Switching from MD to DVM?

[NeuroRu]

I'm sure the title sparks a lot of "why would you do that?" but hear me out. I started medical school at 28 and long story short, during my third year I was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis. I was sick a great deal of the time, sometimes requiring hospital admissions, and by the time fourth year rolled around I decided I couldn't do a residency because of this, as well as putting myself at risk for resistant organisms and not having time to do my treatments. So now I am about to graduate and I am wondering what in the world I should do with my life... as you can imagine this was kind of an identity-shattering experience. I have been looking at a lot of options and one thing I thought about was vet school.

Pros: I grew up rural with horses, chickens, goats, cats, dogs, etc... and have always loved being around animals. I already have a medical background and working with animals would likely be safer for having CF. I could still experience the intrigue and joy of practicing medicine. Also I imagine the lifestyle could be a little bit more relaxed... maybe I would practice in a rural setting.

Cons: There are still zoonotic organisms that may effect me. I am in ridiculous debt from medical school already. While I did get through medical school, I don't have a good grasp on how grueling vet school is and if it is something I could handle with my medical condition.

Any thoughts? Have you known anyone to do this type of transition? Is there anything you could clarify for me? I appreciate any input offered.

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[Ashgirl]

I'm sure the title sparks a lot of "why would you do that?" but hear me out. I started medical school at 28 and long story short, during my third year I was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis. I was sick a great deal of the time, sometimes requiring hospital admissions, and by the time fourth year rolled around I decided I couldn't do a residency because of this, as well as putting myself at risk for resistant organisms and not having time to do my treatments. So now I am about to graduate and I am wondering what in the world I should do with my life... as you can imagine this was kind of an identity-shattering experience. I have been looking at a lot of options and one thing I thought about was vet school.

Pros: I grew up rural with horses, chickens, goats, cats, dogs, etc... and have always loved being around animals. I already have a medical background and working with animals would likely be safer for having CF. I could still experience the intrigue and joy of practicing medicine. Also I imagine the lifestyle could be a little bit more relaxed... maybe I would practice in a rural setting.

Cons: There are still zoonotic organisms that may effect me. I am in ridiculous debt from medical school already. While I did get through medical school, I don't have a good grasp on how grueling vet school is and if it is something I could handle with my medical condition.

Any thoughts? Have you known anyone to do this type of transition? Is there anything you could clarify for me? I appreciate any input offered.

To be quite honest with you, if you find human medicine to be difficult with your disease (as anyone would), I am doubtful that veterinary medicine would be better for you.

Would it be doable to get through vet school? Sure. At least potentially. You already have the knowledge base, though if you struggled at all through clinics during med school (due to illness), you will likely struggle just as much through vet school.

Would the extra debt be worth it? I'm going to be honest here. No. You would have (I would imagine), a CRAZY amount of debt if you did both, which would NOT be good with your tiny veterinary salary, especially if you want to go to a rural setting. Do you know mixed animal vets (especially new grads) make around 45-50K?? With as much debt as I am imagining you would have... that would be financial suicide.

As well, a rural veterinarian (mixed or otherwise) is anything but "relaxed." Typically, there isn't an ER vet near you, so you might be on-call ALL the time.. on top of working 40, 50, 60, 70+ hours a week.... It can be extremely stressful and is physically and emotionally demanding of even the greatest bodies and minds.


I wonder if there is a specialty in medicine that would allow you to have a more flexible and relaxed lifestyle without completely jumping ship. Animals could always be a hobby . I hope you find something that works well for you OP!

 

[dyachei]

I'm sure the title sparks a lot of "why would you do that?" but hear me out. I started medical school at 28 and long story short, during my third year I was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis. I was sick a great deal of the time, sometimes requiring hospital admissions, and by the time fourth year rolled around I decided I couldn't do a residency because of this, as well as putting myself at risk for resistant organisms and not having time to do my treatments. So now I am about to graduate and I am wondering what in the world I should do with my life... as you can imagine this was kind of an identity-shattering experience. I have been looking at a lot of options and one thing I thought about was vet school.

Pros: I grew up rural with horses, chickens, goats, cats, dogs, etc... and have always loved being around animals. I already have a medical background and working with animals would likely be safer for having CF. I could still experience the intrigue and joy of practicing medicine. Also I imagine the lifestyle could be a little bit more relaxed... maybe I would practice in a rural setting.

Cons: There are still zoonotic organisms that may effect me. I am in ridiculous debt from medical school already. While I did get through medical school, I don't have a good grasp on how grueling vet school is and if it is something I could handle with my medical condition.

Any thoughts? Have you known anyone to do this type of transition? Is there anything you could clarify for me? I appreciate any input offered.

Working with a chronic condition as a vet is the worst thing I have done. I love being a vet, I hate dealing with all the sequelae. If you can do something else, do it. The lifestyle is not relaxed in the least.

This field is a physically demanding one and it takes a toll on bodies. That becomes worse when you have an underlying condition.

 

[that redhead]

Any thoughts?

I don't mean to be unkind, but it sounds as though you have essentially zero understanding of the veterinary profession aside from "medicine for animals". We aren't really the romanticized James Herriots of the world.

We still deal with resistant organisms PLUS zoonoses.
We are generally more physically involved in our job - lifting large dogs, restraining large or simply fractious smaller animals, drilling/pulling/floating teeth, working outdoors in extreme weather, working with large and unpredictable livestock, etc.
The lifestyle will not be more relaxed, especially if you're rural - people working large animal or in small animal rural practice are often on-call for huge chunks of time, if not constantly.
Not to mention that in vet school, you still have clinical rotations just like in human medical school. And the debt will be astronomical for only a fraction of what you can make as a physician.

Part of me wants to suggest you shadow a veterinarian to see what it's really like, but in all honesty, I don't think it's even remotely close to a good alternative for you.

 

[Mad Jack]

I'm sure the title sparks a lot of "why would you do that?" but hear me out. I started medical school at 28 and long story short, during my third year I was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis. I was sick a great deal of the time, sometimes requiring hospital admissions, and by the time fourth year rolled around I decided I couldn't do a residency because of this, as well as putting myself at risk for resistant organisms and not having time to do my treatments. So now I am about to graduate and I am wondering what in the world I should do with my life... as you can imagine this was kind of an identity-shattering experience. I have been looking at a lot of options and one thing I thought about was vet school.

Pros: I grew up rural with horses, chickens, goats, cats, dogs, etc... and have always loved being around animals. I already have a medical background and working with animals would likely be safer for having CF. I could still experience the intrigue and joy of practicing medicine. Also I imagine the lifestyle could be a little bit more relaxed... maybe I would practice in a rural setting.

Cons: There are still zoonotic organisms that may effect me. I am in ridiculous debt from medical school already. While I did get through medical school, I don't have a good grasp on how grueling vet school is and if it is something I could handle with my medical condition.

Any thoughts? Have you known anyone to do this type of transition? Is there anything you could clarify for me? I appreciate any input offered.

Psych, FM-sports medicine, PM&R, path, rads, preventive medicine, medical genetics, etc could be options for you

 

[DVMDream]

Psych, FM-sports medicine, PM&R, path, rads, preventive medicine, medical genetics, etc could be options for you

I was totally going to say radiology.

 

[that redhead]

I was totally going to say radiology.

That’s one thing the same in human and vet med!

 

[WhtsThFrequency]

I'm sure the title sparks a lot of "why would you do that?" but hear me out. I started medical school at 28 and long story short, during my third year I was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis. I was sick a great deal of the time, sometimes requiring hospital admissions, and by the time fourth year rolled around I decided I couldn't do a residency because of this, as well as putting myself at risk for resistant organisms and not having time to do my treatments. So now I am about to graduate and I am wondering what in the world I should do with my life... as you can imagine this was kind of an identity-shattering experience. I have been looking at a lot of options and one thing I thought about was vet school.

Pros: I grew up rural with horses, chickens, goats, cats, dogs, etc... and have always loved being around animals. I already have a medical background and working with animals would likely be safer for having CF. I could still experience the intrigue and joy of practicing medicine. Also I imagine the lifestyle could be a little bit more relaxed... maybe I would practice in a rural setting.

Cons: There are still zoonotic organisms that may effect me. I am in ridiculous debt from medical school already. While I did get through medical school, I don't have a good grasp on how grueling vet school is and if it is something I could handle with my medical condition.

Any thoughts? Have you known anyone to do this type of transition? Is there anything you could clarify for me? I appreciate any input offered.

Vet school itself is just as grueling as med school, and for much, much less payoff. Take a look at the average debt for vet students. Then take a look at starting salaries for rural vets, which are generally the bottom of the barrel (due to simply not being able to generate enough income in those areas, which tend to be poor). Rural medicine will also be heavily large animal, which is indescribably taxing on the body. An older vet I knew once said that a year of large animal ambulatory practice is like a year in the NFL. Hell, look at starting salaries for any kind of vet. If you don't have time to do treatments in a residency, I don't know how you would survive clinical years in vet school, let alone general practice.

Would you go back to school for four more years, taking on an additional >150,000 of debt (while the interest on your current debt rises) so that you could earn 70,000 out of school? Not to mention that fact that you will need to go and gain veterinary experience before you even apply to vet school - how will you support yourself financially during that time?

I mean this as nicely as I can when I say this is a terrible idea. It sounds like you have a very sugar-coated idea of that the field is like (and through no fault of your own - you simply have no experience in veterinary medicine so there is no way you could know at this moment). There is reason our profession has the suicide risk that it does. We work ourselves to the bone, are in tons of debt, get paid little, and spend most of our time fighting with clients rather than animals. It's rather like being a pediatrician (as in treating the kids, but mostly dealing with the parents), but for much less compensation.

In any case, I do wish you all the best, and I encourage you to look at less physically demanding medical specialties like MJ suggested. You must be incredibly strong to have made it thus far and I hope you continue to do so.

 

[Crayola227]

It sounds really sick, but I say I went into human med not animal med because I love animals more than people. Chew on what I mean by that, lol.

I only have farm experience but it seems like poultry and birds abound in rural animal-land, and I know birds are bad for CF lungs.

Also, if you've busted this much ass to get your MD, why would you not just complete a residency to practice medicine that is safe for CF lungs?

It sounds cruel to say, you're not getting any younger.

This makes no sense, unless the whole thing with CF just makes you feel your mortality, etc, and this is just an excuse to think of an escape into something that is more "fantasy" job?

Plenty of people on the verge of that MD, or DVM, or DDS, or get certain diagnoses, or a certain age in life, or whatever, and start wondering if they missed their calling to attend Julliard to be a concert xylophonist.

Circling back to my starting statement about animal vs human med, it's also worth thinking about that thing, "do what you love, and you'll never work a day in your life", but also, if you make what you love your job, will it now feel less like a love, and more like a job?

People are either surprised by my personal love of animals and children in juxtaposition to my absolute loathing dealing with either in a professional sphere, but consider that for a moment. My love of medicine and teaching yet disdain for humans on the other hand.... perfect union.

Regarding mortality, fantasy jobs or otherwise... no matter what you do as a job, will be a *job*. That's why it's called work and it must be paid. No matter what you do it will be what you must do to put money on the table.

If you focus more on what in your life besides work fulfills you, and how work is fundamentally something that needs to serve that purpose rather than *be* your purpose, it might help you to come to terms with whatever career your life realities shunt you into that maybe wasn't your first choice.

I got my first choice at "what do you want to be when you grow up" and it still didn't turn out how I wanted. So you could say who I am to tell someone how to make do when they don't have their dream job. Or maybe I'm the perfect person to say, just keep on walking.

 

[Crayola227]

Lastly, I think our culture does a helluva a lot to make people define themselves by their jobs and seek ridiculous amounts of fulfillment that can't be met by any job, because every job is a job at the end of the day (even when you are following your calling, so I don't mean to act like being a living creature doc of any type isn't a calling)

Lastly, it doesn't matter what you do, it's always possible to be unhappy.

 

[CalliopeDVM]

Also I imagine the lifestyle could be a little bit more relaxed... maybe I would practice in a rural setting.

Rural veterinary medicine is typically not relaxed. You're usually on call 24/7, because there are no other clinics around to share after-hours coverage, and there aren't any after-hours clinics nearby. While you may not work as long in clinic hours, you're always at risk of getting called in during the weekend, or in the middle of the night. Some vets think that's fine in exchange for living in that rural location that they love, but it has to be a real commitment to both (the rural location, and to your patients.

if you make what you love your job, will it now feel less like a love, and more like a job?

I've always subscribed to that theory -- save what you love for your leisure/discretionary time, and don't make it about money, bosses, clients, and time clocks.

 

[evelir]

Psych, FM-sports medicine, PM&R, path, rads, preventive medicine, medical genetics, etc could be options for you

Agree with all of the above, and you could always consider doing research. You could even work alongside veterinarians at an academic institution with your MD, if you're interested in this side of medicine.