So what's the catch?

[Columbia22]

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So from reading these threads, its seems that anesthes. is a cool field that is relatively laid back and chill, and one that compensates very very well compared to the length of training and relative un-competitiveness of its residency program matching. So my question is, why aren't there far more people applying to anes. programs, especially US grads? Seems like all that med. students these days are really concerned with is future lifestyle, compensation, and prestige. So what's the catch with anesth?

 

[DrRobert]

Some reasons why every med student does not apply to anesthesia:

1. Very real threat of CRNAs
2. Perceived boredom
3. Egos that clash with surgeons
4. Fear of being the go-to-person when the poop hits the fan

 

[MD Dreams]

So from reading these threads, its seems that anesthes. is a cool field that is relatively laid back and chill, and one that compensates very very well compared to the length of training and relative un-competitiveness of its residency program matching. So my question is, why aren't there far more people applying to anes. programs, especially US grads? Seems like all that med. students these days are really concerned with is future lifestyle, compensation, and prestige. So what's the catch with anesth?

Anesthesia is just one of those specialties that not many people think of in medical school. I NEVER considered anesthesia until my second year in medical school secondary to certain life events (long story but kind of opened my eyes). Also a lot of people think it is boring. I'm not an anesthesiologist yet, but I havn't heard anyone but med students say that anesthesia is boring. Also as stated above, the CRNA issue is somewhat worrisome. Couple of other things, salaries are high right now, but they may not be as high in the future considering anesthesia is becoming more popular and more spots are filling up. I believe the lifestyle may be there, but not necessarily the prestigue, at least not from the lay public. Even among physicians, many think that there is no challenge in anesthesia and all they really do is put people to sleep -- exact words from MD's I've spoken with. Also if you love surgery (the actual OR time) such as I do, it is a large sacrifice to give up that part.

After considering this field for a while now, I think it is a gold mine (sp?). It has almost everything one looks for in medicine without all the headaches that come with it -- kind of like the reason why we went to med school However, please don't tell this to too many people until I match (knock on wood) next year 😉

All the best.

 

[jennyboo]

relatively laid back and chill.... So what's the catch with anesth?

Less laid back and chill than it appears. Does share personality traits with surgery and emergency medicine (neither of which I think of as laid-back and chill, though they can be fun-loving).

 

[pgg]

So my question is, why aren't there far more people applying to anes. programs, especially US grads?

Take a look at the trend in # of applicants in recent years. There are far more people applying to anesthesia programs. 🙂

 

[skypilot]

I think many people do not apply to Anesthesia because they don't want to spend endless days in the operating room with their patients anesthetized.

I think anesthesia is a great field for those who love it but it is not how all students envision spending their career as a doc. Same with Rads, Path, and Psych.

 

[Danger Man]

Hold on there....As described in multiple threads on this forum, anesthesia has become much more competitive, especially in number of US med school grads applying. As for the chill, laid back reputation...anesthesiologists practice not only in the OR but also in multiple CC settings-great environments for docs who can handle situations when the proverbial hits the fan. As one of my good friends said, "An anesthesiologist tries to keep patients alive while the surgeon tries to kill them." Also, let's not confuse "laid back and chill" with "slacker and irresponsible." Many of the good anesthesiologists I have met are like confident baseball players--they want the ball hit to them when the game is on the line (see Derek Jeter-sorry yankee h8ter, but the man is $$$$).

 

[fishtolive]

funloving i think is a nice way to describe the average anes personality...laid back is a misnomer and actually a direct contradiction to the vigilance the field requires.

i think a lack of exposure is one problem (which is rapidly changing in many schools).

you need to have your ego in check as many patients and doctors do not respect your field (believing even a nurse can do your job)...i think ego deters many people believe it or not.

 

[me454555]

Don't forget the lack of pt contact associated w/anesthesia. A lot of people go into medicine b/c they want a more traditional physician role of directing the health of others. This leads them to fields like IM, Peds, Ob, and Surg just to name a few. In these fields the Dr. has his/her own pts and gets to make decisions concerning their health. This is the traditional view most premeds/medcal student have about why they want to be physcians.

Anesthesia and ER don't offer the same type of pt interaction as you don't actually have your own pts in either. W/er, once the case gets interesting, someone else takes over. W/anesthesia, they were never really your pts to begin with. For those of us that want to go into anesthesia and ER this isn't a big deal and we kinda like that part of the job. For the rest of the surgeons and primary care folk out there, this is not the job for them and no amount of $$ will change that.