Is becoming a doctor worth the sacrifice?

pre-med dude, only YOU can answer this question for yourself, and the first thing you should do is put yourself in a simulated environment to see what it's like. I studied to be a molecular geneticist but found a certain sterility and inertia to labwork so then switched my focus to medical school. I worked in a cardiology clinic, "ghosting" with cardiologists and endocrinologists, helping with routine tasks like echos and EKGs, as well as attending roundtables and assisting with admissions, questionnaires, etc. Basic stuff, but it gave me a look into the profession.

All of the cardiologists were tired, overworked, and unanimously advised me to pursue another profession, especially if raising a family and financial considerations were important. That, and the fact that every patient who came through the door was a fat slob not interested in their health and not deserving of high-tech medicine in my opinion really sapped me. In the end, I took the MCAT, but realized it was the medical science and math of genetics that really intrigued me, which got me thinking about analyzing biotech companies for a living and launched a totally different career in finance.

I'm sure many fine physicians are very fulfilled by their work, by I also suffer from a chronic affliction that got absolutely no relief from the "allopathic crap mill," as a another poster put it on another thread, which has made me all the more cynical. Just wasted money, lost years, and a compromised life. Personally, with the inevitable cost mitigation coming in healthcare, PAs and NPs are going to take a much bigger role and make solid money, especially in rural areas, without the commitment of time or all of the liability. That's the route I'd go....

Lastly, as some have suggested, you don't have to go right into medical school. If you are a very good runner, maybe take a couple years off and pursue your Olympic dreams. Otherwise, travel, explore other interests, get some clinical experience to see if you like it, etc. Then make your decision. See how this healthcare boondoggle settles out. God forbid you're 26 when you start, 30 when you begin your residency, and 33 if you decide to pursue a fellowship. 35 is hardly "old" anymore and not too late to start a family.

How did Tony Sandoval do this?

Dr. Dremo wrote:

um no. wrote:

And why are you doing these things when you could be growing up more and doing more real work?

Because my hours are limited by law.

So you should be studying and learning more. Not screwing around like a perpetual teenager. Grow up and do some real work.

@ sagarin

This is absolutely true. I advise a lot of college students who cannot explain why they want to be a medical doctor. Mostly, its the guy they new who seemed important. This is a recipe for failing out of med school or being a crappy dr. Other than general practice and to some extent ER and military drs, the general life a dr is a technician. It is repetitive and if you are not out to get satisfaction in helping someone, it has few rewards (there is some status and such as described earlier, but not enough to compensate). If your goal is to help someone etc, it will be very satisfying and you will be a good dr.

I have plenty of friends who work and fart around "enjoying their 20's" but get paid sh*t, don't particularly love what they are doing and are quite content to be in the middle of the ladder.

I think that people point out the dedication and sacrifice because most of us who have gone to or are considering going to medical school are type A people who want to be very successful and would most likely put the same effort into managing the local starbucks as they would into being a doctor.

Even if you are only working 8-9 hours days the grind will start to get to you and you certainly won't be out partying ever night. Also people tend to forget that the friend dynamic changes after college. People move away, get married, go to graduate schools, get demanding jobs, etc. Alot of the people you are having fun with now will be gone, the others you won't see as much. Extending your adolescence sounds great now but it wont in a few years.

Why do you make it sound like everyone who isnt a doctor is a poor and worthless garbage man? There are tons of jobs someone can pursue that make 6 figures per year. Give me a fu**in break.

if you have to ask that question this early, no, it is not worth it

I had this same concern while I was in undergard and I spent the next few years after college before deciding to go to dental school. In the end, obviously it is up to you to make that decision, but for me medicine did not seem to be the right path. I think the important thing for you is to spend some time shadowing and talking to doctors. If its something you think you will really enjoy, then go after it. I ended up prusuing dentistry after exploring other options than medical school. Dental school is no joke - it really is four years of hell - but its really just 4 years if you plan on being a general dentist. Specialists do a residency of anywhere from 2 to 6 years depending on the specialty which can be very rigorous, especially oral surgery, but private practice is fantastic. Most dentists work for themselves, or are in small group practices allowing for great flexibility. I currently work 4.5 days a week for about 45 hours and that's probably more than most dentists. At the end of the day though it comes down to whether or not you enjoy what you are doing. I love dentistry and I feel good about the services I provide. Plus I have the flexibility to rearrange my schedule whenever I need to and I feel financially secure. There is no harm in exploring other options while still considering medicine. Look into things like dentistry, optometry, pharmacy school, medical research... - maybe you will find something that you will enjoy doing that will allow for more time outside of work, or maybe looking at these other options will confirm for you that medicine is really what you want to pursue. Best of luck.

ABSOLUTELY!!!!

I am 3 years out of an internal medicine residency and PAID 140k in personal income tax last year! I work hard and also play hard. I own my business and ran 3 marathons last year! I was a pharmacist before medical school and I work in an underserved rural area. I take call every 5th weekend and once during the week. 4 weeks vacation or whenever I want! Married 2 kids 1 on the way.

Listen if you have the opportunity please do it you will love it. It's not a cake walk but if it were you wouldn't love as much when you are done. Believe me it is much easier when residency is over eventhough residency was not all that bad. I keep in touch with the majority of residents I did the residency with and we all love it because it is fun. O.K. Down I step. I know too much coffee today!

P.S. check out comphealth.com, merritthawkins.com, and studentdoctor.com for further information

Let me shed some light from an experience I had. Take from this, what you want.

A few years ago, I was at the track of an Ivy league school, working out with a few friends. One of them was the chief of staff at the university hospital.

I was coaching high school track p/t , and a few of my high school runners happened by. They were hoping to get summer internships at the hospital, and liked kissing my friends rear end in hopes they would get a position.

After the workout, a few of the young men asked my friend the doctor, about life as a doctor, and suggested that they are considering med school. Who knows, it could have been just to get points. Anyway, the doctor points to the mantainence men working on the fields near the track and says " they have better benefits than I do. They get full dental, health, union benefits and a full pension after 25 years. And, when 4 o'clock comes, they go home. No calls and no worries."

The kids looked at each other and decided to continue on their run.

My friend just looked at me and said "it's true. Those guys have an incredible union, and make ridiculous money for a person with little or no education."

Now, what was not mentioned is my friend made about 400k per year, and paid his dues by being a surgeon for years.

However, it makes you think.

My uncle is a lawyer and pulls in over 400k per year. He does practically nothing.

my uncle gots swagga wrote:

My uncle is a lawyer and pulls in over 400k per year. He does practically nothing.

Quite unlikely that he does nothing. I can't believe I am defending lawyers. Aside from the sleezy personal injury types most are hard working professionals.

I'm queezy.

Not true, I know a lot of people who didn't decide until later. Also, many of my classmates were engineers or in other fields before and then did post-bac and NOW are in med school at age 30 or so. I say definitely go for it. I agree with whoever say med students like to bitch a lot (some sort of comaraderie thing)...but its really not that bad! I actually really love it.

Im in my second year. If you enjoy learning...

First year was tolerable. Think undergrad on steroids.

Second year is enjoyable.

I hear third and 4th year are great.

The coolest thing about med school is that you begin to feel like a badass for knowing so much. I love it. Helping people will be great.

I am worried about the monotony of 30 years of practice.

Making 300k will be worth any monotony.

If you arent sure I would almost guarantee that by the time you are 30 you will wish you had gone into medicine.

Also, the amount of ass you get will increase 5-fold just for being in med school.

pre-med dude wrote:

Also... I'm a bit confused because a few posters have mentioned that pretty much any job requires dedication and sacrifice.

However, there was another poster who said that "you won't be living an extended adolescence like your college buddies who have jobs while you're in med school". So clearly there has to be a difference in intensity/stress if other jobs have employees living an "extended adolescence" and most med students/residents don't.

My sister is an MD. I am an engineer. Obtaining and MD requires a huge amount of dedication. Many people in professional jobs have no dedication or drive. They drift aimlessly from day to day looking for shortcuts to power/money without any real long term goals. I doubt you will see many of these people in Med school. Many office worker types at large companies shuffle worthless papers, compose useless memos, trade vague emails, try to get power and claim credit for the work of value done by the moneymakers of their company for a living. You can walk in any office in the U.S. and find many people doing the very minimum to avoid being fired while complaining about their jobs. These are the people you are asking about.

That said, if you have the ability and dedication to get into and finish med school, you can make good money in a job with upward mobility and/or the ability to create valuable products or services. I believe you will have a very good chance at making a six figure salary rather quickly if you put the same effort into a career that you would in Med school.

I know you said you already decided to keep pursuing medicine, but, just some food for thought: have you considered physical therapy? I'm a PT student who is almost finished with school. I went to PT after getting a Masters in a diffferent field, working for several years in said field, and then deciding I needed a change. I've always been interested in helping people in some way and having a challenging job that required problem solving and a specific knowledge base. The idea of an MD was always intriguing to me, but I have to say, after "working" as a PT at my clinical rotations, I have to say I am so glad I followed the PT route rather than the MD route. So many patients come into the clinic complaining that their MD didn't listen to them, didn't spend any time with them, didn't ask them the same provocative questions that I asked them, etc. etc. My point is, as a PT you get to actually spend time with your patients and try to solve their problems, not just pass them off to another specialist. And as a PT you continue to learn for your entire life if you want to be a really good therapist. In addition to that, there is a movement in the PT world now for more advanced specializations within the field -- Fellowships -- so you can truly become an expert in certain areas. Also, if you choose the PT route you have the option of exploring some other majors while an undergrad, and in fact, would benefit in your future career if you had a breadth of knowledge. And, though there is a lot of memorizing in PT school, I was able to do all that with a husband and 2 young kids at home, all the while running the best times of my life -- I will graduate with at least a 3.6 GPA, so I would say that I was able to successfully juggle it all, and I will be gratified in my work for many years to come and won't be nearly as stressed out or in debt as those who went to med school.

Good luck. Follow your heart.

I'm currently a first year.

It's not hard work, but it is very time consuming. As someone said, it's undergrad on steroids. You have to learn to enjoy studying to some degree.

You really have to be willing to sacrifice (especially your free time) from the start of med school onward. If you're not in it because it's something that you are passionate about, it will be a long, disappointing, and depressing career path. I can already see the effects on some of my classmates, including those who have already dropped out.

Therefore, I would ask yourself this question: If the hefty debt was not an issue, and being a doctor meant being paid $10/hr while still doing the same job, would you still pursue it? If not, don't even consider it. If yes, you still have some questions to be answered, but it's a good start.

Good luck.

PS: You still have time to train, but sleep is definitely an issue some weeks especially the further progress in your career.

10 dollars an hour? Seriously? I am a doctor now, and if the pay changed to 10 dollars an hour, I would quit tomorrow. I love my job and am happy with my decision and all, but the work is too hard and I miss being around my family too much not to get a reasonable income.

To the OP, I would say that becoming a doctor is worth it, although if you don't have a strong interest it would be a terrible choice.

Become a crna, 1/3 of the education requirenments of an md, for 2/3 the pay.