Pros and Cons of being a Doctor? (1 Viewer)

[lala2]

Yeah, I heard that internship is basically the hardest time of your medical degree--you are a junior and they will lump onto you the weirdest and awkwardest hours, and constant lack of sleep is a problem. Then comes the residency, the registration..........................and if you thought that was the end, it isn't because you have to study further to specialise further. Medicine really is a lifetime commitment.

 

[+Po1ntDeXt3r+]

internships are now safer ~12hr shifts compared to lik straight 35hrs... but depression/mental illness levels is v.high..

chest pain and coughin blood are some of the most common symptoms after abdominal pain and headaches... if a GP referred off for those.. that would be stupid.. GPs have to investigate that.. and usually they medicate...

u fully palm off/"refer"... when u have massively difficult problems.. like sumfing off the exocist or ure not too sure..

 

[funnybunny]

Baiku, before you post please ensure that your posts are correct

Obs were said to earn an average $270,166 a year, anaesthetists $232,347, orthopedic surgeons $206,215, neurosurgeons $186,302, general surgeons $149,583 and the family GP $114,681. GPs generally earn between 100-200K and can double if they have their own practice.

GPs earn less than plumbers/electricians/other trades despite the extensive study required

Well maybe some do...but of course they too prob work hard as medical graduates or even harder if they are getting that amount.

Most courses are 6 years, and an intern can be considered to be a job since you get paid. It is, i think, the second highest graduate salaries after dentistry (around 50,000- 60,000 and it gets higher during residency etc.)i would hardly say that "the pay isn't that good until you specialise.

I could go on all day...but im not getting paid.

 

[+Po1ntDeXt3r+]

Or if you want a specific function examined, like an opthalmologist for vision.

lolz technically yes and no...

cos the testing of vision can be done by any practitioner .. as its part of lowest most basic training..
viewing into eyes is harder but its part of screening for diabetes and high blood pressure still.. and not always done by an ophthalmologist.. but can be done by endocrinologist

ophthalmologist are just pros at eye disease and the management.. esp surgical..altho diagnosis can still be made at the GP level unless its v. difficult or unclear..
sumtimes u get ophthalmologist goin to regional centres and teaching the GPs the best new methods for diagnosis.. to minimise unnecessary referrals

funnybunny:
do u know wat some plumbers/electricians make for normal business week + some emergency calls?... cos i know a couple that exceeds that of public general practice.. and their insurance is cheaper too... net income wise unless ure a very astute GP its very hard to compete..

the figures u quoted are also public.. not private.. its about 2x higher in private.. its why noone gives a f*ck about public unless u want a 'nice' feeling

 

[funnybunny]

yeah some not most
sorry about that....i fogot to mention that it was from the public sector.

 

[Vagabond]

Lol? Did someone say 300k a year? I can tell you in all confidence that most doctors don't earn anywhere near that after tax and expenses.

My father is a Neurologist.

From this family experience I can personally tell you advantages and disadvantages:

DISADVANTAGES:

- super long training, uni, etc. Very expensive training also.

- work at the practice is quite demanding (I work a shift a week as secretary and I find it super hectic!) If your a GP you can't charge much per consultation so you really have to see a lot of patients to make a living especially if your renting a practice. Also people will always bitch to you about bulk billing them

- Generally a condition that comes with working at hospitals is that you are forced to be 'on-call'... which means on random specified time-periods (in the week) they can ring you for advice. This includes 4am in the morning. This also includes being rung by the latest intern who can't speak english properly and doesn't realise that they're ringing the wrong doctor.

- LOTS of expenses: insurance, secretary, rent for rooms, attendance at international training conferences, medical journal subscriptions blah blah

- You WORK for a living. The moment you stop the money does too.

- No super, no personal life insurance, no holiday/sick leave, no car allowance etc... absolutely none of the benefits that you'd get earning a salary at a company.

ADVANTAGES

- Especially if your not a GP, you'd be earning above highest tax bracket so long as your working.

- You can claim stationary, fuel, other expenses as business expenses (tax deductable)

- Due to your hospital reputation/service you can get extra-good healthcare for your family.

- Those bloody cool pens/accessories from drug companies!!

- Respect

- Dr. in front of your name


My judgement:

Only do it if you like medicine. Seriously, and I mean, very seriously. This is one job that you don't do for money. You must like the style of work - intensive, yet rewarding on different levels. Medicine is a career that generally requires you to be dedicated to your work, ie put a generally strong emphasis in your life on work above other aspects.

If you are in it for money then let me tell you, there are much better ways to earn 100k+ a year.

 

[+Po1ntDeXt3r+]

- Due to your hospital reputation/service you can get extra-good healthcare for your family.

- Those bloody cool pens/accessories from drug companies!!

- Respect

- Dr. in front of your name

actualli family of practitioners are usually very undertreated due to.. the connections and there is a lost of objectivity... its v. tempting to tell another doctor they are wrong... cos u think u know better.. that is wat research tells us.

the last 3 things u mentioned are worth nothing..
im prolly goin to avoid using the Dr. if possible.. outside of practice..

 

[transcendent]

All this thread does is discourage people from being doctors. Nurses have to put up with just as much crap and get paid less and you wonder why there is a shortage.

 

[+Po1ntDeXt3r+]

i really think dr's are better suited to answering the original question/thread topic, not students training to be

yeah but how often do u get medics on BoS? (actualli there is a resident that visits.. and she corrects me occassionally.. doesnt post tho..)

basically I asked that question on the 1st day of uni... and i have got most of the common answers out of medics..
Atm my clinical tutor are residents.. and my uni tutor is also a resident..

for the next 3 yrs i will be doing the same things/training as an intern w/o the presciption pad.. its just the experience time now..

about discouraging.. i think there is just too many ppl that do go in with rose-coloured glasses.. and realise v. late that its not as perky as it seems... not every day is lik E.R or House... the reward is the days when it is lik them... the 1 in a 100+ kinda cases... and the patient contact but its hard to not make it personal..
as a rule of thumb.. its not all bad.. most ppl know the positives.. its just fair that they know the negatives too..

 

[Gavvvvvin]

Pro: get to fondle old man balls.

 

[Reshie]

wow, intense. hm, I don't think I am that keen on it really. I sort of want to be a clinical psychologist, but I was just considering different options. Thanks alot for all your input guys

theres always a nurse one of those things where you still get praised for the work and a fulfilling thing your doing.im studying nursing and even though the gross stuff doesnt freak me its remembering stuff.
oh yeah by the way doctors have such shitty shitty handwriting...well some of them.but i guess that comes from writing sooo many notes at lectures...maybe pointdexter can acknowledge that...but trust me nursing is awesome and you can always specialise in something

 

[+Po1ntDeXt3r+]

theres always a nurse one of those things where you still get praised for the work and a fulfilling thing your doing.im studying nursing and even though the gross stuff doesnt freak me its remembering stuff.
oh yeah by the way doctors have such shitty shitty handwriting...well some of them.but i guess that comes from writing sooo many notes at lectures...maybe pointdexter can acknowledge that...but trust me nursing is awesome and you can always specialise in something

hahah my handwriting aint bad yet.. =) but i write in shorthand now..
yes its from complusively making notes from the books... meddies generally have very few lectures now.. lik less than 6-7 a week for the whole course.

and
that injecting thing isnt as bad as u think.. its just sucks if u got a lousy partner.. i.e. they dunno how to inject =(

 

[Baiku]

Baiku, before you post please ensure that your posts are correct

Obs were said to earn an average $270,166 a year, anaesthetists $232,347, orthopedic surgeons $206,215, neurosurgeons $186,302, general surgeons $149,583 and the family GP $114,681. GPs generally earn between 100-200K and can double if they have their own practice.


Well maybe some do...but of course they too prob work hard as medical graduates or even harder if they are getting that amount.

Most courses are 6 years, and an intern can be considered to be a job since you get paid. It is, i think, the second highest graduate salaries after dentistry (around 50,000- 60,000 and it gets higher during residency etc.)i would hardly say that "the pay isn't that good until you specialise.

I could go on all day...but im not getting paid.

Your $250,000 specialists, as I noted from personal experience, don't have cushy lives.
If you want to talk big incomes, look at Accounting or Law firms, or property developers, etc.

I haven't seen too many tradesmen working "hard", they seem to take lots of breaks and finish work in the early afternoon.
$100/hour = $800/day = $3500/week = $175,000 ... That is an easily achievable income as a tradesman running your own business.

People have all spoken about how hard it is as a resident, lack of sleep, depression, long shift, etc. $50,000 is not good remuneration after 5 years of training working in circumstances such as that.
$50000/year = $1000/week = $200/day = $25/hour
(You could get paid that working in a call-centre)

 

[Baiku]

your income levels rise dramatically as you gain more experience as a doctor. this isn't the case when you're a call centre operator.

True.

My argument was that, if you want big money, medicine shouldn't be the first field that you turn to. However, many young people have different impressions.

My point is that for the study and effort required, the remuneration isn't above and beyond other fields...

 

[sikeveo]

medical officers in the adf get 7.5k per week. but its a massive responsibility

 

[seremify007]

I thought $300k is something which only specialists will get... and alot of ordinary GPs are looking at the sub-$100k range? *shrugs* Alot of my opinion is based on what my Mum told me about her work at nursing homes where there are some GPs desperately looking for patients...

I guess it does have respect... and chicks dig it! Mouth to mouth can be both a pro and a con. But ultimately I think it's the super hard work (I see all my UNSW med friends workin their ass off to study as well as hospital visits) and the long time before you get the good stuff which make it... somewhat undesirable. That, and to me, I think it would kinda suck if people only came to talk to you because they were sick... but then, hey some people like helping sick people. I would rather help people get richer (and take a cut^^).

 

[sikeveo]

Nope In NZ, GPs get up to 400k (nz dollars though).

 

[+Po1ntDeXt3r+]

ummmm medicos rarely do mouth to mouth... because ppl mostly seem to "crash" in hospitals for them.. GPs dun usually deal with emergency in that sense either.. .

sikeveo: yeah well its "up to" thats the catch.. thats the upper limits.. seremify007 was stating the median or the mean... judging by his figures.. if u own the practice.. u can earn more... 100K is lik salary.. and 7.5K per week is the ADF.. thats if there is danger to ure life like on an overseas warzone posting.. otherwise the pay reverts to less

 

[sikeveo]

Sorry I meant as onsite here in aus. You're right about the other bit though

 

[turtleface]

Pros:
(some) respect from community
Opportunity to contribute to the advancement of health

Cons:
dealing with disease
Discovering dead people

Most courses are 6 years, and an intern can be considered to be a job since you get paid. It is, i think, the second highest graduate salaries after dentistry (around 50,000- 60,000 and it gets higher during residency etc.)i would hardly say that "the pay isn't that good until you specialise.

I could go on all day...but im not getting paid.

Those damn grad salary reports lie, highest graduate salary isn't dentistry like those government surveys say. Its IBanking. Every First year grad gets pretty much 80-240K.

Doctors should get paid more for the work they do. 300K is nothing for the shit they have to go to.