Anesthesia vs. Surgery

[Brachial_Plexus]

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Not trying to start a flame war; just curious...........

How do the current/future surgeons feel about the following:

1) During an anesthesia residency, residents RARELY work more than a 60 hour week

2) You always have your post-call day off

3) Never, ever do you round on weekends

4) When you graduate, there are an abundance of jobs STARTING at over $250k/yr.

5) As an attending, a 40-50 hour work week is the norm

6) Anesthesiologists are among the happiest of all specialties

Food for thought kids, food for thought. 🙂

 

[DoctorDoom]

It doesn't sound like you are curious, but already have your mind made up. Or trying to raise the ire of surgery residents for your own amusement.

I love surgery. Good for anesthesia that they have a nice lifestyle and good job opportunities.

 

[dry dre]

Originally posted by Brachial_Plexus
Not trying to start a flame war; just curious...........

🙂

The entire post is about how easy the work is and how much you get paid. Maybe everyone didn't go into medicine for a lot of money and free time?

 

[Winged Scapula]

Sounds great...but it isn't for me. I don't begrudge Anesthesiologist their time off or pay but frankly it looks boring/terrifying to me.

 

[woundvac]

Originally posted by Brachial_Plexus
Not trying to start a flame war; just curious...........

How do the current/future surgeons feel about the following:

1) During an anesthesia residency, residents RARELY work more than a 60 hour week

2) You always have your post-call day off

3) Never, ever do you round on weekends

4) When you graduate, there are an abundance of jobs STARTING at over $250k/yr.

5) As an attending, a 40-50 hour work week is the norm

6) Anesthesiologists are among the happiest of all specialties

Food for thought kids, food for thought. 🙂

seems like your comparing the negatives of surgery to the positives of gas.

 

[mcgillmed]

For the past three months, I have been super keen on anesthesia for exactly the reasons posted by woundvac. I wanted a life outside medicine, and if it meant that I had to actually do something that I didn't exactly love on a day-to-day basis to gain that lifestyle, so be it. Then I started my surgery rotation. And I started to realize that I would prefer doing something I love for 80 hours a week than something I don't love for 50 hours a week. Because when all is said and done, you're still going to have to wake up and go to work every day for the next 30-40 years and if you don't enjoy doing what you're doing, those 50 hours a week are going to seem pretty darn long.

My final moment of inspiration came a few weeks ago, when I was scrubbed in for a CABG + AVR. Now hearts are supposed to be among the most interesting cases for anesthesiologists. Midway through the case, I look over to see the anesthesiologist with a pair of pickups, pulling out his leg hairs one by one. 50-hour work week be damned, I'll take surgery any day!!

 

[powermd]

Clearly there are positive and negative aspects of all specialties. I love surgery and I think it is probably the most professionally rewarding field in medicine. Those rewards come at too high a price for me. I love anesthesiology for many reasons, but I am willing to concede long hours with a perfectly stable patient can be boring. This is why I am planning a career in academic anesthesiology, so I will be able to teach in the OR. A job like that sounds like a dream to me!

 

[ESU_MD]

To each their own...

I love surgery and could never do anything else,regardless of knowing that my life is going to suck and I am not going to get paid as much as I should.

Gas seems like a great field if thats your thing- but just remember a nurse can do the same job as an -ologist! (or at least those cocky crna's claim)

 

[Brachial_Plexus]

Originally posted by ESU_MD


but just remember a nurse can do the same job as an -ologist! (or at least those cocky crna's claim)

Perhaps one of the most blatantly false statements made on the SDN

 

[Tenesma]

this is an inflammatory post... well kinda, since most of it is true...

1) as an anesthesia resident we definitely work more than 60 hours a week - but it is still far less than a surgery resident

2) we love our post-call days off

3) we don't round on weekends, but we do take call on weekends - which can be just as painful sometimes

4) there is actually an abundance of jobs >$300,000 with 2 year partnership tracks

5) true

6) true

re: CABG/AVR is exciting pre-bypass and post-bypass for anesthesia - when you are on pump, besides keeping up with anticoagulation, it is miserably boring - because the bypass machine is a great heart/lung machine!!! and is easy to operate

re: nurse can do same thing as -ologist... sure!!! those CRNAs must have you brainwashed... 🙂 that's like saying the PAs/NPs that were hired to help with the 80hour workweek are the same as MDs since they are doing the same kinda work... NOT!

 

[2ndyear]

I'm trying to match gas this year but...
Anesthesia and surgery are like apples and bananas. The anesthesiologist is the intensivist in the OR, plain and simple. Sometimes it may be babysitting, sometimes terribly horrifying, but aside from the fact that they both are in the OR a lot the two fields are very different. Surgeons are more traditional clinicians in that they generally see a pt, make a diagnosis or confirm it, fix it, take care of the patient post operatively, etc. Most patients are seen in some form by their anesthesiologist before surgery but it's not in the traditional diagnostic planning sense. Does this make surgeons a more complete doctor? Well that's up to each of us to interpret, but I know many people going into surgery who wouldn't trade it for the world. I think naturally some people will be drawn to gas because they think of it as 'surgery lite' but this is a pretty flawed view of the field. There are plenty of good reasons to love anesthesia without getting into hours and money, just as there are for surgery.

 

[IOE]

>$300,000?? right after residency????!!!!




😱

 

[Brachial_Plexus]

That was my starting salary.....right out of residency.