How to Survive Being on the Road to Residency: Tips to Stay Healthy During Interview Season

As many of you are reading this, you may be enjoying a nice warm cup of tea or coffee as you await your professor, make your way to 6 North to await your attending, or are watching Chiefs Weekly and getting ready to review for the boards. Regardless of where you are or what you are doing…guess what? WINTER IS COMING and residency interviews are upon us. That’s right folks, the MS4 and IMGs of the world are busily flying around the country attending residency interviews and tallying up their likes and dislikes. However, in that time one thing many candidates forget is how to maintain their health while traveling.

As physicians in training we are not trained like our business executive counterparts on “how to survive on the road”. In fact in a recent survey of candidates interviewing for fellowships after residency 50% said they did not how to handle the fatigue, and 75% said they felt they caught a cold from all the “running around”.  In fact, colds may be more than 100 times more likely to be transmitted on a plane, according to a recent article in the Journal of Environmental Health Research[1].

What can you do to stay healthy while traveling? Are there specific pitfalls you will encounter while on the interview trail for residency that may make you more likely to get sick? Certainly there are so here is our top 5 list of things you can do to survive interview season.

1. You need sleep for the interview but also for your adrenals! Not sleeping may seem commonplace to the average medical student. In fact, who are we kidding, most of us can’t remember the last time we slept in on a weekend without feeling guilty. But that constant sleep deprivation is seen as stress to human body, which raises cortisol levels. This hypercortisolism over time does weaken your immune system making you more susceptible to colds.
2. Kidneys Come First! – Planes trains and automobiles. Always consider all three options when going to an interview to maximize your time at the hospital. But what do these 3 have in common? Well besides being a John Candy movie they all have dry air. This dry air will cause your nasal mucous membranes to become less efficacious as a barrier to viruses. Secondly, while you are traveling you are less likely to maintain adequate fluid intake. Make sure you keep hydrated as dehydration may seem subtle but can have effect on your thinking and cause fatigue. Lastly – watch your caffeine intake – it’s a pretty decent diuretic and also makes you shaky. No one wants to interview a candidate that looks like they are ready for liftoff.
3. C is for charismatic, confident, cordial and asCorbic acid. Yes, that’s right. Being charismatic, cordial and confident during an interview is important but do not forget the last C. In a recent review of 72 studies published in January 2013, vitamin C did not affect the incidence of colds. However, it did find that it may reduce the duration of cold symptoms. So the bottom line is if you do get sick, OJ is your best friend –  but in moderation.
4. You are what you eat – On the interview trail you will get all kinds of amazing delicacies. My program provides sushi and brownies to applicants, while others provide a dinner the night before. The bottom line is be mindful of all you are eating during your 3 months of jet setting. Try and maintain a standard eating algorithm that you carry out regardless of timezone. This way that heavy chicken parmesan at lunch won’t make you sleepy during your interviews.

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