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- Jan 1, 2006
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I hve been accepted to medical school this fall, and have qualified for a 4 year HPSP scholarship. I have 3 years of prior service, so I'm willing to make a deal with the devil (the Army) in order to pay for med school. I have been working as an engineer for a few years and would have to use all of my personal savings before qualifiying for any student aid; hence the HPSP scholarship has additional benefits for me as compared to a traditional med student with no personal savings. However, I'm starting to question if becomming a doctor (military or civilian) is worth it anymore in this era of managed care, ridiculous malpractice lawsuits and premiums (on the civilian side), while barely being compensated financially for the time involved. I currently have a pretty decent job in a Fortune 500 company as an engineer, and am getting close to a 6 figure salary for roughly a 40 hour work week. I realize life isn't just about money, but I've really been wondering if the intrinsic rewards and satisfaction of being a doctor and helping people is worth giving up a job that pays pretty well and gives me enough free time to enjoy other hobbies and interests. I've heard so many doctors say that if they had to do it over again, they probably wouldn't choose mediciine. Can doctors with 3-15 years of experience give some opinions and advice based on their experience?