What if EM wasn't a career choice?

[waterski232002]

Just curious what field most EM people would have entered if EM wasn't a possibility... My guess is that it would be split pretty evenly between Int Med and Surgery, followed by anesthesia.

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[leviathan]

Just curious what field most EM people would have entered if EM wasn't a possibility... My guess is that it would be split pretty evenly between Int Med and Surgery, followed by anesthesia.

I don't know...I have the impression that many would want to choose family practice, since it is (from my assumption) similar to EM in that both fields see a wide variety of patients.

 

[la gringa]

i'm one that would prob have done FP, mostly for the reasons leviathan stated. i would have done FP and probably a sports med fellowship.

 

[cooldreams]

fp ... there are already a lot of fps who work in the er where there are "no em doctors" hehe

dang that was an easy choice... those of you who would not do fp, do you really want to be an em doctor?? hehehehe

 

[roja]

Pediatric rheumatology, probably.. but its not on your list...

 

[DrQuinn]

Psychiatry.

Go figure. I loved doing Psych consults as a medical student (even did an extra month of Psych as an elective). Can't stand outpatient therapy but in reality all the psychiatrists do it adjust medications... they let the psychologists do all teh brain analyzing.

Q

 

[Hercules]

Just curious what field most EM people would have entered if EM wasn't a possibility... My guess is that it would be split pretty evenly between Int Med and Surgery, followed by anesthesia.

I could be wrong, but I don't think many people struggle between EM and surgery.

 

[jonwilli]

i would do Cardio, that is if I wanted to do 3 years IM, 3 years Cardio, and 1 year Interventional, then work all day and night as I try to establish a practice. wow, what a better career choice..

 

[Sessamoid]

I would probably have gone into a surgical specialty of some sort. Maybe general/trauma.

 

[WilcoWorld]

I voted FP, because that's where I fit in the best. I was seriously considering Ortho untill I saw the way that surgeons treat each other. The one-upmanship just wasn't for me, and I didn't like the idea of spending 5 years pretending to find locker room humor ammusing. No offense to the surgeons, I'm sure dick jokes kill at your conferences, but it just aint my style.

 

[waterski232002]

Pediatric rheumatology, probably.. but its not on your list...

Pediatrics is a choice... I guess I should have added "(includes subspecialties)" like I did for medicine

 

[waterski232002]

fp ... there are already a lot of fps who work in the er where there are "no em doctors" hehe

dang that was an easy choice... those of you who would not do fp, do you really want to be an em doctor?? hehehehe

I actually really like EM, but could never do FP.... I like EM for the Sick/Critical patients and see it as opposite from FP in some regards.

Although both fields are similar in the broad knowledge base and spectrum of patients you need to be comfortable dealing with, they are very different in how you manage them. EM is actually the opposite of FP in this regard...

The focus of FP training is to manage the "not-so-sick" patients. These tend to be the chronic illnesses, depression, colds, and MS pain on a long term basis. Their work-ups are usually over the course of months in the clinic. If they're truly sick/acute.... they get sent to the ED!

EM deals with the same patients, but we focus on the critical/urgent problems and relegate the minor problems for outpatient follow-up, or treat it immediately on a case-by-case basis. We do instant work-ups with instantaneous answers (STAT labs, X-rays, CT scans, LPs), and generally do not work things up over months and months or use trial and error. I don't know any FP's that have the kind of Toys the ED has!!!!

 

[kungfufishing]

gensurg/trauma or critical care of some kind, prolly PICU. Now, I actually enjoy locker room humor, but with some of the ortho dudes it always seemed kind of forced, to me.

 

[margaritaboy]

Psych

 

[roja]

Pediatrics is a choice... I guess I should have added "(includes subspecialties)" like I did for medicine

I would have NEVER done general pediatrics. But I loved peds rheum. However, there's only about 190 in the entire country so, I didn't really expect it on the list.


I also loved vascular surgery but it was NEVER an option for me. Couldn't stand the lifestyle, etc.

 

[docB]

Gas. Or PM&R. Lifestyle is much more important to me now than it used to be.

 

[realruby2000]

Hospitalist.... like em, its shift work

 

[dlung]

Vigilante ninja crusading for justice, universal health care, and better-tasting soy-based foods...

... or just cards/vascular.

 

[Jeff698]

I was asked this during an interview last month.

I voted for FP because of the undifferentiated population but would have been bored to tears, I suspect. I really like the knowledge base of medicine but would have killed myself during residency (I really, really, really HATE rounding).

The real answer is if there were no EM, I wouldn't be in medical school. I was pretty focused on EM before it even occured to me to take the MCAT.

 

[waterski232002]

I would have NEVER done general pediatrics. But I loved peds rheum. However, there's only about 190 in the entire country so, I didn't really expect it on the list.


I also loved vascular surgery but it was NEVER an option for me. Couldn't stand the lifestyle, etc.

Yeah... I would have done Trauma Surg if the lifestyle didn't BLOW and all your business didn't happen to roll in at 2am on weekends and holidays!!!!

More realistically, I would have been an Anesthesia/Critical Care person

 

[cooldreams]

I actually really like EM, but could never do FP.... I like EM for the Sick/Critical patients and see it as opposite from FP in some regards.

Although both fields are similar in the broad knowledge base and spectrum of patients you need to be comfortable dealing with, they are very different in how you manage them. EM is actually the opposite of FP in this regard...

The focus of FP training is to manage the "not-so-sick" patients. These tend to be the chronic illnesses, depression, colds, and MS pain on a long term basis. Their work-ups are usually over the course of months in the clinic. If they're truly sick/acute.... they get sent to the ED!

EM deals with the same patients, but we focus on the critical/urgent problems and relegate the minor problems for outpatient follow-up, or treat it immediately on a case-by-case basis. We do instant work-ups with instantaneous answers (STAT labs, X-rays, CT scans, LPs), and generally do not work things up over months and months or use trial and error. I don't know any FP's that have the kind of Toys the ED has!!!!

yea i kno, which is why i want to do em... but my point in say that was that CURRENTLY there are in fact FP docs working in the EDs in some places... given it is probablly because most em docs dont want to go there, but still...

so point is... if no em specialty - do fp and emphasis in emergency meds and go on to work in the ed...

 

[docB]

Vigilante ninja crusading for justice, universal health care, and better-tasting soy-based foods...

Oooh! Can I change my answer?

 

[waterski232002]

yea i kno, which is why i want to do em... but my point in say that was that CURRENTLY there are in fact FP docs working in the EDs in some places... given it is probablly because most em docs dont want to go there, but still...

so point is... if no em specialty - do fp and emphasis in emergency meds and go on to work in the ed...

There are also tons of Int Med people who staff a lot of ED's and are even on faculty at some academic centers.... a few general surgeons too...

 

[The White Coat Investor]

OB/GYN. Weird huh.

 

[waterski232002]

Come on people... Keep voting!!!

 

[kaciae]

This was, and probably still is, a seriously tough question for me. I am a FMG with a fair number of interview. I know this is no guarantee of matching, so I'm always wondering what to do for a backup if necessary. Daily I wrestle between IM/Peds or FP. The 3 or 4 year thing is kind of an issue though.

 

[waterski232002]

This was, and probably still is, a seriously tough question for me. I am a FMG with a fair number of interview. I know this is no guarantee of matching, so I'm always wondering what to do for a backup if necessary. Daily I wrestle between IM/Peds or FP. The 3 or 4 year thing is kind of an issue though.

Isn't Med/Peds 5 years???

 

[Sessamoid]

"Rock Star" wasn't a choice... *sigh*

 

[Apollyon]

Isn't Med/Peds 5 years???

Med/peds is 4 years.

 

[spyderdoc]

This was, and probably still is, a seriously tough question for me. I am a FMG with a fair number of interview. I know this is no guarantee of matching, so I'm always wondering what to do for a backup if necessary. Daily I wrestle between IM/Peds or FP. The 3 or 4 year thing is kind of an issue though.

My wife is med/peds trained. Most of the people in her residency ended up going one way or the other. Most ended up doing pedi and giving up on the gomes.
My wife completely gave up adults (after doing adult hospitalist work for 1 1/2 years) and is now a pedi hospitalist...
Unless you plan on doing academics and working on staff for a med peds program, I would advise against combined programs since most people end up giving up one of the fields...

 

[DrQuinn]

OB/GYN. Weird huh.

That is really weird, actually. Haven't met an EP who wanted to do OB/GYN.

Q

 

[tonem]

Pedi-Surg, trauma surg or maybe burn surg at a Shriner's Hospital somewhere

 

[USAF MD '05]

I'm another weirdo who loved it. I would have done Ob and fellowed in MFM or REI. I'm a lifestyle guy, too. Steve

 

[2006MD]

FP or OB

 

[waterski232002]

Looks like Anesthesia wins, followed by Surgery.... nobody guessed that combo