Free time for psychiatrist?

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mriyain

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Hey so I'm nowhere near becoming a psychiatrist, I'm just looking into various fields as an undergrad and have questions, please don't be mean--I know from reading similar threads that for some reason we're supposed to feel shame/stupid for thinking about ourselves and our own happiness if we are considering becoming a doctor, but you can't blame a person for wondering.

I'm really not money-driven (long time lover of small houses and cheap thrills--doesn't make me a better person than anyone else of course), and don't imagine myself ever aiming to make more than $150k a year. In that context, how much free time can I expect to have while practicing? I know the answer is different for each work setting so send any information you know my way :)

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You can carve out a job to accommodate any schedule you like in psychiatry. So you need to be a little more specific for us to be helpful. What are you really asking?
 
You can easily do 150k, with no benefits, working 25 hour weeks if thats your thing. Now finding a position that will allow PT is another story. You will likely need to do locum work or find a community gig that is looking for PT.
 
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It's fine to think of your own happiness. In most parts of the country I think you could achieve $150k with a four day work week if you are not in academics, most likely with eight hour days. There are also some full time positions that offer four ten hour days closer to $200k. Of course the variations are many, but if you prioritize this you can make it happen.

Keep in mind that you will work a lot more than that (and rack up a lot more debt) in the eight years of medical school + residency.
 
Keep this in mind: Gross Reimbursement - Overhead - Benefits - Salary = 0

If you work less, you reduce Reimbursements, but both benefits and overhead tend to be static (unless you manage to share space and staff/get your benefits some other way.) That's why working part time "pays" so much less than FT--the salary is the part that compensates for the reduced claims.

That said, I know a number of psychiatrists who work 0.7 FTE in academics and have a little PP on the side. Not sure how much their academic appointment pays, probably 100-120 given the region.
 
I'm the same way. I pictured being fine with little money compared to other specialties and was used to living on much less than my residency class peers. It's as others have stated. You can work as much or as little as you want. You may find it easier to do this as a contract doc. VAMC here is paying $250/hour for contract work. No weekends, no call, as many hours as you are willing to do, but no benefits.

Once I got a taste of what it was like making good pay, I slowly started living a more expensive lifestyle. I still limit work to 40 hrs a week, but money can be a slippery slope.
 
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OP, if it's any consolation... the computers were down at the hospital and clinic. I cancelled my day, tasked secretarial staff to reschedule, and went fishing.
 
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I'm the same way. I pictured being fine with little money compared to other specialties and was used to living on much less than my residency class peers. It's as others have stated. You can work as much or as little as you want. You may find it easier to do this as a contract doc. VAMC here is paying $250/hour for contract work. No weekends, no call, as many hours as you are willing to do, but no benefits.

Once I got a taste of what it was like making good pay, I slowly started living a more expensive lifestyle. I still limit work to 40 hrs a week, but money can be a slippery slope.
That's >500k/year on a 40 hr/wk basis... Even with no benefits, that's good.
 
That's >500k/year on a 40 hr/wk basis... Even with no benefits, that's good.

Yes, almost 500k, but they are closed lots of holidays and most would take off 2-3 weeks for vacation plus any sick days, so realistically closer to $450-480k. Still, very good pay.
 
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