Dentistry or Podiatry...?

[Arijos0222]

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Hello i'm contemplating dentistry vs podiatry.

I like how both fields allow you to work with your hands, but personally i'm a laid back, monday through thursday, 7-4 or 8-5 kind of guy.

I don't want to break my back (unlike some MD/DO surgeons) for years. I like Dentistry and the type of lifestyle that it offers, and I was wondering how the lifestyle of Podiatry fairs.

I hear a Podiatrist, NatCH who apparently works 17 hours a week practicing in oregon!?? If I could achieve (not that) but maybe 40-45 hours a week as a (potential) new podiatry grad, that would be amazing.

Also, how much on call time is there for podiatric surgeons?

....(wait I just laughed because I spelled "podiatric" on my computer and it autocorrected it to "pediatric" )

if I wanted to work 40-45 hours a week, how much pay would I be sacrificing? Dentists can work 35-40 hours a week and pretty much easily cover 150K.

Also, I understand that surgeries probably don't reimburse as much as procedures done in the clinic setting, but I'm not that type of "clinic" or "office" kind of person diagnosing people.

In dentistry you are in an office setting yes, but you are constantly moving from patient to patient, actually doing something with your hands. I absolutely despise sitting around.

also, how is the "easy to get" degree stigma holding up? Do podiatrists or podiatry students feel like they've been demoralized by other Physicians? (aka M.D.'s)

What do you think I would be suited out for more? I've always wanted to be a surgeon (oncological surgeon) but those grueling hours however... I don't think they are for me.

Suggestions/Advice/Comments would be greatly appreciated 👍

 

[MaxillofacialMN]

I don't want to break my back (unlike some MD/DO surgeons) for years. I like Dentistry and the type of lifestyle that it offers, and I was wondering how the lifestyle of Podiatry fairs.

Have you seen some older dentists? All those years of craning their necks to see into tiny mouths? If you don't wanna break your back, podiatry is a no-brainer here....


Lol, jk jk. You seriously need to shadow and see which one you like more. Salary fluctuates tremendously in both fields, and the amount of hours you work is up to you/the market

 

[MaxillofacialMN]

Also, your title or status or w/e SDN is calling it is: "Mr. Scalpel-Crazy." Dentists will hardly ever hold a scalpel unless they are OMS. If you go OMS, you are looking at 6 years of residency.... (and you must be top 10% of class...)

 

[golfandmedicine]

Have you seen some older dentists? All those years of craning their necks to see into tiny mouths? If you don't wanna break your back, podiatry is a no-brainer here....


Lol, jk jk. You seriously need to shadow and see which one you like more. Salary fluctuates tremendously in both fields, and the amount of hours you work is up to you/the market

I read his post and instantly thought you dont want to break your back?? Dont be a dentist then, lol!.... you beat me to it, although who knows if he meant literally or figuratively.

I would try to get as much shadowing in with both of them as possible. Remember when talking with advisors/ mentors that podiatry is not as well of a represented field. You have to do your own research to know what you really want to do. Also, the podiatrist that you shadow can make a big difference on the experience you get. With the field going through a transitioning phase there are a lot of older doctors that will not work under the same scope as the newer, surgically trained pods.

On a side not, my dentist is around 45 years old and he is looking to sell his business within the next 5 years... yes this is only one dentist, but to my understanding, a lot of them get tired with their job much quicker than other specialties.

Good Luck with your decision!

 

[PrePodPolice]

While the overall attitude has been positive, this thread has been closed due to its inflammatory nature.


Oh wait.... I'm not a mod, shucks! 😛


My uncle is a dentist who took over a practice, expanded the facilities and took on 4 other dentists to make a group practice. There must be at least 20 chairs in that place between the hygienists and docs.

He appears very content with his job, and over the years he has traveled to conventions all over the world in exotic locations (eg, hawaii) to learn new surgical procedures. As far as monetarily, he makes bank; custom built house on the water, boat, sports cars, etc. To acquire all these things he puts in many hours at work but nothing crazy like you hear so many MDs doing.

Downside is he is constantly trying to one-up the competition; there are too many dentists everywhere. And when times are tough, people usually stop getting cleanings and checkups. When the business slows down, the bonuses disappear and the staff get grumpy, but this is not unique to just dentistry. A [podiatrist will be able to weather a storm a bit better due to lower numbers, and the fact that people usually see the podiatrist only when they have to, regardless of the economy.

 

[Arijos0222]

Also, your title or status or w/e SDN is calling it is: "Mr. Scalpel-Crazy." Dentists will hardly ever hold a scalpel unless they are OMS. If you go OMS, you are looking at 6 years of residency.... (and you must be top 10% of class...)

Yes, OMFS is what potentially I'm aiming for

While the overall attitude has been positive, this thread has been closed due to its inflammatory nature.


Oh wait.... I'm not a mod, shucks! 😛


My uncle is a dentist who took over a practice, expanded the facilities and took on 4 other dentists to make a group practice. There must be at least 20 chairs in that place between the hygienists and docs.

He appears very content with his job, and over the years he has traveled to conventions all over the world in exotic locations (eg, hawaii) to learn new surgical procedures. As far as monetarily, he makes bank; custom built house on the water, boat, sports cars, etc. To acquire all these things he puts in many hours at work but nothing crazy like you hear so many MDs doing.

Downside is he is constantly trying to one-up the competition; there are too many dentists everywhere. And when times are tough, people usually stop getting cleanings and checkups. When the business slows down, the bonuses disappear and the staff get grumpy, but this is not unique to just dentistry. A [podiatrist will be able to weather a storm a bit better due to lower numbers, and the fact that people usually see the podiatrist only when they have to, regardless of the economy.

Of course, being successful in any profession takes work!

The only thing that scares me about being an MD and doing surgery, is that you wont have much of a life outside the hospital. My father is a surgeon and he works at least 70 hours a week. Comes home at 11:00 at night regularly, and even though he LOVES what he does, I can tell that he's slowing down and that it's causing a lot of stress in the family, causing my mother and father to argue a lot. I don't know if I want this to be my life, even though I'm sure surgery would be my passion. I never wanted to be "normal" and I feel like being an MD Surgeon would be more fulfilling however, because they save lives (most surgery specialties do).

And it's not about the money, it's about the time commitment (long residency, long hours, delaying kids till mid 30's) that scares me the most.

Is it possible for say, a general or surgical oncologist to operate half the time and do research half the time to get out of work at least around 5 or maybe have a Sunday fully dedicated to research so you can work from 8-4

 

[whg342]

^ If you're father's a surgeon, wouldn't it make more sense to consult him about this matter? Most of the people on this forum or pre-something or other and are just basing their answers more or less on hearsay. If you're dad is a practicing surgeon/MD, I'm sure he has a lot more insight on the pros and cons of being a surgeon.

But my 0.02: shadow shadow shadow. That's the only way you can get a real gauge on what an actual career in a certain field is like. Get to know the doctors you're shadowing, and don't be afraid to ask them about any concerns you may have.

 

[feet2017]

In your response to how many hours a pod works. I think in most cases it will be dependent on where you work. Some Pods are on call and some aren't on call it is hard to say.

In regards to lifestyle it is what you make of it. Some choose to work more and some choose to work less.

I know physicians that work 40 hour weeks and others that work 80 hour weeks. Once chooses to work more because he wants to make more money.

I am not sure about reimbursement and work hours. I just know that the some competent podiatrists that coming out of high powered residency can make 150K - 230k starting salary but I am unaware of how much they work. These numbers are from other post by attending podiatrist.

Podiatry salary ranges a lot because there are part time podiatrist, also in the past there was not a standardized 3 year residency. With the new standard in training for podiatrist it seems that it is very common to have a starting salary of about 100k.

 

[dudestheman90]

Hello i'm contemplating dentistry vs podiatry.

I like how both fields allow you to work with your hands, but personally i'm a laid back, monday through thursday, 7-4 or 8-5 kind of guy.

I don't want to break my back (unlike some MD/DO surgeons) for years. I like Dentistry and the type of lifestyle that it offers, and I was wondering how the lifestyle of Podiatry fairs.

I hear a Podiatrist, NatCH who apparently works 17 hours a week practicing in oregon!?? If I could achieve (not that) but maybe 40-45 hours a week as a (potential) new podiatry grad, that would be amazing.

Also, how much on call time is there for podiatric surgeons?

....(wait I just laughed because I spelled "podiatric" on my computer and it autocorrected it to "pediatric" )

if I wanted to work 40-45 hours a week, how much pay would I be sacrificing? Dentists can work 35-40 hours a week and pretty much easily cover 150K.

Also, I understand that surgeries probably don't reimburse as much as procedures done in the clinic setting, but I'm not that type of "clinic" or "office" kind of person diagnosing people.

In dentistry you are in an office setting yes, but you are constantly moving from patient to patient, actually doing something with your hands. I absolutely despise sitting around.

also, how is the "easy to get" degree stigma holding up? Do podiatrists or podiatry students feel like they've been demoralized by other Physicians? (aka M.D.'s)

What do you think I would be suited out for more? I've always wanted to be a surgeon (oncological surgeon) but those grueling hours however... I don't think they are for me.

Suggestions/Advice/Comments would be greatly appreciated 👍

It depends what your looking for. You definitely have a much higher salary potential in dentistry. Oral surgeons make a lot of money,, you have the potential to be a millionaire in this field. General Dentists make an average of 200k per year.

 

[mdma223]

It depends what your looking for. You definitely have a much higher salary potential in dentistry. Oral surgeons make a lot of money,, you have the potential to be a millionaire in this field. General Dentists make an average of 200k per year.

Wouldn't you have the potential to be a millionaire in most medical fields as long as your smart and work hard...

 

[Ferocity]

 

[PrePodPolice]

Wouldn't you have the potential to be a millionaire in most medical fields as long as your smart and work hard...

and good business sense...

 

[mdma223]

I didn't know this was an english class forum.

 

[Arijos0222]

^ If you're father's a surgeon, wouldn't it make more sense to consult him about this matter? Most of the people on this forum or pre-something or other and are just basing their answers more or less on hearsay. If you're dad is a practicing surgeon/MD, I'm sure he has a lot more insight on the pros and cons of being a surgeon.

But my 0.02: shadow shadow shadow. That's the only way you can get a real gauge on what an actual career in a certain field is like. Get to know the doctors you're shadowing, and don't be afraid to ask them about any concerns you may have.

I've shadowed a pediatrician, a OMFS, and a rheumatologist. Not an academic based surgeon... Too busy to even return my calls.

and why haven't I asked my father?

My father is a surgeon.

This is why I haven't asked him I go to a private boarding school, come home on weekends, and when i'm home on weekends, he's on call, or he's busy with something work related.

I haven't seen him in at least 5 weeks. My mom's a Radiologist.

If you're wondering... Cardiothoracic surgeon at Level 1 Trauma Center... My parents had me when my father was 41 and my mother was 38. Yes, he probably did that to himself. But even though I know he loves his family, I'm pretty sure he loves surgery even more. He loves transplants, repairing mitral valves, you name it. This ultimately drew me into liking medicine.

And my problem isn't "working hard"

I just hate the fact that you have no autonomy whether or not you want to work a weekend, or commit to a weekly yoga class or something. I dislike spontaneity. I'm very organized... I would dislike on call very, very much.

I know physicians that work 40 hour weeks and others that work 80 hour weeks. Once chooses to work more because he wants to make more money.

of course... money is the root to all evil.