Medicine vs Dentistry

[inspiration]

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For those who ever thought about medicine and became dentists, I would like to get some feedback about some reasons for choosing dentistry instead of Medicine?

Could you tell me some of the pros and cons of the dentistry profession?

 

[lgreen_aci]

You should talk with medical doctors about this in addition to talking to dentists. You can't really expect a dentist to tell you what it is like to be a medical doctor, or a medical doctor to tell you what it is like to be a dentist.

I thought about being a med doc too, but after talking with a surgeon a few times, I decided it wasn't for me. I always liked dentistry though, and so decided to pursue that a bit further too. Talked to a few dentists and dental specialists, job shadowed, and now I am feeling pretty good about going into dentistry.

Both professions have pros and cons, you just have to decide which will work better for you.

And of course there is a fundamental quesiton you must answer: Would you rather stick your hand in someones mouth, or up their anus? Welcome to dentistry. (just kidding)

I was going to tell you some of the pros or cons, but I think I might be a bit biased to denistry. Spend time w/ a doc, ask questions, spend time with a dent, ask questions. Think about which you will actually be able to do and be happy doing given your skills and abilitities, given the pros and cons of each.

 

[OMFSCardsFan]

For those who ever thought about medicine and became dentists, I would like to get some feedback about some reasons for choosing dentistry instead of Medicine?

Could you tell me some of the pros and cons of the dentistry profession?

It would be easier to list the reasons for choosing medicine over dentistry...

1. Prestige

Ok, there's my list...

To be honest, when your profession (a huge portion of your life) is involved, you need to do more research than asking people what they think the pros and cons are. Everyone finds they're own reasons why they think one is more suitable for them than the other. You will get completely opposite answers to this question here as opposed to in a medicine forum. It doesn't mean that one is better than the other, it just means that one is better for a certain person than the other. You're going to find, if you decide dentistry is for you, completely different reasons than I did for why dentistry is right for me. Asking the question here may get you started, but the majority of the information that people will post, including mine, is completely biased based on personal preferences which may not be similar to your own.

 

[eddo]

It would be easier to list the reasons for choosing medicine over dentistry...

1. Prestige

Ok, there's my list...

To be honest, when your profession (a huge portion of your life) is involved, you need to do more research than asking people what they think the pros and cons are. Everyone finds they're own reasons why they think one is more suitable for them than the other. You will get completely opposite answers to this question here as opposed to in a medicine forum. It doesn't mean that one is better than the other, it just means that one is better for a certain person than the other. You're going to find, if you decide dentistry is for you, completely different reasons than I did for why dentistry is right for me. Asking the question here may get you started, but the majority of the information that people will post, including mine, is completely biased based on personal preferences which may not be similar to your own.

Heya,

I will be graduating from medical school this summer and my sister is currently in dental school. If you think medicine is about prestige....you apparently don't know many doctors personally or the hardships they endure everyday, even as full fledged attendings.

Before you embark on this journey to choose between dentistry and medicine, why don't you go talk to a few doctors and dentists like the previous posts have mentioned....go shadow for a few days perhaps. However, I wouldn't make the mistake of what another post above mentioned in terms of how they decided on dentistry vs medicine. Namely that he talked to a 'SURGEON' and decided that it was not for him. I doubt he simply talked to one surgeon one day and made a decision. IF that was the case, then he/she didn't get a very good view of the profession.

Medicine involves a lot more than surgery. There are disciplines that span the entire range of every organ system specifically and every point of care.

If you are looking for prestige, I don't think either field is for you. What is prestigious about dealing with people's mouths and teeths everyday or examining people's blood and urine or explaining to a patient that they have a disease and you are going to have to place them on meds or will have to perform surgery on them?

What people going into all health fields should have in common is an appreciation of the human being, their relationships, their experiences and what you can do to help/heal them when they have something go wrong within them. It's an earnest to improve a person's quality of life, no matter how profound or superficial it may be. If this isn't your purpose, you'll find yourself in a less than glamorous place and time (drudging through every nuclei of the brainstem for an anatomy exam, admitting a patient at 3am who has multiple medical issues, working on the mouth of a patient who has halitosis, multiple rotten teeth, and oral ulcers because he has no home to go and brush his teeth) wishing you were doing something else because you could care less about the person you will/are treating. If you like to help people genuinely, then welcome to the health professions. Otherwise look elsewhere.

Aside from talking to people and volunteering/shadowing, why don't you go to a medical bookstore and a dental bookstore (I don't know if there are separate bookstores entirely devoted to dentistry) and look over some books. Or perhaps go to the local dental/medical library of the school nearby and scan the books. Talk to the students while you are at it. However, you look at it....the health professions in general are self-learning and lifelong learning professions where YOU will have to seek out info on your own to keep up to date with all the changes occurring at such rapid rates. Go find out for yourself whether healthcare is for you. If so, then explore your options.

You don't need to get a degree of 'DOCTOR' to treat people these days either. You can work in healthcare as a PA, NP, dental assistant, tech, etc...and they are all equally important. So....FIGURE YOURSELF OUT!

Hope it wasn't too heavy for anyone. Bottom line is MAKE AN INFORMED DECISION. 👍

And if anyone has questions for me about medicne, just PM me. Again, I am JUST a medical student now...so don't expect me to give you insight like an experienced physician.

All I can say about the dental profession is I admire what you all do....watching my sister read about all the different dental materials and spend seemingly endless hours in the lab doing mounts/preps is exhausting. And that's just the little I've seen of her life in dental school....I can't begin to imagine. Power to you all!

 

[aphistis]

Good posts. 👍

 

[WestCoast]

Another important thing is, in dentistry, whether you like it or not, you'll be using your hands everyday, starting from day 1. If you seriously doubt your hand skills and prefer not to touch patients, dentistry is definitely not the way to go.

 

[captaintripps]

Heya,

I will be graduating from medical school this summer and my sister is currently in dental school. If you think medicine is about prestige....you apparently don't know many doctors personally or the hardships they endure everyday, even as full fledged attendings.

Before you embark on this journey to choose between dentistry and medicine, why don't you go talk to a few doctors and dentists like the previous posts have mentioned....go shadow for a few days perhaps. However, I wouldn't make the mistake of what another post above mentioned in terms of how they decided on dentistry vs medicine. Namely that he talked to a 'SURGEON' and decided that it was not for him. I doubt he simply talked to one surgeon one day and made a decision. IF that was the case, then he/she didn't get a very good view of the profession.

Medicine involves a lot more than surgery. There are disciplines that span the entire range of every organ system specifically and every point of care.

If you are looking for prestige, I don't think either field is for you. What is prestigious about dealing with people's mouths and teeths everyday or examining people's blood and urine or explaining to a patient that they have a disease and you are going to have to place them on meds or will have to perform surgery on them?

What people going into all health fields should have in common is an appreciation of the human being, their relationships, their experiences and what you can do to help/heal them when they have something go wrong within them. It's an earnest to improve a person's quality of life, no matter how profound or superficial it may be. If this isn't your purpose, you'll find yourself in a less than glamorous place and time (drudging through every nuclei of the brainstem for an anatomy exam, admitting a patient at 3am who has multiple medical issues, working on the mouth of a patient who has halitosis, multiple rotten teeth, and oral ulcers because he has no home to go and brush his teeth) wishing you were doing something else because you could care less about the person you will/are treating. If you like to help people genuinely, then welcome to the health professions. Otherwise look elsewhere.

Aside from talking to people and volunteering/shadowing, why don't you go to a medical bookstore and a dental bookstore (I don't know if there are separate bookstores entirely devoted to dentistry) and look over some books. Or perhaps go to the local dental/medical library of the school nearby and scan the books. Talk to the students while you are at it. However, you look at it....the health professions in general are self-learning and lifelong learning professions where YOU will have to seek out info on your own to keep up to date with all the changes occurring at such rapid rates. Go find out for yourself whether healthcare is for you. If so, then explore your options.

You don't need to get a degree of 'DOCTOR' to treat people these days either. You can work in healthcare as a PA, NP, dental assistant, tech, etc...and they are all equally important. So....FIGURE YOURSELF OUT!

Hope it wasn't too heavy for anyone. Bottom line is MAKE AN INFORMED DECISION. 👍

And if anyone has questions for me about medicne, just PM me. Again, I am JUST a medical student now...so don't expect me to give you insight like an experienced physician.

All I can say about the dental profession is I admire what you all do....watching my sister read about all the different dental materials and spend seemingly endless hours in the lab doing mounts/preps is exhausting. And that's just the little I've seen of her life in dental school....I can't begin to imagine. Power to you all!

Thanks for your objective and informative post.

 

[OMFSCardsFan]

If you think medicine is about prestige....you apparently don't know many doctors personally or the hardships they endure everyday, even as full fledged attendings.

I DO know all the hardships involved. That's why I was kidding that all you get out of it is prestige. Obviously, there's more to it than that, which is why I followed up a more serious statement. I thought the rest of your post was right on.

 

[rocknightmare]

great post... i have to add when comparing the fields do not talk to the specilize people at first they won't give you the true meaning o the field nor should you compare specilized fields.. compare their general aspects first then go into the speicilized aspects.. gotta be apples to apples

 

[ItsGavinC]

Another important thing is, in dentistry, whether you like it or not, you'll be using your hands everyday, starting from day 1. If you seriously doubt your hand skills and prefer not to touch patients, dentistry is definitely not the way to go.

Amen to that.

 

[mike3kgt]

And of course there is a fundamental quesiton you must answer: Would you rather stick your hand in someones mouth, or up their anus? Welcome to dentistry. (just kidding)

You joke! My sister is a proctologist. It kinda worked like that for me

-Mike

 

[cys19]

And of course there is a fundamental quesiton you must answer: Would you rather stick your hand in someones mouth, or up their anus? Welcome to dentistry. (just kidding)

Both 🙂

 

[albany11]

medicine is much more respected by the public

physician charge for their schooling and knowledge
example

a physical ( family or GEneral)will earn $180
a shot of tetanus $150
biopsy- $220
5 minute visit- $100


dentist exam- $40-55
extraction -$80-$100 for GP with overhead 50-70%


I sometimes wonder why most dentist don't charge for their knowledge and skill level etc
dentist are not respected at all..2nd class citizen to physician,,it's the truth
you'll see this when you start associating in private practice or GPR
I thing PAs are more respect. Based on my experience
think about this

 

[fightingspirit]

For those who ever thought about medicine and became dentists, I would like to get some feedback about some reasons for choosing dentistry instead of Medicine?

Could you tell me some of the pros and cons of the dentistry profession?

when i considered both professions in terms of the actual work, hand skills, hours, financial compensation, autonomy, patient contact, variability, and personnal reward, i just realized that while medicine would give me back less than what it would have taken away from me over the years, dentistry would do the opposite: it would give me back at least as much, if not more. that was the way i thought of it

 

[aphistis]

medicine is much more respected by the public

physician charge for their schooling and knowledge
example

a physical ( family or GEneral)will earn $180
a shot of tetanus $150
biopsy- $220
5 minute visit- $100


dentist exam- $40-55
extraction -$80-$100 for GP with overhead 50-70%


I sometimes wonder why most dentist don't charge for their knowledge and skill level etc
dentist are not respected at all..2nd class citizen to physician,,it's the truth
you'll see this when you start associating in private practice or GPR
I thing PAs are more respect. Based on my experience
think about this

You seem to have a real chip on your shoulder against dentistry.

The average owner dentist earns (using fairly dated ADA statistics) around $175,000 a year on a 36-hour work week. Depending on how you break down the work schedule, that works out to a little over $100 every hour that dentist spends in the office. Whether you think they're charging for "knowledge and skill level" or not, they're definitely charging for something.

Also, pet peeve: people making statements of 100% opinion, and then appending "it's the truth" at the end like that somehow makes it true. 🙄

 

[Midoc]

...

Also, pet peeve: people making statements of 100% opinion, and then appending "it's the truth" at the end like that somehow makes it true. 🙄

but think about it! 😀

 

[Cold Front]

medicine is much more respected by the public

physician charge for their schooling and knowledge
example

a physical ( family or GEneral)will earn $180
a shot of tetanus $150
biopsy- $220
5 minute visit- $100


dentist exam- $40-55
extraction -$80-$100 for GP with overhead 50-70%


I sometimes wonder why most dentist don't charge for their knowledge and skill level etc
dentist are not respected at all..2nd class citizen to physician,,it's the truth
you'll see this when you start associating in private practice or GPR
I thing PAs are more respect. Based on my experience
think about this

you can argue the pros and cons for both professions all day, it will come down to "business vs. prestige".... and I don't think physicians will do as much maintenance as dentists do on oral health, on any other parts of the body.

I also think it's offensive to consider dentists as 2nd class to physicians, they are not even on the same league...

 

[toofache32]

Also, pet peeve: people making statements of 100% opinion, and then appending "it's the truth" at the end like that somehow makes it true. 🙄

 

[WonderY]

medicine is much more respected by the public

physician charge for their schooling and knowledge
example

a physical ( family or GEneral)will earn $180
a shot of tetanus $150
biopsy- $220
5 minute visit- $100


dentist exam- $40-55
extraction -$80-$100 for GP with overhead 50-70%


I sometimes wonder why most dentist don't charge for their knowledge and skill level etc
dentist are not respected at all..2nd class citizen to physician,,it's the truth
you'll see this when you start associating in private practice or GPR
I thing PAs are more respect. Based on my experience
think about this

What's the overhead for extracting a tooth?

 

[12YearOldKid]

What's the overhead for extracting a tooth?

To the layperson who doesn't know what it takes to keep a dental office running it seems like there wouldn't be any overhead at all for an extraction.

But the reality is that it costs ~$300 to keep the average dental office running whether there is a patient in the chair or not. If you are extracting 2 teeth in an hour and doing no other procedures it seems like you have just made $200 - but in reality you have just paid $100 of your own money for the privilege of extracting those 2 teeth. 😱

Add in an emergency exam and 2 PAs and you come close to breaking even... maybe even making a small profit. But you did NOT make anywhere close to $200 on those extractions. 😀

 

[WildcatDMD]

physician charge for their schooling and knowledge
example

a physical ( family or GEneral)will earn $180
a shot of tetanus $150
biopsy- $220
5 minute visit- $100


dentist exam- $40-55
extraction -$80-$100 for GP with overhead 50-70%


I sometimes wonder why most dentist don't charge for their knowledge and skill level etc

Those sound like the fees at a community health center dental clinic. Dentists very often charge just for their time. A consultation for involved treatment plans is often billed. Don't worry, we do ok for ourselves. 👍

 

[WonderY]

To the layperson who doesn't know what it takes to keep a dental office running it seems like there wouldn't be any overhead at all for an extraction.

But the reality is that it costs ~$300 to keep the average dental office running whether there is a patient in the chair or not. If you are extracting 2 teeth in an hour and doing no other procedures it seems like you have just made $200 - but in reality you have just paid $100 of your own money for the privilege of extracting those 2 teeth. 😱

Add in an emergency exam and 2 PAs and you come close to breaking even... maybe even making a small profit. But you did NOT make anywhere close to $200 on those extractions. 😀

Why does it cost $300 to keep the office running every hour? Chairs? Computers? sterilization? Sorry, I am truly curious!

But then doesn't that come with every private practice?! Family doctors may not need expensive chairs, but my bro in law is a opthalmologist, and he had to buy his own equipment, have his own nurses, and receptionist. They still make more than family doctors by a mile.

 

[12YearOldKid]

medicine is much more respected by the public

physician charge for their schooling and knowledge
example

a physical ( family or GEneral)will earn $180
a shot of tetanus $150
biopsy- $220
5 minute visit- $100


dentist exam- $40-55
extraction -$80-$100 for GP with overhead 50-70%


I sometimes wonder why most dentist don't charge for their knowledge and skill level etc
dentist are not respected at all..2nd class citizen to physician,,it's the truth
you'll see this when you start associating in private practice or GPR
I thing PAs are more respect. Based on my experience
think about this

I don't have a problem at all with dentistry being such a bargain. In fact, I am proud that our profession can provide services to the public so efficiently and affordably.

Patients think you are overcharging even when you are giving it away at school fees. But dentistry really is a bargain. Think what a filling would cost if dentistry was based on the medical model.

Exam - $150

Radiologist's interp of films - $150

Anesthesia guy comes in to give the nerve block - $200

Doctor's fee for 1/2 hour procedure - $400 at least

Then you get a bill from the company that owns the facilities for 1 hour of operatory time - $700 at least


$1500 for a filling versus $150


Yes, I am pulling numbers out of the air, but if you think I am exaggerating look at your bill next time you get a minor surgical procedure done. My son's circumcision took about 15 minutes and cost just a little under $2500. The hospital charged $900 for an hour of "OR time" which was really just clearing off a counter in the back of the nursery. The MD charged ~$900 for the procedure. And there were a couple hundred dollars worth of other miscellaneous charges like guaze and ointment. 😱

 

[howui3]

Why does it cost $300 to keep the office running every hour? Chairs? Computers? sterilization? Sorry, I am truly curious!

But then doesn't that come with every private practice?! Family doctors may not need expensive chairs, but my bro in law is a opthalmologist, and he had to buy his own equipment, have his own nurses, and receptionist. They still make more than family doctors by a mile.

i'm not even in dental school, but this seems OBVIOUS.

RENT! (office space, utilities)
EMPLOYEES (pay, healthcare, benefits)
INSTRUMENTS
DENTAL SUPPLIES
INSURANCE
etc.

 

[WonderY]

i'm not even in dental school, but this seems OBVIOUS.

RENT! (office space, utilities)
EMPLOYEES (pay, healthcare, benefits)
INSTRUMENTS
DENTAL SUPPLIES
INSURANCE
etc.

But the same goes for medical offices. Why is that we have soo much more overhead than them? I can understand if we have more, but not triple or quadruple their overhead.

 

[superchris147]

But the same goes for medical offices. Why is that we have soo much more overhead than them? I can understand if we have more, but not triple or quadruple their overhead.

because dentists have a lot more perishable materials. i don't know if you are in dental school or not but do you know how much a single pvs impression can cost? that stuff isn't cheap, especially when you are a first year and it takes you a couple times to get it 🙁 . labwork also contributes to overhead. not to mention a lot of medical offices are hospital based and the hospital pays for some or all of their overhead. if you really want to get scared about overhead go into a prosthedontist's lab.

 

[TucsonDDS]

medicine is much more respected by the public

physician charge for their schooling and knowledge
example

a physical ( family or GEneral)will earn $180
a shot of tetanus $150
biopsy- $220
5 minute visit- $100


dentist exam- $40-55
extraction -$80-$100 for GP with overhead 50-70%


I sometimes wonder why most dentist don't charge for their knowledge and skill level etc
dentist are not respected at all..2nd class citizen to physician,,it's the truth
you'll see this when you start associating in private practice or GPR
I thing PAs are more respect. Based on my experience
think about this

That may be what gets billed but it sure as heck isn't what they get reimbursed. Probably closer to $25 for a physical, 15 for a tetanus shot and 43 for a bx.

 

[Sprgrover]

...dentist are not respected at all..2nd class citizen to physician,,it's the truth
you'll see this when you start associating in private practice or GPR
I thing PAs are more respect. Based on my experience
think about this

Opinion gift wrapped as fact. Gotta love it. Anytime someone places a premium on other's opinions about his/herself and bases major life decisions on such hollow approval I seriously question their maturity. I'll lightly ponder this second class citizen crap during my evenings and free weekends.

 

[Taurus]

How difficult would it be for someone to transfer from medical to dental school? I am completing my first year of med school. While I've done really well (probably top 20 of students), the long years ahead of me is really starting to really bother me. Don't get me wrong, I really like medicine and patient care. But the hours, no time for family, and bs are getting to me. I'm somewhat older (near 30) and I like the benefits of dentistry that other posters have mentioned. I go to a university that has both medical and dental schools.

 

[toofache32]

How difficult would it be for someone to transfer from medical to dental school? I am completing my first year of med school. While I've done really well (probably top 20 of students), the long years ahead of me is really starting to really bother me. Don't get me wrong, I really like medicine and patient care. But the hours, no time for family, and bs are getting to me. I'm somewhat older (near 30) and I like the benefits of dentistry that other posters have mentioned. I go to a university that has both medical and dental schools.

I doubt there's a way to skip the first year of dental school since you haven't had any of the dental courses . Maybe they could give you credit for the sciences (if you're at the same instiution), but I'm not sure they would make too much effort while there are plenty of "traditional" students lining up for the spots without issues.

But ask them anyway.

 

[The TX OMS]

How difficult would it be for someone to transfer from medical to dental school? I am completing my first year of med school. While I've done really well (probably top 20 of students), the long years ahead of me is really starting to really bother me. Don't get me wrong, I really like medicine and patient care. But the hours, no time for family, and bs are getting to me. I'm somewhat older (near 30) and I like the benefits of dentistry that other posters have mentioned. I go to a university that has both medical and dental schools.

I agree with Toofache--you should at least get credit for basic science. You'll have to make up the dental related courses, though. Unless you're at Harvard, USCSF, or BU, in which case you will simply have to learn to walk with your chest puffed out.

Also, I think the public tends to convey more prestige on a physician than a dentist, fair or not. Yeah, we're both respected, but I think the physicians edge out dentists in this catagory.

 

[impuny]

You'll have to make up the dental related courses, though. Unless you're at Harvard, USCSF, or BU, in which case you will simply have to learn to walk with your chest puffed out.
QUOTE]

Huh! I don't quite get the comment about BU and the puffiness of the chest thing. Care to elaborate?

 

[The TX OMS]

You'll have to make up the dental related courses, though. Unless you're at Harvard, USCSF, or BU, in which case you will simply have to learn to walk with your chest puffed out.
QUOTE]

Huh! I don't quite get the comment about BU and the puffiness of the chest thing. Care to elaborate?

Yes. It means that I don't like "upper tier" dental schools and I'm not impressed with many of their graduates. Was that elaborate enough?

 

[ChadC]

Also, I think the public tends to convey more prestige on a physician than a dentist, fair or not. Yeah, we're both respected, but I think the physicians edge out dentists in this catagory.

I guess it all comes down to how that person present themselves to their patients. That's just IMHO

 

[peeks]

How difficult would it be for someone to transfer from medical to dental school? I am completing my first year of med school. While I've done really well (probably top 20 of students), the long years ahead of me is really starting to really bother me. Don't get me wrong, I really like medicine and patient care. But the hours, no time for family, and bs are getting to me. I'm somewhat older (near 30) and I like the benefits of dentistry that other posters have mentioned. I go to a university that has both medical and dental schools.

Just along the lines of Taurus' question. I'm currently a first year medical student. I have had second thoughts about medical school only 4 months into the program. I have always considered dentistry but fell vicitm to the stereotype that medicine would be a more fulfulling profession. After weighing out the pros and cons, I feel as though dentistry (ultimately orthodontics) is better suited to my personality (short-term patient care, more hands-on) and the lifestyle I'd like to have (fewer on-call shifts during dentistry training, already in a specialized field of health care so that would be one less decision to make, working 9-5 after graduation [although I'm sure starting up a practice involves a larger time commitment]). I've heard the first two years of dentistry is very similar to medicine i.e. heavy amounts of material to learn, countless hours of studying. With that said, I do feel as though dentistry is still a better choice for me.

My question is if there's anyone out there who's met a classmate in dental school that's switched from medicine to dentistry. If so, would you care to share your experience. Also, How did you handle questions pertaining to switching careers in interviews.

Thanks.

 

[Ankylosed]

(short-term patient care, more hands-on)

Ha ha, maybe you would be better suited going to orthodontic tech school

 

[Ankylosed]

Just along the lines of Taurus' question. I'm also 30 and currently a first year medical student. I have had second thoughts about medical school only 4 months into the program. I have always considered dentistry but fell vicitm to the stereotype that medicine would be a more fulfulling profession. After weighing out the pros and cons, I feel as though dentistry (ultimately orthodontics) is better suited to my personality (short-term patient care, more hands-on) and the lifestyle I'd like to have (fewer on-call shifts during dentistry training, already in a specialized field of health care so that would be one less decision to make, working 9-5 after graduation [although I'm sure starting up a practice involves a larger time commitment]). I've heard the first two years of dentistry is very similar to medicine i.e. heavy amounts of material to learn, countless hours of studying. With that said, I do feel as though dentistry is still a better choice for me.

My question is if there's anyone out there who's met a classmate in dental school that's switched from medicine to dentistry. If so, would you care to share your experience. Also, How did you handle questions pertaining to switching careers in interviews.

Thanks.

A wise OMFS once told me while during an orthognathic case while "rewiring" an orthodontic appliance, "this is what an orthodontist does all day, wait I mean an orthodontist assistant, wait you want to do this?" ha ha

 

[klfb80]

Anus cause it's warm and tight...and won't have to worry about having my hand bitten. 😀

interesting first post