How much does the science matter when picking a specialty?

[Arewestilldoingphrasing?]

So ever since I decided to go into medicine, I was interested in neuroscience and wanted to be some sort of neuro doc. Now that I am a few months into medical school and I have been able to shadow and speak with more physicians, they seem to emphasize that, while an interest in the science and system functions is important, the day to day and the way that you get to treat patients as a clinician matters more. My question is, if I were to find something else that I am interested in the science, maybe not quite as much as neuro but I enjoy it, and I get to practice medicine in a way that better suits my personality and goals, would that be a wise decision? I am also aware I know very little at this point, I am just gathering information and different perspectives. (Also I am asking this because I have to choose a research project for the next two years and I am leaning towards a non-neuro project in an area I find pretty interesting but it feels like a risk to change away from what I always wanted to do this early, I wish I didn't have to choose as soon)

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[mvenus929]

Yes, the science matters. If you can't wrap your head around how a nephron works, you probably shouldn't be a nephrologist.

That said, I agree that the clinical application of things is different from the science behind it.

Any research project will serve you well when it comes time to apply for residency. If you end up going into Neuro and picked a non-neuro project, you can easily claim that you were just exploring other options, or that the project sounded cool.

 

[Southplains]

The science matters insofar as having an interest in the pathology you treat is a part of the decision, but not nearly as much as preclinical students feel it will be. You're right that the day to day, patient population, practice environment, level of acuity are all very important as well and probably have a "bigger role" than how much you like the science.

Neuro is a popular interest early on because the science is interesting, but clinically neurology doesn't do it for a lot of people, and neurosurgery has other filters that will steer people away.

 

[libertyyne]

Some specialties are more evidence based vs others.

 

[zhopv10]

I think the science is important but you definitely have to factor other things. I was a Neuro major coming in and thought about Neuro but didn’t like it at all. I got interested in oncology, then Psych. I actually loved psych and felt this was the best application of “neuroscience” as I liked it. However, other things like variety of pathology, diagnoses and procedures led me to a totally different specialty and now I’m doing derm. Within derm I still hold special interest in the “psych/Neuro-derm” stuff so you never know what application of the sciences you like you’ll end up doing until you get more clinical exposure I think!


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[Doctor-S]

My question is, if I were to find something else that I am interested in the science, maybe not quite as much as neuro but I enjoy it, and I get to practice medicine in a way that better suits my personality and goals, would that be a wise decision?

You do not have to commit yourself to neuro (or to any other specialty) at this early stage in your medical education (unless you are absolutely determined to apply for a neuro residency and become a neurologist).

Instead, feel free to study something that stimulates and satisfies your intellectual and mental curiosity.

It's advisable to research the various PIs at your school when considering your research options. For instance, do any of them sound as if they're working on clinical research projects that are really interesting to you? If yes, contact them and express an interest in meeting with them to discuss research opportunities and mentorship.

I wish you the best of success!

 

[sloop]

I think the science is important. I'm a psych resident and I can't imagine doing this work if I hated pharmacology. Of that portion of my day that is not spent on documentation/bureaucratic crap (which exists in every specialty), a lot of it is spent thinking about a patient's unique constellation of symptoms and risk profile and coming up with a pharmacological treatment plan for them. I honestly can't fathom finding this satisfying if one didn't enjoy trying to understand the most up-to-date scientific understandings for the etiologies of various psychopathological entities and the various aspects of the drugs we use to treat them.

Similarly I would imagine that it would be very hard to find satisfaction in surgery if you had little interest in anatomy (at the very least, anatomy in theory, not necessarily saying one has to have loved cadaver lab).

I do think that how much the science matters may depend on the person, though. Although I'm polite and generally pretty good at talking to patients, I'm really not a "people person" in a typical sense yet somehow wound up in psych. I think a lot of this has to do with the fact that I am intensely interested in behavioral analysis and psychopharmacology, so without that I wouldn't be happy. It sounds bad but I don't gain a ton of satisfaction from simply talking to my patients if I'm not doing it with an aim of improving their thoughts or behavior, or analyzing the conversation to develop a diagnosis. I'm at work to be a doctor, not just mess around and socialize with patients.

On the other hand, I know plenty of people who gain more of their professional satisfaction from the parts of the job that I find kind of ancillary or even tedious. Maybe for them their interest in the science matters a little less.

As has been said, what type of research you do early on is not critical. People don't expect you to know what you want to do so early on.

 

[Arewestilldoingphrasing?]

I think the science is important but you definitely have to factor other things. I was a Neuro major coming in and thought about Neuro but didn’t like it at all. I got interested in oncology, then Psych. I actually loved psych and felt this was the best application of “neuroscience” as I liked it. However, other things like variety of pathology, diagnoses and procedures led me to a totally different specialty and now I’m doing derm. Within derm I still hold special interest in the “psych/Neuro-derm” stuff so you never know what application of the sciences you like you’ll end up doing until you get more clinical exposure I think!

Thank you all, this is very helpful. I will go with the non-neuro project then. I think I was just having a bit of indecision because it was something I wanted for so long but the cardio project is fascinating and I want to try something new. Thank you!