Every March for the past 55 years fourth-year medical students across the nation have eagerly awaited the results of the National Residency Matching Program.  However, for a select few the suspense of learning where one will spend the next several years in residency training ends early.  Students who learn the results of their match prior to the traditional March date are a part of an elite group who either place in the San Francisco Residency and Fellowship Matching Services or Military Residency Match.

This year five graduating medical students from the University of Nevada School of Medicine placed in early match programs.  Brad Bandera matched with a surgery residency program at Eisenhower Army Medical Center in Augusta, Georgia.  Twins Yossi Martel and Shoshana Martel both matched in competitive ophthalmology programs, though they will head to opposite ends of the country.  Yossi will train in the ophthalmology program at the University of California, San Francisco while Shoshana matched in the program at North Shore Long Island Jewish Health System.  Sean McKisic will conduct his residency training in neurosurgery at the University of Virginia.  Anna Naig, like Bandera, will also head to Eisenhower Army Medical Center where she will train in surgery.

"We are incredibly proud of these students," says Cheryl Hug-English, M.D., associate dean of admissions and students affairs.  "The early matches were developed to accommodate the most competitive of residency programs.  To be placed in the early match is a testament to these students' hard work and determination."

Nevada's medical students traditionally place in some of the nation's most competitive residency programs.  Last year three School of Medicine students placed in the San Francisco Match while others who placed in the traditional matching program were selected to continue study at prestigious institutions like Mayo Clinic, Tufts, and UCLA.

The 52 graduates of the Class of 2006 matched with 39 different residency institutions from across the nation and entered specialties ranging from internal medicine to orthopedic surgery.  Nine graduates stayed within the state to enter into residency programs offered through the University of Nevada School of Medicine, while nearly half matched with residency programs not currently offered within the state.

Results from the National Residency Matching Program will be announced to the Class of 2007 on Thursday, March 15 at 9 a.m.  Celebrations will be held at University of Nevada School of Medicine campuses in Reno and Las Vegas.  For more information, please contact Emily Wofford Cobb, public relations manager, at (775) 784-6006 or ewofford@unr.edu.

As the state's only public medical school, the University of Nevada School of Medicine has been meeting statewide healthcare, educational, and clinical needs since 1969.  The School of Medicine encompasses 16 clinical medical education departments, including Family Medicine, Pediatrics, Obstetrics/Gynecology, Internal Medicine, and Surgery, as well as ten nationally-recognized departments within basic science including microbiology and biomedical engineering.  As the largest multi-specialty healthcare focus within the state, the School of Medicine employs more than 185 doctors who both teach and practice medicine throughout Nevada.  The school's statewide faculty physician practice group has a combined 25 different medical specialties with seven physician practice offices located in the Reno-Sparks area and five physician offices located in Las Vegas. 

The University of Nevada School of Medicine utilizes a best-practice approach to medicine and is committed to addressing the health needs of Nevada now and in the future. For more information, please visit www.unr.edu/med.