Dr. Andrew Letayf on How UMHS Prepared Him to Become an Anesthesiologist

UMHS graduate Dr. Andrew Letayf (along with fellow UMHS alum Dr. Jay Kumar) recently contacted the UMHS Endeavour to update us on his success as an Anesthesiologist. Both Dr. Letayf and Dr. Kumar (who has an upcoming interview in the Endeavour) were among the first UMHS graduates to land a prestigious residency in Anesthesiology. Dr. Letayf is a Michigan native but moved to his family’s native Lebanon at age eight and then back to the USA 11 years ago.  Dr. Letayf originally wanted to attend a U.S. medical school but made the decision to study at UMHS in St. Kitts when he heard President Warren Ross was at the helm, with many years of experience as a leader in medical education.

Dr. Letayf is presently finishing up his final PGY-4 year at Wayne State University/Detroit Medical Center and a few months away from becoming a board-certified anesthesiologist. He is currently searching for a fellowship in the Detroit area and took time out from his busy schedule to talk to the Endeavour about the various ways UMHS helped him overcome the odds and realize his dream of becoming an Anesthesiologist.

UMHS Endeavour: Tell us a little about yourself and where you are originally from.

Dr. Andrew Letayf: I am originally Lebanese. I was born in Detroit, Michigan and moved to Lebanon at the age of eight, only to move back to the U.S. in 2006. I completed two years of undergraduate education at the University of Beirut in Beirut, Lebanon. After I finished my freshman and sophomore year, I transferred to Wayne State University and graduated with a B.S. in Biology.

Why did you decide to go to UMHS?

The decision to move to St. Kitts and attend UMHS was a difficult one for me. During my undergraduate years, I had a plan to attend a medical school in the United States but numerous factors didn't allow that to happen. Nevertheless, I was determined to become a doctor and found an alternate route to residency in the U.S., specifically Detroit, which is my second home. After hours and hours of research, I decided to attend UMHS as I heard that President Ross was leading this new school that showed a lot of potential. I also wanted to make sure that if I attended a Caribbean medical school, the island I lived on was modern, safe, and fun. St. Kitts is a great island to live on and, since I graduated, I have always wanted to go back and visit. It will forever have a special place in my heart and I owe that island a lot.  Choosing to attend UMHS was almost a no-brainer as the campus is state of the art, the island is fantastic, and the administration and faculty were always there to help.

You and Dr. Jay Kumar were the first students to graduate from UMHS to get a competitive residency in Anesthesiology (of those who were not transfer students and started at UMHS from the beginning).  Tell us about your final PGY-4 year at Wayne State University/Detroit Medical Center.

I feel very blessed and lucky to be where I am at this point. I am roughly 10 months away from graduating as a board-certified anesthesiologist and even though I took a different road, I reached where I wanted to be eventually. I am very proud to have made it this far and to be honest ,attending UMHS and living in St. Kitts only made me stronger and more disciplined when it came to my education and work ethic.

You were both told that it was literally “impossible” to obtain an Anesthesiology residency because you attended UMHS, yet you overcame the odds and other students have done so after you. What advice do you have for students wanting to pursue competitive residencies?

First and foremost, I highly suggest that you keep the people that encourage you close to you and the naysayers as far away as possible. Both Jay and I made it this far and if we could do it, anyone can. My advice is pretty simple. Stay determined, motivated, and never, ever give up. There will be times during you medical schooling where you will want to give up and think that it is impossible to Match in a competitive residency. That is normal. If anything, let that fear make you stronger and more determined to reach your goal. As I mentioned above, the people around you matter a lot. Keep the ones that encourage you and support your goals close to you and try your best not to listen to any doubters. I truly believe that if you have a strong will, work hard, and do the right thing you will be able to match in anything you want. Your biggest obstacle is yourself. Last but not least, I cannot stress how important audition rotations are. Try your best to reach out to programs that are "foreign medical school" friendly. Basically look at programs that historically Match candidates from the Caribbean. Once you land an audition rotation or elective with them, work your tail off and show them that you belong. Make sure that they know that you want the spot more than anyone else and this will improve your chances substantially. At the very least, you should get an interview at that program.

Was there anything specific about your medical education at UMHS and clinical rotations that prepared you well for matching?

Attending UMHS made me stronger academically and personally. To answer this question simply, during my UMHS tenure, I understood that there really is no difference between the education I am receiving at UMHS compared to any U.S. medical school. I knew that from a medical standpoint, I was just as good as any of my U.S. medical student peers, and that I would have to work harder than the majority of students to "shine" and have programs remember who I was. I had a "chip on my shoulder" mentality and that was something that developed at UMHS.

Are there any advantages or disadvantages for students at Caribbean medical schools regarding the Match process?

I sincerely believe that there would be more Caribbean medical students matching in more competitive fields if they actually took a chance and went "all in.” From my experience, the majority of Caribbean medical students think that it is unrealistic to Match in the more competitive field although their board scores, CVs, internships, research etc. match the majority of the U.S. medical students. In my opinion this is very unfortunate. Including myself, more than half of my PGY-4 class are Caribbean graduates which proves that there are programs that are very friendly when it comes to IMGs.

What are some of the aspects of Anesthesiology that you find the most interesting?

For me, Anesthesia is one of the most fascinating areas in the field of medicine. Not only do you use what you read in books on a daily basis, you also get to do a multitude of procedures. You are the most important and critical person in the operating room and this responsibility makes you a better doctor. I love my patients and people tend to forget that the first doctor that the patient sees is the Anesthesiologist. We are the doctors that not only have to keep patients stable and alive regardless if the surgery is going well or not. Before surgery, it is our job and responsibility to make sure that patients are optimized and ready for surgery. This is accomplished by applying our vast knowledge of physiology to make sure that a patient is healthy enough and ready for surgery. We are also the doctors that have the ability to cancel a surgery if we do not feel the patient meets the minimum criteria for a healthy wake up. Finally, we are also in charge of the patient’s post-operative status which include important things such as hemodynamic instability and pain status. Our job also consists of keeping patients and their loved ones at ease prior to surgery. Anesthesiologists are the first doctors a patient interacts with upon arrival to the hospital and we have a responsible to be friendly, truthful, thorough, interactive, and understanding. Saying a few jokes here and there definitely helps. In general, people really do not understand what anesthesiologists do. Many people think that our job merely consists of putting to sleep and waking up patients. I am completely okay with that, however.

What advice do you have for current UMHS students, and medical students in general, about the Match process?

 Work hard and after that, work even harder. Connect with the right people and show that you belong...because you do.  Do things the right way and you will Match in anything you want to match in. Don't let anyone discourage you. Make a goal and do what you have to do to reach that goal.

(Top photo) UMHS GRAD IN ANESTHESIOLOGY: Dr. Andrew Letayf in Michigan is just a few months away from becoming a board-certified anesthesiologist. Photo: Courtesy of Dr. Letayf

About UMHS:

Built in the tradition of the best US universities, the University of Medicine and Health Sciences focuses on individual student attention, maintaining small class sizes and recruiting high-quality faculty. We call this unique approach, “personalized medical education,” and it’s what has led to our unprecedented 96% student retention rate, and outstanding residency placements across the US and Canada. UMHS is challenging everything you thought you knew about Caribbean medical schools.