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OT: cute avatar armybound.
I really thought there was a bug on my screen there for a minute!![]()

Just wondering... Also, with dermatology, what's the deal?
I understand why a neurosurgeon should roll in the big bucks, but why so in these less 'high-risk' specialties?
Seriously. I work for a derm and one time I got a lesion traveling up my arm. He said it was contact dermatitis, one of his fellows said it was lymphangitis, another fellow had no clue, and an ID doc they consulted was sure that it was an infection from contact dermatitis. Four docs, no definitive diagnosis. In the end, they gave me antibiotics and steroids to see which one would help more. This is why a lot of cases they see need to be biopsied and why their path reports are filled with so many big words. You can only tell so much from looking.derms make a lot of money cuz a lot of people come in with skin problems. For example, there are many different kind of acne but a lot of people don't know what kind they have and derms don't know either so they give wrong acne meds so the patient keeps coming back. for example, some people have acne because their skin is sensitive, not because they have bacterial infection. So because many ance meds are made to dry out the skin, this can aggravate already broken out skin. Also, a ton of people come in for laser treatment and these take up to 10 treatments at like 1000 a treatment. Skin problems affect everyone from teens to the elders, men and women. A lot of these people are cash paying customers because insurance doesn't pay for cosmetic procedures.
Seriously. I work for a derm and one time I got a lesion traveling up my arm. He said it was contact dermatitis, one of his fellows said it was lymphangitis, another fellow had no clue, and an ID doc they consulted was sure that it was an infection from contact dermatitis. Four docs, no definitive diagnosis. In the end, they gave me antibiotics and steroids to see which one would help more. This is why a lot of cases they see need to be biopsied and why their path reports are filled with so many big words. You can only tell so much from looking.
I should add for the sake of discussion that my boss is a dermatologic surgeon so his procedures are relatively high risk for Mohs surgery and cost a lot of cash for cosmetic procedures. The $6 million he takes home each year (profit--not gross sum) is a little obscene though.
yeah but you're from California, so a $20mil home is probably a 2 bedroom shack in some back alley.Well of course it depends on the dermatologist. My boss is certainly the exception because he's not only a workaholic but he's got a brilliant mind for business and he drove out his partner in an established practice by the time he was 38 years old.
I hear that the chief of derm surgery at the local university makes $500,000. A previous Mohs fellow who is now a pediatric reconstructive surgeon makes $200,000. These are more anecdotes but the point is to be made that not everybody is going to build a $20 million dollar home when they're 40 years old.
yeah but you're from California, so a $20mil home is probably a 2 bedroom shack in some back alley.

Yeah except for the physics parts <commits seppuku>I'm surprised no one's talking about radiation oncology. Now THAT is a field where you can make a decent living... 😉 You'd be surprised how interesting the field is especially if you're into gadgets and computers.
Also, these fields make a lot because they've tightly controlled the number of radiologists/dermatologists trained each year. By keeping their numbers relatively controlled, they can ensure that they can maintain their demand.
Take derm for example, probably one of the most competitive fields because there are so few programs. Let's say they double the number of derms out there. There'll be many more dermatolgists competiting for the same patient base. More competition lowers prices. A lot of people picked derm because it pays a ton with a good lifestyle (although a few don't like to admit this) so they don't want to see this happen so they limit how many they train.
Yeah one time a fellow was on call for a resident at UCSF (we're 45 min away from UCSF at best) and I was like... what I asked him what'd he do if there was an emergency. He just winked and said that there are no emergencies in derm.
Yeah except for the physics parts <commits seppuku>
isn't that actually the job of the docimetrist?Yeah except for the physics parts <commits seppuku>
3rd degree burn victims are an emergency...
I wouldn't necessarily call radiology low-risk. Miss a dot on the image and someone can sue.
Why do they get paid so much? High volume of work, as was stated above. In general, they don't waste time dealing with patient questions, etc. They sit in a room, flip through their images, dictate, and move on to the next. They are also at the crossroads for pretty much every other guy in the hospital. When I shadowed, they were being consulted by cardiology, ob/gyn, neurology, emergency medicine, blah blah blah.
I'm sure there are more reasons, but those are two that jump to my mind.
isn't that actually the job of the docimetrist?
J.D.: I need a dermatologist over here, stat!
Dr. Johnson: [Throwing down his magazine] Oh yeah! Time to shine!
[Crouching over the "patient"] What do you need? Is it a rash?
J.D.: Look, I paid this guy to fake a heart attack. He wants fifty bucks, we only have twenty.
Dr. Johnson: You know, I feel like you guys just use me for my money.

Radiology easily fits into your lifestyle and you can work from practically anywhere (at home if you like). Thus, it's pretty easy to want to do your job, increased job satisfaction, then wanting to work more, thus big bucks if you like.
Besides, without radiologists, I'd argue that the whole hospital stops. Most doctors don't know how to read the subtitles of an X-ray.

Also, these fields make a lot because they've tightly controlled the number of radiologists/dermatologists trained each year. By keeping their numbers relatively controlled, they can ensure that they can maintain their demand.
I guess that's why it's #2 in terms of residency competitiveness (plastics #1?).
Regardless whether this specialty makes $200K or that one $300k, go into something you can see yourself happily doing for the next 40 years.
I'm sorry but I have the point out the fallacy of your argument. Working at a derm surgeon's office, I can tell you that some of the stupidest people I've met have been patients of this office. Albeit some are very successful, but some are very very stupid in terms of common sense.Rads, Derm, Plastics, etc make so much money because they do not have to deal with stupid people...
The general public of America is stupid, stinky, and under-educated. Those are the people that frequent Emergency Departments, need DM/HTN medications, diabetic feet cut off, etc.
The 'decent' people of America who happen to have money are the ones that care about the size of their boobs, rear end, or the fact that they have a pimple......and the doctors that take care of those factors are derm and plastics.
Therefore, 90%+ of those doctors practice are upper middle class and higher individuals, who tend to shower regularly, are often personable, and pay either out of pocket or have awesome insurance. Therefore, every patient is profit.....versus other fields where 1 in 10 carries the other 9.
Just the facts...and do not do something just because of money. I enjoy dealing with the 'general public' no matter how smelly or how many times I have to explain some tiny simple thing...thats just one more reason why I like Emergency Medicine as we tend to deal with these people the most. Many of the patients in the ED rarely shower, let alone take meds for their complexion....
I hear all these anecdotes about the billion dollars dermatologists make, but I see no real data. Anyone want to post some?
Yeah one time a fellow was on call for a resident at UCSF (we're 45 min away from UCSF at best) and I was like... what I asked him what'd he do if there was an emergency. He just winked and said that there are no emergencies in derm.
Also, these fields make a lot because they've tightly controlled the number of radiologists/dermatologists trained each year. By keeping their numbers relatively controlled, they can ensure that they can maintain their demand.
Take derm for example, probably one of the most competitive fields because there are so few programs. Let's say they double the number of derms out there. There'll be many more dermatolgists competiting for the same patient base. More competition lowers prices. A lot of people picked derm because it pays a ton with a good lifestyle (although a few don't like to admit this) so they don't want to see this happen so they limit how many they train.
That's part of it, when it comes to rads, at least. It wasn't too long ago (late 90's) that radiology was in the toilet. The job market sucked. They couldn't give residency spots away.
Then suddenly this flurry of new imaging techniques, each with a very generous reimbursement rate, came onto the scene. Overnight the number of studies being ordered skyrocketed, and the amount of cash flowing in went along for the ride.
The fee schedule took a hit, though, last year I believe (17% cuts in some areas). There's still a lot of money in it, but it's not quite the open trough it has been.
Rads, Derm, Plastics, etc make so much money because they do not have to deal with stupid people...
The general public of America is stupid, stinky, and under-educated. Those are the people that frequent Emergency Departments, need DM/HTN medications, diabetic feet cut off, etc.
The 'decent' people of America who happen to have money are the ones that care about the size of their boobs, rear end, or the fact that they have a pimple......and the doctors that take care of those factors are derm and plastics.
Therefore, 90%+ of those doctors practice are upper middle class and higher individuals, who tend to shower regularly, are often personable, and pay either out of pocket or have awesome insurance. Therefore, every patient is profit.....versus other fields where 1 in 10 carries the other 9.
Just the facts...and do not do something just because of money. I enjoy dealing with the 'general public' no matter how smelly or how many times I have to explain some tiny simple thing...thats just one more reason why I like Emergency Medicine as we tend to deal with these people the most. Many of the patients in the ED rarely shower, let alone take meds for their complexion....
Rads, Derm, Plastics, etc make so much money because they do not have to deal with stupid people...
The general public of America is stupid, stinky, and under-educated. Those are the people that frequent Emergency Departments, need DM/HTN medications, diabetic feet cut off, etc.
The 'decent' people of America who happen to have money are the ones that care about the size of their boobs, rear end, or the fact that they have a pimple......and the doctors that take care of those factors are derm and plastics.
Therefore, 90%+ of those doctors practice are upper middle class and higher individuals, who tend to shower regularly, are often personable, and pay either out of pocket or have awesome insurance. Therefore, every patient is profit.....versus other fields where 1 in 10 carries the other 9.
Just the facts...and do not do something just because of money. I enjoy dealing with the 'general public' no matter how smelly or how many times I have to explain some tiny simple thing...thats just one more reason why I like Emergency Medicine as we tend to deal with these people the most. Many of the patients in the ED rarely shower, let alone take meds for their complexion....
TOTAL BS... You would be hard pressed to bill 6mill/year, no way in hell to collect 6 million / year, IMPOSSIBLE to net anywhere near that.
I know that he knows more about dermatologic surgery in general but I know what my boss makes in private practice. I admit that my boss is the exception and that those around him only make $500,000 in academic medicine but his former partner who is a general derm doc and did no surgeries already made $1 million each year.Attending vs. Prehealth student... this should be good![]()
I know that he knows more about dermatologic surgery in general but I know what my boss makes in private practice. I admit that my boss is the exception and that those around him only make $500,000 in academic medicine but his former partner who is a general derm doc and did no surgeries already made $1 million each year.
Hopefully tomorrow, I'll grab the price list for those procedures and get the list for all cosmetic patients in the past year and we'll do some more accurate math.
I'm concerned that as time goes on, however, the attending will be able to piece together who exactly my boss is.
I know that he knows more about dermatologic surgery in general but I know what my boss makes in private practice. I admit that my boss is the exception and that those around him only make $500,000 in academic medicine but his former partner who is a general derm doc and did no surgeries already made $1 million each year.
Hopefully tomorrow, I'll grab the price list for those procedures and get the list for all cosmetic patients in the past year and we'll do some more accurate math.
I'm not saying that one is better. If you look back to earlier, I said nothing about $6 million being a good thing--just that it happens. The attending who posted was saying that it does not happen and that's when I disagreed.dude seriously what's your point? making half a million dollors is not much different than making 6 million dolloars a year... both grant you a very comfortable life...