What is the big deal about making money ? Everyone seems obsessed with cash

[MikePlayingDoc]

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There is a thread titled 'Why do people think finance, law, and medicine are the only way to make money?'. The point of the thread seems to be that there must be an easier way to make money so I am going to consider it. Then the thread discusses that if you are smart enough to make it in medicine then you can make it in finance. Who cares.

My response is who cares. Money is a terrible motivation to go into medicine. And please dont forger that a lotta docs are very underpaid right now. My neighbor is an internal medicine doc who makes $125K a year and works all the shifts. He takes call sometimes two or three different times a night when he is on service. He will literally get up at 1:00 AM and go to the hospital then come back home to knap and get up again at 3:30 to go into the hospital again. He does all this for $125K. Oh and the fact that he loves his job. He would never make it in finance because he is a total unagressive geek like many of us. Making it in the business world takes a whole different skill set than medicine. My father makes about a million dollars a year owning his own business and he now works about 30 hours a week for about 7 months a year. He spends the rest of the time travelling the world with my mother. Docs cant ever do that because docs have to go to work to get paid. Business owners can go on vacation and have twenty employees making him money.

Seriously, forget about the cash. Find a job you love to do. If you dont like school or medicine you will become miserable and board. I know. I was an engineer for 10 years. I made more money than many many docs will ever make per year but I got so bored I couldnt do it anymore. Money is not a sufficient motivtor to last your whole life.

Now if you love medicine and science and learning and going to school you are going to have a blast and probably make a few bucks along with way as long as you dont go into primary care.

If you want to go into primary care DO NOT GO TO MED SCHOOL. You can go to PA school and do the exact same job as a doc and get paid nearly as much without the pressure, hours, med school debt, lost wages from not working, ect. In fact, Cardio and Neuro PAs probably make more money than Primary Care Docs over their career. I know two PAs who make 140-150 and only work 40 hours a week. That is more than my neighbor.

Finally, just find something you like and do it. You will get rich. If you dont believe me read this speech from Steve Jobs, the guy who started Apple computers. He made more money than all the docs put together in some states and I bet he had more fun doing it.

Seriously, read this......it is a Stanford graduation speech....

http://news-service.stanford.edu/news/2005/june15/jobs-061505.html

 

[DrBowtie]

Mike, we put up with all of your calc-based physics and biochem threads. No need to rant about others.

 

[idq1i]

My response

Who are you responding to? Better q - why should we care?

(BTW, cursing in the title can get you banned)

 

[MikePlayingDoc]

Mike, we put up with all of your calc-based physics and biochem threads. No need to rant about others.

True but you must admit there seems to be a serious focus on cash for motivation for medicine. I was just pointing out that motivation aint going to last and there are better ways to make money.

Seriously, though I dont care what you think about anything.

 

[byeh2004]

everyone has their motivations for medicine, some more ethical than others, but the thing is everyone has their own interpretation of the word ethical... if money is a motivation for some people thats their business... yes we have the right to express our opinions on SDN but i think in the big pictures as future physicians we need to be open-minded, remember what are you going to do if someone comes into the ER that looks like a junkie but is totally in pain? are you going to tell him to f off or are you going to help him? What if he is really in pain?

 

[AStudent]

I'm rich bi-atch!

 

[andiluvsk]

I honestly feel I am going into medicine for the "right reasons", but going 200,000 plus dollars into debt makes it hard to not think about salaries. In fact you'd have to be semi-ignorant to not worry about it at least a little bit.

 

[byeh2004]

with malpractice insurance going up, its a hard thought... but really its not about us, its about the patients.... but getting sued by patients sucks =(

 

[Shredder]

Mike, we put up with all of your calc-based physics and biochem threads. No need to rant about others.

no the one about submissive chinese women takes the cake

 

[Masamune4567]

with malpractice insurance going up, its a hard thought... but really its not about us, its about the patients.... but getting sued by patients sucks =(

You're getting sued by the same patients you're caring for. The more you try to help them and be nice to them the more they blame you for their problems.

My philosophy is best: Diagnose, prognose and move onto the next patient. Not only does this make you the most money but it also covers your ass 👍

 

[Bap2qwrq7]

MikePlayingDoc

I dunno where to start with your post. But first off, medicine is a pretty solid way to make a good living. I can honestly say I would probably drop my spot to medical school, if the maximum income for a doctor was something like 60K and I know that a good percentage of soon to be doctors would agree with me.

And please dont forger that a lotta docs are very underpaid right now. My neighbor is an internal medicine doc who makes $125K a year and works all the shifts.

I shadowed a young IM doc and he loved his job. Hours were easy and pay was great. He kept telling me how it's basically the best field to enter because you work your ass off when your young and it essentially gets easier as you progress. And it's not like he works in some quiet suburb, it's a fairly busy community hospital. My brother-in-law has the same opinion and he has no complaints.

My father makes about a million dollars a year owning his own business and he now works about 30 hours a week for about 7 months a year. He spends the rest of the time travelling the world with my mother.

Owning a business is one of those risk/reward things. I know people who essentially worked 100 hr weeks for their businesses and it still failed because of some bad breaks. Besides, owning a business is a never ending beast of burden. My old man is a veterinarian with his own set of practices and I see the **** he has to go through dealing with employees, customers, and every other little detail.

Being a doc, offers job security and income stability. People whine about the lower salaries, but they're still pretty high in relation to other occupations. Yeah yeah, Steve Jobs is worht more then all the doctors combined, but guess what, theres no set course to having his job. There's a certain degree of luck that accompanied his success, even though he had a lot of business savvy.

But yeah, calm down with your preaching. If people want to go in for the cash, who really cares. As long as they do their job well does it really matter?

 

[shivalrous]

I heard a wise man once say

"Money doesn't buy happiness, but it sure as hell helps..."

🙄

 

[Law2Doc]

Yeah yeah, Steve Jobs is worth more then all the doctors combined, but guess what, theres no set course to having his job. There's a certain degree of luck that accompanied his success, even though he had a lot of business savvy.

Steve Jobs owes his success to Wozniak, the brains behind Apple's initial product. Jobs' skill was knowing a good thing when he saw it, seeing it before anyone else (other than Wozniak), and latching onto it. He became the pitch man for a computer his friend actually invented. So it's a combination of having been very lucky and very parasitic. I'm not sure these are skills that serve everyone in every field.

 

[psipsina]

Of course alot of people think of the money when they choose to go into medicine, its a career. It is a way to earn money. Now some people out there might be independently wealthy, and in their cases they don't have to worry about how they are going to feed and shelter themselves for the rest of their lives, but for most people, this does come into consideration. Now, I am not concerned with wealth, I don't want luxury sportscars and vacation homes, but I am attracted to the ability to provide a stable comfortable income for my family. There are plenty of careers that could do this, medicine is the one that I believe will make me happiest, for all the cool science that intrigues me and the opportunity to not sacrifice my morals to make said comfortable income. If its wrong that I have contemplated the monetary aspects of medicine than so be it.

 

[Gut Shot]

I heard a wise man once say

"Money doesn't buy happiness, but it sure as hell helps..."

Or how about (courtesy of my father):

"Money can't buy you happiness, but it can buy you something so close that you can't tell the difference."

 

[domukin]

Or how about (courtesy of my father):

"Money can't buy you happiness, but it can buy you something so close that you can't tell the difference."

Here's the thing. Money does buy happiness, but only up to a certain amount. There was a TIME issue about happiness about 6 months ago, and it pointed out a study showing relative happiness vs. income. It showed a direct upward trend on happiness until you hit about 50K /year or so, then it just plateaud for infinity. The reason behind this was that if you are poor, you lack basic requirements (water, food, housing, etc), have to work long shifts at a crappy job, and are therefore stressed out and unhappy. As these issues become non existent b/c of income, people become "happy", however it stops having a direct correlation b/c it turns out the difference in happiness from driving a new BMW vs/ that of having reliable transportation (say 5 year old civic) is not that significant, they both get the job done. Added to this, social, family and personal issues will always have an effect on happiness.

 

[Pose]

For a long time I considered dropping the pre-med title. It was silly. I hadn't even taken the first step towards medicine (although it had been my 'passion' for many years), yet I was getting really caught up in work-force studies...the shortage/surplus debate, the mid-level debate, the compensation debate...whatever else. So I finally decided it's ******ed to get myself upset over something I can't fight NOW. As a result, I'm putting more focus on my current education so I can fight for change and make myself successful when the time comes. Might as well set myself up for that.


Anyway...Sure, if you love what you do, you can be successful. On the other hand...you do need to fight/lobby/bitch to secure it.

 

[gujuDoc]

What the above poster said: 👍

And most us would be kidding ourselves if we said that we were going into medicine to save the world even if after 100k+ amount of dollars of debt that we could settle for permanently earning 50k a year for the rest of ourlives.

From an economic standpoint, many people DO go into medicine for better job security and financial reasons as well as autonomy. Although, autonomy is in question with the way things are working in more modern day medicine. No one denies that there are easier ways to earn money. But often times those other ways have less job security. Some people actually go in medicine for the challenge, love for medicine, and monetary reasons, but then.......also pursue other side things that they invest into.

Actually, the wealthiest physician I've heard of is worth half a billion dollars by making some money and then investing into HMO companies which he founded and ran.

That said, money is not the only reason to go into medicne but if the pay were less, I guarantee you that there would be a lot less people going into it. And if you deny the truth to that, then you're really naive.

So yah, in summary......money isn't everything but it is definitely part of the package as to what drives people towards medicine, after the humanitarian and science based reasons.

Edited to say: what the above poster said line was in reference to the two posts above this one.

 

[LJDHC05]

As these issues become non existent b/c of income, people become "happy", however it stops having a direct correlation b/c it turns out the difference in happiness from driving a new BMW vs/ that of having reliable transportation (say 5 year old civic) is not that significant, they both get the job done. Added to this, social, family and personal issues will always have an effect on happiness.

I drove a 1984 jeep for a year or so and it was my favorite car ever because of the emotional investment in trying to save it from impending mechanical doom. I never loved either of my saturns the same way. Now I drive a new corolla ce and i am almost as happy with that as I was with the jeep.

What I guess I'm trying to say is that I agree with domukin, that having basic transpo is friggin awesome after riding with mom for 16 years and that when you put your emotions into something it becomes alot more rewarding than just doing it to do it.

 

[45408]

Why do I want money? Because my fiance and I would like to allow her to stay at home with our future children. That means I need to make twice as much money as the average occupation to make up for what she won't be earning. I'd also like to have a comfortable lifestyle and help my kids out as well. This whole "just pick an occupation you love" isn't the entire story. I'd love to test drive Ferraris or be a professional ski racer, but neither one of those really panned out 😛

 

[Ross434]

There is a thread titled 'Why do people think finance, law, and medicine are the only way to make money?'. The point of the thread seems to be that there must be an easier way to make money so I am going to consider it. Then the thread discusses that if you are smart enough to make it in medicine then you can make it in finance. Who cares.

My response is who cares. Money is a terrible motivation to go into medicine. And please dont forger that a lotta docs are very underpaid right now. My neighbor is an internal medicine doc who makes $125K a year and works all the shifts. He takes call sometimes two or three different times a night when he is on service. He will literally get up at 1:00 AM and go to the hospital then come back home to knap and get up again at 3:30 to go into the hospital again. He does all this for $125K. Oh and the fact that he loves his job. He would never make it in finance because he is a total unagressive geek like many of us. Making it in the business world takes a whole different skill set than medicine. My father makes about a million dollars a year owning his own business and he now works about 30 hours a week for about 7 months a year. He spends the rest of the time travelling the world with my mother. Docs cant ever do that because docs have to go to work to get paid. Business owners can go on vacation and have twenty employees making him money.

Seriously, forget about the cash. Find a job you love to do. If you dont like school or medicine you will become miserable and board. I know. I was an engineer for 10 years. I made more money than many many docs will ever make per year but I got so bored I couldnt do it anymore. Money is not a sufficient motivtor to last your whole life.

Now if you love medicine and science and learning and going to school you are going to have a blast and probably make a few bucks along with way as long as you dont go into primary care.

If you want to go into primary care DO NOT GO TO MED SCHOOL. You can go to PA school and do the exact same job as a doc and get paid nearly as much without the pressure, hours, med school debt, lost wages from not working, ect. In fact, Cardio and Neuro PAs probably make more money than Primary Care Docs over their career. I know two PAs who make 140-150 and only work 40 hours a week. That is more than my neighbor.

Finally, just find something you like and do it. You will get rich. If you dont believe me read this speech from Steve Jobs, the guy who started Apple computers. He made more money than all the docs put together in some states and I bet he had more fun doing it.

Seriously, read this......it is a Stanford graduation speech....

http://news-service.stanford.edu/news/2005/june15/jobs-061505.html

Okay, in defense of my thread. I'm saying - YES making money in other fields *is* easier, and, i *am* going into a career that i wholeheartedly love and would do for little/no money if i had to. (ie: choosing for happiness). Also, we agree that you should find a job you like and then the money will come. Why stress out in maniacal jobs like banking and law or neurosurgery. they arent for everyone

 

[GiantGiantsFan]

.
If you want to go into primary care DO NOT GO TO MED SCHOOL. You can go to PA school and do the exact same job as a doc and get paid nearly as much without the pressure, hours, med school debt, lost wages from not working, ect. In fact, Cardio and Neuro PAs probably make more money than Primary Care Docs over their career. I know two PAs who make 140-150 and only work 40 hours a week. That is more than my neighbor.

Finally, just find something you like and do it. You will get rich.

Mike, I agree with the general points of your post, which domukin backs up. However, I disagree with your advice about attending PA school. PAs and Doctors are very different: Doctors give orders; PAs carry them out. Doctors are in charge, and are responsible for their patients well-being. I don't think I'd be happy as a PA, no matter how many less hours I worked.

Also, I disagree with your last line. Not everyone who does something that they like will get rich.

 

[primadonna22274]

MIKE!!! and everyone else who doesn't understand how PAs work:

PAs and doctors, especially in primary care disciplines, are far more ALIKE than they are DIFFERENT. In my line of work, none of my supervising physicians gives me ORDERS. I work essentially autonomously with physician backup when I need help. I'm comfortable getting help and not at all shy about asking for it, and my SPs and consultants are never stingy or grumbly about helping me because they know I"m not asking them trivial questions. Just as often as I consult, they consult with ME. Is this because they know less than I do as a PA? Of course not. It's because we all develop areas of expertise and there are things I've done a hell of a lot more of (GYN, psychopharmacology) than some of them. We've learned to work together and complement one another's weaknesses.

In my family practice clinic, my practice is very similar to 80% of my supervising docs' practices, except they have a heavier burden of older, sicker patients (thank God for them there). I don't really work significantly less hours than the docs since most of our inpatients are cared for by hospitalists now. I'm often the last one to leave at the end of the day--never the first. I'm no less dedicated to my patients than the doctors are. So please, don't generalize by assuming that all PAs have a cushy life and we're all paid money hand over fist for an abbreviated medical education.

I know of very few PAs making any more than $90k a year--and those are in surgical subspecialties. And lest you think I don't earn it--I'm billing routinely $30k or more a month, and I'm paid just $75k. It's a nice living, sure, but it cost me $100k to earn my M.S. as a PA and between student loan payments and a mortgage, I live very modestly.

Primary care is a tough way to make a living. You have to know a little about everything--and that never feels like enough. It's hard work, exhausting work, often fulfilling, often discouraging. You do get to know people. You see them at their worst and sometimes at their best. I have a love-hate relationship with primary care. I've enjoyed it but I sure am not going back to med school to reenter the work force in 10 years as a primary care MD. Been there, done that, and doubt any positive change will really be made in that time.

I'm not fulfilled as a PA. Many PAs are--and that's fabulous. I'm not going back to med school and residency for the money, but for what it's gonna cost me in terms of lost income during training and going even deeper into debt for more education, I need to be assured of making a certain level of income to make it worthwhile. That's not greed--that's just basic economics.

And for what it's worth, I strongly believe in PAs. Throughout my short career, I've been involved in PA workforce and legislative issues, educating and mentoring PAs. I will continue to do so as a physician. I think being a PA will make me a more well-rounded physician and certainly one who knows what it feels like on the other side of the fence.

Lisa PA-C

Mike, I agree with the general points of your post, which domukin backs up. However, I disagree with your advice about attending PA school. PAs and Doctors are very different: Doctors give orders; PAs carry them out. Doctors are in charge, and are responsible for their patients well-being. I don't think I'd be happy as a PA, no matter how many less hours I worked.

Also, I disagree with your last line. Not everyone who does something that they like will get rich.

 

[KingTutATL]

Money isn't the major factor for many people that want to go into medicine. It would be nice to know that you could support your family and be able to retire at a reasonable age though.

 

[commonsense34]

There is a thread titled 'Why do people think finance, law, and medicine are the only way to make money?'. The point of the thread seems to be that there must be an easier way to make money so I am going to consider it. Then the thread discusses that if you are smart enough to make it in medicine then you can make it in finance. Who cares.

My response is who cares. Money is a terrible motivation to go into medicine. And please dont forger that a lotta docs are very underpaid right now. My neighbor is an internal medicine doc who makes $125K a year and works all the shifts. He takes call sometimes two or three different times a night when he is on service. He will literally get up at 1:00 AM and go to the hospital then come back home to knap and get up again at 3:30 to go into the hospital again. He does all this for $125K. Oh and the fact that he loves his job. He would never make it in finance because he is a total unagressive geek like many of us. Making it in the business world takes a whole different skill set than medicine. My father makes about a million dollars a year owning his own business and he now works about 30 hours a week for about 7 months a year. He spends the rest of the time travelling the world with my mother. Docs cant ever do that because docs have to go to work to get paid. Business owners can go on vacation and have twenty employees making him money.

Seriously, forget about the cash. Find a job you love to do. If you dont like school or medicine you will become miserable and board. I know. I was an engineer for 10 years. I made more money than many many docs will ever make per year but I got so bored I couldnt do it anymore. Money is not a sufficient motivtor to last your whole life.

Now if you love medicine and science and learning and going to school you are going to have a blast and probably make a few bucks along with way as long as you dont go into primary care.

If you want to go into primary care DO NOT GO TO MED SCHOOL. You can go to PA school and do the exact same job as a doc and get paid nearly as much without the pressure, hours, med school debt, lost wages from not working, ect. In fact, Cardio and Neuro PAs probably make more money than Primary Care Docs over their career. I know two PAs who make 140-150 and only work 40 hours a week. That is more than my neighbor.

Finally, just find something you like and do it. You will get rich. If you dont believe me read this speech from Steve Jobs, the guy who started Apple computers. He made more money than all the docs put together in some states and I bet he had more fun doing it.

Seriously, read this......it is a Stanford graduation speech....

http://news-service.stanford.edu/news/2005/june15/jobs-061505.html

Wow a million dollars a year, by far the richest person i have met on a message board.

You say you made more then a doctor working an an egineer for 10 years, i highly doubt that. Engineers rarely make more then 100k a year






Btw Almost everybody who wants to be a doctor is doing it for the money anyone who says differently is a liar. If you really wanna help people go to africa and set up a free clinic for starving aids infected children

 

[DrBowtie]

Wow a million dollars a year, by far the richest person i have met on a message board.

You say you made more then a doctor working an an egineer for 10 years, i highly doubt that. Engineers rarely make more then 100k a year

You have no idea...

 

[commonsense34]

You have no idea...

Yes i do, Then why dont you tell us exactly how much you made and what you did exactly?

 

[DrBowtie]

Most engineers make 50-60k out of school. 10 years puts you atleast into six figures. Like most pre-meds do, time is considered in 4 year blocks. In the real world 10 years of work moves you up the corporate ladder. And as for data? I can ask my dad for his tax return.

 

[commonsense34]

Most engineers make 50-60k out of school. 10 years puts you atleast into six figures. Like most pre-meds do, time is considered in 4 year blocks. In the real world 10 years of work moves you up the corporate ladder. And as for data? I can ask my dad for his tax return.

Why would i care about your dads tax returns, all im saying is that no engineer makes more money then a doctor, not resident not a fellow. An actual specialist. You could have more then 10 years of experience and still not come near a doctor with 5 years of experience

 

[Burge]

I have to agree with original statement. I guess if I was to write the thread again, you have to ask yourself what is your number one motivator for medicine? I would agree, it shouldn't be for the income. Yes, an income and finances are important parts of your security in life which is definitely true. But there are numerous of other careers to make a boat load of money. What I think is lost sight of what the role of a what doctor is! A doctor is a public servant, devoted to the health and well being of others. Being a doctor isn't getting paid in return the compassion you lathered on with a insincere butter knife and the chip on your shoulder for how long and strenuous your education was (or whatever else you have a chip for). There is a genuine need for doctors who feel compassion from within, despite getting paid dirt or millions of dollars. People depend on us as future doctors for their health and well being, and really we owe it to them to actually make it our jobs to care about them, as a motivating factor. So yeah the money is great, it makes for a secure life I guess, but really it's not always about ourselves. The life of a doctor is a life of service to others. I'm sure there will be days that we'll work harder than money can pay us, and on that day what will be the motivator?

 

[Fed Meat]

Seriously, forget about the cash.

Spoken like someone whose father makes $1-million/year.

Live without money for a little whlle and see if you're so willing to offer this advice. When it comes to a career, money should always be a consideration. To what degree will vary from person to person, but to discount the value of stability and guaranteed solvency, well, that sounds like it could be ignorance.

 

[YFR]

IRT: "Great Topic"

Yeah, but do we really need 4 threads dedicated to it? They all reach the same conclusion: people have different priorities.

 

[gujuDoc]

IRT: "Great Topic"

Yeah, but do we really need 4 threads dedicated to it? They all reach the same conclusion: people have different priorities.

SOOOOOOOOOOOOO TRUE!!!!!!!!!!! This is really getting old, and I think everyone needs to listen to YFR, and learn to agree that different people have different beliefs on this topic.

 

[63768]

So yeah the money is great, it makes for a secure life I guess, but really it's not always about ourselves. The life of a doctor is a life of service to others.

if you go into an interview saying things like this, adcoms will call you on it. they can smell bs from a mile away. if you want your life to be a life of servic, there are plenty other careers for you. you can be a social worker. you can also work as a doctor with no pay. all services for free. would you do that? i think not.

people who view money as the root of all evil have never had to live by themselves without daddy's credit card. go live by yourself and pay for everything (this means car, home, bills, cell phone, internet, everything) by your own sweat and blood and come back and tell me you don't want money.

there has certainly been an influx of trolls lately.

 

[gujuDoc]

if you go into an interview saying things like this, adcoms will call you on it. they can smell bs from a mile away. if you want your life to be a life of servic, there are plenty other careers for you. you can be a social worker. you can also work as a doctor with no pay. all services for free. would you do that? i think not.

people who view money as the root of all evil have never had to live by themselves without daddy's credit card. go live by yourself and pay for everything (this means car, home, bills, cell phone, internet, everything) by your own sweat and blood and come back and tell me you don't want money.

there has certainly been an influx of trolls lately.

I agree with everything you have said. Though, I am by no means poor, I totally agree.

 

[Burge]

if you go into an interview saying things like this, adcoms will call you on it. they can smell bs from a mile away. if you want your life to be a life of servic, there are plenty other careers for you. you can be a social worker. you can also work as a doctor with no pay. all services for free. would you do that? i think not.

people who view money as the root of all evil have never had to live by themselves without daddy's credit card. go live by yourself and pay for everything (this means car, home, bills, cell phone, internet, everything) by your own sweat and blood and come back and tell me you don't want money.

there has certainly been an influx of trolls lately.

Ironically, my father is a social worker and I've heard all about it, and being a social worker his credit card was no where nearby. Let's keep the rash judgements to a minimum, they really are unnecessary. Apparently this is a touchy subject, considering the personal attacks.

 

[BlondeCookie]

Why is there always a general theme to these medicine and money threads that exemplify that money = bad? And why is it that people are often looked down upon if they are looking at the issue from a money = good standpoint? Is a person going to be any less of a good doctor if he/she values money highly? Why is it so bad that the majority of all people in society motivated by earning a higher income?

 

[Law2Doc]

Why is there always a general theme to these medicine and money threads that exemplify that money = bad? And why is it that people are often looked down upon if they are looking at the issue from a money = good standpoint? Is a person going to be any less of a good doctor if he/she values money highly? Why is it so bad that the majority of all people in society motivated by earning a higher income?

I don't think it's a good/bad issue. But I think it's pretty clear that those who end up hating medicine and are most dissatisfied by their lot are the one's who go into medicine primarilly for the money. They aren't loving what they are doing, and look around and see that they are working more hours on more intense stuff for less bling than some of their business/law/financial services friends, and ultimately they end up frustrated and telling everyone they come across what a terrible profession they are in. That's the real meat of why people need to really research the profession first, and have a reason other than money for choosing medicine.

 

[BlondeCookie]

I don't think it's a good/bad issue. But I think it's pretty clear that those who end up hating medicine and are most dissatisfied by their lot are the one's who go into medicine primarilly for the money. They aren't loving what they are doing, and look around and see that they are working more hours on more intense stuff for less bling than some of their business/law/financial services friends, and ultimately they end up frustrated and telling everyone they come across what a terrible profession they are in. That's the real meat of why people need to really research the profession first, and have a reason other than money for choosing medicine.

That's funny, because I haven't read any conclusive studies showing for medical professions that dissatisfaction increases as income increases.

 

[Law2Doc]

That's funny, because I haven't read any conclusive studies showing for medical professions that dissatisfaction increases as income increases.

No because it's not a group impact thing - its a specific person kind of thing. And you can't do such a study without actually raising the income of the profession, which to my knowledge hasn't been done. 🙄 The one's who are dissatisfied are just the few who made bad choices for themselves based on priorities not well satisfied by this particular profession. Talk to those doctors who complain, and you will find a common theme - inadequate pay for the hours - and not what they expected going in. (It's anecdotal, true). I would posit that such "squeaky wheel" individuals are probably dissatisfied for having inadequately researched the profession going in, and thus having chosen a field that didn't fit their priorities well.