forensics question

[augmel]

i'm curious what those of you with some experience think about the challenges of forensic path. it seems interesting to me, but i wonder if it would really be intellectually challenging after a while. "brain/aorta/liver done got blowed up by bullet/knife/truck" day after day. do these pathologists use all that hard earned knowledge from AP training? are the slides they look at anything more than a formality? what draws people to the specialty?

any thoughts would be appreciated.

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[augmel]

bump

 

[Mindy]

I struggled with these q's myself, so I really can't answer you. Any one else?

Mindy

 

[path1]

From what little i know of forensic path it seems interesting if you're interested in law/trials. Many times the chief M.E. must testify their results (and from what i've been told by word of mouth is that they must often defend their results with scientific knowlege/experience from the prosecutor/defendent etc.). From what i've seen after a while it does become routine, but then again show me a specialty after 5 years isn't routine(surg/i.m./f.p./peds/ob-gyn all become routine - of course there's the occasional anomaly but that is the exception and not the rule). From a pragmatic POV i've been told and read that forensic path do not make much $$$ and are actually paid slightly more than nurses. I don't know about you guys, but i didn't go to undergrad/grad/med school/then residency to be paid slightly higher than a nurse!!!

 

[GreatPumpkin]

I think you will have your routine and boring along with your very unusual and interesting. People figure out interesting ways to die and kill. I think an interest in Law would be good, like was mentioned. All the MEs here testify not just the chief. And, quite routinely at that. The junior MEs, some residents and fellows also are scene investigators, so they actually go to the scene of the crimes and gather evidence and take pictures.

MEs do not look at glass slides nearly as much as general path folks. Many, maybe most, cases I observed were done with only gross diagnosis and no slides were taken.

The money in foresics is not as good as general path. Expect to start 80k to 100k in a state system. But, there are a very few private practice forensic practices that make dang good money. These practices are generally in states that do not have a state medical examiner system.

I don't know much a ton about forensics so take anything I say with a grain of salt. hehe. I don't do my official forensics rotation until later next year. (did one as a med student though).

 

[augmel]

wow! thanks a lot for the insight CP. a lot of those things really appeal to me, working with people other than docs, etc. some good info to think about. are you still interested in FP or has this experience pointed you in other directions?