DO and specializing?

[twocentnews]

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I am new to researching osteopathic schools, and I have a lot of questions, one of them dealing with the ability to specialize in a field.

How do I know which school(s) is/are better when you want to specifically specialize in something, say like pediatrics?

Thanks for the help!

 

[DrMidlife]

Pediatrics isn't a competitive specialty. It's primary care, it's one of the lowest paying specialties, and it would be hard to argue that one DO school is any better than another at peds.

One thing to look for on school websites would be children's hospital(s) under affiliated facilities. (Is your peds rotation at a children's hospital, iow.) Another thing to look for would be pediatrician practices and hospitals in towns where you might want to work, and see where their grads are from. Neither of these suggestions would truly give you a leg up when you're applying for residency, but looking for this info will be educational.

Best of luck to you.

 

[JaggerPlate]

I am new to researching osteopathic schools, and I have a lot of questions, one of them dealing with the ability to specialize in a field.

How do I know which school(s) is/are better when you want to specifically specialize in something, say like pediatrics?

Thanks for the help!

Sap ... there aren't any schools that are better for specializing. This is up to the student. You could go to a great school, screw off, and not match, just the same as you can go to a no name school, rock everything, and match your number 1. With that said ... there are certain DO schools that have more PC field matches than others. However, in my opinion, this is because people who go there are CHOOSING to match into these PC fields, not because their choice in school wouldn't allow them to match into derm or ortho. I suppose there is also a factor of attending a new school without a match list yet - PDs aren't sure about the school or whatever - but aftering seeing LECOM-B and PCOM-GA 1st year match lists ... this doesn't have a lot of weight.

 

[TexasPhysician]

Pediatrics isn't a competitive specialty. It's primary care, it's one of the lowest paying specialties, and it would be hard to argue that one DO school is any better than another at peds.

One thing to look for on school websites would be children's hospital(s) under affiliated facilities. (Is your peds rotation at a children's hospital, iow.) Another thing to look for would be pediatrician practices and hospitals in towns where you might want to work, and see where their grads are from. Neither of these suggestions would truly give you a leg up when you're applying for residency, but looking for this info will be educational.

Best of luck to you.

I believe it is THE lowest.

 

[JaggerPlate]

I believe it is THE lowest.

Which makes total sense. Give trained physicians no incentive to take care of children. Instead, lets have some NP with an online degree do so!! Awesome.

 

[twocentnews]

Whoaaa, I'm glad to see we're all caught up in the money...

There's more to being a doctor than making loads of money, and I'm sure as "low pay" as it is, it's still substantially high.

My question is about whether specific schools are better when you want to specialize in something.

 

[JaggerPlate]

Whoaaa, I'm glad to see we're all caught up in the money...

There's more to being a doctor than making loads of money, and I'm sure as "low pay" as it is, it's still substantially high.

My question is about whether specific schools are better when you want to specialize in something.

Peds = 135k a year, student debts = 200k on average. NP salary = 80k, PA-C salary = approaching 90k, both with no where near training time or debt of physician. You altruism is respectable, but frankly naive. You aren't a bad person for expecting to make good money after spending 4 years for a BS, 4 years for a DO and 3-4 years in a Peds residency with >200k in debt hanging above your head.




http://swz.salary.com/salarywizard/layouthtmls/swzl_compresult_national_HC07000008.html

http://www.allied-physicians.com/salary_surveys/physician-salaries.htm

 

[nlax30]

My question is about whether specific schools are better when you want to specialize in something.

In general, no.

I'm sure there are some exceptions out there, and if you're really gunning for a future academic neurosurg position in say the Northeast than yea, going to a top academic school with ties to the program could be beneficial.

 

[TexasPhysician]

Whoaaa, I'm glad to see we're all caught up in the money...

There's more to being a doctor than making loads of money, and I'm sure as "low pay" as it is, it's still substantially high.

My question is about whether specific schools are better when you want to specialize in something.

No, no schools are better at getting you into pediatrics. You can easily do anything in the field of pediatrics through any medical school.

 

[Cp22kjer]

Whoaaa, I'm glad to see we're all caught up in the money...

There's more to being a doctor than making loads of money, and I'm sure as "low pay" as it is, it's still substantially high.

It's not about the money....its about the debt.

Wait until you see your first years COA. Quadruple that and tack on interest. You'll see why compensation should at least be a consideration.

I'm going to pursue whatever I enjoy the most regardless of pay. I'm just hoping I like something which compensates well!

 

[Cp22kjer]

Which makes total sense. Give trained physicians no incentive to take care of children. Instead, lets have some NP with an online degree do so!! Awesome.

Oh don't get me started!

 

[JanikeyDoc]

Specializing is very doable for DOs much more than for IMGs who have to score extremely well on the USMLE to simply get a residency. DOs also have their own training programs, so that is another opportunity. I myself am aiming for Pediatrics, so I am not really worried. Not that sure that Peds is low paying, the Pediatrician in my neighborhood, she has a Porsche and is an IMG.

 

[mbe36]

What does "IMG" mean?

 

[niranjan162]

Specializing is very doable for DOs much more than for IMGs who have to score extremely well on the USMLE to simply get a residency. DOs also have their own training programs, so that is another opportunity. I myself am aiming for Pediatrics, so I am not really worried. Not that sure that Peds is low paying, the Pediatrician in my neighborhood, she has a Porsche and is an IMG.

someone earning 60000 a year could buy a porsche it all depends on your expenses.

 

[MedStudentWanna]

What does "IMG" mean?

International Medical Graduate. It's the folks who went to the Carib to get their MD.

 

[Thomas Hearns]

Not just the Caribbean!

 

[JanikeyDoc]

She has several high end luxury cars. I seriously doubt a person making 60k a year could afford a top of the line Cayenne, a Mercedes S Class, and Lexus SUV, she has all three of these vehicles.

 

[JaggerPlate]

Specializing is very doable for DOs much more than for IMGs who have to score extremely well on the USMLE to simply get a residency. DOs also have their own training programs, so that is another opportunity. I myself am aiming for Pediatrics, so I am not really worried. Not that sure that Peds is low paying, the Pediatrician in my neighborhood, she has a Porsche and is an IMG.

I've heard a lot of different thoughts on this, and it seems like there are some crucial factors that could lead to a nice salary:

-Don't live in the most desirable places in the planet. IE living in Beverly Hills, NYC, etc are going to pay much less than practicing in the midwest. Also, if you did want to live in CA, for example, practice somewhere far enough outside the big cities. Living in big cities sucks anyway

-Learn how to properly code and bill. I read in the FP forums that a family practice doc, on average, can earn 30% more than they currently are if they coded and billed properly. If you're making 150k, an extra 45k from billing properly goes a long way.

-Private practice pays more than academics.

-Most importantly - you can't predict what's going to be hot. Look at ophthalmology. Used to be known for lifestyle + loads of money ... now if you read the forums for them, they are getting killed and starting at 150k, getting sucked into revolving door practices, etc. I also shadowed a doc who does gas, but said that when he went to school IM and FP were all the rage. He caught the wave of great Gas pay (which he said is starting to fade, but still quite good) and IM and FP are very low paid right now. This indicates that it's almost impossible to predict what's gonna be hot in 10 years ... so like what you're doing in case it flops or goes hot.

-My FP bought a beautiful 911 Turbo in the mid 90s ... his practice has really changed and I know he's not making what he did, but I also don't think he's hurting too bad. He seemed to adapt pretty well ... sees more patients, hired a NP to pick up slack, etc. I'm sure it's not ideal, but he's smart and making it work (he's a DO also).

Another thing to keep in mind is that it's probably going to take a while for this economy to swoop back up, and making 150k with nice job security 3 years down the road is a HELL of a lot better than you're buddy who got the econ degree in 2005 and now can't get a job (personal experience with two different friends of mine, fresh out of college, biz/econ degrees from top 50 schools, can't get jobs, going back for masters).

 

[The Poet Sings]

She has several high end luxury cars. I seriously doubt a person making 60k a year could afford a top of the line Cayenne, a Mercedes S Class, and Lexus SUV, she has all three of these vehicles.

is she married? does she have kids? my mom has friends from work (who i assume are making the same salaries) that are unmarried and childless and have tons of money to go on some serious vacations. our "vacations" consist of visiting family nearby (aka cheap), their vacations consist of going to various countries (probably expensive). so i think it depends on expenses and salary, because 2 people making the same salary can have vastly different lifestyles.

 

[MossPoh]

She can also be leasing and in super high debt. Just because someone owns lots of shiny things doesn't mean they are doing well. In fact, it usually means they are screwing themselves over in the long run.

 

[JaggerPlate]

She can also be leasing and in super high debt. Just because someone owns lots of shiny things doesn't mean they are doing well. In fact, it usually means they are screwing themselves over in the long run.

Yup. I had a neighbor who bought shiny things like no one's business. My little brother always thought they were super loaded and cool, everyone else knew the real deal. Long story short ... one day he shows up with two new Harley's, a few weeks later, they were taken away by a mysterous repo truck.

 

[nlax30]

Exactly. Case in point... go check out that recent thread about a New York Times reporter who wrote about his own struggles with finances. Ironically enough he was some sort of economics reporter but just absolutely made some ridiculous financial decisions for his family.

 

[Krisss17]

Peds = 135k a year, student debts = 200k on average. NP salary = 80k, PA-C salary = approaching 90k, both with no where near training time or debt of physician. You altruism is respectable, but frankly naive. You aren't a bad person for expecting to make good money after spending 4 years for a BS, 4 years for a DO and 3-4 years in a Peds residency with >200k in debt hanging above your head.




http://swz.salary.com/salarywizard/layouthtmls/swzl_compresult_national_HC07000008.html

http://www.allied-physicians.com/salary_surveys/physician-salaries.htm

Well, if the OP is seriously looking for pediatrics and is willing to work in an underserved area, she/he could get a large portion if not all of their medical education paid. So they can actually be better off than those with "higher paying specialties."

 

[ODorDO]

She has several high end luxury cars. I seriously doubt a person making 60k a year could afford a top of the line Cayenne, a Mercedes S Class, and Lexus SUV, she has all three of these vehicles.

a little stalker-ish?? haha maybe her husband is a surgeon

 

[MossPoh]

I know what cars most of the doctors in our town have. 😉 My dad is a doctor there, so whenever I was a kid and at the hospital I'd make a mental note of who had the coolest cars.

 

[TexasPhysician]

One of our family medicine residents drives a porsche.

General pediatricians can make over $200,000 however. Like one poster above said - pick an underserved area and be willing to work hard. Do that and beating the average salary in your field is easy.

With that said, even pediatricians who get their debt paid for through special programs will never be making more per year than a radiologist. Ok maybe a couple exceptions. Just don't fool yourself about these debt repayment jobs being amazing.

 

[link2swim06]

someone earning 60000 a year could buy a porsche it all depends on your expenses.

Porsches and BMWs that are not crazy expensive unless you want the fastest one. Now if you want a Ferrari that is a different story.

 

[rddoms]

WAIT... DO's can specialize? Texas Triathlete and Jagger plate said we could only do voodoo and black magic!

(I'm sorry, couldn't resist!)

KCOM 2012

 

[JaggerPlate]

WAIT... DO's can specialize? Texas Triathlete and Jagger plate said we could only do voodoo and black magic!

(I'm sorry, couldn't resist!)

KCOM 2012

SHHHH .... you can't tell outsiders. You drank the blood, you became one of us.