Regret getting into podiatry?

[Eclectress]

---

Members do not see this ad.

Hi everyone. It's my first posting on here, so be nice : ) I'm not here to sound negative, but I'm curious if any of you have regretted getting into podiatry after all that hard work. Congratulations if you've gotten in already, and I hope you don't give up! But what do you wish was different? Anything? Are you totally satisfied and excited?

 

[jonwill]

Hi everyone. It's my first posting on here, so be nice : ) I'm not here to sound negative, but I'm curious if any of you have regretted getting into podiatry after all that hard work. Congratulations if you've gotten in already, and I hope you don't give up! But what do you wish was different? Anything? Are you totally satisfied and excited?

Not for a second. It is a great profession. Medicine in general is becoming more of a headache as time goes on but I think it is still worth it. On the other hand, I haven't slept for like 30 hours so I may not be your best source for advice!

 

[Feli]

At times, I wonder if maybe I should've continued my aspirations to become a NBA player. What might have been?

In all seriousness, jon was right. No regrets for me either...
If you're talented enough to be a good pod, you are talented enough to be good at many things. If you like helping people, working with people, and think anat/phys are interesting, then pod is a gret choice. The only way to find out if it's really for you is to read, shadow docs, and see what it's like.

 

[msa786]

Net income was much higher in 2006 for members with high volumes of total patient visits each week. Members who saw fewer than 50 patients a week earned $80,000 while members who saw 50 or more patients earned 6-figure incomes.

Are they serious?

 

[Feli]

Net income was much higher in 2006 for members with high volumes of total patient visits each week. Members who saw fewer than 50 patients a week earned $80,000 while members who saw 50 or more patients earned 6-figure incomes.

Are they serious?

What does that have to do with anything.... were you trying to post that in a different thread?

Of course it's a general rule that seeing more patients means more revenue. If you read between the lines, I think that they were just saying that <50pt/wk guys (ie semi-retired docs and/or docs starting from scratch with no patients) have drastically different incomes and may throw off the averages.

 

[PMSIII]

No regrets here. Many great programs are out there training great pods so our specialty is in good hands. I love the fact that I will be trained to be a specialist and a surgeon from the get-go and I love the variety of pathology that I get to treat - Charcot neuroarthropathy, Lower extremity ulcers, edema, forefoot deformities, ankle arthritis, heel pain, and many more - but the point I'm trying to make is that this specialty is truly unique and while it may not be for everyone, it certainly is for me

 

[gustydoc]

I'm on an internal medicine rotation and I just had my attending go on and on about how he wishes he had gone the DPM route rather than the MD route. Seems to me there are people who regret their decisions in all aspects of life. The key is to know what you are looking for and to be realistic about your expectations. That being said I fully expect to sign a contract for well over 100,000 in the next couple years. 👍

 

[msa786]

The grass is always greener on the other side. I think no matter what profession you choose it has its pro's and con's.

 

[Eclectress]

Great input! I hope Jon is getting more sleep now though : ) As far as making "only" $80k/yr for seeing less than 50 patients a week... sounds kinda fair to me, not too bad at least. I've regretted a few academic decisions myself, but when I look back... it's made me who I am today and increased my general knowledge/common sense/life experiences.

It's not easy finding the "best" career to fit your lifestyle and desires. If you're only in it for the money, then good luck and hope you don't start hating your job one day. Like someone said on here somewhere... you can make more money in law/business/computers. It's probably best to get into Podiatry if you not only want to be a doctor, but want to help people and enjoy specializing in only feet (which is very unique of course). I can go on and on... lol

 

[IlizaRob]

I'm on an internal medicine rotation and I just had my attending go on and on about how he wishes he had gone the DPM route rather than the MD route. Seems to me there are people who regret their decisions in all aspects of life. The key is to know what you are looking for and to be realistic about your expectations. That being said I fully expect to sign a contract for well over 100,000 in the next couple years. 👍

I got this a lot too when I was on IM, mostly from residents though. On a side note, one of my IM attendings asked me what the name of the "heel bone" was on x-ray because he couldnt remember. Then he said that he knew for sure that "this bone" (pointing to the talus) "started with an N". It's a good thing there are foot and ankle specialists out there.

 

[whiskers]

Regret and worry normally sets in after leaving residency when a pod rejoins the real world with real responsibility and cutting corners will result in utter failure.

Asking students and residents is like asking everyone at a great New Years Eve party if they are having a bad time. 😱