anesthesiology = dermatology?

Started by merovingian
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merovingian

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Hey guys... I'm a lowly 2nd year that is slightly interested in Anesthesiology... it seems that gas is the "hot" field right now in medicine

I heard some rumors from other students ahead of me about the field of gas and its future (yes I know, probably not credible, but I'm curious if what I heard has any merit or slight truth to it).

Since you guys are in the thick of it right now, I would rather hear what you guys have to say about these rumors...So its no surprise that students are realizing more and more everyday that gas is a great lifestyle and paid well, and its gotten to the point that a majority of AOA students are applying for gas residencies now, and this trend will only increase.... it will eventually get to the point where it will be similar to dermatology, where residency spots for gas will be drastically decreased as the competitiveness increases, to the point where it will be an ultra-competitive field to try to match in (hence, the comparison to derm or any other similarly competitive residency).

What do you guys think? Any merit to these claims? Will we see this in the next few years considering the upward trend in gas the last 5-10 years? I really have no idea what to think of these claims, this is just what I heard
 
I don't understand why you think they'd decrease the number of residency spots.

Barring a significant increase in solar radiation, this country will always need more anesthesiologists than dermatologists...
 
Anesthesiology is not about to approach Derm for level of competition.
1) way more gas spots than derm
2) derm reimbursement structure = cash money
3) derm doesn't take call

Derm still has a big leg up on anesthesiology as far as lifestyle, and I don't think that will change any time soon.
 
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This current year anesthesia was MUCH easier to get into. Maybe more AOA people are applying but I dont see that mattering. Maybe this year was "messed up" for whatever reason, but there were 52 times as many anesthesia spots available in the scramble, which is the equivalent of 1/6 of the available derm spots. As you can see the available spots make a big difference (1250ish vs 310ish)
I dont know about previous years, but I don't believe that the competitiveness has increased all that much if at all since last year.

Plus derm is for good looking competitive people where anesthesia is for "not so good looking" nice people.
 
Derm = license to print money
Patients never die
Patients never get better
If it's wet make it dry
If it's dry make it wet
If that doesn't work give steroids

hehe
 
pjl said:
Plus derm is for good looking competitive people where anesthesia is for "not so good looking" nice people.
Click to expand...

I was wondering what would happen if we put this post on the derm forums. Has anyone gone over there and looked at some of the posts? This is not a generalization of all the posters, instead just some so don’t get all defensive if you’re a derm. Many of the posters think they are better then everyone and are rude to anyone not worthy of their god like qualities.

I have a feeling we would get posts similar to the one above. I actually have seen quite a few derm residents that I thought were rather homely. None had acne but, messed up facial characteristics (oversized chins, eyes too close). Of course there are some good looking derm residents but, I've seen a great deal more hot anesthesia residents (maybe it’s b/c there are more of them). You are right pjl; gas people are SO much nicer!

I don't think competitiveness increased; instead the applicants perceived this as the case and applied to a lot more programs. I wouldn't say it was MUCH easier to get into though.
 
Thanks for the posts... so the consensus seems to be that gas will most likely never become as hard as derm to get into, and that overall it doesn't seem to be getting any harder to get into gas, if anything perhaps a bit easier (as was seen this past match)... well that makes me feel a bit better 🙂
 
i think that med students make a mistake when they equate anesthesiology with a "easy, good lifestyle". You will spend you share of time on call away from your family. You do not have control over your schedule. Dermatologists have very few emergencies (except for stephens johnson) and are unlikely to be bothered at home.
 
mille125 said:
i think that med students make a mistake when they equate anesthesiology with a "easy, good lifestyle". You will spend you share of time on call away from your family. You do not have control over your schedule. Dermatologists have very few emergencies (except for stephens johnson) and are unlikely to be bothered at home.
Click to expand...

And in the middle of the night, SJS gets admitted to Medicine. Derm sees them in the AM.
 
drusso said:
And in the middle of the night, SJS gets admitted to Medicine. Derm sees them in the AM.
Click to expand...

Patients with severe SJS tend to develop medical complications (sepsis, renal failure, wound infections) and thus significant workups may be needed, so they are probably better off being admitted to medicine service, with derm consult on the side. I remember an SJS was admitted to our medicine team on friday and we started him on all the appropriate therapies. By the time derm saw him a few days later, the patient was already recovering. Of course derm was upset because they didn't feel they were needed for the consult.
 
pjl said:
This current year anesthesia was MUCH easier to get into. Maybe more AOA people are applying but I dont see that mattering. Maybe this year was "messed up" for whatever reason, but there were 52 times as many anesthesia spots available in the scramble, which is the equivalent of 1/6 of the available derm spots. As you can see the available spots make a big difference (1250ish vs 310ish)
I dont know about previous years, but I don't believe that the competitiveness has increased all that much if at all since last year.

Plus derm is for good looking competitive people where anesthesia is for "not so good looking" nice people.
Click to expand...


I do agree that Anesthesia will never be as competitive as Derm since people need to have surgeries, and hence, someone to administer anesthesia - it wouldn't be possible to decrease the number of spots since hospitals make most of their money in the OR. Also, if you're not looking to go to a top-notch academic program, then yes, there are spots available.

But I don't think things are getting easier at top programs, which if you're looking for great education (though may be malignant - see below), name recognition, and easier access to fellowship positions are the places to be; I think that the top applicants are stronger than in the past overall, though as in every field, you're gonna have people who are average applying as well. At the top programs I interviewed at, Board Scores were much higher than they were in the past - Stanford's average Step 1 score for people invited for an interview was 237. That's pretty ridiculous.

I do understand there were 52 spots available, but the vast majority of those spots were not top tier programs if you look at the program match list posted on the nrmp when you log-in. I know "big-name" programs like MGH, JHU, and UW didn't fill, but I think that is more a product of the same "highly" qualified applicants being ranked at multiple places, and obviously, no person can match at more than one place (plus, at least with MGH and UW, I got a feeling that those 2 programs were somewhat malignant).

If you just want to get into the field of Anesthesiology, you will generally be able to. But I spoke to friends who matched into Anesthesia last year who said I would definitely get interviews at every "top" program I applied to based on my profile, which was definitely not the case - I think it was just b/c the top applicants were very strong (the #1 person in my class who's AOA and Step 1 of 269 was applying for christ's sake!). So you get my drift.

Just my 2 cents.
 
Hey,
I just thought I would put my two cents in about your question. As a 2nd year, you probably haven't had much time in clinics yet or on the wards. As a 2nd year and first year I kept playing mental ping-pong with myself about which specialty would be best for me, and everything sounded great when I had been sitting in a coffe shop for 10+ hours thinking how any specialty would be better than my current life of simply sitting on my ass and studying 24/7. You really have to wait until 3rd year. My dad is a dermatologist and he has tried to convince me for sometime how great Derm, your patients are relatively healthy, no call most of the time, decent reimbursement (I would caution many people on this "you make millions in derm" claim by many people --- there are some dermatologists out there making lots of money, but most of them are doing MOHS surgery and not really seeing pts in clinic). Dermatologists make good money, but my dad just does clinic, and he doesn't do any cosmetics b/c he doesn't like those type of patients and he finds his life more gratifying treating patients who really need his help. Not saying anything against cosmetics, just personal preference. Anyways, back to your ? I tried for about 2 1/2 years to like Dermatology. I rotated with the president of the academy for a month, and I did some research at a prestigious place the summer btw/n my 2nd and 3rd year. I rotated with some of my dad's friends and the one thing I finally realized is that I don't like dermatology. I didn't have a lot in common with the residents I met, and I found out I really hated clinic, and the idea of studying about skin diseases the rest of my life made me want to shot myself. During surgery (which I also hated) I finally met some of the nicest, laid back people that I have encountered in Medicine, and that is what lead me to Anesthesiology. They truly have some of the nicest, happiest residents and attendings (at least at my school) So what's the moral of the story, do what you enjoy. Don't let people tell you this field is going to blow up in the future or this field is going down the drain and they won't need this specialist anymore. You have to ask yourself in any field of medicine if pay was cut significantly, would I still be willing to do this job and be happy at the end of the day. Just my two cents. Good luck on finding your nitch.
 
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Just got out of bed to do an epidural (it's 4 am in Oz) - you don't do that in Derm!
 
Hey Mack Bronson,

Good post, I totally agree with you about doing what you enjoy...as far as what I want to go into, I really have no idea and I am totally waiting until my 3rd and 4th years to figure it out...gas was just something I was thinking about b/c I have some good friends who are gas residents, so I was curious about it...

It's funny you mention that your dad is a dermatologist and is telling you to become one b/c of all the perks...I have no idea what your stats or anything are, but I just thought it funny b/c I get a lot of that from my non-med school friends who say, "Why dont you just go into derm, it seems so easy" like its an easy thing to get into...I proceed to tell them its one of the hardest fields to get into b/c of all those perks, which they seem a bit puzzled at first, but eventually get the idea... then I proceed to tell them there's no way in hell I would even be considered for derm with my stats! (If I miraculously pull a stellar score on the boards, I will retract that statement)
 
So, I guess I didn't go over my stats, but my scores were not great at all, and I was hoping to lean on my dad so that he could pull some strings for me. That was really the only way I would have had a chance to match in Derm. My scores sucked and my grades were average. But, I know it can be tough to decide. You may really like derm if you do a rotation in it. My viewpoint was always this: If I ever found something I just loved, I would have been willing to do whatever it took to get it ie. do an extra year in research in Derm and reapply everywhere (including the Canadain match - which a friend of mine had to do (matched in Derm at McGill University in Montreal after doing a year of research at Harvard) in order to match in Derm and now she is in my hometown, doing a MOHS surgery fellowhip - her step 1 was not great, but it just goes to show you if you want something bad enough, you can make it happen. So, personally, I am not trying to dissuade you or anything. It all comes down to personal preference. If you rotate in Derm and love it, and couldn't see yourself doing anything else, then I would go for it, and to hell with everyone telling you it is impossible even with sub-par/mediocre boards scores. You can do it, you just might not be able take the normal route. It's tough being in med school and realizing you might have limitations. As hard as I tried, I wasn't going to score a 240 on step 1, I'm just not that smart. To me it was more important to keep my sanity and try to enjoy a little of my med school time rather than kill myself and risk commitment in the looney bin for pursuing a specialty I wasn't even sure was right for me. I realize medicine like anything is a job and you will always have that financial jazz about us making much less money in the future and the sky is falling etc. It may happen, but look at it this way. We are very lucky. We are in a field with limited supply and the demand is going to keep going way up (no matter what specialty you choose) esp. w/ baby boomers aging. Plus, you get to help people along the way. Although it is hard not to get jaded/bitter from the putting up with all the BS along the way. I know people keep telling you just to do what you like, but it's true. I thought it was BS at first, but after going through some rotations I hated, it made a lot more sense. If you enjoy it, then you can lessen the financial worries/stresses. I DO know money is important, but I also know a lot of very wealthy people who are very unhappy. Good luck on Step 1, and try to make time to exercise/go out with family/friends to keep your sanity during your preparation.
 
mack bronson said:
Hey,
I just thought I would put my two cents in about your question. As a 2nd year, you probably haven't had much time in clinics yet or on the wards. As a 2nd year and first year I kept playing mental ping-pong with myself about which specialty would be best for me, and everything sounded great when I had been sitting in a coffe shop for 10+ hours thinking how any specialty would be better than my current life of simply sitting on my ass and studying 24/7. You really have to wait until 3rd year. My dad is a dermatologist and he has tried to convince me for sometime how great Derm, your patients are relatively healthy, no call most of the time, decent reimbursement (I would caution many people on this "you make millions in derm" claim by many people --- there are some dermatologists out there making lots of money, but most of them are doing MOHS surgery and not really seeing pts in clinic). Dermatologists make good money, but my dad just does clinic, and he doesn't do any cosmetics b/c he doesn't like those type of patients and he finds his life more gratifying treating patients who really need his help. Not saying anything against cosmetics, just personal preference. Anyways, back to your ? I tried for about 2 1/2 years to like Dermatology. I rotated with the president of the academy for a month, and I did some research at a prestigious place the summer btw/n my 2nd and 3rd year. I rotated with some of my dad's friends and the one thing I finally realized is that I don't like dermatology. I didn't have a lot in common with the residents I met, and I found out I really hated clinic, and the idea of studying about skin diseases the rest of my life made me want to shot myself. During surgery (which I also hated) I finally met some of the nicest, laid back people that I have encountered in Medicine, and that is what lead me to Anesthesiology. They truly have some of the nicest, happiest residents and attendings (at least at my school) So what's the moral of the story, do what you enjoy. Don't let people tell you this field is going to blow up in the future or this field is going down the drain and they won't need this specialist anymore. You have to ask yourself in any field of medicine if pay was cut significantly, would I still be willing to do this job and be happy at the end of the day. Just my two cents. Good luck on finding your nitch.
Click to expand...

is this the most lucrative field in dermatology? How hard is it to get a fellowship?
 
Yupgypsy I will just PM you. I feel like I have gotten this thread somewhat off subject. Sorry 😳
 
proman said:
Dermpath is more lucrative but Mohs (the fellowship is called Procedural Dermatology) is very tough to get. 34 spots a year.
Click to expand...

Not only are there very few spots, but it bears pointing out that the competition the Mohs hopeful dermatologists face aren't the bottom quartile dudes who scrambled into an FP program populated by 70% FMGs. They're competing with their comrades who outgunned their med school classmates to land a spot in derm in the first place. 🙂

Gasboy07 said:
Just got out of bed to do an epidural (it's 4 am in Oz) - you don't do that in Derm!
Click to expand...

Yeah, but dermatologists don't get to jab great big scary harpoons into someone's spine.
 
swpm said:
Yeah, but dermatologists don't get to jab great big scary harpoons into someone's spine.
Click to expand...
No doubt! Sticking people in all sorts of places with needles is FUN!! 😀
 
I like jabbing big scary harpoons in various cavities and organs - just not at 4am!
 
Not where I'm at the moment - as the registrar (ie what residents are called in oz) in a small rural unit most deliveries are planned, and the women that spontaneously go into labour tend to either manage without, or are considerate enough to ask during business hours.

Happens maybe once or twice a week that someone gets called in the middle of the night. Big city units have overnight cover.
 
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