Q: What qualities do you look for in an applicant?
A: We strive to attract the best candidates regardless
of medical school or national origin. What describes
the ideal candidate? Certainly we are looking for
individuals with demonstrated academic excellence.
But the most important qualities we value are integrity,

humility, and character—attributes necessary to become

a successful physician leader in today’s society.

Q: I have been told that I need to go to a university
program in order to obtain a good fellowship. Is that true?
A: You can look at our history of fellowship placement
and decide that for yourself. Approximately 40%
of our residents choose to pursue subspecialty
training. Residents have been quite successful
in obtaining fellowships in all specialties at
many prestigious institutions, including
Indiana University, Ohio State University,

Duke University, Cleveland Clinic,

University of Kentucky, University of

Utah, and University of Cincinnati,

among others.

Our program will provide you with the

clinical and academic background

necessary for you to obtain the fellowship

of your choice. Approximately one-third of

the medical subspecialists in our community
are graduates of the residency program.
Many other graduates of our program have
gone on to obtain faculty positions in university

settings. Please see the list of alumni for further details.

Q: Are you a community or academic program?
A: Although we are a free-standing residency program, we view ourselves as an academic medical center and strive for academic excellence. BMH houses the IU School of Medicine—Muncie, a satellite campus for the Indiana University School of Medicine, and most medicine faculty members hold university faculty appointments. Dr. Neal is an author of three endocrinology textbooks and multiple peer-reviewed journal articles, and has been a question contributor and reviewer for the American Board of Internal Medicine as well as reviewer for numerous medical journals.. BMH faculty published 75 manuscripts in peer-reviewed journals in the last three years. Multiple faculty members are engaged in clinical research and original research projects. BMH is located adjacent to the campus of Ball State University. Many library and faculty resources are available here with just a short walk from the hospital.

Q: What is the patient load? Will I see enough patients?
A: Each PGY-I resident cares for approximately 6-10 patients on a daily basis on the ward medicine service.

In the outpatient clinic, residents gradually assume more responsibility as they progress, and PGY-III residents see approximately 6-8 patients per half-day session.

Q: Will I learn anything about the business of medicine at your program?
A: Our program, in collaboration with the Family Medicine program, has created a Practice Management seminar series teaching the basics of the "business of medicine": financial statements, contracts, negotiation, credentialing, billing/coding, and effectively running an office. For those desiring a more advanced understanding of business, we have collaborated with Ball State University to offer a Business Essentials for Professionals graduate certificate which can be completed online or via live courses. These courses also apply towards the BSU Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree which can be completed either during residency or at a later date. BSU and surrounding universities (e.g., Indiana Wesleyan University) have many flexible distance learning options available, including Web-based courses.

BMH offers a number of courses on proper inpatient and outpatient coding, and office management is an integral part of the PGY-1 and III Multidisciplinary Ambulatory Experience (MAX) months.

Q: Does your program provide training in "hospitalist" medicine?
A: BMH has a strong hospitalist program. The hospitalist program is integrated with the Department of Medical Education and hospitalists serve as attending staff for a significant number of months. Experience with hospital consultative medicine may also be obtained during an elective. This elective complements the inpatient experiences on Ward Medicine, Cardiology, and ICU.

We recently have modified our PGY-3 year to accommodate those interested in a Hospitalist career, by offering more inpatient rotations (Hospitalist and ICU) in place of two ambulatory rotations.

Q: Will I learn how to be a good outpatient physician?
A: Our ambulatory experience mirrors that found in a typical internist’s office. Dr.Dickey, our clinic director, is an academic internist who trains our residents in performing multiple procedures.

Q: How do your residents do on the ABIM board examination?
A: Our pass rate for the last six years is 97%—one of the best in the country. We are committed to residents passing the boards, and supply funds for board review courses and educational materials (e.g., board review videotapes). Most of our conferences are structured in a "problem-based learning" format, and an optional ‘board review’ self-study elective is available in June of the third year.

Q: What are the requirements for application?
A: All applications must be submitted through ERAS. Candidates will be selected for interview based on a number of factors: USMLE scores, letters of recommendation, course grades, and Dean’s letter. Because we receive over a thousand applications per year, we are unfortunately unable to interview all candidates. We typically require a USMLE average of 80 (two digit score).

Thank you for your interest in our program.

J. Matthew Neal, MD, MBA, CPE, FACP, FACE
Program Director--Internal Medicine
Ball Memorial Hospital
Muncie, IN