I think you're forgetting the operating costs of a primary care doctor's clinic. The doc still needs to pay clinic bills, employees, etc....let's not even talk about possible litigation issues. However, a PharmD pockets his/her salary with the exception, of course, of what you give to Uncle Sam
Actually, the salary comparison is valid. The physician's salary is AFTER the operating cost and bills are paid. The money generated from a clinic would not be considered 'salary' but revenue. The physician salary is the pre-tax, take home pay AFTER expenses (bills, employee salary, malpractice etc) are paid out.
There was a time when I (briefly) thought about pharmacy, mostly b/c there was a pharm school where I lived and my parents knew a lot of friends' kids who went to it.
The things that turned me off from it:
1. The lack of increase in pay for pharmacists. A pharmacist could work for 20 years and get paid the same as someone right out of school. I didn't really like that idea, makes me feel I'm expendable.
2. Lack of options for working conditions. Most pharmacists work for large pharm companies now, few own their own drugstores. This means that you do not control your own hours and you could be forced to work overtime. Not much autonomy in that. At least, as a doctor, there is more flexiblity in work conditions (work in hospital, group practice etc), and there is a higher chance of controlling your own hours after you reach a certain point in your career.
Also, pharmacists don't always work 40 hours. They may be 'asked' to work overtime (with overtime pay, of course) but the 40 hour work week isn't set in stone. It depends on the employer. It's like any job, your boss may ask you to come in during crunch time or when they decide to layoff people and need you to cover for the manpower shortage.
3. The most clinically significant jobs also pays the least. Hospital pharmacists are paid the least as compared to retail pharmacist. I wanted to do more clinical work. Medicine is a better option in that regard.
4. Boring job to me. Medicine offers more variety.
The pros of pharmacy:
1. Shorter, no residency required.
2. Shift work. No on call (although you may have to work odd hours and weekends, but it's planned).
3. Health care job without the ick factor. I know some kids like that. They can play doctor without having to deal with bodily fluid.
Needless to say, it was a quick decision to not do pharmacy for me. However, my family knows families who pushed their kids to do pharmacy and I haven't heard any complaints yet.
However, this is a list that I made which was relevant to what I want in my life. The only way to know which career is best is to ask people who do this sort of thing. Shadow a pharmacy and then a doctor. See which lifestyle/job appeals to you.
