Why didn't YOU choose Neurology?

[pballa24]

so are there any of you doin the CC/stroke deal...as of now that is what i want to do..but not sure if its a good idea to go into neuro only to do a subspecialty (what happens if im stuck as a general neurologist?? dont think id want to do it then) but seriously, does anybody have any experience. all my professors have told me is about the insanity of stroke teams..on call 24/7...but it sounds so bad ass! are these fairly new 2 year fellowships becoming more and more competitive?

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[NRAI2001]

so are there any of you doin the CC/stroke deal...as of now that is what i want to do..but not sure if its a good idea to go into neuro only to do a subspecialty (what happens if im stuck as a general neurologist?? dont think id want to do it then) but seriously, does anybody have any experience. all my professors have told me is about the insanity of stroke teams..on call 24/7...but it sounds so bad ass! are these fairly new 2 year fellowships becoming more and more competitive?

Do you have any links to more information about the stroke field? Sounds kinda cool.

 

[NRAI2001]

What is the avg salary of a neurologist in private practice?

Do they ever make 500k+?

I know salary isnt everything, but I am just curious.

 

[pballa24]

What is the avg salary of a neurologist in private practice?

Do they ever make 500k+?

I know salary isnt everything, but I am just curious.

hmm, im gonna say no. im almost certain no neurologist ( even if he worked as many hours as humanly possible) would make that much. however, it wouldnt surprise me if their were neurologists out there makin close to 300k. remember, the high avg is like 200k. i've seen ads for icu/stroke fellows straight out of fellowship with a starting salary of 150k but then a bump up to 200k after like 2-3 years in the group; and obviously, the one in LA would make more than the one in No Name, North Dakota.....I would hope, anyways. and these were base salary figures (no bonuses or incentives included). so id say a base of 200k is not bad at all.

 

[NRAI2001]

hmm, im gonna say no. im almost certain no neurologist ( even if he worked as many hours as humanly possible) would make that much. however, it wouldnt surprise me if their were neurologists out there makin close to 300k. remember, the high avg is like 200k. i've seen ads for icu/stroke fellows straight out of fellowship with a starting salary of 150k but then a bump up to 200k after like 2-3 years in the group; and obviously, the one in LA would make more than the one in No Name, North Dakota.....I would hope, anyways. and these were base salary figures (no bonuses or incentives included). so id say a base of 200k is not bad at all.

Really? I know internists and FPs who make 500k+ in private practice.........sucks.

 

[penguins]

Really? I know internists and FPs who make 500k+ in private practice.........sucks.

Do you think those IMs and FPs are doing everything on the up and up? I worked with an FP who made almost a million a year but I think some of his "deals" with the other docs and the hospital were kinda shady. I just wonder how common it is to be making over half a million as an FP AND have honest business/practice dealings. This guy didn't even do any procedures!
Most of his patients were welfare so I think he was milking the government.

 

[NoSz]

and obviously, the one in LA would make more than the one in No Name, North Dakota.....I would hope, anyways. and these were base salary figures (no bonuses or incentives included). so id say a base of 200k is not bad at all.

As far as I know, LA neurologists make rather less than elsewhere. There are just too many crazy people loving to live here. Also, lots of patients have MediCal and/or MediCare or HMO.
A friend of mine started her own office attached to a hospital in Southern California and was offered 120k at first (after neurophysiology fellowship). She now gets 150k in her first year.

I met people at a conference from Lousiana who try to get a neurologist into the area. They offer 220+ for general neurologist right after residency and you can easily go much higher later on.

Southwest and Northeast seem to be paying considerably less than other places.

Please correct me if I am wrong, would love to hear better numbers.

 

[Methyldopa]

hmm, im gonna say no. im almost certain no neurologist ( even if he worked as many hours as humanly possible) would make that much. however, it wouldnt surprise me if their were neurologists out there makin close to 300k. remember, the high avg is like 200k. i've seen ads for icu/stroke fellows straight out of fellowship with a starting salary of 150k but then a bump up to 200k after like 2-3 years in the group; and obviously, the one in LA would make more than the one in No Name, North Dakota.....I would hope, anyways. and these were base salary figures (no bonuses or incentives included). so id say a base of 200k is not bad at all.

With Neurointerevention on the rise, I'll hazard a guess that that group of neurologists will make upwards of $500K but might have bad hours to go with it.

 

[undecided3yr]

hmm, im gonna say no. im almost certain no neurologist ( even if he worked as many hours as humanly possible) would make that much. however, it wouldnt surprise me if their were neurologists out there makin close to 300k. remember, the high avg is like 200k. i've seen ads for icu/stroke fellows straight out of fellowship with a starting salary of 150k but then a bump up to 200k after like 2-3 years in the group; and obviously, the one in LA would make more than the one in No Name, North Dakota.....I would hope, anyways. and these were base salary figures (no bonuses or incentives included). so id say a base of 200k is not bad at all.

I talked to a mayo cheif resident who said that he knew of a Neuro group in the minneapolis area that the senior partners were making 500K-600K

 

[doctorlarry]

Having matched into Neurology residency at UCSD this year, I will add my 2 cents. One thing that wasn't emphasized in this thread...integration of practice with basic and clinical research.

While the field of neurology may be 'lacking' for cures now, this is all the more reason for pushing the field to the next level. There is a lot of promise from breakthroughs in basic neuroscience research, translational research and clinical trials. Approximately 30% of pharmaceuticals on the market are targeted toward nervous system diseases.

The glass is half full everyone...not half empty. I can't think of anything more exciting than helping to advance this field we know as the next frontier. Remember, the nervous system is by far and away the most complex organ system in the human body, after all it's what makes us human, and for this reason, the field carries so many more challenges in understanding underlying mechanisms of disease and developing treatments.

While it seems that most would rather 'run away' from anything neuro-related, isn't it nice to know that some of us have the guts to approach the challenge of caring for these patients, and devoting our lives to improve the field in every way?

We're not going after the money or the lifestyle...we're in it to make our patients' lives better in every way currently possible...cure or not, and this underscores the need for continued ground-breaking research. I can't wait for the day when I enroll my AD patient into a trial and offer new hope for a disease that had very little to begin with. Where I'm going to residency, neurologists are including AD pts into stem cell studies for restoring memory, placing grids in the OR to localize lesions for epilepsy surgery and DBS, placing clot-retrieving devices into the brain vasculature in acute ischemic stroke, and subjecting patients to brain cooling to extend that narrow window period for tPA. Sure...the neurosurgeon implants these stem cells, this is technical. But the brains behind the theory come from academic neurologists devoted to bringing therapy from bench to bedside.

Neurology is on the rise...give it some time and have some faith in your Neurologist colleagues!

 

[NRAI2001]

Having matched into Neurology residency at UCSD this year, I will add my 2 cents. One thing that wasn't emphasized in this thread...integration of practice with basic and clinical research.

While the field of neurology may be 'lacking' for cures now, this is all the more reason for pushing the field to the next level. There is a lot of promise from breakthroughs in basic neuroscience research, translational research and clinical trials. Approximately 30% of pharmaceuticals on the market are targeted toward nervous system diseases.

The glass is half full everyone...not half empty. I can't think of anything more exciting than helping to advance this field we know as the next frontier. Remember, the nervous system is by far and away the most complex organ system in the human body, after all it's what makes us human, and for this reason, the field carries so many more challenges in understanding underlying mechanisms of disease and developing treatments.

While it seems that most would rather 'run away' from anything neuro-related, isn't it nice to know that some of us have the guts to approach the challenge of caring for these patients, and devoting our lives to improve the field in every way?

We're not going after the money or the lifestyle...we're in it to make our patients' lives better in every way currently possible...cure or not, and this underscores the need for continued ground-breaking research. I can't wait for the day when I enroll my AD patient into a trial and offer new hope for a disease that had very little to begin with. Where I'm going to residency, neurologists are including AD pts into stem cell studies for restoring memory, placing grids in the OR to localize lesions for epilepsy surgery and DBS, placing clot-retrieving devices into the brain vasculature in acute ischemic stroke, and subjecting patients to brain cooling to extend that narrow window period for tPA. Sure...the neurosurgeon implants these stem cells, this is technical. But the brains behind the theory come from academic neurologists devoted to bringing therapy from bench to bedside.

Neurology is on the rise...give it some time and have some faith in your Neurologist colleagues!

 

[pballa24]

Having matched into Neurology residency at UCSD this year, I will add my 2 cents. One thing that wasn't emphasized in this thread...integration of practice with basic and clinical research.

While the field of neurology may be 'lacking' for cures now, this is all the more reason for pushing the field to the next level. There is a lot of promise from breakthroughs in basic neuroscience research, translational research and clinical trials. Approximately 30% of pharmaceuticals on the market are targeted toward nervous system diseases.

The glass is half full everyone...not half empty. I can't think of anything more exciting than helping to advance this field we know as the next frontier. Remember, the nervous system is by far and away the most complex organ system in the human body, after all it's what makes us human, and for this reason, the field carries so many more challenges in understanding underlying mechanisms of disease and developing treatments.

While it seems that most would rather 'run away' from anything neuro-related, isn't it nice to know that some of us have the guts to approach the challenge of caring for these patients, and devoting our lives to improve the field in every way?

We're not going after the money or the lifestyle...we're in it to make our patients' lives better in every way currently possible...cure or not, and this underscores the need for continued ground-breaking research. I can't wait for the day when I enroll my AD patient into a trial and offer new hope for a disease that had very little to begin with. Where I'm going to residency, neurologists are including AD pts into stem cell studies for restoring memory, placing grids in the OR to localize lesions for epilepsy surgery and DBS, placing clot-retrieving devices into the brain vasculature in acute ischemic stroke, and subjecting patients to brain cooling to extend that narrow window period for tPA. Sure...the neurosurgeon implants these stem cells, this is technical. But the brains behind the theory come from academic neurologists devoted to bringing therapy from bench to bedside.

Neurology is on the rise...give it some time and have some faith in your Neurologist colleagues!

sweet!

 

[doctorlarry]

so are there any of you doin the CC/stroke deal...as of now that is what i want to do..but not sure if its a good idea to go into neuro only to do a subspecialty (what happens if im stuck as a general neurologist?? dont think id want to do it then) but seriously, does anybody have any experience. all my professors have told me is about the insanity of stroke teams..on call 24/7...but it sounds so bad ass! are these fairly new 2 year fellowships becoming more and more competitive?

From what I gathered during the interview season, stroke/cc is wide open in terms of fellowship opportunities. I don't think anyone would be in a position where they absolutely could not do a fellowship in their desired subspecialty field somewhere (except for interventional neurology). I wouldn't worry at all about being "stuck" as a general neurologist. Best of luck in your quest...

 

[pballa24]

From what I gathered during the interview season, stroke/cc is wide open in terms of fellowship opportunities. I don't think anyone would be in a position where they absolutely could not do a fellowship in their desired subspecialty field somewhere (except for interventional neurology). I wouldn't worry at all about being "stuck" as a general neurologist. Best of luck in your quest...

awesome..those are good things to hear. thanks! now lets just see if they can stay that way for a few more years.

 

[kam730]

I have been enlightened during the last week and now have made Neurology my career choice. In researching the speciality, it seems that it is the hidden gem of medicine. Here are a few of my reasons:

Very interesting cases, growing at rapid pace, research is omnipresent, lifestyle is great and flexible, salary is great, can be inpatient or outpatient, opportunity for fellowships...do I need to go on?

Why doesn't everyone go into Neurology? Am I missing something here? What are the negatives about Neuro? Are there any?

I'm trying to get an honest opinion from the people who considered neuro, but passed on it.

Thanks for helping me better understand neuro.


Youngfaithful
MS II

I was pretty gung-ho about neuro for awhile, but after doing a few 3rd year rotations (not neuro, which is 4th year for us), I have reconsidered. My main reason is because after internal med. I realized I do not like chronic problems, ie. your pts rarely get better, you just keep seeing them every few months and changing their meds. Most of neuro is chronic problems, like neuromuscular dz, epilepsy, headaches, s/p stroke, etc. I also realized I don't like specialties with a lot of vague, difficult-to-work-up type of problems which you will find in neuro such as "dizziness" (my absolute least favorite CC), "fatigue", "numbness", you get my drift. This is only my opinion, plenty of people find these puzzles intriguing, I just realized it's not for me.

 

[scrappy]

hmm, im gonna say no. im almost certain no neurologist ( even if he worked as many hours as humanly possible) would make that much. however, it wouldnt surprise me if their were neurologists out there makin close to 300k. remember, the high avg is like 200k. i've seen ads for icu/stroke fellows straight out of fellowship with a starting salary of 150k but then a bump up to 200k after like 2-3 years in the group; and obviously, the one in LA would make more than the one in No Name, North Dakota.....I would hope, anyways. and these were base salary figures (no bonuses or incentives included). so id say a base of 200k is not bad at all.

gotta contradict. friend of mine finished residency last year and was courted by several smallish partnerships (looking mainly in florida--where neurology is booming with boomers). the one he accepted was about $200K to start with eligibility for partnership in 3 years; partners made $500K. this wasn't even his best financial option. gotta follow demand for the big bucks.

also gotta think about the big money makers--reading MRIs, etc.

 

[NRAI2001]

What about after doing a neuro fellowship? Neuro rad, Interv. Neuro,.....etc??

How difficult is it to get into a neuro fellowship and what is the pay off in salary?

 

[doctorlarry]

What about after doing a neuro fellowship? Neuro rad, Interv. Neuro,.....etc??

How difficult is it to get into a neuro fellowship and what is the pay off in salary?

Hey guys...for those interested in Neurology, there is a separate Neurology residency forum...try posting or searching there...may get more input.

 

[trouta]

Definately the fact that there isnt much in the way of therapy...

 

[Poety]

I've been noticing an interesting trend - many people don't like specialties where the patient doesn't get better or there are minimal treatments. I understand we went into medicine to heal and all - but part of healing is improving quality of life.

Im just wondering why many of us are looking for "fix it" specialties as opposed to maintenance specialties?

I loved neuro -but the rounding was more painful than medicine My feet can't hang with that!