Where do all the doctors go.

[Homo sapien]

---

Members do not see this ad.

Podiatry schools graduate about a little over 600 folks a year, I think. Where do all these doctors go? I mean, how do they get jobs, wouldn't there be too many doctors at one point in time if you keep graduating 600 a year and then not enough die or retire?

 

[Robert De Niro]

Podiatry schools graduate about a little over 600 folks a year, I think. Where do all these doctors go? I mean, how do they get jobs, wouldn't there be too many doctors at one point in time if you keep graduating 600 a year and then not enough die or retire?

We are actually rapidly approaching a time where you cannot have too many doctors, if we aren't there already. As the "baby boomers" get older and with the increase prevelance of obesity/diabetes, there is going to be an increased need for physicians, especially podiatrists! Not to mention the "baby boomer" podiatrist will be retiring shortly as well, leaving an even larger number of openings for future podiatrists. Now the real question is going to be how many physicians are going to be able to work in a private setting vs hospital employee, especially if medicare ever ends up on the chopping block, but that's another debate.

In the end, if you plan on practicing the full scope of podiatry you will have a job in the 7-8 years we finally become attending physicians!

 

[ManUnderFire]

We are actually rapidly approaching a time where you cannot have too many doctors, if we aren't there already. As the "baby boomers" get older and with the increase prevelance of obesity/diabetes, there is going to be an increased need for physicians, especially podiatrists! Not to mention the "baby boomer" podiatrist will be retiring shortly as well, leaving an even larger number of openings for future podiatrists. Now the real question is going to be how many physicians are going to be able to work in a private setting vs hospital employee, especially if medicare ever ends up on the chopping block, but that's another debate.

In the end, if you plan on practicing the full scope of podiatry you will have a job in the 7-8 years we finally become attending physicians!

This is my suspicion, as well. Whether the pay is the same at that time as it is today...is anyone's guess. But it looks like ALL providers will take a hit in the ensuing years. In any case, podiatry is and will be needed, so a decent living is always possible.

 

[Shinobiz11]

I always wondered this too. I mean, there are 170 med schools, right? Average class size is more than 100 for most. We'll just say the average is 100. Multiply that by 170, that's 17,000 doctors every year. I assume a very small portion don't get residencies or don't practice at all. But still, that's quite a lot.

Anyway, its obvious that pods will be needed. They've been needed since the times of ancient Egypt (supposedly). As the more-experienced folks retire, I see the field changing though. Residency training is getting much better and pretty soon we will have a lot of pods with good surgical and non-surgical skills. I wouldn't be surprised if it split into a two-specialty field, podiatric physicians and podiatric surgeons. I also would not be surprised if MD/DO's were given the ability to apply for pod residencies. I'm not interested in the money, so as long as I have enough for my family I'll be fine. It's okay, I'll pay the minimum on my loans for the next 30 years...TAKE THAT GOVERNMENT!

 

[msion]

Podiatry schools graduate about a little over 600 folks a year, I think. Where do all these doctors go? I mean, how do they get jobs, wouldn't there be too many doctors at one point in time if you keep graduating 600 a year and then not enough die or retire?

I was thinking about that as well, not just for podiatry, but for any type of doctors. I guess it's more of a supply and demand question. Sometimes it is misleading to just look at the number of graduates, keep in mind that there's more to it. Especially considering this is a country of over 300 million people in which medical care is very very specialized. My college town has a population of merely 4000, yet the family practice there is always crowded, in fact I couldn't even shadow there because the doctors were too busy. And there are also very busy chiropractor and acupuncture practices in the town, plus an optometry practice. That's only a town of 4000, so the demand is always there. If you are practicing in a town that has at least 50k people, in which I assume most of us will be in, I am not too worried about oversupply of doctors. The podiatrist I shadowed practices in a town of 100k people, there are 5 podiatrists in the same town, and 3 of them are registered with the local surgery center. None of them is bankrupt or advertising at the intersections or anything, so I think we are good 😀

 

[ManUnderFire]

I always wondered this too. I mean, there are 170 med schools, right? Average class size is more than 100 for most. We'll just say the average is 100. Multiply that by 170, that's 17,000 doctors every year. I assume a very small portion don't get residencies or don't practice at all. But still, that's quite a lot.

Anyway, its obvious that pods will be needed. They've been needed since the times of ancient Egypt (supposedly). As the more-experienced folks retire, I see the field changing though. Residency training is getting much better and pretty soon we will have a lot of pods with good surgical and non-surgical skills. I wouldn't be surprised if it split into a two-specialty field, podiatric physicians and podiatric surgeons. I also would not be surprised if MD/DO's were given the ability to apply for pod residencies. I'm not interested in the money, so as long as I have enough for my family I'll be fine. It's okay, I'll pay the minimum on my loans for the next 30 years...TAKE THAT GOVERNMENT!

'till I collapse, baby .

If anything, there is more pressure for DPM to be recognized by DO/MD-meaning pods would want a crack at ACGME residencies.

But yeah, I wouldn't be surprised if pod starts to sub-specialize. I think what makes podiatry unique (aside from feet) is that we cover the entire scope of medicine in the LE. So if podiatry were to sub-specialize, there is no reason to prevent MD/DO from swallowing up the profession and adding it to its gazillion-and-one sub-specialties. Forgive my ignorance, but in terms of foot and ankle surgery, I see no difference between the proposed podiatric surgeon specialist (above) and an orthopod who did a foot and ankle fellowship and only does LE? Especially since its known that there can be attendings at some of the pod residencies that are orthopods to begin with!

...and here comes the fury

 

[rushrhees]

I
. It's okay, I'll pay the minimum on my loans for the next 30 years...TAKE THAT GOVERNMENT!

Actually that is the smart way to do it and how I plan on doing it. Out invest the interest rate to use a combination of interest/capital gains/inflation to take care of the loan.
Anyway MD/DO are churning out about 28K fresh faces a year, and you really do not see many of them standing in the unemployment lines. Really you still have population growth, obamacare whether you are for it or not will be sending more people to the Dr's offices, and the biggest grand jem is the baby boomers. Assuming we keep recovering in the next 7 years more of the will leave the work force and need more care, so a 2 prong approach in our favor. PODs still retire under their own terms or on circumstances (health, family, malpractice etc) they still become stay at home parents, pursue non clinical options such as practice mgmt, research, academia. The 600 matriculants into POD school also get reduced through various forms of attrition.
Going forward I am confident on this choice. The biggest challenge will be a few parts, 1 future of govt policy. Whether you want to admit it or not the govt is taking more of a role in this field. Obamacare is not going away and is probably only the start. 2. Para health positions such as CRNA, NP, PA. A while back they were a small bunch and not that empowered scope wise. Now they are growing with no let up, will they take away roles from MD/DO/DPM maybe/maybe not. Insurance companies, who the hell knows what they will be like in 20 years or whether they will be around. I will say the pods I shadowed realize they still pay the bills, but the love from them is drying up.

 

[MaxillofacialMN]

Actually that is the smart way to do it and how I plan on doing it. Out invest the interest rate to use a combination of interest/capital gains/inflation to take care of the loan.

Ahh yes, the one time hyperinflation will come in handy for me: my loans.

 

[Shinobiz11]

Ahh yes, the one time hyperinflation will come in handy for me: my loans.

Good thing we don't have to pay back in Zimbabwean dollars. 😀

 

[MaxillofacialMN]

Good thing we don't have to pay back in Zimbabwean dollars. 😀

Not yet, anyways!

 

[dyk343]

Ahh yes, the one time hyperinflation will come in handy for me: my loans.

I have a very good friend who's father is a very well respected economist nationally.

After talking to him about my loans he told me we are more likely than not entering a time of hyperinflation.

Steak dinner.

 

[MaxillofacialMN]

I have a very good friend who's father is a very well respected economist nationally.

After talking to him about my loans he told me we are more likely than not entering a time of hyperinflation.

Steak dinner.

Haha loans are the only "good" thing for us that hyperinflation would help us with.

 

[heybrother]

Good thing we don't have to pay back in Zimbabwean dollars. 😀

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/25/w...llars-zimbabwe-finds-a-problem-no-change.html

They use our currency now 😉

 

[hematosis]

Where do all these doctors go?

Heaven.

 

[Homo sapien]

So they work till they croak?

 

[Pktgresch]

There really is not that many podiatrists. Florida for example has over 10 counties with out a practicing podiatrist in it. Florida has a school and a great scope of practice, just to put it into perspective.

 

[rushrhees]

So they work till they croak?

Work until they have enough money to retire on their own terms, others might quit due to health, personal/family circumstances, others might have to leave due to malpractice. I am sure some leave to become full time parents or have married a sugar daddy/momma. There are probably a handful that leave to work for the govt, academia, or other administrative role.