Conflicted About Heart/Prestige

[nyudoctor22]

I badly want to do OB/GYN because I know that I will have more fun with it. It is something I am very passionate about and one of the reason I entered medical school. I love OB/GYN.

But - I don't like the idea of going into Primary Care because it is not as prestigious or high paying as other fields that also interest me such as ENT, Gen Surgery, Radiology, etc.

If all things being equal (money and prestige), I would chose OB/GYN in a heartbeat. But all things aren't equal...

Any advice?

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[MadameLULU]

OB/Gyn isn't considered primary care in some places.

I would follow your heart and pursue Ob/Gyn. If you're as passionate about ob/gyn as you indicate you are, I have a feeling you'll academically and professionally grow there, compared to other specialties which you may not as care as much about. Who are you trying to impress with "prestige"? I think that crap about one field being more prestigious than another field is silly. There is prestige in all specialties. Again if you are more excited or enjoy ob/gyn more than other specialties, there's probably more of a chance you can become a leader in the field, which just adds to prestige.

 

[AggieJohn]

I badly want to do OB/GYN because I know that I will have more fun with it. It is something I am very passionate about and one of the reason I entered medical school. I love OB/GYN.

But - I don't like the idea of going into Primary Care because it is not as prestigious or high paying as other fields that also interest me such as ENT, Gen Surgery, Radiology, etc.

If all things being equal (money and prestige), I would chose OB/GYN in a heartbeat. But all things aren't equal...

Any advice?

I forget the source, but I read a survey stating that in the first third of a career for a physician, money is the most important factor, but in the last 2/3, happiness is more important than money.

That being said, I can understand how you feel, and I don't know what I would do in your situation. Perhaps I might suggest that since it seems you are interested in all of those fields, that no choice can be wrong?

Good luck.

 

[LJDHC05]

FWIW, the one piece of advice that I've gotten time and time again:

Find a residency that makes you happy/you love. You wont ever earn enough to make up for being miserable.

 

[8744]

I badly want to do OB/GYN because I know that I will have more fun with it. It is something I am very passionate about and one of the reason I entered medical school. I love OB/GYN.

But - I don't like the idea of going into Primary Care because it is not as prestigious or high paying as other fields that also interest me such as ENT, Gen Surgery, Radiology, etc.

If all things being equal (money and prestige), I would chose OB/GYN in a heartbeat. But all things aren't equal...

Any advice?

Do radiology. Trust me. You don't want to spend your life elbow deep in kooter.

 

[vtucci]

All the money in the world won't make a difference if you are miserable. I know that when I was a lawyer making very good money, I still hated my life.

Do what you love!

 

[OncoCaP]

I badly want to do OB/GYN because I know that I will have more fun with it. It is something I am very passionate about and one of the reason I entered medical school. I love OB/GYN.

But - I don't like the idea of going into Primary Care because it is not as prestigious or high paying as other fields that also interest me such as ENT, Gen Surgery, Radiology, etc.

If all things being equal (money and prestige), I would chose OB/GYN in a heartbeat. But all things aren't equal...

Any advice?

You can specialize further in this field if you want to (http://www.medschoolready.com/app/specialtylist.asp): Gynecological Oncology (7 years total), Maternal-Fetal Medicine (7 years total), Reproductive Endocrinology (Fertility) (7 years total), Urogynecology/Reconstructive Pelvic Surgery. There are opportunities to make decent pay and to do interesting work ... although it can be brutal schedule-wise and stressful from a liability standpoint. The reproductive medical advances are in the news all the time.

 

[Bertelman]

Hmmm...money and prestige...at least you're honest about your motivations. Go for the money and prestige, which will certainly make YOU more happy. Then marry the hot wife that you don't really like, either. She'll divorce you later, take the kids and half your earnings, and maybe then you'll realize you should have done what you truly enjoy all along. Geez.

I guess the money and prestige of being an OB/Gyn isn't enough for you.

 

[nyudoctor22]

Hmmm...money and prestige...at least you're honest about your motivations. Go for the money and prestige, which will certainly make YOU more happy. Then marry the hot wife that you don't really like, either. She'll divorce you later, take the kids and half your earnings, and maybe then you'll realize you should have done what you truly enjoy all along. Geez.

I guess the money and prestige of being an OB/Gyn isn't enough for you.

You are way out of line. I made my opening post and returned later to find many warm and helpful responses (which is the purpose of sdn). ...Then I read your post. In case you didn't understand my original post, I do have a ton of interest in ENT, Radiology and Gen Surgery. Go back and read my post before you roll your pretentious eyes at me.

Get off your stupid high self-righteous seat, buddy and don't respond to questions if you are going to become as melodramatic as you are (about how I will get divorced when picking the "hot" woman, blah, blah, blah). If it helps you sleep at night (to feed your self-righteous, holier than thou attitude), go to bed knowing that all I care about is money. Money. Money. Money. Only you, Bertelman, are becoming a doctor for the "true" reasons. You are my hero. My hero.

Geez.

To everyone else, Thanks for the responses. I probably will pick OB/GYN when the time comes but I just wanted to ask this question that I've been debating about internally for the past few months to a mass audience. Your responses have been very helpful.

 

[deleted77919]

There are MANY good reasons not to choose ob/gyn. However, I don't think worrying about prestige should be one of them (I can't imagine people snickering at cocktail parties cause that person over there is only an ob/gyn . . . and I don't like cocktail parties anyway). Money is somewhat more of a real concern with the high malpractice insurance rates in ob/gyn.

In the end, if you are certain you will be satisfied with your work at the end of the day that's what will bring career satisfaction. If every med student could figure that out, picking specialties would be easy.

 

[dutchman]

I have stopped making decisions based on pride and prestige because you always need someone else to compare to in order to feel good about those things, and the satisfaction you recieve is usually shortlived. IMO do what YOU like.

 

[RxnMan]

I badly want to do OB/GYN because I know that I will have more fun with it. It is something I am very passionate about and one of the reason I entered medical school. I love OB/GYN...Any advice?

You've pretty much answered your own question here. Are you doing the MD thing for you, or for someone else? Why should you care what others think? Prestige and happiness are both a state of mind; which would you choose?

Edit added after I read the other responses: Don't let other's impressions of the field (like PB's funny but biased comment) sway your opinion. Make your choice based on what you value.

 

[Bertelman]

I made my opening post and returned later to find many warm and helpful responses (which is the purpose of sdn)

Sorry, the purpose of sdn is much, much more. We're not all here to hold your hand and tell you it will be alright. You should hope we are here to give honest advice about a variety of topics. The purpose of a "forum" is for a variety of opinions to be considered. I hope that's what you were looking for when you posted.

. ...Then I read your post. In case you didn't understand my original post, I do have a ton of interest in ENT, Radiology and Gen Surgery. Go back and read my post before you roll your pretentious eyes at me.

I read your post- I can comprehend english. I can also read between the lines. "Interest in ENT, Rads, GS" means nothing. I have an "interest" in Psychiatry, GS, Cardiology, microbiology, cooking and gardening. But I don't have the same passion for those interests as I do for Anesthesiology. You just said you have an interest in those fields so that we can think there is some justification on your choice other than money and prestige. (Notice the underline for emphasis)

Get off your stupid high self-righteous seat, buddy and don't respond to questions if you are going to become as melodramatic as you are (about how I will get divorced when picking the "hot" woman, blah, blah, blah). If it helps you sleep at night (to feed your self-righteous, holier than thou attitude), go to bed knowing that all I care about is money. Money. Money. Money. Only you, Bertelman, are becoming a doctor for the "true" reasons. You are my hero. My hero.

Geez. [/QUOTE]

Are you done whining now? Are you done making the same presumptions about me that you condemn? The O.C. is melodramatic. My post was sarcastic. Here's where I'm coming from. You are asking for advice about what to do for the rest of your life. You mention a great field that you have a passion for, and is actually the reason for your pursuit of med school. Then you throw out three other vogue specialties that you believe will provide more money and prestige. At what point in your life have you heard the key to success is "doing what provides money and prestige"? Funny, I've always heard you should do what makes you happy!

While we're talking, let me just advise you that it will be a long, difficult path to ENT and Rads as an FMG. Those are two of the most difficult residencies for US allopaths. Before you start crapping on people who choose primary care for the right reasons with your statement, "I don't like the idea of going into Primary Care because it is not as prestigious or high paying", you might want to own up to the fact that you may be relegated to those fields as an FMG that wasn't accepted to a US school.

Excuse me if I cause an uproar replying to another post discussing money and prestige as motives for a career. Did you include that in your app?

 

[Wizard of Oz]

Don't mess with Bertelman. He's my dawg.

My .02--how far along are you? At least wait until the M3 OB/GYN clerkship before allowing yourself to become conflicted about your choice.

 

[Tired]

I badly want to do OB/GYN because I know that I will have more fun with it. It is something I am very passionate about and one of the reason I entered medical school. I love OB/GYN.

Any advice?

Yes.

My advice is that you not tell people how much you "love" OB/GYN.

Guys who "love" OB/GYN creep everyone else out.

 

[BellyDancingDoc]

Yes.

My advice is that you not tell people how much you "love" OB/GYN.

Guys who "love" OB/GYN creep everyone else out.

Agreed. Ewww.

(P.S. I'm a chick)

 

[Law2Doc]

I badly want to do OB/GYN because I know that I will have more fun with it. It is something I am very passionate about and one of the reason I entered medical school. I love OB/GYN.

But - I don't like the idea of going into Primary Care because it is not as prestigious or high paying as other fields that also interest me such as ENT, Gen Surgery, Radiology, etc.

If all things being equal (money and prestige), I would chose OB/GYN in a heartbeat. But all things aren't equal...

Any advice?

Considering your other posts suggest you are a first year at a foreign med school because you (per your own words) couldn't get in in the US, you probably should warm up to the idea of primary care. There are increased hurdles to some of the more competitive specialties for offshore folks.

 

[nyudoctor22]

My .02--how far along are you? At least wait until the M3 OB/GYN clerkship before allowing yourself to become conflicted about your choice.

The reason I ask is that I want to do research and I want to pick a lab that is at least related to the type of residency program I apply to.

"My advice is that you not tell people how much you "love" OB/GYN."

Since the beginning of time, most OB/GYNs have been men. Only in the past 50-75 years has the field become women. Yeah, what can I do? I'm really interested in OB/GYN. If a woman doesn't want to see a male OB/GYN, then she doesn't have to. There are ~150,000,000 women in the US who will need a doctor at one point or another so I am not too worried about patients not wanting to see me because I'm a guy.

 

[OncoCaP]

The reason I ask is that I want to do research and I want to pick a lab that is at least related to the type of residency program I apply to.
...

Pick a research project that interests you and in which you think you have a good chance of getting one or more publications. Doing research in an area may also help you with your decision. You won't be able to lock in your decision yet, so just focus on getting the best research experience possible. How well you work with your PI or whoever leads your research project and how well you publish will mean much more than whether OB/GYN is as respected as ENT, for example. If you do get some great experience, you'll be able to transfer that knowledge and skill to other areas of medical research.

 

[Bertelman]

Don't mess with Bertelman. He's my dawg.

Holla.

 

[Hayden2102]

Since the beginning of time, most OB/GYNs have been men. Only in the past 50-75 years has the field become women.

That can be explained by the fact that since the beginning of time, DOCTORS have been men.

 

[Hayden2102]

And to the OP, I agree with Bertelman. He wasn't out of line, he was just letting you face what you believe anyway.

 

[Skelfie]

Since the beginning of time, most OB/GYNs have been men. Only in the past 50-75 years has the field become women.

Whoa! Which history book did you learn this "fact" from? When, exactly, does the history of time begin for you? The 1900's?

Er, there were no OB/GYNs throughout much of European history (waaaaaaay back to ancient Greece, even), only midwives. And, until relatively recently, midwives were ONLY female. (The "man midwives" petitioned to get female midwives barred from practice -- thanks, forceps!)

A useful source: The Art of Midwifery: Early Modern Midwives in Europe. Edited by Hilary Marland. London: Routledge, 1993.

That said, if OB/GYN is what you want to do, then go for it.

 

[Random]

Since the beginning of time, for our purposes the beginning of the species, women have been having babies. It's only been for the past hundred years or so that physicians have been able to bill for it.

Anyway, at the risk of stating the obvious, the fields you've listed are pretty intense fields, both in terms of time and energy. If you're not doing something you love, you'll just end up becoming one of the statistic burnout cases. Nonetheless, as above, if you decide to go for OB-GYN, just don't go around saying how you love OB-GYN. Makes people nervous.

 

[UDbiochem]

Yes.

My advice is that you not tell people how much you "love" OB/GYN.

Guys who "love" OB/GYN creep everyone else out.

I actually disagree! I think guys who love OB/GYN are drawn to it for a variety of reasons. The OB process is so non-sexual. I'm proud of the guys I know that like OB/GYN. From talking to people I know, some guys make the best ones out there.

 

[Pinner Doc]

Seriously. Physicians can enjoy working in ob/gyn without others getting creeped out. I'm more creeped out by the latter, actually.

 

[Law2Doc]

I'm more creeped out by the latter, actually.

Agree - the folks who are reading something nefarious into an interest in any field of medicine are the ones who need to grow up a bit. Men can be OBGYNs, women can be urologists. Most of the things either works on will be far from a turn on.

 

[smq123]

I actually disagree! I think guys who love OB/GYN are drawn to it for a variety of reasons. The OB process is so non-sexual. I'm proud of the guys I know that like OB/GYN. From talking to people I know, some guys make the best ones out there.

I think Tired was referring to non-medical people. A lot of people don't realize how non-sexual a brightly-lit clinical office is.

 

[smq123]

I badly want to do OB/GYN because I know that I will have more fun with it. It is something I am very passionate about and one of the reason I entered medical school. I love OB/GYN.

But - I don't like the idea of going into Primary Care because it is not as prestigious or high paying as other fields that also interest me such as ENT, Gen Surgery, Radiology, etc.

If all things being equal (money and prestige), I would chose OB/GYN in a heartbeat. But all things aren't equal...

Any advice?

OB/Gyn is not considered primary care in most places in the US. OB/Gyn is a surgical sub-specialty. Getting a good OB/Gyn residency is not particularly easy.

I don't know where you got the weird idea that OB/Gyn is an easy residency to get, especially if you're not attending a US med school.

It's pretty sad that you're so worried about looking "prestigious" that you'd pass up on something that you really enjoy. The first person you need to answer to is yourself.

 

[OncoCaP]

I actually disagree! I think guys who love OB/GYN are drawn to it for a variety of reasons. The OB process is so non-sexual. I'm proud of the guys I know that like OB/GYN. From talking to people I know, some guys make the best ones out there.

My wife feels like the last two women in OB/GYN that she has had to deal with were "too competitive" -- i.e., not friendly. She got the impression that everything is a competition for them (maybe medical school teaches that to some extent?). The men seemed to be more normal in terms of friendliness. This is only one woman's experience, of course, but let's just say not all women want a female OB/GYN. Women are increasingly common in this field, so it wouldn't surprise me if there were fewer men in this field as time goes by, however.

 

[Bertelman]

My wife feels like the last two women in OB/GYN that she has had to deal with were "too competitive" -- i.e., not friendly. She got the impression that everything is a competition for them (maybe medical school teaches that to some extent?).

Medical school encourages this behavior. They came to medicine because they are competitive.

 

[OncoCaP]

Medical school encourages this behavior. They came to medicine because they are competitive.

Moreso than the men? Because the men and women go through the same program, I would have expected a similar level of competitiveness. Oh, well, I wasn't invited to most of the appointments (except pregnancy checkups -- which seemed fine to me) so I don't want to say too much.

 

[Law2Doc]

Moreso than the men? Because the men and women go through the same program, I would have expected a similar level of competitiveness. Oh, well, I wasn't invited to the appointments so I don't want to say too much.

Women tend to have more to overcome in the workplace so you often see different levels of aggressiveness. Although med schools are about half women these days, the profession itself is still pretty male dominated. All people who go to med school have some competitive streak though -- you don't get adequate grades and credentials for admission without it.

 

[OncoCaP]

Women tend to have more to overcome in the workplace so you often see different levels of aggressiveness. Although med schools are about half women these days, the profession itself is still pretty male dominated. All people who go to med school have some competitive streak though -- you don't get adequate grades and credentials for admission without it.

Yes, that makes sense.

 

[indo]

Can you imagine the devices the cavemen used to examine the cervix?

 

[smq123]

Can you imagine the devices the cavemen used to examine the cervix?

I think that they used to make pessaries out of wood in the Middle Ages. I've always wondered - wouldn't that encourage microbial growth? Ewww.

 

[Bertelman]

Women tend to have more to overcome in the workplace so you often see different levels of aggressiveness. Although med schools are about half women these days, the profession itself is still pretty male dominated. All people who go to med school have some competitive streak though -- you don't get adequate grades and credentials for admission without it.

...and American society tolerates competitiveness amongst men, but is suspicious of this in women.

 

[LJDHC05]

I think Tired was referring to non-medical people. A lot of people don't realize how non-sexual a brightly-lit clinical office is.

I plan on using only candle light in my practice and mandating that nothing but Barry White is played in the waiting room...

 

[pristine21]

I badly want to do OB/GYN because I know that I will have more fun with it. It is something I am very passionate about and one of the reason I entered medical school. I love OB/GYN.

But - I don't like the idea of going into Primary Care because it is not as prestigious or high paying as other fields that also interest me such as ENT, Gen Surgery, Radiology, etc.

If all things being equal (money and prestige), I would chose OB/GYN in a heartbeat. But all things aren't equal...

Any advice?

From what I have seen on the floors OB is more surgical and GYN is primary care- If I were you I would pick a prestegious place to go with a strong academic backround for residency so I can go on and preform the most interesting and complecated OB surgical procedures as well as do the baby delivering stuff too... but I am not sure how to go about that since I am not yeat even done with step I...

 

[MeowMix]

I plan on using only candle light in my practice and mandating that nothing but Barry White is played in the waiting room...

I would also recommend a fireplace and bearskin rug (fake fur of course)