Apparently, less than half of physicians would choose medicine as a career if they had it to do over again.
If you are in medicine, would you choose it again if you had it to do over again?
I wax and wane. Right now, I guess I would. I have a pretty easy job that pays pretty well. I'd probably be less satisfied if I were working twice as many hours and earning the same salary.
I wouldn't choose to be a pharmacist again if I had to do it over. Definitely not worth the daily headaches!
ReplyDeleteDitto. However, the grass is always greener. Pharmacy sucks for the same reason medicine sucks...people suck. My advice - stay away from people...they are angry, often incapable of rational discourse, mean and manipulative. I've heard that actuaries make good money...a nice cozy cubicle or better yet...an office. Done.
DeleteI don't know. I'm tired of rude, demanding people. Non-vaccinators. Parents who think they know more than me because they "read it on google". And I still struggle with the disparity in pain compared to what administrators earn.
ReplyDeleteThat said, I do love my patients; I love being an NP more than I ever did being an RN. The last time I worked, an 18 month old actually sat on my lap while I did her exam. Little ones who blow me kisses when I finish the visit. Teens who share with me their insecurities and fears. Parents who tell me that no one cared as much about their child as I do. Who trust me to provide care for their children. Those are the experiences that bring me back.
Haha, I meant to write disparity in pay, not pain!
DeleteAlthough, disparity in pain makes that sentence ironic and funny! Thanks for the chuckle!
DeleteNo freakin' way. I'm filled with regret, particularly b/c my first advice from a doc as I studied for the MCAT included the honest, fateful words, "I wouldn't go into medicine if given the chance to do it all over again. It's going to get worse before it gets better." I replay that conversation in my mind every time I think about how I wouldn't do it again, either. She shared her insight and I just didn't listen.
ReplyDeleteThis article is a good read (http://www.kevinmd.com/blog/2014/01/culture-contempt-led-medicines-downfall.html). It's a bad time to be either doctor or patient. Stay healthy, folks!
I haven't graduated but i would say NO! I don't know what i would do instead but I wouldn't do this again.
ReplyDeleteI would. Despite the fact that I'm still a resident, I believe I have one of the best jobs. I'm lucky: I'm doing surgery (eye) and still keep reasonable hours. Sure, there are trying times, like in any area of medicine, but overall, I'm glad to be in my position.
ReplyDeletePhysician Assistant is where it's at. Less student loans, more flexibility. That's where I hope to end up. I love patient care, but I would never in a million years become an MD.
ReplyDeleteI don't know if I would. Wish I could say with certainty that I would. :O(
ReplyDeleteI would probably not do it again.
ReplyDeleteI came from a computer science background and worked for Google for a few years before applying to med school. I'm an emergency physician.
The pay is (currently) pretty good, although not great in places where everyone else wants to live, but the lifestyle, not to mention the gloomy future, etc.? I suppose I could cut down and only work when I want, but then I have like $200K in debt I need to pay off.
Maybe I'll be slightly happier after my student loans are paid off and I can just work a couple of times per week. However, I could have made about the same amount of money and had a fun and cool job at Google. Or perhaps moved to a smaller company with Google on my resume. I suppose I could try and combine my medical knowledge with my computer science background somehow. Try to write a useful medical app for people. Try to start a business like some of my friends already have.
Still, knowing what I know now, I'd be very reluctant to go to med school again. At the very least I'd recommend people interested in med school read this post from Med School Hell. I found most of it true.
My friend, Karla, is a nurse. When it came time to apply to college, Karla's daughter was seriously considering pre-med. Karla gently suggested that if she wanted to go into medicine, she should look at veterinary school instead because the patients are nicer, she is more likely to get paid, and less likely to get bitten! TCG
ReplyDeleteI would suggest that Karla read some vet blogs.
DeleteIt seems that you get all the debt, all of the crappy patients, and none of the pay....
I could understand the choice between Google and doctor. But there are very few jobs that pay as well with as much job security.
As a PGY3 with 3.5 more years to go...nooooo way. I should have become an accountant or an interpreter as I considered at some point in time many years ago. Stay away folks!
ReplyDelete