Her dream program preferred IMGs with green cards? Internist Dr. Anita Lwanga reveals how landed the residency anyway! (IMG Roadmap Series #100)
What will you do when you become a resident physician? Mentor others? Give back to your home town? Sponsor your family? Whatever it is, this is your time to make this dream come true!
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Sometimes, when applying for residency, you may feel like you don’t check all of the boxes on the program coordinators’ list. But you shouldn’t let this discourage you – proceed anyway! Dr. Anita Lwanga is here today to show us how persistence and belief in yourself can yield results. Keep listening to find out more!
Calling in from Western Canada where she grew up and did her undergraduate training, Dr. Lwanga begins by sharing some of her background:
Born in Kenya, she is the daughter of Ugandan refugees who later migrated to Canada.
Her father was an IMG in Canada after migrating. His hard work inspired her to study medicine, regardless of how difficult it was to get into Canadian schools.
She attended medical school at the St. Matthews University in the Cayman Islands.
Completed residency at the Mount Sinai Hospital in Chicago.
Engaged in a fellowship in geriatrics at the University of Illinois.
Worked in Upstate New York.
Moved back to Canada to practice as a general internist.
She currently does both in-patient and out-patient work in her own clinic and at the hospital.
Dr. Lwanga’s unique residency story:
She was sure to choose a medical school that friends and family had also attended.
When applying for residency the first time, she did not match since she applied too late. While waiting to reapply, she completed a second degree, worked on research and got to know herself better. She emphasized these things on her CV and letters of intent.
The following year, while she was in the middle of a residency interview at one program, her friend was busy speaking to the officials of another program. Amazingly, her friend landed her an interview at that other program and the rest is history. Talk about the power of networking!
However, at this interview that her friend had gotten for her, the coordinators said that they prefer green card holders. Though this piece of news was devastating since she did not have a green card at the time, she decided to just continue the interview since she didn’t have anything to lose. In fact, knowing that she probably didn’t have a chance had the unintended effect of relaxing her and she was able to articulate herself in a much more comfortable way. She showed them who she was and they ended up liking it. She was offered the position on the spot!
As such, she advises IMGs to:
Network as much as possible.
Get LORs from experts who are known to the program coordinators.
Be confident in what you have to offer. Capitalize on what makes you unique.
Follow your gut!
Dr. Lwanga is passionate about sports and working out as she used to be a competitive gymnast. She believes that exercise is the best medicine and encourages everyone to eat natural, whole foods. She has high hopes for her practice and envisions a future where she will be able to see her patients with no rush and incorporate lifestyle medicine in her care.
You can reach out to Dr. Lwanga and learn more about her inspiring story via:
Linkedin: Anita Lwanga
Instagram: @lwangamd
Twitter: @lwangamd
Tiktok: @drlwanga
Access free resources and view our course catalog at imgroadmap.com.
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