Florida coming up in February

Strengths / what will you contribute to our program? / List three abilities you have that will make
you valuable as a resident in this specialty.
DEDICATED TO SELF-IMPROVEMENT
- I think a lot of this stems from my musical background, as it is a natural skill for a musician to want to progress
and become better than you were yesterday at whatever you are practicing.

- For example, during my training in jazz piano, I would often learn techniques on my own through Youtube videos
and books, and then surprise my instructor with what I’ve learned.
- Addiction to progression applied to all facets in life, e.g. exercise: seek to progress everyday getting stronger, one
more rep,

- I think this dedication to self-improvement really paid off during my clinical rotations in terms of being a
cooperative, valuable member of my clinical teams.

- in medicine: not only learn on the job, but outside essential to learn outside the hospital. During clinical rotations
the majority of my days would not end once I leave the hospital –
- even when I’m at the gym, I’d make sure to do my anki cards on my phone to make sure I don’t fall
behind and well prepared for shelves
- I would always try to read a chapter or article to both learn and prepare myself for the next day.

- when i'm in the hospital - I'm eager to take any opportunities to learn or practice something that I can improve on,
whether it be in the OR or on the floor

- Lastly, my desire for self-improvement helps me remain receptive to criticism from my mentors. I know that
whenever I do receive criticism, I look at it from the perspective that they see potential in me and want me to
improve. I think holding on to that perspective as a resident is important for 1. being a pleasant person to work worth
and mentor and 2. coming out of residency a competent physician that both patients and hospital staff can
confidently rely on.

FLEXIBLE AND VERSATILE

- willing to help out outside my role at short notice

- During my research year, there were a lot of very new techniques that I had to learn very quickly, like performing
hearing tests in mice, microdissecting the cochlea from the vestibular; very novel techniques, and since I was the
sole research fellow in the lab a lot of that I had to really dedicate a lot of time learning on my own time. So I'd read
methods from research papers, look up any videos on youtube, and ask PhDs at other labs for advice on how to do
these procedures and eventually became very comfortable doing them.

- specific example: fecal disimpaction lol

- Specific example there was a patient with a nasal mass scheduled for a biopsy, but his preoperative COVID test
which we ordered the previous day never ended up getting done. On the ER it says collected, so we were thinking
maybe the nurse didn't send it so we call the floor ask the nurse and she says she sent it. All this mix up and
confusion I ended up just doing it myself and the patient was able to get his surgery.

RESILIENT
- tough times: dad
- medical school: Ginger, nurse my Grandma as she succumbed to COVID
- during those times, it can be so tempting to quit
- but having been through that, I've developed a particular mental toughness to keep pushing on through and
remained focus on my goals.
- I believe these experiences has given me a unique perspective in realizing the necessity providing genuine empathy
and compassionate care to my patients, as well as being a pleasant, enjoyable person to work with in a medical team;
which I believe has been reflected well by my performance on my clinical rotations as well as my clinical
evaluations.

Weaknesses? - I tend to make my worst enemy myself.

CONFIDENCE - imposter syndrome. I find myself having a tendency sometimes, especially when things go wrong,
to think I'm not smart enough to be where I am, or I shouldn't be where I am. Acknowledging and being cognizant of
that feeling during medical school, I've learned to motivate myself to keep moving forward when things are down,
- For example, for one of my projects durying my research year I had to learn how to do immunohistochemistry,
which was a new technique for me at the time. For IHC, you take your sample, freeze it and slice it up using a
cryotome which makes very thin cross sections. There were 3 TBs that the previous research fellow already
harvested. I read up a protocol online, took those TBs and started slicing away. All them turned out bad, delayed 2
months. i told dr. park who was disappointed

- next time -> i made sure to harvest plenty of practice TBs to practice before doing on my real samples, sought out
advice from PhDs of other labs, would shadow a PhD student whenever she would use the cryotome, and eventually
got very good at it and was able to get some really good images and results.

- In residency, I realize it will be inevitable that there'll be times where I disappoint my attendings and colleagues,
know it's important to not be caught in a slump, keep pushing forward, and do what I can to continue being a
valuable member to the team.

- I take it from the perspective that whatever failures I encounter are just stepping stones towards helping me
improve as a physician and as a person in general.

Why should we choose you? / What will you be able to contribute to our program?
- While i'm sure every candidate interviewing today is incredibly smart and hard working, I believe I have certain
unique qualities and qualifications that would especially make me an excellent fit for your program

1. My experience with Dr. Park lab

- learning many new things quickly like dissecting temporal bones from mice, separate vestibule from
cochlea under the microscope, helped with robotic cochlear insertion in guinea pigs: along with being a
piano player and musician; I'll be able to develop the dexterity needed for ENT procedures
- Additionally, as the sole research coordinator, I was in charge of assigning students roles and mentoring
them in various lab techniques, which has helped me develop leadership skills that are definitely important
for a resident to have, b/c as residents we are expected to serve as mentors and role models for our students.

2. Unique hardships and life experiences I've had to endure:

- in college my father was kidnapped and hundreds of thousands of dollars were stolen from my family
- in med school, both of my grandparents passed away from COVID
- while everyone has to deal with hardships in life, these particularly hard experiences has molded me into someone
who is particularly mentally resilient and realizes the importance of providing compassionate, genuienly empathetic
care to patients.
- whatever program I end up in, I'll be a resident who doesn't just go in do his job but be a resident who is pleasant
and supportive to my fellow residents and other hospital staff.
- residency and healthcare in general, i'm sure everyone would say, is not all sunshine and rainbows. it's going to be
filled road bumps and failures that we all have to persevere through as a team,
- I think this unique perspective has helped mold me into a pleasant, enjoyable person, which has helped me be a
valuable member of my clinical teams during all of my rotations, which I believe reflects well on my transcript and
evaluations.

3. Lastly:
- Downstate:
- as a home student, familiarity with the hospitals, EMR, and general workflow would allow me to
smoothly transition into residency
- been in NY for almost a decade, having good friends both in the city and in the program would be a
valuable source of support
- Allentown:
How would your mom/friends describe you/ 3 words to describe you?

Introverted/Reserved
Since i was a child i've always leaned more towards the introverted side. While I used to think of my natural
introvertedness as a kind of weakness that I needed to fix, I now realize there are strengths in having a more
introverted demeanor. I'm naturally predisposed to thinking deeply and introspectively, which I believe helps
prevent from making rash decisions or conclusions in regards to patient care. I also think it helps me be a great
student to mentor, which allows me to be readily acceptable to criticism. I think being receptive to criticism is an
essential trait for any resident to be able to improve and develop quickly.

Patient
in my family/friend group we have a lot of different, strong personalities, and whenever arguments or strong
emotions arise, I've always been very good at keeping calm and collected. And i do think this temperament will
serve me well as an ENT resident especially during emergency cases or during other stressful times which will
undoubtedly occur during residency

Independent
- dad: "do it yourself" household chores
- piano - often learn techniques or passages myself to surprise my teacher with
- for the gym i'd lookup countless youtube videos and read books on how to improve my form and workout routines
to be able to hit a personal record in the gym
- research year - had to learn many novel techniques quickly and on my own; read research papers for protocols, ask
PhDs for advice;
- helpful in clinical year - day doesn't end when I leave the hospital, I've made it a habit that as soon as I get home
the first thing I do is read and prepare for the next day before I start winding down.

How do you handle criticism?

I would say very well, and I believe the mentors that I've had would say that I handle criticism well. When I receive
criticism, I take it from the perspective that the person giving me the criticism wants me to improve and wants me to
better myself. There's always room to improve, and I should never feel, especially at this early stage of my career, I
should never be angry at the fact that someone is showing me the way to improvement. If someone is giving me
constructive criticism I can only think that that person sees potential in me. Holding on to that perspective has made
me a person who is willing to challenge myself and remain open-minded and receptive to criticism, which I believe
is an essential characteristic to be successful not only in residency but in pretty much every aspect of life.

specific ex: chief resident suturing technique

Describe research projects:

mine: CMV screening, GCV, Quercetin, IHC (cell populations)

Chris' preop COVID post op surgical outcomes: at that time, there was no requirement for children to get COVID
testing before surgery; children with preop COVID infection had a significantly higher odds of developing post-
operative pulmonary complications

Neil's 5 factor modified frailty index: mFI-5 score was calculated based on the presence of the 5 co-morbidities:
congestive heart failure within 30 days prior to surgery, insulin-dependent or noninsulin-dependent diabetes
mellitus, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or pneumonia, partially dependent or totally dependent functional
health status at time of surgery, and hypertension requiring medication
- ASD patients with mFI-5 scores of 1 and 2 had significantly higher rates of 30 day post-op complications
like pneumonia, unplanned postop ventilation, and UTIs
- argued that the mFI-5 can be an effective predictor for 30 day postop complications in ASD patients

Emily's OME:
 - 60% of patients with failed NBHS had OME
- Patients with OME had significantly increased time before a definitive diagnosis of permanent hearing
loss was given as well as time before enrolling in early intervention
- Need for increased adherence to proper audiologic followup following timely OME resolution

Hochwagen:

Other ortho:

Where do you see yourself in 10 years/ What are your future goals?
Hopefully as an otolaryngology attending - I am heavily leaning towards subspecializing as opposed to general
practice, but am not sure what fellowship I will land myself in - largely unknown - but I think that would be one of
the most fun aspects of residency is to keep an open mind and be able to explore the different subspecialties and see
what is the best fit for me.

I do see myself being heavily involved in research, hopefully basic science, similar to my PI Dr. Park, because I do
really like the idea of experiment with novel treatments and measuring outcomes in real time in animal or cell
culture models, so that's hopefully where I see the direction of my career headed towards.
- Downstate: Dr. Kollmar his work on regenerating damaged spiral ganglion neurons, genetics of otolith
formation

Missions to other countries

- Downstate: Dr. preiss about the missions going to the Philippines

Why are you interested in our program?/What are you looking for in a program?
1. location (SUNY Downstate - lived in New York for almost a decade now, I love the city, I consider myself a fully
acclimated city boy, I've made so many life long friends I want to remain around including many who continue to
work either at King's or Downstate,

2. impressed with the surgical autonomy - thoroughly impressed seeing Dr. Gulati and Dr. Mathews take lead roles
in big head and neck cases, I have no doubt that the early hands on training and surgical volume will prepare me to
be the confident, independent surgeon I aspire to be.

3. research - loved my time during my research year and most definitely will seek to pursue research in residency.
Dr. Kollmar work on spiral ganglion regeneration and genetics of otolith formation has been definitely cool to read
about and I know i'll be able to partake in some really cool research here. From I hear from the residents and reading
from your website, all residents are encouraged to participate in research, they have to develop a thesis and have
dedicated research time, so that’s an aspect of the program I’m really interested in.

4. smaller program - the amount of facetime with attendings, close, collaborative relationships between residents and
faculty, most ideal for my learning style

Highlight professional successes.

Would like to highlight my excellent clinical grades and evaluations:
- showcase my ability to be an excellent member of a clinical team who is competent and eager to help out
- very good with planning and following a study schedule so that I’m not cramming for exams
- my day isn’t over when I leave the hospital – at gym anki, at home always read and prepare for the next
day before winding down

research: oral presentation at AAO-HNSF. It was a great honor to be able to present my research to attendings from
around the world. Was my first podium presentation at a major, international research conference, and it was really a
great experience that I know I will strive to be able to get more opportunities to do so.
Professional failures?
Low step 1 -> high step 2
step 1 -> fell into the trap of memorizing as opposed to understanding fundamental concepts to the factoids that I
was memorizing. anki.
step 2 ->
- still use anki, but more open ended and algorithmic
- rather than memorizing steps to an algorithm and stopping there, I'd learn why is that step important, what
is the purpose of doing this treatment over another
- gave me a more complete understanding of medical decision making that reflected well in my improved
score

How were your away rotations? (only say positive things pls lol)
UNLV - great time, much smaller program (1 resident per year except for 2nd year having 2 residents), enjoyed
collaborative, close relationship between the residents and faculty, they work extremely hard. with such a small
program i had no problem with feeling like a valuable contributing member to the team (had ownership of at least a
couple patients at a time would preround and present, would see patients on my own in clinic and present to
attending as if i was a resident)

Ohio - great time, larger program (5 residents per year), and impressed to see how efficient having such a large
program made things, everybody was assigned specific roles after rounds, knew exactly what they needed to do, and
. they were also excellent at teaching and getting me involved (had a lot of fun experiences in OR, Dr. Dodson
harvesting temporalis fascia grafts, dissecting tissue in mastoidectomy, clean out ear wax during ear tubes, first
bronchoscopy)

Downstate in the middle perfect mix (3 residents per year), while ofc they still work extremely hard less likely to be
overwhelmed, still have close, extended facetime with attendings

Describe previous experiences to demonstrate your level of knowledge and skills and the extent
of your experiences.
research – learned highly dexterous skills, leadership qwualities
away rotations – fantastic clinical experiences, able to distinguish between small, medium, and large programs their
differences how the workflow differed and what really fit with me
clinical rotations – study effectively, be effective, pleasant member of a clinical team who is always ready to
contribute for the benefit of the team

What do you do in your spare time?

music - play number of instruments, mainly piano, originally classic but switched to jazz in high school
- helped me adapatble and flexible
- while its definitely essential to be famailiar with protocol and guidelines, they serve more as a
foundation . but in residency and healthcare in general, there will always be situations that require a bit of
creative thinking and willing to improvise
- e.g. preop COVID patient, willing to help team out in a moment's notice
- e.g.

exercise, weightlifting, muay thai

- addiction to self-imprvoement
- able to take different advice from different sources and adapt them to our own individual strengths.
- e.g. dissecting temporal bones from mice, different between Yong and Chris

hiking
video games

What was the most interesting case that you have been involved in? know all aspects of case
Encephalocele herniating through the tegmen tympani

What will be the toughest aspect of this specialty for you?

unfixable patients. ex: kids with unfixable hearing loss. patient on gen surg - stomach cancer who died, was there
breaking the news to his daughter with the attending and resident,
have had experience breaking bad news to patients, although not of that magnitude. psych - telling family members
that unable to release bipolar patient still exhibiting symptoms of psychosis.
- Family member irritated, she said that what the patient really needs is an MRI because she thinks he
may have something wrong with his brain, so I had to explain to her that imaging, even if it was patient
is in no state to be able to cooperate with the procedure
- - she was irritated and demanded she talk to the attending
- Attending currently busy but I will let him know your concerns and will try to have him call you back
- started going on about how she has been through this before and she won’t hang up until she gets
someone with authority on the phone
- Able to handle irritable patient or family member without escalating the situation and remaining calm
and cool-headed throughout
able to handle tough situations like this, although it would still be tough especially in situations that are unfixable

Describe a particularly satisfying or meaningful experience during your medical training. Why
was it meaningful?
- vertigo patient at VA, pinpoint stroke at MLF:

2 interesting cases: have a case in which you did your best, recognized your
limitations as a medical student, got support from there and allowed your
colleagues/resident/attending/team to shine and share the credit.

1. vertigo patient at VA, pinpoint stroke at MLF:

- resident made the consult call to neurology - commented on his
- shows my attention to detail, particularly satisfying experience, gave me confidence

2. >300lb bariatric pt - move bed to chair, clean poop, change her gown, draw daily labs
- initially a vegetable, toward end of service she looked so much better and was a extremely pleasant and
thanked us for all the work we did taking care of her

What was your favorite rotation? ENT!

What was your least favorite rotation? obgyn - first insight to particular aspects of a program that
i would look for that i would want to avoid.

Address red flags of application:

LORs?
Step 1
publication #
leadership/volunteering

Describe volunteering/other positions:

What do you see as the positive aspects of this specialty?

What do you see as the negative aspects of this specialty?

What problems do you think this specialty may face in the future?

Where do you see yourself practicing?

In the city – where at feel most at home. I consider myself a city boy, in suburbuan places
everything spaced out, demographics of people much less diverse, right now I definitely plan on
remaining in an urban, diverse environment

What was the last book you read?

The Subtle Art of Not Giving an F – Mark Manson
- Mental health is something that I’m closely monitoring now
- Weakness imposter syndrome
- Tendency to overthink
- Rather than giving positivitivity, give more blunt advice
- There are things we can control and things we can’t control
o We can more easily distinguish between situations that we care and don’t care
about
o Only engage in values that we can control (punctuality, honesty, kindness,
being grateful)
- Look in the mirror at laugh at yourself everyday, not take yourself too seriously,
realize I’m not special

What was the last movie you watched?

The Big Lebowski
Funny I first watched it around middle school and didn’t get it at all, was wondering why my
brother and cousins found it so funny but I had no idea what was going on the entire time

Airplane back I see decided to watch it – it is downright hilarious. Smart too, can be argued there
are some important philosophical lessons you can get from it.

How do you deal with conflict?

Describe situation with Yong on abr dpoae readings

We were able to compromise without stepping on each other’s toes

When I have a disagreement, I try my best to point out why I believe something should be done a
certain way, and more importantly I try my best to listen to the other person’s points and see how
they align with my ideas. If they’re directly opposed to my ideas, I’d try to compromise, but
Especially when it’s against someone more experienced than me, it’s important as a resident to 1.
Be able to explain why you are suggesting to do something differently 2. Be able to compromise
without suggesting that I know better or I know more than you. A lot of the times I don’t
especially this early on in my career, and to be able to acknowledge that is an important
characterstict for a resident to both develop as a physician and remain open to criticism

Tell me about an interesting patient.

Vertigo pastient

What is your most memorable non-surgical patient?

Vertigo patient

Name your top three favorite books/movies.

Pulp fiction – individuatlity is important to me, I love things that are different
Good the bad and the ugly – family, dad’s favorite movie he’d always yell it, 1 awesome great
story no matter how many times I watch it 2. Powerful nostalgic effect on me
Subtle art of not giving a fk

Who is your role model? Why?

Mom
Type of mental resilience is something I try to embody

What is your least favorite thing about otolaryngology?

What are three things about medical school that you did not expect?

What was the worst thing about medical school?

Finding the balance between being a student and a healthcare provider
Rotations where I offer to help but get shut down
Something we all have to navigate through, I’ve realized during those times I do what I can to
remain productive if im going to be at the hospital I’m going to be doing something that reading
on my own, doing anki cards or uworld questions, or sometimes on IM rotation I would go
around and ask the nurses if they needed help with anything, and I’ve helped out with making
postop appointments with patients, doing IVs, walking patients
Keep my time doing something productive as well helping out with the team in any little way
that I can

If you could invite any three people from any time to a dinner party, who would you invite and
why?
Dad
Kanye
Kobe
STORIES:
- bad attending: when I was a scribe I worked with an ER doctor with a mean disposition.

- Dr. Parks research:

- conflict with Yong on ABR readings
- conflict with Katrina on respective roles

- vertigo patient at VA, pinpoint stroke at MLF:

- vocal cord injection - immediately hook me onto the specialty

- bariatric >300 lbs, great team work, go above and beyond

- fecal disimpaction - versatile, willing to go outside of my role to help out my team

- PTH patient - mistake i made, had to admit to resident

- difficult patient: psych family member/breaking bad news

Behavioral Qs:

1. Describe a conflict you had and how it was resolved?

dispute with yong over abr/dpoae readings? - during conflicts i view things objectively, so whatver argument i'm
trying to make i gather what evidence i have for my argument and present it and see what the other person thinks.
always look to compromise

psych grade?

2. Tell me about a time when you made a mistake and had to admit it to your resident or
attending.
- had to draw lab samples in SICU
- forgot one
- late in the day, so had to wait until tomorrow to draw it again
- had to tell the attending the next morning during rounds
- he chewed me out
- a day, or even a few minutes delay in the SICU could be a matter between life and death
- stung a lot at the time, i realized he was right
- always have a checklist and double check when i'm given a list responsibilities, especially in high acuity setting
like the SICU

3. Tell me about a time where you had a disagreement with a coworker.

- i like dispute with Yong better.... on aBR/dpoae readings

Katrina - GCV study

- her own project - she set the schedule
- she scheduled me for all of the morning injections
- different understandings of my role as a research fellow
- she didn't realize how many projects i was working on at once as well as the time it takes
- concerns b/c she never did injections before;
- she took about half of the injections and we scheduled a day where i taught her how to do the injections

4. Tell me about a time when you made a mistake with a patient

PTH patient
- did not have EMR access
- pt irritated at wait time, referred to our clinic but not sure why
- handed me a packet of papers
- initially went to PCP for headaches, she was found to be HTN and prescribed HTN meds
- referred to our clinic, have you been having any problems with your ears, nose, or throat?
- did my standard ENT exam, nothing abnormal
- presented to resident - he laughed a bit and told me to look at her labs
- i missed lab - elevated PTH
- resident brought her in and asked her all the classic hyperPTH symptoms, and she had many of them; bone pain,
constipation and abd pain, lethargy
- always be comprehensive and to never feel rushed; i now always end every patient interview with "is there
anything else?"
- an important point brought up in med school but i realize can be easy to forget in the heat of the moment,
esp when clinic is running late, a lot of other patients, etc
Expe taught me to acknowledge when I feel like I’m being rushed or incomplete, and that a simple solution
that I can employ is asking that all important question after every single patient encounter, no matter how
benign their history and physical exam may be

5. Failure/hardship/Tough decision
dad, grandma
seek help when needed

6. Tell me about a situation that demonstrates your leadership skills.

Pinakapella
sole research coordinator for lab: GCV project
-

7. Tell me about a time you worked effectively under pressure.

Grandma

8. Tell me about a stressful situation you experienced in medical school and how you handled it.
- Grandma
What I learned: importance of reaching out to people when I need help – in the past with a lot of tasks like when I
have a lot of papers due or upcoming deadlines that are fast approaching, my usually would be tackle things head on
start with the biggest problem, delegate my time to accomplish one thing at a time, and that’s worked very well for
me in terms of my grades and getting things done like presentation and research projects.

But what this taught me was that there are going to be situations where you can’t handle things alone. There are
times when you will need people around you to support you, and reaching out when you need help is never
something that you need to delay in. firs treached out to my family, flew out, and did whatever I could to help like
deliver food and groceries, early covid at least able to facetime my grandma my sfamily everysingle day we’d pray
nd we weouldn’t have been able to get together without sticking together. And ofc I reached out to my school as
well my PBL instructor told them them. Knowing who and when to reach out is an important skill for resident to
have
I would be a reliable person to reach out for support
That experience wreally taught me the importance of that
9. Tell me how you would you deal with a resident who wasn’t doing his share of the work.
Be direct and ask him what’s going on – if he really needs the help I would be glad to relive
some of the burden, that’s what should expected of us as residents in a medical team. Maybe
there was a miscommunication that we can kind of hash out through talking. Be direct tell him
things aren’t getting, inquire to as to why, and then work things out from there to formulate a
plan to get things done.

e.g.: Katrina and GCV injection schedule

important during these situations to be direct, be understanding and patient, and be able to
compromise and formulate a plan are important skills to have during times like these

10. Tell me about a time when you were disappointed in your performance.
Butts – running suture, very early on in my clinical sub-is
Practiced it for hours that day and the day after to
Not only in terms of suturing, but taught me the importance of being prepared for the next day.
Any procedures I know I’m going to be a part of it’s not enough to just study the indications and
anatomy; that’s the bare minimum; I have to anticipate what role I’m going to play during the
surgery and be prepared to take on that role confidently and effectively.

11. Tell me about a time you had to build a relationship with someone you didn’t like.
Scribe, attending doctor who was mean – he pretty much didn’t acknowledge my presence

12. Tell me about a difficult decision you’ve made in the last year

13. Tell me about a time you when you tried to accomplish something and failed.

14. Tell me about a time your performance was criticized.

Early on in my clinical sub-is, running suture

15. Tell me about what irritates you about other people and how you deal with it

16. Tell me about a patient you had trouble dealing with.

Psych patient bipolar, need for mri, explained, got irritated, demanded attending, she said she
was offended that a medical student is handling her brother’s care; naturally introverted
demeanor helped me remain calm and cool-headed and be able to work with patients who are a
bit hot headed with escalating

17. Tell me about a time when you were upset with the behavior of a team member or faculty
and how you dealt with it.
Katrina

18. What would you do if your senior resident asks you to do something that you do not agree
with?
Be direct, tell my side of the story, and be willing to realize I was in the wrong, or be willing to
compromise
Yong

Healthcare Qs :
- Cost of healthcare is very high, what can we do to combat this?
- What are some pressing issues in our healthcare system?
- Current trend or issue in the field: KNOW about CMV, cochlear implants, hearing aids
- Where do you see future of otolaryngology?
- technology: TORS, robotic magnetically steered cochlear implantation
- unique specialty in that ENTs are both the surgical and medical experts of their
respective fields, a unique aspect of future ENT research is having that focus on being able to
provide non-surgical treatments for patients with surgical problems. E.g. cholesteatoma, acoustic
neuroma. Exciting aspect of the future of ENTp

Questions for them: - DO NOT ask same question for multiple interviewers

- What do you feel like makes a strong resident at your program?

- Can you talk about any recent changes that have been made to your program?
- If there's anything you could change about your program, what would you change?
- If you could describe your program in 3 words, how would you describe your program?
- What are some of the leadership opportunities available for residents at your program?

- consider personal qs (eg about the area, what do residents do for fun, etc)

Downstate:

- Dr. Bentsianov/Dr. Boruk

- Is there an orientation program for incoming residents?
- What do you expect of a pgy1 day 1 when they arrive and what are you hoping they
accomplish or are able to do by the end of intern year?
- - How would you describe the personality of the program?
- - How are residents evaluated? How are they given feedback?

- Dr. Azoulay/Dr. Hanson

- What qualities do you value most in a resident?
- what made you want to come here and what has made you stay?

- Dr. Sundaram/Dr. Abu-Ghanem

- What attracted you to join the faculty of this program, and what changes have you
seen during your time here?
- how they see the field of ENT evolving in the next 10 years and how do you think your
program might adapt to these changes?
- Dr. Chernichenko
- What are you most proud of in your program?
- recent administrintative changes, where do you think the direction of the program is
headed? Are there expected to be major changes to the program next year?
- How confident would you feel if you had to refer yourself or a family member to be
taken care of by one of your graduates?

- Dr. Butts
In your opinion, what differentiates a good resident from a great resident?
- What are some of the future plans for the program?
- I was curious what you like the most about being the Interim Chair?

- Dr. Weiss/Dr. Plum

- What are some unique strengths of your program that differentiate you from other
programs?
"if your program received a 1 million dollar donation, where would you allocate it to?

- Dr. Alrassi/Dr. Liang

- At what point during residency do you feel you are given sufficient surgical autonomy?
- Do you feel like there is a good balance in case variety?
- Are you confident that Downstate’s program provides the resources to be a competitive
applicant for any fellowship?
- Do you want to work here when ya’ll are done? (careful – more one on one)

- Dr. Goldstein
- What kind of community outreach projects might residents be involved in?
- what made you want to come here and what has made you stay?