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hey guys!
what do u feel are the cons of optho?
what do u feel are the cons of optho?
hey guys!
what do u feel are the cons of optho?
hey guys!
what do u feel are the cons of optho?
Doc: "One or two?"
Patient: 'Two.'
Doc: "Two or three?"
Patient: 'Three.'
Doc: "Three or four?"
Patient: 'Four.'
Doc: "Four or five?"
Patient: 'Five. Wait. What are we doing again?'
Like many things in medicine - cons are specific to individuals. A lot of people probably cherish the things I am going to mention.
1/ Super-duper-specialization.
It's getting really ridiculous in large cities (I am a resident in Manhattan).
Although I think division of labor is good for patient care - you have the people with the most experience taking care of specific problems, in my opinion it takes away a lot of the meaning of being someones physician. Did I really go to medical school to do only cataract surgery and refer all cases of uveitis out to someone else ?
4/ You take care of the eye and not the patient.
Yes blindness contributes to morbidity and mortality of patients worldwide. Yes, I realize that dense cataract patients go from seeing hand motion to 20/20 vision. But the patient's 'doctor' remains those on the front lines: the family med, internist or pediatrician. Some people really like being consultants. Others lament the fact that they're not the quaterback - coordinating care or being the one to hold the patient's hand and guide them through some life or death crisis.
Like many things in medicine - cons are specific to individuals. A lot of people probably cherish the things I am going to mention.
1/ Super-duper-specialization.
It's getting really ridiculous in large cities (I am a resident in Manhattan).
Although I think division of labor is good for patient care - you have the people with the most experience taking care of specific problems, in my opinion it takes away a lot of the meaning of being someones physician. Did I really go to medical school to do only cataract surgery and refer all cases of uveitis out to someone else ?
2/ Little-to-no interaction with other services.
Sure some are going to fire back with yarns about some amazing case they did with ENT or some amazing systemic disease that had a presentation in the
eye, but largely I have found that due to the 9-5 largely clinic based and non-
emergent nature of the work you don't really end up being so integrated with the other departments in the hospital.
3/ Clinic. It's a clinic based field and if you're not made for spending upwards of 80% of your time in a clinic then you're in for a shock. Inpatient consults will likely never be dealt with once you're an attending. Once you're at the point of operating independently - it's still a majority of clinic based outpatient practice.
4/ You take care of the eye and not the patient.
Yes blindness contributes to morbidity and mortality of patients worldwide. Yes, I realize that dense cataract patients go from seeing hand motion to 20/20 vision. But the patient's 'doctor' remains those on the front lines: the family med, internist or pediatrician. Some people really like being consultants. Others lament the fact that they're not the quaterback - coordinating care or being the one to hold the patient's hand and guide them through some life or death crisis.
Wow. If this is how you actually feel, you obviously chose the wrong specialty. Pity.
Right, and he did mention this was "individual specific" ... but to be clear for the OP and anyone else reading this, Ophtho8 is looking to switch out of ophthalmology during his residency. These are the cons from someone who really didn't like the field; he unfortunately only found out after starting his residency.
If you are interested in the cons of the field by the perspective of current practitioners or happy residents, I'd listen to the other guys (cme, visionary, 200ul, etc.).
For Ophtho8, I hope things worked out for you, man.
It's unfortunate that exposure to certain specialties, such as ophthalmology, is so limited in medical school. Unless you arrange to spend time with an ophthalmologist on your own, you typically don't get a good feel until early 4th year, just before making your decision on a specialty. Some schools give you earlier exposure, but not many.
Only real con for me is that you are the doc that takes care of your patients. You can't be on call and tell your patient to go to the ER to get their post-op eye looked at. No one has a clue how to examine the eye. So you will also get your fair share of idiotic consults/ER referrals. Otherwise, it's a great field IMO.
That's why we hire technicians to refract
1)
Then don't practice that way. No one requires you to refer uveitis, etc. If you want to be a true generalist, do it.
4)
I am just confused by this. Maybe you need to spend more time talking with your patients.
I truly don't fault him for the way he feels or for posting his cons. That perspective actually gives the medical student readers of this site more information, so they can proceed eyes open. It is a pity, though. Hopefully, he finds greener pastures. It would be terrible to be trapped in a specialty you don't like.
It's unfortunate that exposure to certain specialties, such as ophthalmology, is so limited in medical school. Unless you arrange to spend time with an ophthalmologist on your own, you typically don't get a good feel until early 4th year, just before making your decision on a specialty. Some schools give you earlier exposure, but not many.
For insight on my perspective, I'll say I'm on the other side of the spectrum. I decided on medical school, more specifically ophthalmology (and most likely retina) 2 years into a 5-year PhD. Fortunately, it all worked out, because I can't imagine doing anything else.