Is this bad?

[metalhead1023]

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Ok well I don't want everything about my life to be medicine, but I want a major part of it to be. What I mean is I defiantly do not want to work 100 hours a week practicing medicine. But, the only thing I can see my self doing it practicing medicine. So I think Emergency Medicine is where I need to end up. Because I work 9-6, 3 days a week and it drains me those days so if I could work 3, 12 hour days that would be ideal. But, I think I would enjoy Family Practice, Pediatrics, or Dermatology. Please don't tell me I'm to young to be thinking about anything after college, I believe this is viable to think about this because I will be doing it the rest of my life and I don't want to make a big mistake. So what I'm asking is, is it ok to have this outlook on my potential future career as a doctor?

 

[135892]

You're in high school??

 

[175961]

Ok well I don't want everything about my life to be medicine, but I want a major part of it to be. What I mean is I defiantly do not want to work 100 hours a week practicing medicine. But, the only thing I can see my self doing it practicing medicine. So I think Emergency Medicine is where I need to end up. Because I work 9-6, 3 days a week and it drains me those days so if I could work 3, 12 hour days that would be ideal. But, I think I would enjoy Family Practice, Pediatrics, or Dermatology. Please don't tell me I'm to young to be thinking about anything after college, I believe this is viable to think about this because I will be doing it the rest of my life and I don't want to make a big mistake. So what I'm asking is, is it ok to have this outlook on my potential future career as a doctor?

short answer: why not...its your future

Long answer I dont want to type out: someone will probably elaborate here

 

[87138]

Ok well I don't want everything about my life to be medicine, but I want a major part of it to be. What I mean is I defiantly do not want to work 100 hours a week practicing medicine. But, the only thing I can see my self doing it practicing medicine. So I think Emergency Medicine is where I need to end up. Because I work 9-6, 3 days a week and it drains me those days so if I could work 3, 12 hour days that would be ideal. But, I think I would enjoy Family Practice, Pediatrics, or Dermatology. Please don't tell me I'm to young to be thinking about anything after college, I believe this is viable to think about this because I will be doing it the rest of my life and I don't want to make a big mistake. So what I'm asking is, is it ok to have this outlook on my potential future career as a doctor?

Really?

 

[Perrotfish]

You will work those hundred hour weeks (or at least 80 hour weeks) during year three of medical school and during your residency (particularly the early part of residency). After that, yes, you should be able to expect quasi-reasonable hours, in more or less any specialty (there are, of course, lots of exceptions).

If you are 'drained' by a 20 hour a week job, good luck with this process. Do you mean it drains you when you do it in addition to school?

 

[Bradstein]

Sure, but you have to understand you're going to pay your dues along the way. Third year you won't have a choice to slack off, even if you can manage it the first two years.

The biggest problem with this is if it interferes with what you really love to do. What if you actually really enjoy a specialty that WOULD make you work those long hours? You shouldn't make decisions on your specialty solely on what will give you the lifestyle you want.

That being said, you can still probably do any specialty you want and have the lifestyle you want, you'll just be giving up some pay and probably the "advancement" of your career. So you probably won't be running a firm, or have an academic position.

 

[Haemulon]

Not to shock you too much right now, but you will probably be spending 70+ hours a week just in class and/or studying the first couple years of med school ... and after that it will get more time consuming, particularly with 36 hour shifts at a time, including call, for some clerkships. Come in at 5am, work all day, stay the night on call, and then work through post-call the next day until late-afternoon or evening sometimes.

Whatever your outlook is right now, it will likely change a lot over the next few years. You will get a better sense of what you want and what it is really like out in the world as you move forward. Don't sweat it right now.