I am leaving my residency program, just quitting the profession. Wondering if anyone was interested?
No you would not be able to skip year one...
Quitting because its just not for me. I am not a fan of surgery anymore, and I have a few herniated disks in my back that make it hard to do surg, and I have always hated wound care. Nothing else.
After dedicating this much time, wouldn't it be possible re-consider and stick out one more year? This way you always have it available, and even though you may not want to perform surgery or provide wound care, you may have the credentials to teach at one of the colleges, etc., which may also allow you to not stress your spine.
I would just hate for you to regret this decision some time down the road, with only one year left, that would be a tragedy. I've seen other's make similar decisions and many regretted the decision eventually. At least if you complete your education, you can never say "I should have", yet you can quit the profession at any time if that's still the way you feel.
Just my opinion. Regardless, good luck with your future, no matter what you decide.
I know this is an old post but I feel just like the OP. I don't like surgery and I'm not into wound care. I'm almost a 2nd resident and I have no clue what I'm going to do after residency.
What do you mean you don't like surgery - what about it don't you like?
I can't say that I had a particular interest in surgery when I started podiatry school. I was more interested in treating diabetics but it's been amp after amp after amp. I don't feel like I'm making a difference.Were you interested in surgery coming into podiatry school? Did you start to lose interest in podiatry as soon as you became more exposed to surgery?
I can't say that I had a particular interest in surgery when I started podiatry school. I was more interested in treating diabetics but it's been amp after amp after amp. I don't feel like I'm making a difference.
I can't say that I had a particular interest in surgery when I started podiatry school. I was more interested in treating diabetics but it's been amp after amp after amp. I don't feel like I'm making a difference.
I'm leaning towards a more general practice. I'm just wondering if that make me unemployable as an associate and if I should just open/buy a practice on my own.I can completely see from where you're coming. Limb salvage is something I could not specialize in. It's like putting duct tape on the cracked hull of a sinking ship.
I suppose you've already considered it, but changing to a more general or sports-focused practice would attract healthier patients and would not require as much surgery, specifically amputation. This type of practice has its own frustrations of course, but I swear I get the most sense of fulfillment from doing a good old ingrown nail procedure.
I'm leaning towards a more general practice. I'm just wondering if that make me unemployable as an associate and if I should just open/buy a practice on my own.
I definitely do not plan on quitting residency... I just don't know what I'm doing after.A lot of the older DPM's who didn't have the fortune of good residency training like to hire young grads to enhance the practice surgically and offer services that weren't always available.
However, sport injuries, diabetic care, skin disorders, trauma, etc., etc., are also part of most busy practices. My recommendation would be to finish out your residency and become as skilled surgically as possible. Even though you presently think that's not the route you want to take, it's always nice to leave all options open. When you do go into practice, you may change your mind and it would be terrible to look back and say "I should have......"
As far as obtaining a job with minimal interest in performing surgery, well that is going to be up to YOU to sell yourself. Don't tell them what you don't want to do, tell them what you DO want to do and what interests you. More importantly, let them know how your interests in non surgical podiatry can enhance the practice.
As I've stated many times on this site, I am a partner in a very large office and perform a decent amount of surgery on a regular basis. Yet one of my partners who no longer performs surgery is actually our largest producer. Hopefully that will be encouraging to you.
While surgery is the big focus of residency, boards, etc it's a relatively small part of your weekly hours in most private practices. You will spend much more time seeing office patients, doing paperwork, etc.I don't like anything about surgery: making the incision, using the sagittal saw, suturing, screws, k-wires, etc. Blood doesn't creep me out. I just don't like surgery. It isn't something I want to spend my life doing.