Torn Between Specialties

[ugagrad1116]

So I am a third year medical student trying to decide what specialty to choose. I originally thought I wanted to do OB-gyn and have officially declared that because my school makes you declare around this time. But I'm torn between OB-gyn and something more surgical.

Reasons I had chosen OB-gyn:
1. I like surgery so I wanted something with a surgical component
2. I like delivering babies and doing c-sections
3. I like some continuity of care and clinic but I don't want clinic all the time (family medicine was miserable at times)

However, I am worried about call life because I want a family at some point. So I'm scared I'm being naive about OB-gyn because the place I did my rotation at had a laborist that did all the call for the practice. And my OB-gyn strictly did surgery because PAs and NPs did clinic for them, but I'm nervous I won't do a ton of surgery in real practice. I liked ortho but I'm not sure I have the muscle to do what they do every day lol. I'm currently on urology and am liking it for the most part. And I hear they have a pretty good family life because there are few true urologic emergencies. I have liked the doctors and residents in OB gyn, ortho, and urology so picking based on where I fit better hasn't been helpful. I haven't done gen surg yet so I'm not sure how that will go.

Step score: 246 and grades have been mostly As with some Bs, some summer research with no publications, average extracurriculars

Any incite on how you chose a specialty would be super helpful!

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[y123]

Which other surgical specialties are you considering? You didn’t mention gen surg. Will you consider it too?
For competitive surgical subspecialties like ortho or urology, one probably needs research in that field to get in.

 

[Cyphix]

Would you be doing general OB-Gyn? Labor call will likely be part of the deal in that case, but keep in mind there are more lifestyle friendly subspecialties of OB-Gyn (e.g. REI). Residency will be tough regardless of what you do, especially Ortho and Uro which are surgical residencies and at least 1 year longer. Those two will also be more competitive, so if you decide on them I would try to jump into some research ASAP.

That said, no matter what you choose there is a wide range of jobs and lifestyles you can have as an attending. The dichotomy between "lifestyle" and "non-lifestyle" specialties does not necessarily exist in the way it is commonly portrayed online. There are urologists who work 60-70 hour weeks and OB-Gyns who work 50 hour weeks. Having a family life is an active choice that requires balancing priorities and some sacrifice, and for many people it is worth it. So think about what you like the most: patient population, types of surgeries, personalities of your potential colleagues in the field, research opportunities, etc -- find the thing that makes you the happiest and then figure out a way to craft a lifestyle that will work best for you.

 

[OrthoTraumaMD]

Just as an FYI, don’t rule out Ortho for “muscle” reasons. I talk about this in my ama...I’m a 120-pound woman and I can do everything i need to do in my field with good sedation, technique and occasionally extra hands (which you always have in the form of PAs or residents anyway) in the OR.


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[raiderette]

I am deciding between ob/gyn and Opthalmology. I love the patient population of ob/gyn and the lifestyle of Opthalmology. Luckily (?) I have an extra year to decide. I would say, imagine your life 10 years from now.