usefulness of an MBA after anesthesia residency

[AKMD_1984]

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Hello all:

I wanted to get an idea how useful is it (or not) to pursue an MBA after residency training.
I also plan on doing a fellowship in pain, and eventually want to manage my own practice and eventually go into hospital administration, etc.

Is it worthwhile getting an MBA to help me get there? and if so, which kind of an MBA?

I am personally interested in an MBA in entrepreneurship...

any suggestions, comments would be appreciated.

 

[segou]

As with most things, it depends.

I don't think an MBA is worthwhile for managing a practice-- you can likely gain the skills elsewhere without the time or tuition required for the degree. With respect to administration, a lot of the large hospital systems (academic or not) are tending to move towards MDs who have MBAs or significant operational experience.

Other things to consider... school prestige seems to carry more weight in the MBA world than in the MD world. While going to a "top tier" med school may make it easier to match into certain specialties or certain residencies, it's not a requirement for entry. Many of the MBA's benefits (networks, job opportunities) seem more dependent on your school. This should be considered when you're determining whether a certain school is "worth" the opportunity cost of two post-residency years.

Finally, if you're still a medical student, look into joint MD/MBA programs. If you can finish both degrees in 5 years, you will only have one extra year of tuition. If you do the MBA degree post-residency, you will often be required to attend the full two years, but it depends upon the program.

Finally, if you're interested in hospital administration you could consider looking at consulting jobs. Many of the large firms hire MDs for 2 year stints and have solid reputations among admins and executives across industries.

Good luck.

 

[urge]

Doug Casey has been very vocal against MBAs. His thinking is that what you learn is pretty much useless compared with the time and money spent.

http://www.thedailycrux.com/Post/32882/doug-casey-why-getting-an-mba-is-a-stupid-move

 

[Idiopathic]

huge cost if you take a year off. you are not likely to recoup first year losses of minimum 300K with that MBA (year off, tuition, student loan interest, etc). may be worth it if you can incorporate it into training or practice (i.e. minimal time off) but i cant see the value of this the way you could potentially justify time off for a phd.

 

[AKMD_1984]

thanks for the input.

i was planning to do it part time after residency.