AA to anesthesiologist

[Emanuel Perez]

So a little bit of a background. I was a premed who had second thoughts about applying to medical school in my senior year in college. For many reasons (kinda burnt out premed student). I wasn’t sure if I was ready for the commitment. Fast forward 3 years I realized I had to get my life together so I began to study for the MCAT. During that time I researched what paths I could take and had the MCAT as a back up in case I wanted to attend medical school.

I came across Anesthesiologist Assistant (AA) and applied. I actually got accepted conditionally without an MCAT score but had to have the MCAT score before program
Started. It was a long shot but still managed to get accepted. Was happy, finally got a career that would put food on the table and I loved the OR setting and the nature of the job.

Fast forward. Tried my luck for medical school (why not for sh*ts and giggles). Applied to one local USMD school ranked fairly good nationally. Got accepted to literally the only medical school I applied to while being in the AA program. Another long shot but managed to get accepted. Now I have an existential crisis about what to do. I have the option to stay in AA finish in Dec 2023 and I could get paid up to 200k with some experience. Again this medical school is local (good ol’ in-state tuition is 28k).

Alternatively go to medical school and attempt to match to anesthesiology residency. My question is for those who have chosen the latter path (physician anesthesiologist). Are there any regrets? Would you have liked to settle for a less “prestigious” career but good salary while having more free time? How happy are you really? Would you have talked yourself out of it had you been in my position?

I have been battling with this decision for months. Been through some real sleepless nights. Medical school starts on august and it’s January. I still have time to reject the acceptance or accept it. I am currently at an AA program (2nd quarter). I know the answer to most of these issues would be “follow your heart” but I am looking more of an objective advice. The reality is… there’s much more that meets the eye for every career path and it isn’t until you get there that you truly grasp what it is to be a physician.

For the record my priorities are:

1: family
1.1: work-life balance
2: actual career fulfillment
3: money (don’t care if it’s reasonably less as long as work life balance is met)
4: everything else

Thanks y’all.

PS: Either way I will be supporting the ACT model 🎉🎉

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[coffeebythelake]

It will take you 8 years, a lot of money (both actual dollars and opportunity cost), and a lot of personal sacrifice to go the MD route with anesthesiology residency. Ask yourself if it is worth it. You've already said that family is most important to you. That might be incongruent with the burden and exhaustion of medical education and training.

 

[nimbus]

Congratulations!!

Are you married? Do you have any kids? If the answers are no, I would go to medical school. Decision is harder if the answers are yes.


Medical school will open a whole world that you may not even have considered. You could choose an entirely different specialty like psychiatry, surgery, radiology, or cardiology. Medical school/residency/fellowship will give deeper understanding of what you are doing during patient care and why you are doing it, more autonomy and more decision making authority. All worth it in my opinion. No regrets here. My job is one of my favorite parts of life.

 

[Emanuel Perez]

Congratulations!!

Are you married? Do you have any kids? If the answers are no, I would go to medical school. Decision is harder if the answers are yes.


Medical school will open a whole world that you may not even have considered. You could choose an entirely different specialty like surgery, radiology, or cardiology. Also will give deeper understanding of what you are doing during patient care and why you are doing it, more autonomy and more decision making authority

Happily married! Wife’s fully supportive and wants me to follow whatever dream I have. She’s excited for me to start medschool but I don’t think she fully grasps what it entails. However she does mentions my personality would match medicine and I kind of agree to a certain extent. Autonomy and having certain authority over patient’s healthcare decisions, being the leader of the ACT model are definitely something that attracts me to the career and is the reason it’s making it extra difficult to pick one or the other.

 

[nimbus]

Happily married! Wife’s fully supportive and wants me to follow whatever dream I have. She’s excited for me to start medschool but I don’t think she fully grasps what it entails. However she does mentions my personality would match medicine and I kind of agree to a certain extent. Autonomy and having certain authority over patient’s healthcare decisions, being the leader of the ACT model are definitely something that attracts me to the career and is the reason it’s making it extra difficult to pick one or the other.

Glad to hear you have a supportive wife. It’s important that you are both on the same page. While I think I would have enjoyed being an AA, I think being an anesthesiologist is more fun. I would take that A from medical school as a sign that you should be there. Although the training is long, it is possible to enjoy life while you are doing it and I think most people do. I certainly did.

 

[anaesthetic]

The opportunity cost of going to medical school cannot be understated.

You'll be competing with hundreds of other students locally and thousands nationally for four years to get a shot at the best residencies in the most challenging setting you will ever experience academically, socially, mentally, physically, and emotionally while easily racking up six figures of student debt which will take decades to pay off, all while earning $0 throughout the those four years. You may have to move across the country for residency since the process is dependent upon many factors that are often completely out of your control.

Then you repeat that for four more years in residency studying for annual in-training exams while working way more than all of your peers who didn't go to medical school and earning peanuts for it, and you will be trying not to kill anyone in the process which will likely happen despite your best efforts. You'll be on call for much of those four years with varying frequency, and it will inevitably be disruptive to your home life in one form or another, especially if you had to move to a completely different city with no support.

We're not even taking into account how important it is for your administration in medical school and residency to be supportive throughout the whole process which could make-or-break your career at various points throughout your training, especially if you flounder at any point during it.

I did very well in medical school and residency and really had no issues at any point throughout training, but a lot of my close friends did, some of whom had to repeat a year or two in medical school, got kicked out of medical school for various reasons, didn't match to a residency, changed residencies mid-way through (some multiple times), overdosed/died on drugs, got caught and are in rehab, etc. The list goes on.

Overall, I am satisfied with my career thus far. I get paid well to do a very specific job that not many people can do (well, at least). The journey to get here was very difficult in all aspects and required much more sacrifice than most people in my life realize. Proceed with caution.

 

[Southpaw]

I’d go to med school. Yes more years and more sacrifice but more doors will be open for you if you work hard and do well.

 

[Gern Blansten]

How close are you to finishing your AA program? I’m not sure how feasible it might be, but deferring your Med school acceptance is sometimes an option. The ability to work a shift a week as an AA during Med school could greatly decrease your debt accumulation in Med school. It would be a tough job to find, but maybe someone needs someone for a weekend shift. The lack of real world experience as a fresh grad would give some employers pause but, if you could do the job for a few months before starting, it could work.
The additional benefit may come when you apply fir residency. You would be a very unique candidate with a background that most program directors have never seen.
It is a dilemma though because you have a well reimbursed job that will be ready for you in a field that seems to be growing. At the same time, physicians are becoming less and less satisfied with their work.
I would look at the financials and opportunity costs specific to your own situation and evaluate how long it would take to break even and then decide it it is worth the extra eight or nine years.

 

[BLADEMDA]

The OP needs to PM/DM "Endee" who was an AA and is now in Medical School. IMHO, the OP should take the spot in Med School and become a Physician.

 

[vector2]

Happily married! Wife’s fully supportive and wants me to follow whatever dream I have. She’s excited for me to start medschool but I don’t think she fully grasps what it entails. However she does mentions my personality would match medicine and I kind of agree to a certain extent. Autonomy and having certain authority over patient’s healthcare decisions, being the leader of the ACT model are definitely something that attracts me to the career and is the reason it’s making it extra difficult to pick one or the other.

Does your wife have a good income?

It just can't be overstated how much opportunity cost you're giving up by not finishing AA school, not to mention AAs have a pretty damn good work-life balance and (depending on the practice) a fair amount of autonomy as well once they get some experience under their belt.

If you had written for your priorities 1. Actual career fulfillment 1.1 Money , then medical school would be a no brainer. As 3 and 4, ehhhh....

 

[IMGASMD]

I cranked out some numbers. Number wise you’ll be 14 years from now before you are finally caught up. However, you’d have a medical degree, and all the “prestige” associated with it.

A lot of human tolls and sacrifices. Things do happen while you’re in med school. My grandma died, my dad was sick, my good friend was not doing great…. Just a few things I was not able to attend to. My SO was pretty “understanding”; at some point started to run out of patience. Life still moves on, while you’re in training. You will need to have a good support system or the next 14 years, it will be pretty miserable. Especially for you, who has forgo a very stable and relatively high paying job.

I am pretty happy with my job and life. That’s all what most of us known as life, I wouldn’t know any better. The highlight of my youth was to take a gap year, to travel and play. Ever since then, it has been med school, residency, then attending life.

On the other hand, you kept coming back to medical school….. why is that? Maybe that’s where “follow your heart” part comes in….

I will also tag @ValentineD. He was sort of in your position a few years ago, IIRC. He saw it more closely…..

Ps. Physician anesthesiologists doesn’t exist. As far as I know, there aren’t any other kind of anesthesiologists in this country.

 

[Guillemot]

So a little bit of a background. I was a premed who had second thoughts about applying to medical school in my senior year in college. For many reasons (kinda burnt out premed student). I wasn’t sure if I was ready for the commitment. Fast forward 3 years I realized I had to get my life together so I began to study for the MCAT. During that time I researched what paths I could take and had the MCAT as a back up in case I wanted to attend medical school.

I came across Anesthesiologist Assistant (AA) and applied. I actually got accepted conditionally without an MCAT score but had to have the MCAT score before program
Started. It was a long shot but still managed to get accepted. Was happy, finally got a career that would put food on the table and I loved the OR setting and the nature of the job.

Fast forward. Tried my luck for medical school (why not for sh*ts and giggles). Applied to one local USMD school ranked fairly good nationally. Got accepted to literally the only medical school I applied to while being in the AA program. Another long shot but managed to get accepted. Now I have an existential crisis about what to do. I have the option to stay in AA finish in Dec 2023 and I could get paid up to 200k with some experience. Again this medical school is local (good ol’ in-state tuition is 28k).

Alternatively go to medical school and attempt to match to anesthesiology residency. My question is for those who have chosen the latter path (physician anesthesiologist). Are there any regrets? Would you have liked to settle for a less “prestigious” career but good salary while having more free time? How happy are you really? Would you have talked yourself out of it had you been in my position?

I have been battling with this decision for months. Been through some real sleepless nights. Medical school starts on august and it’s January. I still have time to reject the acceptance or accept it. I am currently at an AA program (2nd quarter). I know the answer to most of these issues would be “follow your heart” but I am looking more of an objective advice. The reality is… there’s much more that meets the eye for every career path and it isn’t until you get there that you truly grasp what it is to be a physician.

For the record my priorities are:

1: family
1.1: work-life balance
2: actual career fulfillment
3: money (don’t care if it’s reasonably less as long as work life balance is met)
4: everything else

Thanks y’all.

PS: Either way I will be supporting the ACT model 🎉🎉

Based on top priorities that you listed of family and work-life balance, staying in AA would be better. Nobody here knows you though so cant really say what the right decision is for you. If you go to medical school, you may decide that you don't even want to do anesthesiology.

 

[LineAndBerry]

Your priorities are in the right place, IMO.
Whilst I have not read all the replies and don't want to repeat what has been said, I'd strongly consider the med school route.

Just my 2 cents: I sense that you are well suited to being an excellent doc, and your time in AA school will put you that much further ahead in terms of knowledge and experience. What you don't want is major regret once you get out in the real world and start work as an AA. You have the intelligence to succeed in med school and be an attending.
Also, be aware that the worse family sacrifice will be the first two years of medical school when all you do is study and take tests. I did it with 4 kids (my 5th was born in my first year of residency!). None of your time will be lost if you choose to go back to AA school - heck, you'll be the best AA around.
I took a slightly different route - was a bio and music major in college with zero interest in medicine. Went to grad school for a PhD in Molecular bio (working on Coronaviruses of all things). Got disillusioned with the life of a researcher. I took two years off and worked with my brother on a landscape crew as well as volunteering at a brain injury facility. I also did an apprenticeship in furniture making on weekends. I was married through all of this. Better understanding my desire to work with people and not test tubes and with my love of biology, I started med school. Family was always my priority as well. It was not easy, but I stuck it out and have no regrets.
Be aware that there are many options for different work schedules in anesthesia. You can find part-time work which might pay as well as a full-time AA.
Wishing you much success.

 

[IMGASMD]

Based on top priorities that you listed of family and work-life balance, staying in AA would be better. Nobody here knows you though so cant really say what the right decision is for you. If you go to medical school, you may decide that you don't even want to do anesthesiology.

Become an internist and make less than AA…. Or even worse, a pediatrician…….

 

[OptionOffense]

The opportunity cost of going to medical school cannot be understated.

You'll be competing with hundreds of other students locally and thousands nationally for four years to get a shot at the best residencies in the most challenging setting you will ever experience academically, socially, mentally, physically, and emotionally while easily racking up six figures of student debt which will take decades to pay off, all while earning $0 throughout the those four years. You may have to move across the country for residency since the process is dependent upon many factors that are often completely out of your control.

Then you repeat that for four more years in residency studying for annual in-training exams while working way more than all of your peers who didn't go to medical school and earning peanuts for it, and you will be trying not to kill anyone in the process which will likely happen despite your best efforts. You'll be on call for much of those four years with varying frequency, and it will inevitably be disruptive to your home life in one form or another, especially if you had to move to a completely different city with no support.

We're not even taking into account how important it is for your administration in medical school and residency to be supportive throughout the whole process which could make-or-break your career at various points throughout your training, especially if you flounder at any point during it.

I did very well in medical school and residency and really had no issues at any point throughout training, but a lot of my close friends did, some of whom had to repeat a year or two in medical school, got kicked out of medical school for various reasons, didn't match to a residency, changed residencies mid-way through (some multiple times), overdosed/died on drugs, got caught and are in rehab, etc. The list goes on.

Overall, I am satisfied with my career thus far. I get paid well to do a very specific job that not many people can do (well, at least). The journey to get here was very difficult in all aspects and required much more sacrifice than most people in my life realize. Proceed with caution.

This is a good response.
The process takes more of a toll than even the most cynical realize.

 

[allantois]

I’d def finish AA. What if you don’t even like anesthesia - you have an option to specialize in something else

 

[Endee]

I started medical school last year after working for an AA for 10 years. Married with two kids. No regrets and loving it, mainly since I had regret for not doing it in the first place coming out of college. Being able to make $100/hr as an AA for sporadic extra work while in school is very helpful however. I don’t know how anyone else with a family does it unless they have a spouse that makes a lot or they’re already wealthy.

What I usually tell people making this decision is:
1) Are you ok with being in an AA’s role or do you think you’d fundamentally want to be in the physician’s role? If so, like me, that voice in your head will probably never stop.
2) Are you ok with the geographic restrictions on the AA profession that currently exist? AAs can only work in ~20 states and DC currently.
3) Are you ok with the delayed gratification that medical school will require? AA is 27 months after college and you’re done. Medical school plus residency plus minus fellowship is 8-10 years. That’s a long commitment.
4) Are you sold on anesthesiology ? As a graduating medical student you can choose any field. As an AA you’ll be in anesthesiology forever (which is a great field but not for everyone).

Your family and work life balance priorities are firmly aligned with AA school. Your career satisfaction priority will probably push you towards medical school. Money is hard because of the significant opportunity cost and the time value of compound returns on investment. Might be a wash depending on your age and expected length to retirement.

 

[OptionOffense]

I started medical school last year after working for an AA for 10 years. Married with two kids. No regrets and loving it, mainly since I had regret for not doing it in the first place coming out of college. Being able to make $100/hr as an AA for sporadic extra work while in school is very helpful however. I don’t know how anyone else with a family does it unless they have a spouse that makes a lot or they’re already wealthy.

What I usually tell people making this decision is:
1) Are you ok with being in an AA’s role or do you think you’d fundamentally want to be in the physician’s role? If so, like me, that voice in your head will probably never stop.
2) Are you ok with the geographic restrictions on the AA profession that currently exist? AAs can only work in ~20 states and DC currently.
3) Are you ok with the delayed gratification that medical school will require? AA is 27 months after college and you’re done. Medical school plus residency plus minus fellowship is 8-10 years. That’s a long commitment.
4) Are you sold on anesthesiology ? As a graduating medical student you can choose any field. As an AA you’ll be in anesthesiology forever (which is a great field but not for everyone).

Are you going to be an Anesthesiologist?

 

[Endee]

Are you going to be an Anesthesiologist?

That’s probably directly related to how many of @BLADEMDA ’s posts I read between now and 4th year.

I want to be, I’m heavily involved with ASA and my state component. But I told people I reserve the right to change my mind if things melt down in the next few years (surprise billing, independent practice, corporate medicine, M4A).

 

[OptionOffense]

That’s probably directly related to how many of @BLADEMDA ’s posts I read between now and 4th year.

I want to be, I’m heavily involved with ASA and my state component. But I told people I reserve the right to change my mind if things melt down in the next few years (surprise billing, independent practice, corporate medicine, M4A).

You would be a good advocate for AA legislation in all 50 states AND the dept of veterans affairs. Though AAs can work at the VA and are recognized they are classified at the pay rate of a Resp. Therapist. SO to date I do not believe there is an AA currently employed at the VA. ASA and AAAA should petition congress for the re classification to make the salary of an AA commensurate with the responsibility. I cannot believe ASA has dropped the ball on this.

https://www.patientcare.va.gov/CRNA_Education/Docs/hrml05-06-12.pdf

 

[Emanuel Perez]

Does your wife have a good income?

It just can't be overstated how much opportunity cost you're giving up by not finishing AA school, not to mention AAs have a pretty damn good work-life balance and (depending on the practice) a fair amount of autonomy as well once they get some experience under their belt.

If you had written for your priorities 1. Actual career fulfillment 1.1 Money , then medical school would be a no brainer. As 3 and 4, ehhhh....

Wife is finishing an HR bachelors after a career change. She’s 28 and I’m 25. She finishes on December of this year but there’s no guarantee she will be making enough to live relatively comfortable until after she gains some experience and leverage to obtain better job compensation.

 

[Endee]

You would be a good advocate for AA legislation in all 50 states AND the dept of veterans affairs. Though AAs can work at the VA and are recognized they are classified at the pay rate of a Resp. Therapist. SO to date I do not believe there is an AA currently employed at the VA. ASA and AAAA should petition congress for the re classification to make the salary of an AA commensurate with the responsibility. I cannot believe ASA has dropped the ball on this.

https://www.patientcare.va.gov/CRNA_Education/Docs/hrml05-06-12.pdf

This has been something we’ve been working on for several years. Getting an act of Congress passed is no easy feat.

 

[Emanuel Perez]

That’s probably directly related to how many of @BLADEMDA ’s posts I read between now and 4th year.

I want to be, I’m heavily involved with ASA and my state component. But I told people I reserve the right to change my mind if things melt down in the next few years (surprise billing, independent practice, corporate medicine, M4A).

Is mid-level creep a legit worry amongst anesthesiologists to the point where we should heavily consider an alternative residency solely based on that reason? I have read about the concern about mid-levels in nearly every specialty, specially anesthesiology.

 

[Endee]

Is mid-level creep a legit worry amongst anesthesiologists to the point where we should heavily consider an alternative residency solely based on that reason? I have read about the concern about mid-levels in nearly every specialty, specially anesthesiology.

No. It’s happening across specialties, like you said. The issue is less a problem in isolation and more a problem when you factor in corporate medicine and insurance/healthcare reform (cost/price controls).

 

[IMGASMD]

Wife is finishing an HR bachelors after a career change. She’s 28 and I’m 25. She finishes on December of this year but there’s no guarantee she will be making enough to live relatively comfortable until after she gains some experience and leverage to obtain better job compensation.

You’re still young…… I think you will be happy and okay either path you choose.

Even like some people have suggested, even finishing AA and give yourself some time and exposure wouldn’t be out of the question.

Consider your own finances. Consider your own mental health. Consider your own support structure.

Good luck.

 

[vector2]

Wife is finishing an HR bachelors after a career change. She’s 28 and I’m 25. She finishes on December of this year but there’s no guarantee she will be making enough to live relatively comfortable until after she gains some experience and leverage to obtain better job compensation.

You said your wife is very supportive but I think this certainly changes the calculus a bit. If your wife was about to finish her degree and had a definite higher paying position lined up (or a position where she would be getting a significant raise after 1 yr), it's a different story. It's infinitely easier to say "honey, follow your dreams" when your total household income would still be 80, 90, 100k with significant upside potential. HR is typically not like that outside of a few tech and finance HR depts.

Remember, your wife is going to be paying the bills 8+ years, and each dollar you're planning to borrow for living expenses will be accumulating interest (plus you'll be borrowing in an inflationary environment with rising interest rates). At the end of the day, that leads to a lot of stress as a couple.

On the other hand, you finish AA school, and you and your wife are making a 250-300k household income in ~2 yrs. That means starting a family sooner. That means buying your forever home this decade. That means a ~6 year headstart putting away a pretty good chunk of change into your 401k in what's historically been a 6-7% annual return. Think it through.

 

[GassYous]

Personally I think that if you're old and your kids are old then just get the secure quick job. If you're in your 20s or 30s then I would rather go for medical school, looking at a 20-30+ year career.

Medical school sucks HARD. All these wannabes try to tear it down "oh we do the same thing that takes medical students 4 years in just 2" "oh wait we are actually also "medical students" -pa student" I still have several hundreds of thousands in debt and way more wrinkles than I did before medical school started. Residency was worse. A lot of sleepless nights even without the stress of a family.

I like my job as an attending (solo md) but who knows what things will look like in 8 years when you finish? EM as a field basically collapsed in less than 2. I missed a lot of birthdays, bachelor parties, and weddings. I moved around the country several times. I only keep in touch with a few people that I used to be very good friends with. Medical school takes a toll on you. Now that I'm through the process, I'm glad I pushed through but there were some very tough times.

 

[IMGASMD]

Medical school sucks HARD.

I chuckled.
Couldn’t agree more……

 

[POW16]

Minimize loans. Go to medical school.

 

[shepardsun]

Minimize loans. Go to medical school.

A true contradiction, my dear man

 

[POW16]

Not really. What I'm saying is to go to medical school and live modestly during it to minimize loans.

A true contradiction, my dear man

 

[IMGASMD]

A true contradiction, my dear man

Had a patient just the other day…..

“My daughter is thinking about going to school to become an anesthesiologist….”

“Oh, I went to a state school for under-graduate, because I knew it was going to be a long road. Med school ain’t cheap….”

“Oh that’s what she’s thinking too. How much did you take out for your loan…..”

“Oh…. around ~250K….”

<~~ that’s exactly what she looked like

 

[GassYous]

Had a patient just the other day…..

“My daughter is thinking about going to school to become an anesthesiologist….”

“Oh, I went to a state school for under-graduate, because I knew it was going to be a long road. Med school ain’t cheap….”

“Oh that’s what she’s thinking too. How much did you take out for your loan…..”

“Oh…. around ~250K….”

<~~ that’s exactly what she looked like

That's actually low these days

 

[Emanuel Perez]

I started medical school last year after working for an AA for 10 years. Married with two kids. No regrets and loving it, mainly since I had regret for not doing it in the first place coming out of college. Being able to make $100/hr as an AA for sporadic extra work while in school is very helpful however. I don’t know how anyone else with a family does it unless they have a spouse that makes a lot or they’re already wealthy.

What I usually tell people making this decision is:
1) Are you ok with being in an AA’s role or do you think you’d fundamentally want to be in the physician’s role? If so, like me, that voice in your head will probably never stop.
2) Are you ok with the geographic restrictions on the AA profession that currently exist? AAs can only work in ~20 states and DC currently.
3) Are you ok with the delayed gratification that medical school will require? AA is 27 months after college and you’re done. Medical school plus residency plus minus fellowship is 8-10 years. That’s a long commitment.
4) Are you sold on anesthesiology ? As a graduating medical student you can choose any field. As an AA you’ll be in anesthesiology forever (which is a great field but not for everyone).

Your family and work life balance priorities are firmly aligned with AA school. Your career satisfaction priority will probably push you towards medical school. Money is hard because of the significant opportunity cost and the time value of compound returns on investment. Might be a wash depending on your age and expected length to retirement.

Thanks for this input, definitely love to hear someone who has been in the same spot I’m in (give or take) from AA to physician although you probably had it way tougher with 4 kids. However, I sense no regret in the tone of your response which is a relief. I don’t mind the years I will still be a young anesthesiologist if I take the latter route.

 

[Emanuel Perez]

Had a patient just the other day…..

“My daughter is thinking about going to school to become an anesthesiologist….”

“Oh, I went to a state school for under-graduate, because I knew it was going to be a long road. Med school ain’t cheap….”

“Oh that’s what she’s thinking too. How much did you take out for your loan…..”

“Oh…. around ~250K….”

<~~ that’s exactly what she looked like

Lol. *cries with interest*

 

[Emanuel Perez]

Personally I think that if you're old and your kids are old then just get the secure quick job. If you're in your 20s or 30s then I would rather go for medical school, looking at a 20-30+ year career.

Medical school sucks HARD. All these wannabes try to tear it down "oh we do the same thing that takes medical students 4 years in just 2" "oh wait we are actually also "medical students" -pa student" I still have several hundreds of thousands in debt and way more wrinkles than I did before medical school started. Residency was worse. A lot of sleepless nights even without the stress of a family.

I like my job as an attending (solo md) but who knows what things will look like in 8 years when you finish? EM as a field basically collapsed in less than 2. I missed a lot of birthdays, bachelor parties, and weddings. I moved around the country several times. I only keep in touch with a few people that I used to be very good friends with. Medical school takes a toll on you. Now that I'm through the process, I'm glad I pushed through but there were some very tough times.

The EM collapsed sure scared the living hell out of me when I heard about it. Hope it doesn’t come to that point for many other specialities but sadly I don’t see the light at the end of the tunnel. Regardless, I am fully aware of the possible toll it would take on me but it’s refreshing to know you are currently enjoying it. Residency sucks but it seems to be a temporary annoying obstacle pretty much across the aisle. Except… if you do surgery. In which case the work load doesn’t stop.

 

[IMGASMD]

The EM collapsed sure scared the living hell out of me when I heard about it. Hope it doesn’t come to that point for many other specialities but sadly I don’t see the light at the end of the tunnel. Regardless, I am fully aware of the possible toll it would take on me but it’s refreshing to know you are currently enjoying it. Residency sucks but it seems to be a temporary annoying obstacle pretty much across the aisle. Except… if you do surgery. In which case the work load doesn’t stop.

Depends. Some sub surgical specialities will let you “choose” when to work. In other words, no emergencies, no calls, those can be nice.

 

[Emanuel Perez]

I cranked out some numbers. Number wise you’ll be 14 years from now before you are finally caught up. However, you’d have a medical degree, and all the “prestige” associated with it.

A lot of human tolls and sacrifices. Things do happen while you’re in med school. My grandma died, my dad was sick, my good friend was not doing great…. Just a few things I was not able to attend to. My SO was pretty “understanding”; at some point started to run out of patience. Life still moves on, while you’re in training. You will need to have a good support system or the next 14 years, it will be pretty miserable. Especially for you, who has forgo a very stable and relatively high paying job.

I am pretty happy with my job and life. That’s all what most of us known as life, I wouldn’t know any better. The highlight of my youth was to take a gap year, to travel and play. Ever since then, it has been med school, residency, then attending life.

On the other hand, you kept coming back to medical school….. why is that? Maybe that’s where “follow your heart” part comes in….

I will also tag @ValentineD. He was sort of in your position a few years ago, IIRC. He saw it more closely…..

Ps. Physician anesthesiologists doesn’t exist. As far as I know, there aren’t any other kind of anesthesiologists in this country.

Thanks for this response, very insightful. I guess there’s no way around the sacrifices which Is a bummer. It really shouldn’t be that way but that’s another topic.

Anyhow you are right. I laughed at CRNA’s attempt at calling themselves “nurse anesthesiologist”

 

[Southpaw]

The EM collapsed sure scared the living hell out of me when I heard about it. Hope it doesn’t come to that point for many other specialities but sadly I don’t see the light at the end of the tunnel. Regardless, I am fully aware of the possible toll it would take on me but it’s refreshing to know you are currently enjoying it. Residency sucks but it seems to be a temporary annoying obstacle pretty much across the aisle. Except… if you do surgery. In which case the work load doesn’t stop.

Some surgery sub-specialties are among the best fields in medicine. Pay, satisfaction, job safety. Patient ownership. Part of the reason I recommend medical school is in case you decide that’s for you.

 

[nimbus]

You said your wife is very supportive but I think this certainly changes the calculus a bit. If your wife was about to finish her degree and had a definite higher paying position lined up (or a position where she would be getting a significant raise after 1 yr), it's a different story. It's infinitely easier to say "honey, follow your dreams" when your total household income would still be 80, 90, 100k with significant upside potential. HR is typically not like that outside of a few tech and finance HR depts.

Remember, your wife is going to be paying the bills 8+ years, and each dollar you're planning to borrow for living expenses will be accumulating interest (plus you'll be borrowing in an inflationary environment with rising interest rates). At the end of the day, that leads to a lot of stress as a couple.

On the other hand, you finish AA school, and you and your wife are making a 250-300k household income in ~2 yrs. That means starting a family sooner. That means buying your forever home this decade. That means a ~6 year headstart putting away a pretty good chunk of change into your 401k in what's historically been a 6-7% annual return. Think it through.

She’d foot the bills for 4 years at which time, they will share the burden. Most residencies/fellowships pay a living wage.

 

[deleted126335]

She’d foot the bills for 4 years at which time, they will share the burden. Most residencies/fellowships pay a living wage.

Because you don't have time to spend money.

 

[nimbus]

Because you don't have time to spend money.

Hey I bought a very nice bicycle during residency on my resident income and rode it a few times too

 

[IMGASMD]

Because you don't have time to spend money.

I did buy new skis/snowboard at some point during residency, and bought a decent espresso machine after residency.

“Technically” I was single, so no one was helping me spending the minimum wage that I was making.

 

[Endee]

Thanks for this input, definitely love to hear someone who has been in the same spot I’m in (give or take) from AA to physician although you probably had it way tougher with 4 kids. However, I sense no regret in the tone of your response which is a relief. I don’t mind the years I will still be a young anesthesiologist if I take the latter route.

Two kids, but yeah. Honestly you are young enough that if you were 26/27 when you did AA school you could (if you decided to) go to medical school at 30 and it wouldn't be a big deal, plus you could really offset costs with AA per diem work. Or you might find that you really liked being 26/27 and making AA money and decide that it's fine to not go any further. Only you know yourself.

 

[BLADEMDA]

Thanks for this input, definitely love to hear someone who has been in the same spot I’m in (give or take) from AA to physician although you probably had it way tougher with 4 kids. However, I sense no regret in the tone of your response which is a relief. I don’t mind the years I will still be a young anesthesiologist if I take the latter route.

IMHO, the only question is whether to finish AA school or just jump right into Med School. Is there an option to delay your entry to Med School so you can finish your AA program?

You are very young and that means a long career ahead of you not just a long road. You can choose any specialty depending on your grades/Step Score and Anesthesiology is one of the less competitive specialties. So, why settle for mediocre when you can be the best? If you don't go then your life will be filled with "what if" by the age of 40. I work with people over the age of 65 and still going strong. This is a marathon not a sprint and most of my personal physicians are over the age of 60.

 

[shepardsun]

Go to med school. 28k tuition not bad. Defer if you can to finish AA school to have a side hustle during it.

What most people don't realize or take advantage of is that the MD degree opens up a ton of doors beyond just clinical medicine. As someone once told me, you can do pretty much anything you want except practice law with an MD degree. I've had a lot of fun exploring some of those things and will increase that proportion as my career goes on.

 

[Drwine]

I know an anesthesiologist that went the same route. He is still practicing with no regrets.

 

[Emanuel Perez]

IMHO, the only question is whether to finish AA school or just jump right into Med School. Is there an option to delay your entry to Med School so you can finish your AA program?

You are very young and that means a long career ahead of you not just a long road. You can choose any specialty depending on your grades/Step Score and Anesthesiology is one of the less competitive specialties. So, why settle for mediocre when you can be the best? If you don't go then your life will be filled with "what if" by the age of 40. I work with people over the age of 65 and still going strong. This is a marathon not a sprint and most of my personal physicians are over the age of 60.

I can delay medical school for 1 year meaning august of 2023 I could start but I would have 4 months left if AA clinicals. I wish that was an option but the only feasible option is to reapply in 2023 for 2024.

 

[Endee]

I can delay medical school for 1 year meaning august of 2023 I could start but I would have 4 months left if AA clinicals. I wish that was an option but the only feasible option is to reapply in 2023 for 2024.

How good of a medical school is it? Are we talking MD, DO, public, private, top 50, brand new school? Do you think you could get into a school as good or better if you reapplied ?

 

[Katheudontas parateroumen]

Interesting story. I don’t know what the market is for AA in your area or in general? If it’s good, then I’d personally stick with AA. It sounds you enjoy your current AA program and would be happy being an AA. You’ll be even happier an AA when making good money without the responsibility as well. Med school would be something if you’re truly wanting something else (medicine, surgery, peds, psych, rads, path, etc). But if you’re happy with performing anesthesia right now, why change? There are so many unknowns entering medical school as many have said. You’re already married and your wife is on her way to a career and so would be you. Not a lot of people can say that. It’s the safe thing to do. Sorry to burst the Med school bubble but that’s what I would do if I were you. But first, get good info about the likelihood of getting a good/acceptable AA job when you’re done in a year.

Congratulations on getting into medical school. Honestly a great accomplishment too. Good luck