If not derm, other fields to consider?

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SimtheBull

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Let’s say you had very bad acne when you were a teenager. The only physician you really knew before going in Medical School was a dermatologist, and the first day you went in his office to get a prescription of Accutane, you thought his job was amazing.

You liked all the laser machines and the cool equipment he had. You even got some laser treatments that saved you from having scars. You thought you were going to become a dermatologist. Not only because it was your first love, but even the 2 medical specialty test on internet ranked dermatology as your best match.

Then you find out this is going to be impossible for you. You are not one of the best student in your class. You live in Canada and even if there is 20 spots open every year, around 40 people who are probably great students have ranked derm their first choice.

What would you do?

This is my situation. I am sure lots of people here went through this. Would you consider to go into family medicine and then practice cosmetic procedures on the side? Or you would go into something totally different?

I am going to do some electives in the next months and I'm looking for fields that could be a nice alternative to derm.

Thanks!

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Let’s say you had very bad acne when you were a teenager. The only physician you really knew before going in Medical School was a dermatologist, and the first day you went in his office to get a prescription of Accutane, you thought his job was amazing.

You liked all the laser machines and the cool equipment he had. You even got some laser treatments that saved you from having scars. You thought you were going to become a dermatologist. Not only because it was your first love, but even the 2 medical specialty test on internet ranked dermatology as your best match.

Then you find out this is going to be impossible for you. You are not one of the best student in your class. You live in Canada and even if there is 20 spots open every year, around 40 people who are probably great students have ranked derm their first choice.

What would you do?

This is my situation. I am sure lots of people here went through this. Would you consider to go into family medicine and then practice cosmetic procedures on the side? Or you would go into something totally different?

I am going to do some electives in the next months and I'm looking for fields that could be a nice alternative to derm.

Thanks!

I think my advice would be the same whether or not you had skin problems: pick a field where you find some intellectual interest.

I think it's easy to pick a field because you've had some experience in it (whether it's your own past medical history or a family history) but that's hardly an indication it's your "destined" field (this goes double for following the advice of online specialty guides)

I'm not sure how far you are in your medical school career but the picture begins to clear up around 3rd year once you've had an opportunity to complete some major rotations.

From what you've mentioned thus far, it seems like you enjoy the cosmetic aspects of dermatology. If that's truly what you're interested in, fields like ENT and obviously plastics also offer a heavy dose of cosmetics (probably heavier than derm in many programs)
 
Let’s say you had very bad acne when you were a teenager. The only physician you really knew before going in Medical School was a dermatologist, and the first day you went in his office to get a prescription of Accutane, you thought his job was amazing.

You liked all the laser machines and the cool equipment he had. You even got some laser treatments that saved you from having scars. You thought you were going to become a dermatologist. Not only because it was your first love, but even the 2 medical specialty test on internet ranked dermatology as your best match.

Then you find out this is going to be impossible for you. You are not one of the best student in your class. You live in Canada and even if there is 20 spots open every year, around 40 people who are probably great students have ranked derm their first choice.

What would you do?

This is my situation. I am sure lots of people here went through this. Would you consider to go into family medicine and then practice cosmetic procedures on the side? Or you would go into something totally different?

I am going to do some electives in the next months and I'm looking for fields that could be a nice alternative to derm.

Thanks!

You are not in and out of the forest yet! Make connections!

When you set up your rotations do your homework. Look for a few programs that look to have similar interests to yours. Email the chair/PD, introduce yourself. When get a good vibe, set up the rotations. Run with it. Don't give up yet. You could be one of the 20! :)
 
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I love derm but I had already graduated from med school in my home country & moved here. I did not wanted to sit at home in uncertainty fighting for the few derm spots that were already on the target of every gunner med-student. I decided to take the alternate route and chose family medicine. No regrets: everyday I see derm conditions because most people have to wait for months to get a derm appointment. I can choose electives, go for procedures workshops, etc. We can also do research projects in derm topics ( eg. Pressure ulcers in nursing home patients, one of FP's largest patient base and diabetics with cellulitis, etc) & we have derm mentors. I only consult/refer to derm for life-threatening derm conditions like TEN, Stevens Johnsons and Melanoma. There are FP's who work as director of wound care dept. in hospitals too.
However you have time at your side so you could still go for it. It's just my story to let u know that alternatives exist and you can make it work :)
 
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Thanks for your comments!
I think I will start doing derm related stuff in the next few years, only to get a better knowledge of the skin. And I'll probably go into family medicine. FM's work conditions are getting better than ever...:xf:
 
I love derm but I had already graduated from med school in my home country & moved here. I did not wanted to sit at home in uncertainty fighting for the few derm spots that were already on the target of every gunner med-student. I decided to take the alternate route and chose family medicine. No regrets: everyday I see derm conditions because most people have to wait for months to get a derm appointment. I can choose electives, go for procedures workshops, etc. We can also do research projects in derm topics ( eg. Pressure ulcers in nursing home patients, one of FP's largest patient base and diabetics with cellulitis, etc) & we have derm mentors. I only consult/refer to derm for life-threatening derm conditions like TEN, Stevens Johnsons and Melanoma. There are FP's who work as director of wound care dept. in hospitals too.
However you have time at your side so you could still go for it. It's just my story to let u know that alternatives exist and you can make it work :)

I've heard both sides to this story. On the interview trail last year, I heard from multiple people in the Boston area that one of the most financially successful "dermatologists" in the area was actually a family-medicine trained doctor who had unusually keen business acumen.

Conversely, my home program recently had a resident graduate who had completed a residency in family medicine and opted to pursue a dermatology residency afterwards. When asked why he would opt to undergo 2 residencies (as well as a 4 year research gap in order to arrive at the derm residency), he noted he didn't feel like he saw enough derm cases in family medicine (obviously this can vary from physician to physician) and didn't feel comfortable enough treating many of the lesions he was encountering (particularly pigmented lesions)
 
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