moonlighting in pmr

[oreosandsake]

I confess I don't have a lot of understanding of the myriad of rules regarding this, and something tells me it can be different depending on state, program, etc etc

but something someone told me today irked me.


when I told a Psychiatry resident that I was interested in PM&R, she shared with me some reasons why pm&r is not "the best" of fields to enter.

I won't share all of her reasons here, but according to her and the opinion of her friend who is a pgy4 physiatrist, two reasons not to go into physiatry are the poor job outlook, and that PM&R residents are not allowed to moonlight. (these seem to stick out, since the other reasons I did not care much for)

I had heard from others that the job outlook can be challenging depending on geography, but I've never heard that pm&r residents cannot moonlight.

is this true? are there limitations on what fields can moonlight?

sorry if this is a naive question.

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[myrandom2003]

from my understanding, moonlighting counts in the 80 hour work week rule, so some programs would rather not take the chance. Also, it is my understanding that in some states, a resident must have one day in seven off, not an average of 4 days off in 30 like in others and moonlighting also is factored into that.

At least at my hospital, moonlighting is up to the discretion of the program directors.

I have actually heard that the job market is good for us. Maybe not as good in the saturated markets of big cities, but otherwise i dont know any unemployed physiatrists.

 

[lobelsteve]

Job outlook is still pretty bright- but I do pain.
I made more moonlighting in residency than I did in residency.
The 80 hr rule was not yet in effect, but my PM&R program was a 30-35 hour per week job.

We don't need to bash pyschiatry, even if a misinformed resident fed you bad info second hand. The issues they face are much more dicey than us (from a career standpoint).

 

[Ludicolo]

Your ability to moonlight ultimately depends on the residency program and you. Has nothing to do with one’s chosen specialty.

Agree – don’t bash psych. We need them.

 

[oreosandsake]

Your ability to moonlight ultimately depends on the residency program and you. Has nothing to do with one's chosen specialty.

Agree – don't bash psych. We need them.

thanks for the clarifications everyone.

For clarification, I wasn't bashing psychiatry at all. The added information was to make clear that I was not hearing this from a physiatry resident.

=)

 

[PMR 4 MSK]

One opportunity for PM&R residents is moonlighting with insurance companies reviewing disability claims - its right up our ally. Several of my residency class mates did this.

Probably the biggest discrepency b/w programs is what your program will allow you to do - they usually have to give permission for you to moonlight.

Job outlike is fine - look online and in the back of the red journal. Look at it this way - you've chosen a small field, there are not as many job opportunites as primary care, but there is far less competition. I don't know any unemployed physiatrists, and most who end up with jobs they aren't happy with it's because they chose locale over opportunity.

Can you get a 100% oupt, no call job in your favorite city right out of residency? Maybe not, you might need to cut your teeth somewhere for a while before you get your ideal job.

 

[The JockDoc]

I think there's more people misinformed about pm&r than any other field. I have also found similar negative sentiment when i talk to physicians about physiatry. However, usually those that hold such an opinion also don't know very much about physiatry or what it means.

With many medical schools not even having pmr residencies to expose their students to, there are a lot of docs who just dont know enough to make an informed opinion of pmr. But everyone has an opinion - well reasoned or not - and you will run into people like this psychiatrist who seems to be prejudiced against physiatry.

In a lot of ways it feels like asking fans of the big american sports (football, baseball,etc) about what they think of the big european sports, say cycling or soccer. Chances are, you'll find plenty of people here who dont have much respect for cyclists or soccer players, but thats mostly because those sports just aren't big in the US. If you ask europeans about the same sports on the other hand, it will be the opposite story.

Not everyone knows enough about physiatry to make a well formed opinion on it, and, you need to assess who you're getting your information from more than in any other specialty.

 

[Xardas]

Not being allowed to moonlight is a weak reason to enter/not enter a field from a general point of view.

Going into what you want to do is a better reason.

If you have a state license you can do lots of locums type stuff.

There are plenty of opportunities out there, its up to you to find them.

As for disability stuff.. I'd personally avoid it if I were a resident again. You're not as savvy as you are when you become an attending... do something wrong and you can make your life more difficult.

 

[ampaphb]

If you consider moonlighting, in addition to getting your program's permission, you need to make certain whether your malpractice insurance extends outside of your duties as a resident, and in non-affiliated facilities

 

[drusso]

I used to moonlight in a federal medical prison...a bunch of old stroked out mafia guys and old paras and quads dying of liver failure and hepatitis...it was actually a great experience for a rehab doc...

 

[lobelsteve]

I used to moonlight in a federal medical prison...a bunch of old stroked out mafia guys and old paras and quads dying of liver failure and hepatitis...it was actually a great experience for a rehab doc...

You didnt' do it for the money, you did it for the love.









































The gay prison love.

 

[drusso]

You didnt' do it for the money, you did it for the love.









































The gay prison love.

They don't call it soap on a roap for a reason...