considering path residency & beyond

first figure out if you want to start medical school, then worry about the first 2 years, then worry about Step 1, then worry about cores, then.... get the idea? I think you're worrying about something that you really should not be. As you progress through med school you'll learn more about various fields and the decision will ultimately work itself out and become more clear.

Best of Luck!

The money will be there one way or another, and yes there are docs working only 55 hrs a day. There is not a gun to your head, you can tailor your practice any way you wish, and you'll likely make more than enought to pay a 150K loan back over 30 years. However if the only thing keeping you from studying medicine is the potential debt, lifesyle, job market, and similar factors then its more than likely not a profession for you. I can safely say that the majority of us expected the heavy debt, the horrible hours (this includes my current OB-Gyn Sub-I ), the stresses and still pursued the field because of more important reasons.

If I had one piece of advice for incoming med students it would be to not have your future career and life mapped out before you start. There are a world of different experiences and opportunities in medicine which you cannot really even comprehend until you experience them for yourself (I am not being condescending). I do think it is great that you are thinking about the future and where your interests might lie, because you certainly don't want to embark on four years of med school and realize you made a mistake. But at the same time, the difference between the first 2 years and the 2nd 2 years is gigantic, even if you go to a school where they give you some early clinical experience.

Almost everybody changes their mind about what kind of doctor they want to be. The ones who come into school with absolute certainty (e.g., I know I want to be a pediatric cardiothoracic surgeon specializing in tetralogy of fallot) are usually the ones that change their minds the most.

And NEVER (although in medicine you should never say never and never say always!) choose a career based on the hours you are working. Pathology potentially has good work hours, yes. But I know some attendings who keep much longer hours than many residents. This is true of most other fields too, by the way. You seem to understand this already, though.

I wondered about patient contact too. When I came into med school I wanted to set up a shingle somewhere and treat people as their primary MD, but I found I liked pathology too much. I can do without the extensive patient contact. At various times in med school, I considered almost every specialty, but I had to experience them for myself to find out why or why not. I always assumed I would like pediatrics, for example, but after a week I knew it wasn't for me. And I always assumed I would detest OB/GYN, but that was probably the most enjoyable 3rd year rotation I had.

My advice would be to look around, explore your options, talk to lots of people, believe only half of what they all say. And never (that word again) make snap decisions based on one experience (i.e., after day 1 of anatomy lab, or your first trip to the OR). You have lots of time.

Derm., rehab., psychiatry, and possibly radiology often have 40-50hour work weeks. You need to be prepared, though, for med. school and the hours it will require. On my surg. rotations, I worked 120 hours a week. Ob. gyn, and medicine were also tough. I switched to path from another field, not because of the hours (which were less than I am working now) but because path. is interesting to me. I think you need to really decide if med. school is for you, and if you decide that it is, then dont worry about picking a field until the end of your third yr.

jenny

if you have doubts about medicine before you start med school- my advice would be to find something you love to do and do not go into medicine unless that is the only thing you would be happy with. I have known many people to go through med school (a few that left) and trust me if you have doubts now, they will only magnify as you go. People will tell you that you can do so much with an MD, and it is all true but you invest so much time and energy that it is not likely that you will drop your huge practice at age 40 and go to cooking school- more likely you will join the ranks of the bitter and that is good for no one. So....... wait it out until you are certain nothing else is for you- then go to med school and when you do third year you will more then likely find a passion- just my thoughts

Well, maybe that was an exaggeration...more like 110 hours a week. It was a trauma surgery rotation, and between call twice a week and working extremely long days, the weeks ran up to 110 hours. It was during this same rotation that one of the students dropped out.

How long are your surgery rotations? Oh wait, they dont offer those in 10th grade. My bad.

jenny

Medicine has been all-encompassing for me, and throughout my entire career thus far (4 years of medical school, 1 year post-sophomore fellowship, and now residency.) I know it is easy for *doctors* to phew-phew the med school and residency components of a career as being "eventually over" (i.e. 9 to 10 years for me), but in reality they take up what many consider "the best years of your life."

My advice to anyone starting medicine--make darn sure you at least think you really want to do it. You WILL NOT work 55 hour work weeks at all in your first decade of training. You will not work weekdays only. You will become at many times sleep deprived. You will not have an option to take extended vacations to Japan or elsewhere unless they are in the context of medicine.

Assuming you put up with this, you can then tailor your career to meet your needs. This is probably true in virtually any field. You earned some level of control at that point.

Mindy