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

timrie6

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I've been thinking lately about going down this career path, but I don't know very much about it. What are the pros and cons of this profession? why would you want to/not want to be a doctor???
 

+Po1ntDeXt3r+

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u mean medical practitioner= doctor right?

like GPs, Physician, surgeons, anaesthetist etc..

why not?
- long hours... more work after... that u cant realli charge for..
- shit pay for education/training/effort length...
- difficult patients..shit, blood, syringes, vomit... pretty much anything tat can be thrown/aimed at u
- long career path and lots of exams
- continuing education... lectures... online work... wat u learn might be wrong... self education.
- high rates of litigation
- not really a real science
- a lot of memory work.. so if u forget where u placed ure keys.. id prolly rethink this one..
- gross disgusting stuff.. lots of it..
- you get sick... i kid u not..
- medicine is long dull and boring.. cos its so general in university.
- on average u complete majority of training after about 9 yrs
- high stress and pressure to perform..
- bastards for teachers and collegues... they aim to make it hard... lots of egos..
- its not easy..

thats about all... but im sure others can think of some more later..
 

Enlightened_One

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petar13 said:
There are no positives in being a doctor, btw.

Whatsoever.

http://www.medstudentsonline.com/forums/index.php?
What about respect.
A guaranteed job
That warm and fuzzy feeling I suppose doctors get from saving someone
The ability to aspire to being like Hawkeye.


Other downsides:
Slacking at uni or when your on prac etc may have serious consequences (i.e. on call late at night and someone comes in with a bottle cap up the nose [it could happen] and you were too busy twiddling your thumbs in that lesseon).
Get to see people naked (can be a downside in circumstances
Have to have steady hands in most areas of law.
 

funnybunny

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Well these are the pros and cons of being a medical studentssince being a doctor requires u to be a medical student ...i copied it of this forum
http://vtac.proboards103.com/index.cgi?board=medical&action=display&thread=1133054232

prob the closest a series comes to portraying an intern's life is gray's anatomy minus the romance...very precarious about saying...coz of some unpleasantness in another thread...i can neva speak of it again

01 - Everyone, including my doctor, told me to get the hell out of medicine before I got in.
02 - I busted my ass in high school, college, etc...to get to med school.
03 - Once in medical school, what you did to get you there no longer matters.
04 - Be prepared to study....then study some more, and then a little more...
and then be prepared to not do well on the test.
05 - Be prepared to accept the reality that you may be an idiot (this came as a shock to me).
06 - Be thankful that everyone else in your class is also an idiot and no one expects you to know everything all at once, and for every test.
07 - Realize that getting ahead in med school means making lots of friends ... those who step on toes to get to the top are quickly shunned by the rest of the class. This is very bad since people tend to get a hold of old tests, helpful hints, book recommendations, etc..that will be of great benefit to you. If you are the smartest person in the class...dont try to show off and be cocky. There will be plenty of opportunities for people to
undermine you if they decide they dont like your attitude. In short, have fun, be nice....make sure you are likable to a large number of people.
08 - No one can go through medical school 8 times, so dont be such a "pal" that you end up doing extra work (typing a review sheet, for example) for your friends while they are out having a good time.
09 - For me, the first year was NOT the hardest. This is b/c I was used to busting my ass to get into medical school that I never slowed down. For some, it is the "wake up call" if you never studied in college.
10 - The second year IS the hardest, its survival of the fittest. They want you to know everything about everything, and some more in between. People quit after every exam.
11 - Once thru your second year, the rest is cheesecake. You dress like a doctor, work like a doctor, and hopefully start acting like a doctor.
12 - Once thru your second year, you realize the first 2 were bullshit and you know nothing and can't remember the rest.
13 - Its relatively easy to PASS medical school, it requires more dedication than genius to get a High Pass, and a mixture of both to Honor.
14 - Remember that P=MD (meaning that if you PASS you will become a doctor). Also, remember that P is not equal to ENT, SURGERY, OBGYN, DERMATOLOGY, etc...so basically, everyone who graduates is a doctor, but not everyone who graduates is the doctor they may want
to be.
15 - In the middle of the second year, they could not pay you enough to be a doctor.
16 - In the middle of the second year, you cant afford to quit b/c you now have a huge loan to pay back.
17 - The best years of your life are while you are in medical school.
18 - The worst years of your life are while you are in medical school.
19 - Dating in medical school is close to impossible. If you can find someone who understands your language, your schedule, your attitude, your financial situation...marry them first, ask questions later.
20 - Sleeping/eating right become luxuries in medical school.
21 - Noone will ever understand your schedule or what the hell you are doing (eg why you have to study 2 weeks before a test).
22 - You will have to study 2 weeks for a test.
23 - You will have to learn to budget your time wisely if you want to ever have a life. Same goes for your money.
24 - Some people go out every night and do exceptionally well in medical school...if this is you...great. If this is not you...Sorry.
25 - Some people bust their ass every day and fail medical school...hope this is not you.
26 - The person who finds the best balance between study, social, family, friends, entertainment will make the best of medical school.
27 - The ass who always aces every test and never studies is everyone in medical school BUT you.
28 - The fact that you can dissect a rat in college has no bearing on your performance in medical school.
29 - The fact that your favorite class in college is Biology is unique b/c the smartest people in medical school today are NOT biology majors and, in fact, have never taken such a class.
30 - The fact that you have taken such classes will help in the first year, and give you more time for other things while your classmates are "learning how to use the microscope".
31 - If a histology class is offered at your school, take it..take it again...teach it...learn to love it. You can essentially SKIP your medical school histology class if you know it well enough.
32 - You may have thought that all the BULLSHIT classes you took in high school/college would come to an end when you got to medical school ... sorry...they are still there.
33 - You wont believe the amount of information they want you to know.
34 - You wont believe the amount of information you can forget.
35 - Old tests can save your ass...they can also sink you if you just memorize answers.
36 - You will have to rearrange your life, study habits, friendships around being a student. No one will understand that you need to study so much, for so long. I study at least 10 hours a day, every day. I usually take a day off. Some people dont..thats just me.
I also am not at the top of my class. You have to find your balance/grade tradeoff/relationship breaker time periods for studying.
37 - Drugs are bad, dont do drugs. If you need help staying awake, you are too tired to study..go to sleep.
38 - Your friends, collegues, will do drugs and make A's. Hopefully, life will weed them out. Until then, be cool and realize that maybe making C's is your maximum performance level.
39 - Dont neglect friends/family/pets - they are good for fun/meals/etc. They can also be a drag (Come out with us, you can study tomorrow). You need to have a long talk with these people if you do get into medical school.
40 - To the rest of the world, you are not a doctor until you graduate the 4th year. To your family, you are a doctor two weeks before you start your first year. If ever asked any medical questions, follow your answer with a disclaimer (....but I would go to your doctor if
you are worried about it because I don't really know). Be careful what you say, because people are listening.
41 - Never listen to a previous medical students advice on medical school. They have been run though the meat grinder and couldnt think of putting anyone else thru such torture. They tend to leave out the good stuff like parties, good friends, fun memories, their first patient contact, someone calling you DOC, getting to wear a white coat, and knowing what the hell is going on during ER.

In summary, if you are not sure you want to be a doctor...be very sure you want to be a doctor before you come to medical school. That bullshit about "helping
people" will get you nowhere your first 2 years. We are all in medical school because we want to "help people" but this alone will not get you an MD. You need to be dedicated to yourself, your studies, your talents, and your life as a whole just to get thru the first 2 years. Any outside pressures you have will burst while you are in school so be prepared to handle that before you get here. We are not special in any way, we are not geniuses, but, we are willing to work hard...and that, my friend, is what will make you successful in medical school.
 
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Gavvvvvin

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Who in their right mind would waste half their life at uni for such a fucking boring dirty job? :confused:
 

funnybunny

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First it's normally 6years at uni, then u have ur intern year at the hospital and residency etc. during ur intern year, residency etc. u get paid ...and it is the second hightest graduate salary after dentistry i think. Then u do postgraduate traiining which is something like 3-5 years depending on ur speciality.
 

+Po1ntDeXt3r+

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DooGseY: if u make a high demand specialty... the consequence of making lots?... gettin sued for much more =)

_DeathlessOne_: stupid ppl.. the higher the UAI the lower ure ability to make good life decisions is..

funnybunny: some of tat only applies to US and graduate schools.. cos its 5-6 yrs here not 4 yrs..

29 & 33 & 34 are very true and the worse things about med school

41 is 50/50.. cos it aint all that crash hot..

most importantly.. sleep will become ure favourite extracurricular event..
 

timrie6

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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
 

bscienceboi

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Enlightened_One said:
What about respect.
A guaranteed job
That warm and fuzzy feeling I suppose doctors get from saving someone
The ability to aspire to being like Hawkeye.
Charity work.
 

IceBreaker

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free stuff from pharmacy companys and discounts on haircuts,bottleshop etc... and getting out of speed ticket fines.
 

kylie_robbo

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You also get free stuff from pharmacy companies just by being a pharmacy assistant.

Being a doctor may earn you $300 grand/year, but just remember that insurance takes up a chunk of that.
 

+Po1ntDeXt3r+

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KylieR said:
You also get free stuff from pharmacy companies just by being a pharmacy assistant.

Being a doctor may earn you $300 grand/year, but just remember that insurance takes up a chunk of that.
actually doctors arent allowed to take gifts that exceed $10 atm... and there is new rules about drug samples too...

the food is really shit now.. meat pies.. =(

tho the pharm reps are always cute.. =)
 

sikeveo

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+Po1ntDeXt3r+ said:
actually doctors arent allowed to take gifts that exceed $10 atm... and there is new rules about drug samples too...

the food is really shit now.. meat pies.. =(

tho the pharm reps are always cute.. =)
They pay for good alcohol at parties.
 

+Po1ntDeXt3r+

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not suppose to... and they can get fined for that... technically they really dun have anything good since the new rules of Oct last yr..

I know.. cos i was at a meet about 2 days before the new rules.. and it was the rep trying to get rid of all the stuff she cant give away.. so i got a model knee and USB sticks

there is consensus that students should follow the same rules as the full medics.. so all i can get is pens.. and tat might go too soon =(
 

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*grabs one of the five Lucrin 512mb USB pens in the top draw*

Pharmacy companies are our friends.
 

Kabeio

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thought it'd be an awesome job when i was young...now not so sure.
 

+Po1ntDeXt3r+

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Kabeio said:
thought it'd be an awesome job when i was young...now not so sure.
-u see sick ppl all the time
-only 40% of medicine is Evidence/Science Based.. the rest is judgement and opinions..
-its not really a repetitive job.
-lots of studying
-not enough money for point above...
-you f*ck up.. ppl suffer/die

Why does Medicine look kewl?..
-mothers love intro-ing u to their kids.. =)
-when u finally manage to help someone and it works... its pretty good
-you get to be called Dr XYZ ... despite the lack of studying for a doctorate..
-cos the shit u say sounds fucking freaky to the avg layperson
-you will know many random things...
-lots of responsibility and trust (both a +/-)
-its a set job and ure guaranteed work.. unless ure a complete f*ck up
-lots of different options.... v. general work to v. specialised work
-u get extra exceptions when u go for PhD's, MBA or other postgrad stuff.. lik being eligible for MD's and fellowships..

its pretty sweet when there are no negative's tho..
 

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Cons -
- You study your arse off for 5 years and then still aren't trained enough to get a job.
- You then have to continue studying for further years to specialise or become a GP
- You basically study more than any other industry
- The pay isn't that good until you specialise
- Being a doctor means sacrificing your life for your career, as an intern you will be working weird hours in shifts at a hospital, as a surgeon it'd be even worse.

* Insert story from personal experience*
I shattered my elbow snowboarding last year. I was airlifted to Melbourne. I saw my surgeon at 3am on that Tuesday night (Really Wednesday morning) for an initial consultation. I then saw my surgeon again at 7am on Wednesday. He then proceeded to work all day consulting patients and performing two other surgeries. I saw him again at 9pm on Wednesday night.
At 10.30pm on Wednesday night he started surgery on me that took 4 hours (till 2.30am and he was still at the hospital at 4am when my mum wanted to ask him something.

Basically, he worked his ass off for that 24 hours, that was how it always is for him. If I knew he'd only had LESS than 3 hours sleep the night before, I would have been shit-scared. He never gets to see his young family and he's always working 14 hour days he said...nice guy though.

- You don't get paid enough
- You're responsible for people's lives
- GPs earn less than plumbers/electricians/other trades despite the extensive study required

...I could go on all day...

Pros -
You get to be Dr. instead of Mr. / Mrs.
...and even that makes you the one people call on when somebody around you starts suddenly dying.
 

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