Switching from Rads to something else?

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I've wanted to do medicine since I was 10, but more than halfway through med school I became disillusioned and burned out. I continued because I didn't want to quit and already had substantial loans at that time. I wasn't sure what I wanted to do, but I know I wanted a job with a normal schedule, and so I decided to pursue radiology after considering several others. I finished my intern year at a program on the west coast last year and have just started radiology but really don't enjoy it. It's a lot of reading, there's so much to know, it's hard to see everything on imaging, there's a lot of litigation per my attendings, and the hours are long- at least with reading. If I could undo the past 10 years and enter an easier field (accounting, or maybe PT ), I would, but since I'm already in it, and I still have a huge loan to pay off, I'm stuck. I'm really unhappy and was thinking of switching to another specialty but it's hard to say whether I would enjoy something else (was thinking derm-- if I could get in, psych, maybe PMR). If my loans were paid off, I'd just pursue a totally different field (not sure what), but so tired of medicine. If any of you have done this, or know people who have, I'd appreciate your advice.

 

[Dral]

I'm assuming the first time you mention reading, you are referring to textbook reading/studying.

If so, don't go Derm. My program reads these three books from July to January:

Amazon product ASIN 0723435715
Amazon product ASIN 0781740886
Amazon product ASIN 0702055271

That's about 3500 pages of material in 6 months. Again, if you don't like reading/studying minutia, look elsewhere.


It will be hard to switch from Rads to Derm because everyone will think you're just trying to jump ship for more of a lifestyle field...which in your case is exactly what's going on.

 

[NotAProgDirector]

Any field of medicine is hard work and long hours. You need to find something you like, rather than chasing hours. I realize you've basically said you don't like anything -- but perhaps that's not true. Otherwise, your best plan might be to complete rads, work to pay off your loans, and then do something else.

 

[gutonc]

I finished my intern year at a program on the west coast last year and have just started radiology but really don't enjoy it. It's a lot of reading, there's so much to know, it's hard to see everything on imaging, there's a lot of litigation per my attendings, and the hours are long- at least with reading.

Hey look at that...you just described every single medical specialty there is. Including derm, and PMR and pretty much everything else. I'm not suggesting that getting out of rads is necessarily the wrong thing for you to do, but don't pretend there's some magical specialty out there where you don't have to read, and work at least a bit hard, especially during your training. And maybe medicine really isn't your bag. And that (less the debt) is fine.

I'm kind of amazed by the number of threads like this that have popped up this year.

I wonder if we're witnessing the medicine singularity where the Tiger Parent phenomenon meets the Millenial special flowers finally getting their first job ever, meets the last group of kids who started med school during the Great Recession because "doctors will always have jobs" (which is more or less true).

Pro tip. Never go into medicine because your parents want you to. If they aren't doctors, they're naively basing your chances of a well paying career on the car that their dermatologist drives and the schools he sends his kids to. If they are doctors, they likely came up in the days where you could get out of med school with under 50k in debt and could easily score a job in any specialty anywhere making >300k no problem. They have no idea about the world of medicine today and how that will impact the futures of new physicians.

 

[doc05]

I've wanted to do medicine since I was 10, but more than halfway through med school I became disillusioned and burned out. I continued because I didn't want to quit and already had substantial loans at that time. I wasn't sure what I wanted to do, but I know I wanted a job with a normal schedule, and so I decided to pursue radiology after considering several others. I finished my intern year at a program on the west coast last year and have just started radiology but really don't enjoy it. It's a lot of reading, there's so much to know, it's hard to see everything on imaging, there's a lot of litigation per my attendings, and the hours are long- at least with reading. If I could undo the past 10 years and enter an easier field (accounting, or maybe PT ), I would, but since I'm already in it, and I still have a huge loan to pay off, I'm stuck. I'm really unhappy and was thinking of switching to another specialty but it's hard to say whether I would enjoy something else (was thinking derm-- if I could get in, psych, maybe PMR). If my loans were paid off, I'd just pursue a totally different field (not sure what), but so tired of medicine. If any of you have done this, or know people who have, I'd appreciate your advice.

how odd that a 1o-year old's dream doesn't jibe with reality!

 

[bwmd]

Starting a rads residency means starting fresh. Everything you've learned and done is less important than everything you need to learn and do starting now. It's not unusual to not love it at first. Some of it seems tedious, the anatomy is less fun when there's so much of it and you have no foundation, you used to think you were competent and now you're not. All of that gets better. Still long training and not for everyone, but the hours vary and the litigation is honestly overstated. It's medicine. You'll find a niche to enjoy over time if you're open to it.