Question from The New Physician magazine...

[Pete T]

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I'm working on a story for The New Physician magazine about anesthesiology as a career choice. The magazine is read primarily by medical students, so I'd like to talk to a couple residents about their general experiences in a competitive field, why they chose it, et cetera.

If you wouldn't mind speaking to me, give me a call at 703 620 6600 x212 or e-mail me at [email protected].

Thanks in advance for your help. -P

 

[huron]

I'm working on a story for The New Physician magazine about anesthesiology as a career choice. The magazine is read primarily by medical students, so I'd like to talk to a couple residents about their general experiences in a competitive field, why they chose it, et cetera.

If you wouldn't mind speaking to me, give me a call at 703 620 6600 x212 or e-mail me at [email protected].

Thanks in advance for your help. -P

I am bored with Anesthesia it is the same crap every day.

Most places you are a nurse replacement so you are treated with no respect, the surgeons want instantaneous room turn over so the lifestyle sucks, you are always being pushed to work faster. The place I am at has warm lunch in the OR doctors lounge but 2/3 of the days I never get time to eat. Heaven forbid a surgeon might have to wait five minutes between cases so you can grab a bite to eat. Plus every where you go they want you to take call. Working all night and not getting the next day off sucks but many places that’s the way they run the call schedule.

I can work steadily making 300K to 400K per year but the proliferation Anesthesia management company crooks prevent me from getting a job as group leader in a small town. Everywhere I look anesthesia groups are run by a$$holes or crooks, I have done some locums and every where you go there is another unbelievable story about how the dishonest leader of a group stole from the people doing the work.

I could have easily chosen Radiology when I chosen anesthesia since they were hurting for applicant at that time but I talked my self out of it fearing tele radiology would make it an unprofitable specialty plus I was not sure I could have taken looking at X-rays all day.

I was thinking of doing ER since it is a short residency and I probably would enjoy the variety of clinical experiences. I had wanted to do and ER residency but when I applied to Anesthesia it was when Anesthesia was unpopular so I while I was only able to only get into second tier ER program.
I was easily accepted in a big name Anesthesia residency. I do not think I could take another residency so I think my best choice is to leave medicine and go into Law. I think ER has some of the same Management company problems as Anesthesia.

Practicing law and being part of the problem seem like fun. In anesthesia you work hard and inevitably get screwed by the administration or the a$$hole who you have to work for who the administration gave the contract to. I just want to work for myself be my own boss and not have to kiss someone’s a$$. That does not seem like something you can do in Anesthesia any more.

 

[The_Sensei]

I am bored with Anesthesia it is the same crap every day.

Most places you are a nurse replacement so you are treated with no respect, the surgeons want instantaneous room turn over so the lifestyle sucks, you are always being pushed to work faster. The place I am at has warm lunch in the OR doctors lounge but 2/3 of the days I never get time to eat. Heaven forbid a surgeon might have to wait five minutes between cases so you can grab a bite to eat. Plus every where you go they want you to take call. Working all night and not getting the next day off sucks but many places that’s the way they run the call schedule.

I can work steadily making 300K to 400K per year but the proliferation Anesthesia management company crooks prevent me from getting a job as group leader in a small town. Everywhere I look anesthesia groups are run by a$$holes or crooks, I have done some locums and every where you go there is another unbelievable story about how the dishonest leader of a group stole from the people doing the work.

I could have easily chosen Radiology when I chosen anesthesia since they were hurting for applicant at that time but I talked my self out of it fearing tele radiology would make it an unprofitable specialty plus I was not sure I could have taken looking at X-rays all day.

I was thinking of doing ER since it is a short residency and I probably would enjoy the variety of clinical experiences. I had wanted to do and ER residency but when I applied to Anesthesia it was when Anesthesia was unpopular so I while I was only able to only get into second tier ER program.
I was easily accepted in a big name Anesthesia residency. I do not think I could take another residency so I think my best choice is to leave medicine and go into Law. I think ER has some of the same Management company problems as Anesthesia.

Practicing law and being part of the problem seem like fun. In anesthesia you work hard and inevitably get screwed by the administration or the a$$hole who you have to work for who the administration gave the contract to. I just want to work for myself be my own boss and not have to kiss someone’s a$$. That does not seem like something you can do in Anesthesia any more.

What a bitter man......I have had an infinitely better experience than this cat.

 

[powermd]

What a bitter man......I have had an infinitely better experience than this cat.

Some people just don't belong in medicine. If you are primarily interested in money and the nice lifestyle it brings, you're job should probably involve playing with money- although the multi-millionaires I know who aren't >50y/o work 24/7 and travel all the time for business. Medicine is a service industry that happens to offer very good, albeit slowly declining, remuneration. You need to enjoy the service part to be truly happy in medicine. If you see your career in medicine primarily in terms of investment and ROI, you probably won't be happy. I know plenty of anesthesiologists who enjoy a nice lifestlye in practice. I have also heard some stories of bad practices like what this guy has to say. Personally, when I finish residency, I will do locums until I find a practice that suits me.

To the OP: Do a search in this forum for "why anesthesiology?" threads, and the like. This has been discussed to death over and over. You will find lots of great posts describing what we do and why we chose the field. Here is one: http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=228779

 

[Pete T]

Thanks for the suggestion. I'll browse through. I'm sure a topic like "Why anesthesiology" gets worn out pretty quickly. Would anyone mind talking to me personally? -P