Dr. Carl Shermetaro, D.O.
Went to Kalamazoo College
Residency in Pontiac
Residency program director at Pontiac hospital
ENT: Ear, Nose, and Throat
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Surgical subspecialty
Study of the head/neck area (above the clavicle)
o Treatment of disease of the neck, oral cavity, head, etc.
o Examples: difficulty breathing through the nose, Swimmer’s ear, nasal
surgery, voice issues (larynx), tumors, etc.
One of the most common pediatric procedures: tubes
Five year residency program
o Can subspecialize after that as well, then possibly a fellowship
o Currently 19 ENT residency programs in the country with about 25
spots each (competitive)
 Michigan has 7 ENT programs out of the 19
General ENT vs. subspecialty
o Examples: neuro, allergies, throat, neck & throat cancer etc.
What drew him to field?
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It’s a surgical subspecialty
Didn’t want to be in an office all the time
Deal with patients from all ages (children to elderly)
The patients are generally healthy (excluding cancer patients)
A lot of positive feedback (positively impacting patient’s lives)
Quality of life surgery (usually)
o Patients are uncomfortable or suffering from something not lifethreatening, and want to get it fixed. They tend to be very grateful.
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More and more women are entering this field because they can set their own
hours (better for family life). Not male dominated.
Training same as allopathic (5 year residency and fellowship programs)
In surgery four days a week (half the day in office and half the day in OR)
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Plastic surgery vs. ENT
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ENT is on-call for emergencies
Plastic surgery has cosmetic (altering; face lifts, etc.) surgeries, which is an
elective surgery and isn’t covered by insurance. Also has reconstructive
surgery (ears getting ripped off, etc.).
Septum: midline partition inside the nose. Made of cartilage and bone. Not usually
straight, and people with a very deviated septum can’t breath very well and need it
surgically corrected.
Adenoid: When you get your tonsils out, the adenoids get taken out as well. It is
behind the nose. Can cause nasal blockage, snoring, etc.
Cocaine is very powerful vasoconstrictor. People who abuse cocaine can get a
perforation (hole) in their nose. Can cause bleeding.
Tonsil removal is the surgery that concerns him the most due to possible
hemorrhaging and complications and the fact that it deals with children.
ENT Residency Life
Jessica West (3rd year resident)—went to Michigan State University for
undergraduate and MSUCOM for medical school
- First two years of medical school in the classroom
- MSU is affiliated with 28 different hospitals and the third and fourth years
are spent in the hospital
o In third year of medical school, decide between surgical and nonsurgical
- People are usually drawn towards a certain anatomic region of the body
- Internship year: get a mix of different fields
- Second through 5th years of residency: strictly ENT
Jessica Short—3rd year medical school student at MSUCOM
- Each month, you are doing a different specialty
- Currently doing ENT
- Next month: emergency room
- Applying for residency soon
o Application process, interviews, audition rotations
o Competitive
- Choosing base hospital
o Hospitals will ask for a certain amount of students
o Sign up for a couple of hospitals
o Randomly chosen (lottery)
o Base it off of interests, locations, rotations offered, etc.
- Base hospital is not necessarily the hospital you do your residency at. But it is
an advantage to stay at the same hospital because you know the staff and the
day-to-day schedule. It is also an advantage to go to a hospital with a
competitive residency program.
- Out-time: fourth year of medical school. Students get more time for elective
rotations (orthopedic surgery, ENT, etc.). More typical of osteopathic vs.
allopathic. Allopathic is more rigid.
BC: Board certified
BE: Board eligible
Have 7 years to become board certified
Every 10 years after residency, there is a recertification process.
What can you do to make yourself a more attractive candidate?
Doing something with research (a publication).
For medical school, it’s not only about numbers! Volunteer and other extracurricular
activities are also important.
Even though the number of medical school students increasing (more medical schools
opened), the number of residency program spots is NOT. There will come a time when
not everyone will get a residency (next few years)!