Any PAs out there who turned down med school to be a PA?

[DrHoosier]

I have been researching the PA profession and I like several aspects of it, but whenever I stray away the idea of going to med school, i always think to myself, "if i had the grades, ecs, etc to get into med school, is there some other profession i would pick over med school, even if it meant not being a doctor?" any input is welcome

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[jbar]

One question to ask yourself is if turning down med school would hurt your ability to work for a doctor. Would you always be saying in the back of your mind "I'm as smart as that person, I could have gone to med school."

If the answer is no great but worth thinking about.

 

[core0]

I have been researching the PA profession and I like several aspects of it, but whenever I stray away the idea of going to med school, i always think to myself, "if i had the grades, ecs, etc to get into med school, is there some other profession i would pick over med school, even if it meant not being a doctor?" any input is welcome

I got into medical school and PA school at the same time. In the end I chose PA school for a couple reasons.

I worked with a few doctors that still wanted to be doctors but didn't particularly like what they were doing. Once you've climbed the ladder its pretty much impossible to go back and do another residency (professionally and financially). I did know one EM doc that went back and did an Critical care fellowship to get out of the ER. In my mind the ability to change specialties was the best part of being a PA. In my current career I have done peds GI, adult GI and transplant medicine. To go from peds GI to adult GI for example would require a physician to do an IM residency then a peds GI fellowship. In my case it took finding a physician that valued my experience and was willing to show me the ropes.

I have for lack of a better term professional ADD. When I get good at something I get bored with it. I enjoy being in the steep part of the learning curve. When I get to the flat part I move on. To be a good physician you have to have more single mindedness than I have. I work with physicians that are at the pinnacle of their practice. They enjoy doing exactly what they are doing and are going to keep doing it for a while.

Working on the inside I understand that running a practice is running a small business. I really have no interest in doing that. In a well run practice the partners spend a lot of time doing things beside medicine. I would rather work for a well run practice that pays me a decent wage and gives me the tools to practice medicine.

I spent my time in the Army. I was in charge of people and had people in charge of me. For the most part I would rather not be in charge. If you are not going to be happy deferring decisions and want to be in charge then don't be a PA. The more experience you have the more autonomy you will be given but in the end you will probably not have the ultimate decision. On the other hand if you like practicing in a collaborative environment where you can get advice and guidance when you get out of your comfort zone then its a very rewarding career.

I've seen physicians that should never have been physicians. They can't make decisions and are full of self doubt. I have also seen PAs that never should have been PAs. They seethe at every perceived slight and never accept the role.

If you are making the decision between the two you have to understand the role. In my mind it comes down to lateral mobility and lack of outside stressors (running the business) vs. independence (as much as you can be independent these days) and a defined career path.

Your mileage may vary. You can find PA jobs that are little more than scribes and you can find very successful PA owned practices with very little oversight. On the physician side you can find physicians who are employees at urgent cares who are happy with their hourly wage or you can find physicians that are CEOs of hospitals or insurance companies. Both professions have a lot of options.

David Carpenter, PA-C

 

[chman]

I got into medical school and PA school at the same time. In the end I chose PA school for a couple reasons.

I worked with a few doctors that still wanted to be doctors but didn't particularly like what they were doing. Once you've climbed the ladder its pretty much impossible to go back and do another residency (professionally and financially). I did know one EM doc that went back and did an Critical care fellowship to get out of the ER. In my mind the ability to change specialties was the best part of being a PA. In my current career I have done peds GI, adult GI and transplant medicine. To go from peds GI to adult GI for example would require a physician to do an IM residency then a peds GI fellowship. In my case it took finding a physician that valued my experience and was willing to show me the ropes.

I have for lack of a better term professional ADD. When I get good at something I get bored with it. I enjoy being in the steep part of the learning curve. When I get to the flat part I move on. To be a good physician you have to have more single mindedness than I have. I work with physicians that are at the pinnacle of their practice. They enjoy doing exactly what they are doing and are going to keep doing it for a while.

Working on the inside I understand that running a practice is running a small business. I really have no interest in doing that. In a well run practice the partners spend a lot of time doing things beside medicine. I would rather work for a well run practice that pays me a decent wage and gives me the tools to practice medicine.

I spent my time in the Army. I was in charge of people and had people in charge of me. For the most part I would rather not be in charge. If you are not going to be happy deferring decisions and want to be in charge then don't be a PA. The more experience you have the more autonomy you will be given but in the end you will probably not have the ultimate decision. On the other hand if you like practicing in a collaborative environment where you can get advice and guidance when you get out of your comfort zone then its a very rewarding career.

I've seen physicians that should never have been physicians. They can't make decisions and are full of self doubt. I have also seen PAs that never should have been PAs. They seethe at every perceived slight and never accept the role.

If you are making the decision between the two you have to understand the role. In my mind it comes down to lateral mobility and lack of outside stressors (running the business) vs. independence (as much as you can be independent these days) and a defined career path.

Your mileage may vary. You can find PA jobs that are little more than scribes and you can find very successful PA owned practices with very little oversight. On the physician side you can find physicians who are employees at urgent cares who are happy with their hourly wage or you can find physicians that are CEOs of hospitals or insurance companies. Both professions have a lot of options.

David Carpenter, PA-C

To add a couple points.

I am in the process of thinking about both careers. Along with the points mentioned above, there are some other nice things about not being completely in charge. As a PA you do not run the same risks as far as lawsuits. Also, the sheer amount of time to become an MD is substantial. The years that it takes, often in the prime of people's life's, takes serious consideration.

 

[235750]

I choose med school, but it was a really tough choice. Up to a week before school starting I was still on the fence. Ultimately my age (older) made it difficult as I wanted the full training of medical school, but I also don't want to be in my [enter absurd age here]s by the time I complete training

In the end I want to be a psychiatrist and the PA's role in psychiatry is pretty minimal: that is to say, they are a rarity and physicians don't hire a lot of them. I don't know why. So, depending on what field interests you, being a PA may not be the way to go

Still, PA training is incredible and a good choice for most fields. Good luck with your decision and let us know what you decide!

 

[digitlnoize]

Agreed. Field matters alot. I want radiology, so PA was pretty much out. I don't really know how much different the time commitment is. PA school is 2-3 years after undergrad, right? Then you're done and you make, what...75k/year?

Med school is 4 years (so, 1-2 more) then you're done and you make 45-50k/year. Less than a PA, but still a fair salary. Then after 3-6 years of that, you get a big raise to ~200k. So, the time without income is only a year or two, and although PA starting salary is higher than a resident's, the docs catch up pretty fast post-residency...

Agree with the point about switching fields though. MUCH easier in PA land.

 

[deleted6669]

Agreed. Field matters alot. I want radiology, so PA was pretty much out. I don't really know how much different the time commitment is. PA school is 2-3 years after undergrad, right? Then you're done and you make, what...75k/year?

there are actually lots of interventional rads pa's now. they mostly do procedures for other services as you might expect; difficult lp's, line placement, guided abscess drainage, thoracentesis, paracentesis, etc
the avg pa last yr made about 86k.
em/ortho/surg/derm pa's easily make 90-125k+
I work with an em pa who made 200k last yr with overtime on top of his base of 150k.
the range for pa's in my group last yr was approx 110-200k.

avg salaries last yr for pa's working at least 32hrs/week by specialty. source advance for pa's magazine:
http://physician-assistant.advanceweb.com/Article/PA-Salaries-by-Specialty-2008-2009-2.aspx

 

[digitlnoize]

there are actually lots of interventional rads pa's now. they mostly do procedures for other services as you might expect; difficult lp's, line placement, guided abscess drainage, thoracentesis, paracentesis, etc
the avg pa last yr made about 86k.
em/ortho/surg/derm pa's easily make 90-125k+
I work with an em pa who made 200k last yr with overtime on top of his base of 150k.
the range for pa's in my group last yr was approx 110-200k.

avg salaries last yr for pa's working at least 32hrs/week by specialty. source advance for pa's magazine:
http://physician-assistant.advanceweb.com/Article/PA-Salaries-by-Specialty-2008-2009-2.aspx

Yeah...I know...but not really interested in IR. I was using the last avg salaries I've seen...there's always exception. Never say always, never say never!

 

[capo]

Med school is long and arduous. PA school is a better bang-for-the-buck. It has great job benefits and like someone said, lower stress vs a doctor. It is better if family oriented, etc. Too much autonomy like a doc has can be a detriment also, rather than the PA who can work under this doc who assumes much more liabilty.

If given this choice, knowing what I know now, I'd choose PA. Or maybe even Nurse Practitioner, as in many states it equals or surpasses the freedom of PA's.

 

[cecilia]

Among other reasons, I chose PA school over Med school (which I was already enrolled but last minute decisions...) because I am a female. and by the time I got my bachelors I was 24, I thought...if I go to med school it will be 4 years plus 7 years of residency...that means I would be able to MAYBE start a family when I was 35. I wanted to be able to work in the medical field and still have a life as a mom, wife, daughter. As a resident you are basically a slave. I met people in residency while doing my clinical rotations, that were not able to see their kids for months at a time. I would have never been able to do that.

 

[jbar]

And yet there are lots of female docs who have kids and families. Though this is a valid concern if you are worried about it it is worth finding a female doc who has kids and talking about this with them. There is also a big difference between residencies. Most residencies aren't 7 years. IM, peds etc are 3. And there is a big difference between live as a surgical resident and life as a derm resident.

Just saying that by no means does MD= no family and your kids never see you.

 

[235750]

What jbar said.

My misses is looking to match into peds in the near future and the amount of support offered at most of the hospitals she's looking at is amazing. Subsidized daycare is one of the big benefits at the best places, so that's a good sign

That said, I'm sure there are some specialties that are not family friendly. I would not go to an anesthesiology interview, for example, talking about how you want to raise a family.

You'll bust your butt in PA school and work some long hours during training. And there are plenty of orthopedic PAs, for example, who have crazy schedules. I think the take home message is: you can have a balanced life with either training, it just depends on what you do with it

Good luck

 

[cecilia]

then again why would i have kids so they can spend the whole day in daycare. I wanted to be a full time mom and not have a stranger raise them.

 

[Febrifuge]

When I started my post-bacc, I was still on the fence between MD (or DO) and PA. I soon realized that, for many reasons (including but not limited to the fact that I was already in my mid-30s) I would much rather be taking pre-reqs like Human A&P, Microbio, and Statistics, as opposed to my classmates who were doing Orgo II and Calculus. Nobody in medicine really needs Calculus.

Otherwise, I agree with what Core0 says: I spoke with lots of MDs who liked medicine a lot but were gradually coming to hate being doctors, because of all the extra nonsense that comes with the job. As a PA, my role is much more focused on "just" taking care of the patient. Sure, I'll fill out forms and fight with insurance companies, but not as much as the person who's a rung above me on the ladder. I have no interest in that stuff.

Based on my standardized test scores and other factors, I'm pretty confident I would have landed a spot in med school, had I gone that route. I also would be an MSIII right now, rather than a PA-C. I'm pushing 40 and we're expecting a baby in January. I made the right choice.

 

[TexasPhysician]

I choose med school, but it was a really tough choice. Up to a week before school starting I was still on the fence. Ultimately my age (older) made it difficult as I wanted the full training of medical school, but I also don't want to be in my [enter absurd age here]s by the time I complete training

In the end I want to be a psychiatrist and the PA's role in psychiatry is pretty minimal: that is to say, they are a rarity and physicians don't hire a lot of them. I don't know why. So, depending on what field interests you, being a PA may not be the way to go

Still, PA training is incredible and a good choice for most fields. Good luck with your decision and let us know what you decide!

I'm about to do residency in psych and I plan on hiring a PA. I know some psych docs who have a few PA's in the area. Maybe your experience is a regional thing.