Good reasons for becoming doctors

[neur0science]

Hey all, I'm new to this site, but just to introduce myself, I'm a new member of the JHU class of 2015, going to study neuroscience and go pre-med (while also running for the xc/track teams). I had a questions for all you guys in med school or in the work field now. What are some good reasons you all wanted to go into the medical field. Like beyond just "I wanted to help people." For me, I just find the brain extremely interesting and want to be able to fix neurological problems people have. I want to be a neurosurgeon in particular because surgery just seems like a cool idea (does that sound morbid haha?) and I love the idea of fixing people's problems hands-on.

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[Drrrrrr. Celty]

inb4 money,bitches, and power.

 

[slatermd]

Yes. I can't wait.

 

[searun]

Well, OP, at least nobody can accuse you of making a lifestyle choice, since neurosurgeons basically have no life. Good for you. We need more people who are willing to sacrifice their lives for the good of others.

 

[Maison]

Because my mom wants me to be.

 

[ModusProbandi]

The fact that doctors are needed hypothetically means that people are in pain or have some medical condition that is otherwise undesirable. This is one of those careers where the necessity of your existence is derived from the suffering of others (but not if you go into cosmetic surgery).

 

[orthomyxo]

I've said it before, and I'll say it again: boats and hoes.

 

[rhesuspieces]

Having a pager. Think of the uses!

1. Looking like a baller
2. Stealthily calling your pager during awkward dinner conversations and using it as an excuse to run away
3. Convenient way to get in touch with people on the go if you accidentally time travel back to 1995
4. I'm sure there's more great things about pagers.

 

[Cypher321]

money,bitches, and power.

...and cars.

 

[alwaysaangel]

For me, I just find the brain extremely interesting and want to be able to fix neurological problems people have.

Good luck. Neuro is one of the least functional specialties out there. There just isn't anything to be done. You try to help someone survive then send them to rehab and hope for the best. Not much in the way of fixing people in neuro.

 

[Darwinism]

Saving peoples lives....oh yea, and bitches

 

[Drrrrrr. Celty]

Good luck. Neuro is one of the least functional specialties out there. There just isn't anything to be done. You try to help someone survive then send them to rehab and hope for the best. Not much in the way of fixing people in neuro.

It's also the field which will change more in the next 10 years than all the others combined. By the time this kid graduates the field will be completely different than it is today.

 

[wolfie]

wow the regulars here are ****ing annoying. Someone starts a thread and you guys feel the need to **** all over it. The occasional trolling of a thread that warrants it is ok, but lately it every fukin thread by the same people.

 

[Cerena]

I think there are several good reasons to want to become a doctor:

• lifelong learning
• desire to help out a community
• building relationships with patients/their families
• how well it suits your lifestyle and personal interests
• interest in medicine

 

[Drrrrrr. Celty]

Wolfie, if you start a thread, which has been repeated a million times and can be found easily through a search, then this is going to happen.

 

[Cypher321]

wow the regulars here are ****ing annoying. Someone starts a thread and you guys feel the need to **** all over it. The occasional trolling of a thread that warrants it is ok, but lately it every fukin thread by the same people.

Slow day at work.

 

[lisi326]

Good luck. Neuro is one of the least functional specialties out there. There just isn't anything to be done. You try to help someone survive then send them to rehab and hope for the best. Not much in the way of fixing people in neuro.

*shrug* that's why I like neuro/rehab. I like trying to help the unfixable.

 

[alwaysaangel]

*shrug* that's why I like neuro/rehab. I like trying to help the unfixable.

Some people do. And thank goodness for people like that. Someone has to do it. I was just pointing out to the OP that neuro isn't a hugely 'fixable' field. So if thats what he's truly looking for them he likely won't end up in neuro unless we find a miraculous solution to stroke in the near future.

 

[Gigantron]

I have a rubix complex. I need to solve the puzzle.

/house

 

[CaliGirl14]

...and cars.

Only reason why I'm here

 

[orthomyxo]

wow the regulars here are ****ing annoying. Someone starts a thread and you guys feel the need to **** all over it. The occasional trolling of a thread that warrants it is ok, but lately it every fukin thread by the same people.

Get used to it pal.

 

[tabascosauce]

I want to be a doctor so I can help people.

we're just frogs floating in this cosmic jacuzzi called life.

 

[ozzi22]

Having a pager. Think of the uses!

1. Looking like a baller
2. Stealthily calling your pager during awkward dinner conversations and using it as an excuse to run away
3. Convenient way to get in touch with people on the go if you accidentally time travel back to 1995
4. I'm sure there's more great things about pagers.

hilarious

 

[bold text]

Get used to it pal.

we can change things for the better. listen here you beautiful bitch imma bout to **** u up with some truth. WE NEED TO BE MORE POSITIVE AROUND HERE and stand together as one or fall apart like chinua achebe.

 

[DNAdude120]

Because I look fabulous in a white coat.

 

[wolfie]

Because my mom wants me to be.

.

 

[senorsquishie]

Having a pager. Think of the uses!

1. Looking like a baller
2. Stealthily calling your pager during awkward dinner conversations and using it as an excuse to run away
3. Convenient way to get in touch with people on the go if you accidentally time travel back to 1995
4. I'm sure there's more great things about pagers.

I am totally barrowing #2 for more then awkward dinners lol

 

[SouthParkMD]

Its an excuse for me to wear a stethoscope at the bar….

 

[SouthParkMD]

Nothing wrong with going to med school for the paycheck. If anyone disagrees with me I am will to show you the realities of life.

by the time i get my first paycheck i will have a crapton of debt to pay off. it will be a while before my life is stable financially. if i got another job that paid sooner, then i wouldn't have this problem.

please enlighten me good sir, because im not sure if you know what the realities of life are….

 

[PressPforPi]

For the 50% of us adults who actually work and are productive citizens, we ask for money in exchange for our skills/labor/knowledge. You need money for food, clothing, housing, transportation, etc. When you become a doctor, you are paid for in exchange of the knowledge and skills you got while going into debt (for those who do). You can either work some entry level job out of college in exchange for that salary level or continue to go into more debt and gain more knowledge/skills in exchange for a higher wage. That is reality of life.

So, the bitching and complaining about how debt is such a bad thing (the amount of debt is the bad thing) and is a reason for not becoming a doctor is stupid. You can get $200k of debt paid off in 10 years.

Making debt your reason for not becoming a physician I would agree would be a bad decision, but becoming a physician simply for the money is a bad decision as well.

 

[slatermd]

Nothing wrong with going to med school for the paycheck. If anyone disagrees with me I am will to show you the realities of life.

For the 50% of us adults who actually work and are productive citizens, we ask for money in exchange for our skills/labor/knowledge. You need money for food, clothing, housing, transportation, etc. When you become a doctor, you are paid for in exchange of the knowledge and skills you got while going into debt (for those who do). You can either work some entry level job out of college in exchange for that salary level or continue to go into more debt and gain more knowledge/skills in exchange for a higher wage. That is reality of life.

So, the bitching and complaining about how debt is such a bad thing (the amount of debt is the bad thing) and is a reason for not becoming a doctor is stupid. You can get $200k of debt paid off in 10 years.

Making debt your reason for not becoming a physician I would agree would be a bad decision, but becoming a physician simply for the money is a bad decision as well.

There are a lot of reasons why all of the assertions above are faulty, especially for adults who are currently working and would choose to change careers and pursue medicine.

Regarding the debt, people get stuck on this ~$200K figure, but if you have to finance 2 years of post bacc and 4 years of med school, you're going to finish with more debt than that. Add 4 to 7 years of lost wages and your sticker price could easily reach $700K before interest. In many cases it would be higher.

Regarding choosing medicine solely for the money, the range of compensation is too broad to make such a blanket statement. If you think it's a strong financial decision to go $700K in the hole for a $150K/year income, which you won't even see for a decade, then you might want to check your assumptions. The fact is, some people have very low lost wages, others are giving up a lot. Some people will incur no debt, others will enter repayment on a balance of $400K. As physicians, some will earn $120K in a year, others will net $1.2 million.

"Don't do it just for the money" and "don't worry about the debt" don't apply to everyone.

 

[slatermd]

There is more to life than "making sure you don't deal with lost wages" when making a career change.

I'm glad you agree with me.

You don't go into $700k in the hole to become a doctor.

Perhaps you don't go $700K in the hole to become a doctor. I gave up more than that in wages, not to mention the return on investments that could have been made with that money. Add debt and you're absolutely right; I don't go $700K in the hole, I go much deeper. Thanks for telling me about the realities of my life, though. Good talk.

 

[Cleavername]

...and cars.

oh i got a good idea to make this thread interesting again, lets turn it into a car thread!!!

 

[ozzi22]

so i can say "trust me, i am a doctor"

 

[MeowMeowCAT]

To say, "For I am the Doctor, the Holy One of Medicine, your Savior."

 

[libraryismyhome]

I want to continue dating girls in 20s when I am in 40s.

 

[MeowMeowCAT]

i want to continue dating girls in 20s when i am in 40s.

 

[slatermd]

I don't consider "lost wage" when you decide to leave a job on your own. Lost wages is when you lose a job.

If I were to leave my job and no longer deal with any of my investments, I would be way past the $700k range. I'm considering med school in my later years as I am thinking of "retiring into medicine" as my last career option. Right now I am making a ton of money in med sales (I sell a very complex healthcare business solution that makes me more in commissions than the average household income), I own a business, and a bunch of other stuff.

I chose not to go into medicine right now because I have goals I want to achieve in life. Then I will go into medicine during my last working days.

I don't care if you call it lost wages, lost opportunity, lost fruit snacks, or lost sanity. Whatever label you assign, opportunity cost includes the money you would have otherwise been making. And I am aware of what you claim to make, as well as your present goals:

Present goals:

- Build the company I co-own into a multimillion dollar a year company.
- Keep working at my med sales job to make $500k a year (I have a base salary of $175k...I sell a very complex and technical medical imaging business solution)
- Complete my closet of luxury suits

Long-term:

- Build a medical practice management company so I can build hospitals and clinics in other countries and acquire underperfomring hospitals in our country to "rehab" them.
- Build a very strong orphanage
- Continue to make new businesses and create jobs.

If I thought anyone was taking you seriously I would debunk the fallacy in your earlier posts, but I'd really rather know, how is this forum helping you with your goals?

 

[PressPforPi]

There are a lot of reasons why all of the assertions above are faulty, especially for adults who are currently working and would choose to change careers and pursue medicine.

Regarding the debt, people get stuck on this ~$200K figure, but if you have to finance 2 years of post bacc and 4 years of med school, you're going to finish with more debt than that. Add 4 to 7 years of lost wages and your sticker price could easily reach $700K before interest. In many cases it would be higher.

Regarding choosing medicine solely for the money, the range of compensation is too broad to broad to make such a blanket statement. If you think it's a strong financial decision to go $700K in the hole for a $150K/year income, which you won't even see for a decade, then you might want to check your assumptions. The fact is, some people have very low lost wages, others are giving up a lot. Some people will incur no debt, others will enter repayment on a balance of $400K. As physicians, some will earn $120K in a year, others will net $1.2 million.

"Don't do it just for the money" and "don't worry about the debt" don't apply to everyone.

I agree with this as well. However, I feel that the happier you are in your profession, the more productive you will be which will benefit you and the people around you. Call me an optimist or someone living in a fantasy land, but that's just the way I feel.

 

[CaliGirl14]

oh i got a good idea to make this thread interesting again, lets turn it into a car thread!!!

+10000000.