How many of you knew you wanted to do EM when you started med school?

[Doctoblast]

I'm an incoming medical student. I know it's very important to go in with an open mind and I definitely will try to do that, but from what I have seen while shadowing and my own research I think that EM suits me. My question is did any of you feel similar to me when you started med school and what are some good steps to take when I start med school besides studying hard and eventually doing well on step and rotations?

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[filhodeinferno]

I went into Med school set on EM. Mid way through I bailed on that plan and explored other options. By the end of MS3 year I came back around full swing and committed to EM again.

My recommendation would be to try and get some time in the ED during 3rd year if that's possible. My school made that impossible, so I thought I wanted to do other things, but when I finally did my EM rotations first of 4th year, I realized it fit me really well.

 

[canigetawhatwhat]

Started as EM
Then wanted to do endocrine or id
Then back to EM
Then anesthesia
Then EM

Best decision i could have made

 

[fahimaz7]

Went in thinking EM. Looked at Rads, ENT, Ophthalmology (never could spell it so that's a no go), but always came back to ED. I like the mix of young and old, sick and not sick, procedures and critical thinking, etc on the fly without much history or background (for the truly crashing patients). Also, clinic would make me quit medicine.

 

[RustedFox]

I started med school thinking that I really wanted to do FM/IM. I had an "old country doc" mentor that I still love dearly - he had a big influence on me.

Then one day, my dad said to me (Dad is a dentist; has some exposure to the MD/DO world; but not a lot) - "Hey; think about this whole ER-doc thing... punch-in, punch-out.... you don't gotta run the business on top of it like I do.

I blew him off; like all young men do at that age. Hung around the "EM Club" at school for a bit.

Lo and behold.

 

[racerwad]

Started wanting EM but kept an open mind. In the end, everything I liked about each specialty had a lot to do with acuity and time-sensitivity, so EM remained the best match for me.

 

[Doctoblast]

Seems like most stuck with your initial gut feeling or at least close to it. That's nice to hear because I really see myself in an ED in the future. I'll definitely try to do a rotation during 3rd year to get a really good look and make sure I'm a good fit for the specialty. Will also check out other specialty clubs to see what's out there that might interest me. Thank you all for your replies.

 

[emememem]

Went in wanting to do EM and never really wavered. Very happy with my decision.

 

[Fox800]

Started school wanting to do EM. Flirted with anesthesiology for a while, but got turned off by the idea of supervising arrogant CRNAs. Shadowed an attending anesthesiologist one day, running from room to room and that was enough for me. That, and the idea of sitting on a stool all day and being on surgeons' timetables was a big turn-off.

Did a rotation at a really great EM program and that confirmed that EM was my gig.

 

[Angry Birds]

I had fleetingly thought of EM at the start of med school, but then forgot about it. Then, had my EM rotation and ran a mega code. Thought it was awesome and became interested in EM.

I don't think I necessarily would have gone to medical school if I could go back in time, but if I did, would still pick EM. I love the flexibility with EM. Also, I think I may benefit from the fact that EM is a less established specialty academically, so easier to grow in the field.

 

[Daiphon]

Went in EM vs. FM.

Then I had an outpatient clinic rotation. Sealed the deal by the 2nd patient.

d=)

Semper Brunneis Pallium

 

[Restart13]

I was impressed upon by an EM doc in undergrad, which has always had me focused on EM. The only time I ever wanted to change was in surgery, during my first week, on my first emergency laparotomy. For about a 2-3 weeks I wanted to go into trauma surgery. But then I realized, that one moment I really liked couldn't outweigh the other majority of crappy moments of trauma surgery.

 

[Angry Birds]

Went in EM vs. FM.

Then I had an outpatient clinic rotation. Sealed the deal by the 2nd patient.

d=)

Semper Brunneis Pallium

Then you started your EM outpatient clinic.

 

[medic4lyfe]

Started out with EM. Pulm/CC made me waver a bit 3rd year. Stuck with EM.

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[Daiphon]

Then you started your EM outpatient clinic.

True. But when I leave, I leave. And occasionally make a difference... chronic disease management and I don't mix.

Semper Brunneis Pallium

 

[WilcoWorld]

I didn't consider EM until my third year, when I found myself always getting along best with the EM residents who were rotating on Surgery/OB GYN/etc. I was considering Ortho and Anesthesia as well, but after hanging out in the ED I realized I'd found my people.

 

[Gator7]

Gas -> Surgery -> Gas -> EM


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[The White Coat Investor]

I started with FP. Then for one brief week Neuro. Considered EM as an MS2 after a noontime presentation. Seriously considered Gen Surg and OB/GYN as an MS3 but eventually settled on EM after doing a rotation.

 

[HLxDrummer]

Initially marketing major, switched to nursing planning to be a CRNA, switched to med school and anesthesia, switched to cardiology, discovered that in EM you don't work 80 hours/week and was sold (always thought it would be fun but couldn't do a ton of hours with shift work). There were brief periods where I considered family/internal/peds/surgery but they were short lived. So happy I found EM! I'm an MS4 by the way.

 

[sonofva]

My first rotation was in the Peds ER. Had a great experience. Totally thought I was going to be a pediatrician all the way through. Turns out I don't like working with kids all that much. Never dawned on me that it was working in the ER that I liked until after I committed to doing a TY year to take some "figure it out time."

 

[lp430]

Started out as an Ortho gunner. Did an Ortho elective early during 3rd yr and didn't like it so I switched to Gen Surg because it had more "medicine" in it. I didn't change my mind again until the end of 3rd year when I got tired of scrubbing Gen Surg cases. I "discovered" EM during my trauma rotation when we spent all of our time in the ER and was intrigued.
At the end of the day, I realized I like variety, the acuity and pace that EM offers. Not only that, but EM offers the some of the best career flexibility out of any of the specialties.

 

[blue0rchid]

not sure what i wanted during first 2 years. changed my mind so many times during ms3. List included IM, FM, surgery, anesthesia, even psych. EM was my last rotation. Like a previous poster said, I kinda found my people and my home in the ED. Just matched this year. Happy.

Do well on steps. Get good evals on rotations. Join EMIG and if possible do some meaningful activities there. Do aways and get good SLOE from them. Get good grade on your EM home sub-I. Identify people who you want to write your LOR early and get in good relationship with them. Find an EM doc who you have good interactions with (through your clerkship or shadowing) and have him/her be your mentor. Do step 2CK early on (preferable having score back by mid september). I didn't do my CK until the end of december and that was a mistake.

Good luck on finding your specialty.

 

[Tenk]

I was between trauma and EM in med school. I knew this one trauma attending when I was an MS3 who would come to the gym during his call and we would talk and lift. One day I was spotting him on bench and he told me: you know, if I could do it all over again, I'd do EM. I asked why. He said, for my family, I don't see them enough. Settled that on the spot. Literally.

 

[gman33]

Never really thought about em before med school. Little by little i figured it fit my personality.

Try to keep an open mind on all your rotations.
You will find a match somewhere and it might not be where you expect it.

Also make sure you don't pick a field just because you like a rotation. That can be because the residents or attendings were awesome, but the field won't be good for you.

 

[hundreddaysoff]

No EM background. Started thinking I'd go into research, radiology vs IM. Did radiology research and realized it was really hard and also that I don't like sitting still for that long... it hurts my back! Shadowed in the ED one night just before MS3 and was overwhelmed with awesome. Tried hard to like IM during MS3 but all the little games involved in rounding and academic medicine in general really put me off. No way I could do that 6 days a week for 3 years... seems like so much if it is relevant to our own egos but irrelevant to pt care.

Mediocre numbers but gunned hard for EM as an MS4. Loving my job right now.

 

[TheBlueBlazer]

Been wanting to be an ED doc since I was 7 or 8 and watched Rescue 911 constantly. EMS in college solidified that. Almost got swayed into surgery as a student but realized my folly. Then got tempted by IM/Crit care. When I realized EM people could do crit care fellowships, the deal was sealed for good

 

[Cinematographer]

It's funny to see how many on this thread started out wanting to go into EM, then considered something else between MS2-3, only to settle for EM in the end. I considered OB/GYN, Peds, and Derm (don't judge...), but realized EM was a better fit for me halfway through third year.

 

[gutonc]

It's funny to see how many on this thread started out wanting to go into EM, then considered something else between MS2-3, only to settle for EM in the end. I considered OB/GYN, Peds, and Derm (don't judge...), but realized EM was a better fit for me halfway through third year.

Dude...every med student on the planet considers derm at least for a minute. No judgement.

 

[Angry Birds]

Not only that, but EM offers the some of the best career flexibility out of any of the specialties.

I disagree. But, I guess it depends on what you mean by that. One significant downside of EM is the fact that you don't have many good fellowships to choose from, like if you did IM. With IM, you still have tons of options in case you decide you hate being a hospitalist. With EM, it's much harder to switch to something else. If you do an EM residency, chances are you will be working in an ER as an ER doctor... at least to pay the bills.

However, I agree that EM allows for schedule flexibility.

 

[deleted547339]

Been wanting to be an ED doc since I was 7 or 8 and watched Rescue 911 constantly. EMS in college solidified that. Almost got swayed into surgery as a student but realized my folly. Then got tempted by IM/Crit care. When I realized EM people could do crit care fellowships, the deal was sealed for good

Did you do crit care?

 

[Doctoblast]

It's nice to see that so many of you started with EM and stuck with it. I hope this happens to me as well. I won't lie and say I'm not at least a little concerned about how popular it has become.

I worry about EM becoming very hard to match into and/or saturation. I've searched the forum about those topics and am kind of reassured that this won't happen anytime soon since the baby boomers are retiring and the population is growing, but I can't help but think about these things. I think I have too much time on my hands with this gap semester lol

 

[WildEMDoc]

Started EM
1st year - wanted ENT
2nd year - ENT or optho
3rd year was a mess - Peds -> Child psych -> Pulm/CC -> Rads -> Peds/EM combined

Final decision was between rads, peds and EM for me haha. Went with my gut on just doing EM

 

[mega_colon]

It's nice to see that so many of you started with EM and stuck with it. I hope this happens to me as well. I won't lie and say I'm not at least a little concerned about how popular it has become.

I worry about EM becoming very hard to match into and/or saturation. I've searched the forum about those topics and am kind of reassured that this won't happen anytime soon since the baby boomers are retiring and the population is growing, but I can't help but think about these things. I think I have too much time on my hands with this gap semester lol

The one thing that gets overlooked in the competitive discussion is the shear number of EM spots there are when compared to more competitive specialties like ortho, derm, ENT. Last I looked EM had like 1800ish spots nationwide, I think the only specialties with more nationwide spots were IM, peds, and family.

 

[lp430]

I disagree. But, I guess it depends on what you mean by that. One significant downside of EM is the fact that you don't have many good fellowships to choose from, like if you did IM. With IM, you still have tons of options in case you decide you hate being a hospitalist. With EM, it's much harder to switch to something else. If you do an EM residency, chances are you will be working in an ER as an ER doctor... at least to pay the bills.

However, I agree that EM allows for schedule flexibility.

I was referring to the great schedule flexibility. Obviously, there aren't a ton of sub-specialties like in IM so you will probably spend some time working in the ER.
However, you can mold the kind of career you want, whether it is getting involved in a business outside of medicine, administration, or international humanitarian work. It will depend on the type of group, but there are many opportunities out there. Not having your own established patients is a great advantage in that regard.

 

[Angry Birds]

I was referring to the great schedule flexibility. Obviously, there aren't a ton of sub-specialties like in IM so you will probably spend some time working in the ER.
However, you can mold the kind of career you want, whether it is getting involved in a business outside of medicine, administration, or international humanitarian work. It will depend on the type of group, but there are many opportunities out there. Not having your own established patients is a great advantage in that regard.

Agreed 100%.

 

[TheBlueBlazer]

Did you do crit care?

yeah. currently doing.

 

[takeurmeds02]

I'm happy to see this thread. I'm incoming as well and I've been a scribe for a little under two years. I love the ED. I don't want to do surgery, I don't want to be super-specialized. Other things that I've considered are CC for acuity or hospitalist work since it's less specialized. People always tell you that you can't possibly know what you want to do since you haven't seen it all but honestly, I'd have to see some cool **** on rotations to change my mind.

@TheBlueBlazer How do you see yourself practicing? I've heard EM/CC split can be done in multiple fashions. Just curious to see if you know something, I don't.

 

[deleted547339]

yeah. currently doing.

Nice. I'm starting in a few weeks.

 

[TheBlueBlazer]

I'm happy to see this thread. I'm incoming as well and I've been a scribe for a little under two years. I love the ED. I don't want to do surgery, I don't want to be super-specialized. Other things that I've considered are CC for acuity or hospitalist work since it's less specialized. People always tell you that you can't possibly know what you want to do since you haven't seen it all but honestly, I'd have to see some cool **** on rotations to change my mind.

@TheBlueBlazer How do you see yourself practicing? I've heard EM/CC split can be done in multiple fashions. Just curious to see if you know something, I don't.

So the plan is to split things 50/50. That said, it really all comes down to what is available in a couple months when it's time to make decisions about jobs. I would be fine doing 100% either way for a little while, and there are some unique environments out there that are really enticing - ED ICUs, advanced resus units, etc. I have my dream job, and if I get it, I will be more than happy to share my experience if and when it happens

 

[takeurmeds02]

So the plan is to split things 50/50. That said, it really all comes down to what is available in a couple months when it's time to make decisions about jobs. I would be fine doing 100% either way for a little while, and there are some unique environments out there that are really enticing - ED ICUs, advanced resus units, etc. I have my dream job, and if I get it, I will be more than happy to share my experience if and when it happens

Yea, I'd love to see where it goes for you. Thanks for responding.

 

[KinesiologyNerd]

In the dark days of my gap year I wondered why I was actually going into medicine and if I would actually like it. Then I got a job in an ED and found my ness.

 

[Raryn]

I started out thinking EM. Did EMS research between M1 and M2 year. Was an officer in the EM club M3 year. Then I actually rotated in it and realized I kept wondering what happened to the patients => finishing an IM residency next month.

 

[Dr Tony T. Chopper]

Started EM
1st year - wanted ENT
2nd year - ENT or optho
3rd year was a mess - Peds -> Child psych -> Pulm/CC -> Rads -> Peds/EM combined

Final decision was between rads, peds and EM for me haha. Went with my gut on just doing EM

What made you choose EM over Rad?

 

[Birdstrike]

I'm an incoming medical student. I know it's very important to go in with an open mind and I definitely will try to do that, but from what I have seen while shadowing and my own research I think that EM suits me. My question is did any of you feel similar to me when you started med school and what are some good steps to take when I start med school besides studying hard and eventually doing well on step and rotations?

It's normal to not be 100% sure about specially choice at your stage. If those that think they are, often change their minds. Hell, several years into being attending I still wasn't 100% sure, and left general EM to do a fellowship. It's complicated.

 

[WildEMDoc]

What made you choose EM over Rad?

Combination of things. Mostly which one could I actually see myself doing in 20 years. Job crunch for DR scared me a little (although I've heard its resolving soon).