The Future of Dermatology...?!

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Hey everyone!

I'm a medical student who's narrowed down to a handful of possible specialty choices, and derm is at the top of my list. I really like the research and clinical work in dermatology. However, I did hear of the AAD talk mentioned in this post:
http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=898416

This was depressing, and voiced my worst fears about the field's future. I already feel a lack of respect for the field from physicians, faculty, and even my own classmates. I'm already judged for wanting to be a 'pimple-popper.' On top of that...is the field headed downhill due to reforms ahead? Will the compensation end up being the same as internal med, or will the existing derms be forced to take on more patients (eliminating the notorious 'amazing lifestyle' factor...even though most derm residents I know go home to read, not to party it up all night)...

Anyway, I just have concerns and I want to make sure that I'm not blindly entering the field. Please do tell...what's the future of derm? :/

I actually posted the thread that you referenced in your post.

To be honest, I'm not particularly optimistic about the future of any specialty (dermatology included) at this point.

Assuming the PPACA survives intact, the IPAB will have unilateral authority to slash Medicare reimbursements if total spending exceeds some arbitrary "target growth rate" - it's essentially an unchecked version of the much hated SGR. Considering the fact that hospitals, LTACs, clinical laboratories, etc (which together account for between half and two thirds of all Medicare expenditures) are all exempt for the first several years, physician reimbursements are almost inevitably going to take a hit. The only physicians I've encountered who are remotely enthusiastic about any of this legislation are PCPs, who seem to be functioning under the delusion that the IPAB is only going to cut procedural reimbursement and give them a break. I find that hard to believe, and personally think that reimbursement will likely be cut across the board.