current attendings/residents if u could do it over, would u still choose gas?

[amherstguy]

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just wondering if any residents or attendings in gas could do it over would u choose gas again and why? with crna issues is it worth it for students to continue going into anesthesia?

 

[SexPanther]

just wondering if any residents or attendings in gas could do it over would u choose gas again and why? with crna issues is it worth it for students to continue going into anesthesia?

For me, the question has always been, "Would I choose the field of medicine again?" While that answer is different on different days for me, I am absolutely 100% happy with my choice of Anesthesiology. And I'm a guy who initially applied medicine, unapplied-reapplied Anesthesiology and had some doubts during internship.

I'll tell ya, day one of true Anesthesiology last June, I knew this was for me. All the political stuff aside, this is a great field. The amount of knowledge we have to possess - IM, CCM, surgery, phys, pharm, etc. - coupled with procedures and the different types of environments we are able to practice medicine is is pretty cool and tough to rival.

I think we are one of the few specialties that give us the knowledge to actually help someone on the street if they needed it and I think that is also cool. We can manage an airway, start invasive access, manage hemodynamics, diagnose the problem etc.

Even with the politics, I'd still choose Anesthesiology. Just be cognizant of the political challenges we face and choose to be involved (or not).

 

[maceo]

like the above poster. i think the better question is would you choose medicine over again?

as far as a career in anesthesia goes. It is a nice field in theory but is a minefiled politically. Im not sure I would choose it again if I was in the choosing position again. This so called lifestyle field is not so lifestyle. and i think the jobs are getting tighter now and i think will continue that way

 

[itwasalladream]

recently heard 2 private practice attendings discuss this exact question.
both said the same thing as above, but weren't worried about the political aspect of anesthesia

 

[gluon999]

if not gas, then what would you choose if you were a competitive applicant? derm? rads?

 

[maceo]

if not gas, then what would you choose if you were a competitive applicant? derm? rads?

rads because you can do it from home. cant beat that lifestyle

 

[cfdavid]

rads because you can do it from home. cant beat that lifestyle

yeah, but so can some dude from Mumbai.....


This is a great post. Personally, I've asked 11 (I've been counting, seriously) ATTENDING anesthesiologists if 1) they like what they do, and 2) would they do it over again.

I kid you not, I've gotten 11 affirmatives to both questions. Just my experience.

cf

 

[BLADEMDA]

yeah, but so can some dude from Mumbai.....


This is a great post. Personally, I've asked 11 (I've been counting, seriously) ATTENDING anesthesiologists if 1) they like what they do, and 2) would they do it over again.

I kid you not, I've gotten 11 affirmatives to both questions. Just my experience.

cf

Ask those 11 again in about 2 years. You will get a different answer.

Blade

 

[deleted126335]

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[AK_MD2BE]

Depends how close to retirement that they are. The more telling question is if you were a third year med student today looking at anesthesia would you still do it?

As I am approaching the beginning of my MS4 year (and therefore must decide, "What am I going to do with my life?") this is the exact question I struggle with every day. So, anesthesiology attendings...
If you were a 3rd year medical student looking at anesthesia, would you still do it?

 

[frank51]

if not gas, then what would you choose if you were a competitive applicant? derm? rads?

If you can get in, Derm is definitely the way to go, I haven't met a single doctor that disagrees with that. Rads, I don't think the lifestyle is as good as they make it out to be, plus you're sitting in a dark room by yourself most of the time. GI and Cards are good if you decide to go the IM route, probably not the best lifestyle, but no worries about CRNAs.

 

[Coastie]

Nurses do colonoscopies in Alaska. If it comes down to it, I don't see GI as that safe, actually...

If you can get in, Derm is definitely the way to go, I haven't met a single doctor that disagrees with that. Rads, I don't think the lifestyle is as good as they make it out to be, plus you're sitting in a dark room by yourself most of the time. GI and Cards are good if you decide to go the IM route, probably not the best lifestyle, but no worries about CRNAs.

 

[gluon999]

If you can get in, Derm is definitely the way to go, I haven't met a single doctor that disagrees with that. Rads, I don't think the lifestyle is as good as they make it out to be, plus you're sitting in a dark room by yourself most of the time. GI and Cards are good if you decide to go the IM route, probably not the best lifestyle, but no worries about CRNAs.

So I am an MS3, soon to be MS4 in a couple of weeks and trying to make up my mind. I am relatively competitive for most fields except derm and plastics. I was thinking about IM prior to starting third year but wasn't really impressed by it during my rotation. A fair number of residents seemed dissatisfied with it. Although I could see myself doing cards in the future, I would have no guarantee of getting it when I go for IM, and the prospect of not matching into cards and being stuck with general medicine seems scary.

So that leads me to fields like Anesthesia and Rads. I like them for different reasons, including the perceived 'better' lifestyle, although I am realizing gas and rads attendings work as hard too, but at least they seem to be more satisfied than general IM. Anyway, I have some elective time coming up in MS4, after which I should be able to make a more informed decision about my future.

 

[gluon999]

Nurses do colonoscopies in Alaska. If it comes down to it, I don't see GI as that safe, actually...

GI in theory sounds like a cool field (good pay, good mix of procedures, clinics, and consults), but the idea of doing rectals on every patient you see and dealing with poop samples doesn't seem that fascinating.

 

[frank51]

Anyway, I have some elective time coming up in MS4, after which I should be able to make a more informed decision about my future.

That's the best route, and at the end, if you really enjoy a field, you should go for it, irregardless of the competitiveness or the politics.

 

[Arch Guillotti]

just wondering if any residents or attendings in gas could do it over would u choose gas again and why?

Unequivocally yes. I would rather work as a garbage man than in pretty much any other field of medicine.

 

[Consigliere]

Was chatting with a 70 year old anesthesiologist the other day.....I was expressing my concern about CRNAs, etc. and he informed me that they were worried about the CRNAs taking over 30 years ago. Obviously hasn't happened yet......

 

[maceo]

yeah, but so can some dude from Mumbai.....


This is a great post. Personally, I've asked 11 (I've been counting, seriously) ATTENDING anesthesiologists if 1) they like what they do, and 2) would they do it over again.

I kid you not, I've gotten 11 affirmatives to both questions. Just my experience.

cf

you have to read between the lines really. Why would an attending tell you he hates his job to your face. He will say he loves it to get back to what he is doign faster.. seriously

 

[TecmoBowl]

Would have chosen Medicine again, gone to a State school, and would have started out with different expectations, and would have chosen a dual degree program, either an MD/MBA or an MD/JD.

As far as Anesthesia, I can only say Surgeons are the ONLY ones who are completely irreplaceable, at least in our lifetimes. So they can hold their ground quite a bit.

 

[Gern Blansten]

Would have chosen Medicine again, gone to a State school, and would have started out with different expectations, and would have chosen a dual degree program, either an MD/MBA or an MD/JD.

As far as Anesthesia, I can only say Surgeons are the ONLY ones who are completely irreplaceable, at least in our lifetimes. So they can hold their ground quite a bit.

Surgeons are not irreplaceable. As surgeries become less invasive, proceduralists from other specialties have and will begin to branch into those areas. See pulmonary, cardiology, gastroenterology, and interventional radiology. The general surgeon has already been marginalized to performing mostly ex laps(traumas), appys, gall bladders and hernias by the surgical subspecialists.

 

[2win]

just wondering if any residents or attendings in gas could do it over would u choose gas again and why? with crna issues is it worth it for students to continue going into anesthesia?

YES! I would - I love it. I will stay if the reimbursement stay (at least the same ) - if not Wall Street is waiting for me.

 

[Jeff05]

i think we're gonna hit a mid 90s type of situation during the next several years. salaries will drop by 50%, at least. med students will stop going into the field. once again we'll have 48 year old pakistani IMGs as Ca1s.

our services will always be needed. trust me, once our salaries fall to that of the CRNA - we will be hired preferentially. so CRNA salaries will fall - back to an appropriate level of advanced practice NURSES. fewer people will chose to pursue the CRNA route (even now, with overwhelming incentives, not that many nurses do it), fewer providers - supply and demand, our salaries go up.

if obama fails to destroy america - some element of supply and demand and free markets survive (and/or CRNAs don't multiply exponentially/get more autonomy), things will bounce back and in about 10-15 years.

my advice - do a fellowship - it may afford greater job security during the dark years ahead.

would i do it again? absolutely. love the OR most of the time. like OB. like procedural pain.

as far as wall street - the days of easy money are over. for the near future at least.

 

[Lonestar]

i dunno. Wallstreet has treated me well even in the dark times. Ofcourse, I trade stocks and am not one those crazy "buy and hold" types.

Greed is good myfriend.

Just made a 12% profit in natural gas in two days!!! 😀

 

[maceo]

i dunno. Wallstreet has treated me well even in the dark times. Ofcourse, I trade stocks and am not one those crazy "buy and hold" types.

Greed is good myfriend.

Just made a 12% profit in natural gas in two days!!! 😀

tell us about your losses to

 

[fastosprintini]

yes , but not because i think the future in anesthesia is going to be great but rather because i realize that things are unpredictable , so why not stay with something that i know and enjoy.
jobs or specialities that now look rocksolid might become poorly reimbursed or outright extinct at some point...
fasto

 

[Masseter Spasm]

In some of the harshest economic conditions since the great depression I have a job. In addition, I have the job that I am trained to perform. Despite all of the challenges facing health care, I feel confident that I will have a job in the future.

There are plenty of well-educated professionals who cannot say the same at this time. (Lawyers, investment bankers, engineers, teachers, etc.)

Would I like to work less for more money? Absolutely!

 

[desflurane]

The creator of this thread asked us as individuals if we could do it over would we pass gas. Answer the question people.

I probably wouldn't. I like it most days, not all. The money is ok for the hours and the liabilities. There are better paying areas out there, ones with less stress. My gaffe was that I should have known I'd prefer not to work under someone else. I also think the hierarchies of the OR with the surgeon on top are irritants. Nurses thinking they are comparably trained is another minor irritant.

I'd study harder in med school and shoot for derm. Tried to like Rads but just couldn't. Gi is good but they put in the hours...the payout is way higher than I thought (for now). Rad Onc would be nice. Didn't know it existed.

If I could get past the "pseudo-Dr" aspect of it I'd go to dental school. Many make more than we do.

Overall though, not a bad way to make a living. It can be enjoyable at times, nice to be free when on vacation. It is indeed nice to apply a specific skill set better than anyone else in the room (including surgeon).

Do your rotation, see what you think and report back.

 

[StanleyCup7]

Bump...can any other attendings out there give some advice?

As an MS4 deciding what he wants to/should do with his life, any and all knowledge and advice is greatly appreciated. Thanks. 👍

 

[Lasvegas]

I agree very much with Jeff05,

To answer the question – I have to say I’m not sure as I don’t have the certain knowledge ‘that the grass is greener.’ I LOVE what I do, but I hate the politics and the very real possibility of revisiting 1995. In that time some colleagues I know have told me about literally hanging out in OR hallways hoping to get a case thrown their way to make a little money and get a chance to prove themselves worthy to some surgeon.

New positions are really starting to dry up and applications are coming into our program at a rate far higher than just a year ago.

Just out of interest for the last five years I have been checking Gaswork every month or two just to keep track of the amount of total jobs offered nationwide. I know this does not represent all available positions, but it does give a snapshot. On average five years ago there 2,400 jobs on Gaswork. It fallen steadily to where it is today – 1,150. States like WA & OR that had 4 pages of adverts now have less than one page. States like Montana, Idaho and Utah which all had half a page or so, now have none – or one single ad every now and then posted by a recruiter.

The same can be said about Pain- a market that is becoming truly saturated. This is a specialty where the Fellowships started only about a decade ago. This means that overall the pain docs that are out there now are much younger than the average age of the nation’s anesthesiologists - thus the retirement rate for pain docs will be nowhere near the same rate as anes. Yet, more than 100 new pain docs are now being pumped out of fellowships every year.

I agree if you go into this field the smart play is simply to view it as a five year commitment. A anes fellowship is going to be needed in the future to be competitive in the job market, and even then it could be tough.

I would not want to be a CA1 right now, that’s all I can say.

Perhaps the ASA should consider shrinking the amount of residency positions to help with the balance.