To do OB or not to do OB?

[siednarb]

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HELP
i'm a recent DO graduate, currently in the middle of a transtional/osteopathic internship - I loved OB/GYN as a student - and was about to apply when I got scared out of doing so by other male attendings.

I love dealing with a young and healthy (for the most part) patient population during a very happy time in their lives, I love the physiology and the combination of surgery and primary care that the field allows one to practice.

I am concerend about three issues that are discussed on this forum at great length:
1) malpractice - i know i'm the type of person that will be eaten alive by awful feelings when i get sued (i understand its not an if but a when for this occurance)

2) being a male - i know others have beaten this issue to death - but it is a concern of mine - will patients not want to see me because of my gender?

3) lifestyle - yes, i know this field requires a lot of work - and I have enetertained the idea of going into other fields with a better lifestyle (Anes, PM&R) but while i like those fields, i don't have the love for them as I do with OB/GYN. My father is a doctor who warns me not to go into OB/GYN - that even if I love it now - you don't know if you will still be loving it 20 years from now when you are your own kids at home and you are at work all the time.


So I was wondering if anyone has any ideas/solutions/recomendations - i currently have no plans for July '05 after this internship ends and I'm getting worried - though i'm only 26 and i guess a year off moonlighting somewhere wouldn't be the end of the world so i can sort out what to do with my life. mabye i should just go to law school - if you can't beat 'em join 'em.

thanks for any suggestions/advice 😱 😱

 

[doc05]

I say do just about anything except obgyn. why?
1. malpractice will ruin your life.
2. being male is only an issue for a small number of patients.
3. lifestyle is terrible; do you realize what reimbursement is like? it's awful.

during obgyn, every single attending told me not to go into obgyn. several had been absolutely burned by lawsuits (in which they weren't at fault...); a couple had to give up the ob part or retire altogether because malpractice premiums were so high.

 

[Neuron]

HELP
i'm a recent DO graduate, currently in the middle of a transtional/osteopathic internship - I loved OB/GYN as a student - and was about to apply when I got scared out of doing so by other male attendings.

I love dealing with a young and healthy (for the most part) patient population during a very happy time in their lives, I love the physiology and the combination of surgery and primary care that the field allows one to practice.

Hi there, this is just one person's opinion.

There is one, and only one, reason any human being should specialize in OB GYN (in the US).

They LOVE obgyn so much they'd die if they didn't do it. Physically expire.

Because it's in my opinion absolutely the "worst" specialty in medicine.

If you feel that way about OBGyn, go for it. If you don't... heh.

Run.

And don't look back.

 

[Global Disrobal]

Call me naive, but I wasn't aware that I had entered into such a dismal career choice.

In response to the above posts:

1. Malpractice is an issue and always will, but there are options (i.e. joining a hospital group, group practice, academic faculty) or have a great rapport with your patients and be straightforward with all risks.

2. There is talk about females having problems with males, but I personally have not seen it in real practice nor have any male colleagues (resident, attending, etc)

3. Lifestyle can be an issus with any specialty and NOT just OB. It'll be your career and your decision on how you want to gear it so that you have a good lifestyle.

Lastly, if you are choosing a specialty solely on life style and malpractice, then you are not giving it enough though. Lastly, I don't think there is a "worst" specialty in medicine. They are all good, serve a purpose, and whether they suit you or not is just a matter of taste.

 

[kem]

hello,

I guess I fit into the "if I don't do ob-gyn I will die" group... 😀

But the way I think of it is that right now I LOVE ob-gyn. If I were to not do it, I would most likely do peds. Maybe I'll get so embittered by malpractice issues many years from now, but if I do I'll take a pay cut and work 9am-5pm at a health department (like this doctor I know did). But if I did peds I think I would wonder what my life would have been like if I had done what I know I really love.

Just my thoughts! Good luck!
🙂 kem

 

[NewGuyBob]

Quite night at the labor deck so what the heck, here I go:
1. Malpractice premiums IS NOT an homogeneous issue. Here in West NY the average premium for the OB GYNO in solo practice is around 40k a year. When they talk about people leaving practice because of malpractice premiums they are talking mostly of PA, where many OBGYNOS have to pay up to 250K a year! You'll find a similar situation in NJ and FL and others. Other specialties sued constantly: Ortho, radiology, general and plastic surgery.

2. Hours: This is one of the biggest myths about this specialty. Attendings are NEVER in the hospital at night unless they are the in-house for the night or they have to take care of a patient in the middle of the night. Now, if you have privileges at a teaching hospital, the residents will take care of your patients until you get there to deliver her, which is the most common (if not the only one) emergency you'll face in this specialty. In general GYN "emergencies" are rare. Always remember: Resident hours are much worse than attending hours, simply because you have no control, plus you have to take care of EVERYBODY's patients.

3. OB GYN as a specialty: FUN FUN FUN!! variety of procedures, healthy patients, paperwork does not even come close to IM and others. This is a procedural specialty appealing to those who like to be cover in blood and guts. You are literally taking care of the patient constantly, as oppsoed to cerebral specialties where you see the patient for 1 minute and spend the rest of your day running around collecting lab results, imaging reports dictating and dealing with paperwork. (What a nightmare!)

If you entered the medical field for the money, go into another specialty because you will be miserable in ob gyn.
As an attending you can join a big group and your life only gets easier and easier in terms of malpractice premiums and hours.
Questions are welcome.

 

[NewGuyBob]

P.S. I have only had one situation when a patient refused a vaginal exam because I was a male, and she was an observant muslim woman. If you respect your patients, talk to them, explain why the examination is needed and act in a professional manner. You'll have no problems.

 

[Fermata]

Do you like punishment?

 

[NewGuyBob]

Punishment?! hahaha
I did an ICU rotation last month. Every day when I would open my eyes in the morning to come to the hospital, I would literally be in physical pain. Talk about punishment! So the point is, punishment is doing something you hate, every day of your life until you are freed by the sweet release of death. And this is independent of the amount of money you might or might not make.
C'mmon, I am a resident, and I could not be happier on my 40k a year. Even when I was just turned down by dell.com to finance a 1600 laptop which pays 50 bucks a month (true story 🙄 )

 

[deeq]

i must be a glutton for punishment then, because i luv ob/gyn....although i came to med school with the firm and steadfast belief that i would someday be a pathologist....
i wonder what that says about me.......? 😀

 

[PACtoDOC]

I too am one of those strange men who loves OBGYN, and it is very likely I will go for it. I am a NHSC scholar and thus my malpractice will be paid. If I were to graduate today I would be taking a federal job in an underserved inner city practice at probably 180K average. That's not bad seeing as though the malpractice issue is covered. Who can't live on 15 thousand dollars a month?? Even after taxes you should still bring home 10K a month. Even if you mortgaged your ass off and bought a 500K home, you could still save for retirement, and your annual income will only go up. Its all worth it to me to be doing what I love. Few other fields offer as much excitement.

 

[DrBuzzLightYear]

i think one of the things that draws me to OB is that its one of the few fields in medicine that doesn't involve decay and death. i love my pregnant pts, they seem so full of life, hope, and excitement about the future. i always smile when i see them absent-mindedly rubbing their belly, their minds far off with thoughts of their baby. when i've rotated through other clerkships it really drags me down to spend my days with pts close to the end of their life. when i see how bitter, scared, and angry they are it makes me wonder what i have to look forward to. just my 2 cents.

 

[deeq]

Ob/Gyn just really fits my ADD personality....not that i'm truly ADD, it's just that I like to be kept occupied, mentally and physically. Otherwise I get terribly bored and then I become bitter thinking of better things I could be doing with my time you know: like playing outside, building a time machine, taking over the world or becoming the first female prez........ 😀

 

[siednarb]

just a response by the OP - (thanks by the way for all of your input above) i have two ob/gyn interviews schedule - one at oakwood and the other at st. john (both in detroit) so that's the story so far - still not 100% sure what i am going to do i also applied to some other fields, but i think my heart and in my stomach says to go to ob/gyn because its where my interest lies - i'm just wrestling with my inner demons. thanks for the discussion.

 

[deeq]

just a response by the OP - (thanks by the way for all of your input above) i have two ob/gyn interviews schedule - one at oakwood and the other at st. john (both in detroit) so that's the story so far - still not 100% sure what i am going to do i also applied to some other fields, but i think my heart and in my stomach says to go to ob/gyn because its where my interest lies - i'm just wrestling with my inner demons. thanks for the discussion.

you gotta do what feels right....that's one of the main reasons i'm doing ob/gyn....in my heart i feel like this is where i'm supposed to be right now in my life.

 

[PACtoDOC]

Any of you guys heard whether OBGYN is about to change to a 5 year residency for those applying in 2006? My classmate said she was informed of this by a program director and I certainly do not want to add another year. Anyone know the real scoop?