Prestige of EM?

[BMW19]

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Hey Eme-RG-ency,

I saw that you are graduating DO school next year and want to go into EM. I will be starting DO school in the fall and also want EM. Can you give me some feedback on DO's going into this field? Residency slots for DO's? Do you need fantastic LOR's and board scores to get an Allo EM res? Any advice/feedback would be appreciated, I would like to get on the right path immediately when I start in August.

Thanks,

BMW-

Hey now, speak for yourself buddy! hehe

Actually, I do sort of understand the prestige question on some levels. For example if I decided to do Hair Replacement Therapy for the rest of my career, I think that would be a little less than prestigous than a doc treating sick patients. I think i would feel like I went through all of my schooling for nothing. But then again, its more of an internal struggle than an external "do people respect me?" question.

Sometimes the less prestigious positions are the more noble (peds is a good example, so is Mother Theresa), but then again, this isnt always the case (example, Telemarketing Sales... nothing noble or prestigious about that). Anyway, enough rambling... bottom line, do what you enjoy, do what is fullfilling for you, and do what pays off them damn student loans!

Me, I could care f***ing less about prestige. (To all you semantic experts: if I put an explicitive in there, can I say 'could' instead of 'couldn't'? haha, just wondering).

 

[BMW19]

I meant to PM you not post but anyway:

In the time it took you to write this you could have answered every one of my questions. If there is one thing I can't stand in this thread and forum it is everyone saying "do a search" or "research it". What is the point of this forum if you can't answer my question? I will have plenty of time to do tons of research in school, this forum is supposed to be a quick reference for med. students and premeds etc. That is the whole point of this freakin forum. You guys spend so much time making smart ass remarks when you can just answer the question. It really is ridiculous. Thanks anyway

Sticking with the theme of prestige... actually, I would not be the one to ask about this. I am transfering from LECOM to Havard Medical School in June. I will be working one-on-one for my 4th year with Peter Rosen, MD. I am recieving a graduate assistant for my fourth year of medical school which will pay for all of my tuition and I will recieve a stipend for the year. My fourth year at Havard will also count for my first year of residency at Beth Isreal Hospital, so I will only have 3 years left to complete my training there. 🙂

If only life were that easy, right? Actually I am with you kid, trying to find my way, hoping to land a good EM residency spot..... jumping through the hoops, learning more day by day, and trying to have a little fun along the way.

Best place to start your web search is the Emergency Medicine FAQ thread. If you have any other questions, do a search (top right hand corner of the main EM forum page). If you have any other questions that have not been answered at the point, start your own thread. But dont ask questions that have been asked over and over and over on here or the veterans (500+ post people) will burn you. Good luck and congrats on being accepted. Welcome to your new life.

 

[Jeff698]

You guys spend so much time making smart ass remarks when you can just answer the question. It really is ridiculous. Thanks anyway

I guess you can consider that a personality trait that most of us share. We have what you might call "intelligence-enhanced posteriors". That's actually one of the things I love about EM...I finally found a group of people that shares my sense of humor. It obviously isn't a good fit for everyone.

Take care,
Jeff

 

[kungfufishing]

That is the whole point of this freakin forum. You guys spend so much time making smart ass remarks when you can just answer the question. It really is ridiculous. Thanks anyway

Yes, you are correct. Smart ass remarks are the whole point of this freakin forum. While obvious to many, your clarification of this point is still appreciated.

 

[waterski232002]

Eme_RG_ency... Did you really delete your old post? That is so weak!

Originally Posted by Eme-RG-ency
Sticking with the theme of prestige... actually, I would not be the one to ask about this. I am transfering from LECOM to Havard Medical School in June. I will be working one-on-one for my 4th year with Peter Rosen, MD. I am recieving a graduate assistant for my fourth year of medical school which will pay for all of my tuition and I will recieve a stipend for the year. My fourth year at Havard will also count for my first year of residency at Beth Isreal Hospital, so I will only have 3 years left to complete my training there.

If only life were that easy, right? Actually I am with you kid, trying to find my way, hoping to land a good EM residency spot..... jumping through the hoops, learning more day by day, and trying to have a little fun along the way.

Best place to start your web search is the Emergency Medicine FAQ thread. If you have any other questions, do a search (top right hand corner of the main EM forum page). If you have any other questions that have not been answered at the point, start your own thread. But dont ask questions that have been asked over and over and over on here or the veterans (500+ post people) will burn you. Good luck and congrats on being accepted. Welcome to your new life.

 

[Eme-RG-ency]

Eme_RG_ency... Did you really delete your old post? That is so weak!

Weak??? Too bad your breath isn't!

Actually, I am not out to offend anyone on here. I PMed BM, apologized, took a more diplomatic approach, and took down the post as a consolation. I am not going to make enemies over a post. I would rather just remove it.

The idea that "we are not going to spoon feed you" runs thick in medicine. Its not just on this forum. People always get on here and say they dont like hearing "do a little research", as if its just this forum. ITS NOT!!!! Its medicine, get used to it folks. He or she will have to adjust to that fact or be extremely hated in the near future. Some people are just not ready to learn this lesson yet.

To keep the peace, I deferred the argument. It doesnt take a genius to know that I could have unloaded. However, there is no pride in retaliating on someone so green. I didnt feel like being an ass about it.

 

[waterski232002]

Maybe you should think before you post next time... Judging by your comments above you've got a little temper problem. Chill out bud!

 

[Eme-RG-ency]

Maybe you should think before you post next time... Judging by your comments above you've got a little temper problem. Chill out bud!

Let me think about...hmmm... temper problem... no, nope, not really, not at all actually. Mostly just like to clown around. From now on, no more jokes coming from me. mmm.... well.... until tomorrow.

 

[Firebird]

just because you give time and money to something does not mean people should respect you. any intelligent person could've chosen to become a doctor (regardless of specialty).

Tell that to the unmotivated genious. Medicine requires intelligence and resolve. You can't be intelligent and not study and still become a doctor.

Anyway, just a comment. While prestige isn't a great big factor for me, I actually DON'T like the idea of being the low guy on the medical totem pole. If I do what it takes to become a physician, I don't want to be the physician that is always the last one picked for kickball.

 

[bartleby]

If you take more than a cursory look around in the field of medicine, you might appreciate the fact that it bears more than a cursory resemblance to a sandbox...everybody gets sand kicked in their face sooner or later. The more energy you devote to taking _good care of your patients_ and the less you devote to what everybody else thinks about you the happier you're gonna be as a doc.

And one more thing... there's always gonna be somebody higher on the "totem pole" than you. If you're a pediatric cardiologist, there's going to be some pediatric electrophysiologist who thinks you're just another clueless schmuck. Get over it.

Anyway, just a comment. While prestige isn't a great big factor for me, I actually DON'T like the idea of being the low guy on the medical totem pole. If I do what it takes to become a physician, I don't want to be the physician that is always the last one picked for kickball.

 

[Febrifuge]

Tell that to the unmotivated genious. Medicine requires intelligence and resolve. You can't be intelligent and not study and still become a doctor.

Awwwww, crap.

 

[jannakins]

Feb,
someone might have already asked this, but who is the lady on your avatar?
j'kins

 

[NinerNiner999]

Fatty McFattypants.

 

[waterski232002]

Anyway, just a comment. While prestige isn't a great big factor for me, I actually DON'T like the idea of being the low guy on the medical totem pole. If I do what it takes to become a physician, I don't want to be the physician that is always the last one picked for kickball.

It also depends on WHERE you want to be respected... If you want to be the most respected person in the hospital and be the "high-man" on the totem pole, than think about peds CT surgery. Just realize that this will mean you will have to sacrifice the next 8 yrs of your life in residency and fellowship, your marriage will suffer (if you ever even marry), you will never know your kids intimately, you will never have time to vacation, and you will never have friends outside the hospital. Your life will become your work.

As for me... I care about my life outside the hospital. I want to enjoy my 20's and 30's. I want to go to the bar with my friends, take vacations in hawaii and italy, have a fantastic wife that I can spend time with, and take my kids to all their sporting events. I care much more about seeing my family and being there for my real friends, than I care about what some CNA or attending phsyician thinks of me at the hospital.

IMO, that's why many surgeons are such a$$holes... it's b/c they don't have a life outside of the hospital so the hospital has BECOME their entire life! I think that's a ****ty way to live. The fact that EM physicians are some of the most content and well rounded people really attracted me to the field.

To each his own...

 

[Firebird]

And one more thing... there's always gonna be somebody higher on the "totem pole" than you. If you're a pediatric cardiologist, there's going to be some pediatric electrophysiologist who thinks you're just another clueless schmuck. Get over it.

A little bit of a harsh response, maybe? Let me restate what I was saying. I am not all that interested in prestige. But what I DID say, was that I didn't really think that I wanted to be dead last in the "hierarchy" of medicine. Every time I meet a new doctor, I don't want them to say, "Oh you're a ---ologist? Well I'm sorry!"

That is very different than being a pediatric cardiologist VS a pediatric electrophysiologist.

And yes, I do want a life outside of the hospital. That is one reason I am interested in EM. Actually, I am getting married this summer, and so I definitely want to have time to spend with her.

 

[Febrifuge]

Feb,
someone might have already asked this, but who is the lady on your avatar?
j'kins

j'kins! Hi. I have two answers for that. One is the truth: I did a Google Image search for "pre-med" and got her. She's from some school's Web page, and I re-sized the image. The other answer is completely bogus but more fun: I am Quinn's hot young cousin from the North. 😛

 

[Febrifuge]

... I care about my life outside the hospital. I want to enjoy my 20's and 30's. I want to go to the bar with my friends...

Hey, I just got back from drinking with EM residents! Wahooooo!

Wait. Maybe this is the part when I should stop posting on SDN, for now...

 

[Apollyon]

j'kins! Hi. I have two answers for that. One is the truth: I did a Google Image search for "pre-med" and got her. She's from some school's Web page, and I re-sized the image. The other answer is completely bogus but more fun: I am Quinn's hot young cousin from the North. 😛

Hmm...when I searched for "pre-med" on Google images...

(that's the user ATPase, if anyone knows her)

and

Eh,