Why MD?

[Vikes33]

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Hey guys,

I have been doing a lot of flip flopping between physical therapy and medicine for I don't even know how long. At least a year. I've posted in the physical therapy forum and heard a lot from the people in their, but I'm curious as to why all of you have chosen to go pre-med. Obviously all of you (I hope) want to help people feel better, but in my decision process that is the one thing I don't need help on because I already know that and doctors and physical therapists help people. I guess I'm just curious as to why you guys would say why medicine and why the MD? Try to keep the anti-PT stuff to a minimum, just looking for a lot of stuff on medicine, the good and the bad. Thanks!

 

[punkedoutriffs]

More options in terms of fields and practice type. More autonomy. Wider scope of practice. More in-depth research and teaching opportunities. Better income. More prestige.

 

[mcloaf]

Academic medicine/surgery.

 

[MedPR]

Hey guys,

I have been doing a lot of flip flopping between physical therapy and medicine for I don't even know how long. At least a year. I've posted in the physical therapy forum and heard a lot from the people in their, but I'm curious as to why all of you have chosen to go pre-med. Obviously all of you (I hope) want to help people feel better, but in my decision process that is the one thing I don't need help on because I already know that and doctors and physical therapists help people. I guess I'm just curious as to why you guys would say why medicine and why the MD? Try to keep the anti-PT stuff to a minimum, just looking for a lot of stuff on medicine, the good and the bad. Thanks!

Pros of both more or less in order of importance to me.

MD/DO:
more autonomy
more day-to-day challenges
more problem solving
more varied career prospects (clinical/research specialties)
larger scope of practice
more knowledge
more continuity of care
higher salary
more prestige

PT:
statistically more opportunity to work with pro sports teams (assuming teams have more PTs on staff than MDs/DOs)
less time in school
less liability/malpractice

 

[Josh7]

More options in terms of fields and practice type. More autonomy. Wider scope of practice. More in-depth research and teaching opportunities. Better income. More prestige.

Definitely more options to choose from with an MD. It's really up to you.

 

[SpecterGT260]

It really just comes down to this: How much time are you willing to invest for a future payoff?

All healthcare jobs do something similar in that they "help people". Is that all you are after? because there are quicker ways to do that than MD. DPT is one, but you can get there even quicker if you want to. However, if you don't think you will be satisfied with the limited scope and training and are comfortable dedicating more time to training then MD/DO is likely a better option.

 

[Lollygag]

I think it simply comes down to what do you want to do and what are you most interested in. If you like physical therapy, then do physical therapy. If you would rather be a doctor then be a doctor. Someone can correct me if I'm wrong but I was under the impression that the two are very different as far as day to day activities go. PT is more about helping patients overcoming injuries and debilitations, you'll be reteaching them how to move, walk etc. Doctor's aren't going to do that.. yes they work with their patients long term but it's in a very different capacity. I suggest you shadow both PT's and doctors and then whichever one you enjoy, pursue that.

The big question is which do you enjoy more? Your essentially asking us to give you advice on which one you enjoy more and none of us can do that.

If you're debating this because of money.. then it would depend on how old you are, and if you aren't that old then the answer would be MD. If you don't care about money and prefer to not be in debt or are worried about not having time for your family then go PT. If your looking to do the shortest schooling, then go PT. But PT school is still tough from what I have heard so it will be no walk in the park either way.

 

[BadHorse]

Pros of both more or less in order of importance to me.

MD/DO:
more autonomy
more day-to-day challenges
more problem solving
more varied career prospects (clinical/research specialties)
larger scope of practice
more knowledge
more continuity of care
higher salary
more prestige

PT:
statistically more opportunity to work with pro sports teams (assuming teams have more PTs on staff than MDs/DOs)
less time in school
less liability/malpractice

I'm a med student, sister's a practicing pediatric PT, lot of this is misleading:

PTs tend to have great continuity of care, depending on the type of PT, on average I'd say they have more than MDs but that's just my perspective.

PTs can have great autonomy, they can't prescribe but my sister has her own business and she doesn't answer to anyone... MUCH harder to do that as an MD these days, what with overhead and malpractice.

The knowledge/day to day challenges/problem solving crap is just that. Crap. PTs have a lot of knowledge. We get a broader knowledge base but once we specialize we tend to lose that and focus on a relatively narrow set of problems, just like PTs do.

That said, OP, they're very different careers, as has been alluded to. MDs do have more options to specialize, PTs are more hands on and spend more time with each patient, the type of career you end up with depends on what you end up doing with your degree. Think about what kind of specialty you see yourself in, shadow MDs and PTs and figure it out from there.

 

[AdrianVeidt]

Because a PhD in my area of interest basically means I will have no career choice other than teaching college. An MD and residency in a virtually identical area of interest means I will have much more satisfaction in my life as I'm working and helping actual people in a clinical setting.

A good friend of mine had a passion for helping the elderly as she was very close to her grandmother and works as a physical therapist in a nursing home now. She's extremely happy with her job and in the end, that's what you want. Do something that will make you happy.

 

[Vikes33]

Yeah I know that PT and medicine are fairly different. I've just spent a lot of time in PT and so a lot of the time I go back to that. To me, medicine is a lot more interesting because there is a wider scope in terms of what you learn about the body, since so much of PT school is muscles and movement studies. You just hear a lot about the "dark side" of medicine and how it can be difficult to have a life and a family. I'm curious as to why some of you in particular are going into medicine? I've heard a lot of the things you guys have said, so are there more reasons specific to you guys? Or are these reasons a big part of the draw into the medical field?

 

[Ost3oclast]

I switched from pre-PT to pre-med and never looked back. Personally, I knew that a career as a physician would BEST prepare me to care for my patients. Also, pursuing a career as a physician will give me many different types of practice to choose from ( IM, surg etc) whereas a PT concentrates their entire career on rehabing the musculoskeletal system. I didnt want to get into PT school and realize I didnt want to work with strictly that system forever.

 

[Disinence2]

They are completely different jobs with very very little overlap if any.

 

[xXIDaShizIXx]

Because a PhD in my area of interest basically means I will have no career choice other than teaching college. An MD and residency in a virtually identical area of interest means I will have much more satisfaction in my life as I'm working and helping actual people in a clinical setting.

A good friend of mine had a passion for helping the elderly as she was very close to her grandmother and works as a physical therapist in a nursing home now. She's extremely happy with her job and in the end, that's what you want. Do something that will make you happy.

The OP said PT not PhD. Or did I read that incorrectly?

 

[lobo.solo]

They are completely different jobs with very very little overlap if any.

This^. It comes down to what you want to do for a career for the rest of your life, since they have different types of jobs. Do you see yourself aging and being a PT as opposed to a MD.

 

[Mehd School]

I wanted to do PT and was getting mediocre grades.

I decided I really wanted to go to medical school, and have since got mostly stellar grades.

I don't suggest this method.

 

[kasmir8199]

The OP said PT not PhD. Or did I read that incorrectly?

I think what AdrianVeidt was answering OPs question as more of a "why MD" over "the other option". The other option for a lot of us would be PhD, but the overall answer applies to either scenario.

My choice was between PhD in Counseling Psych or MD (Psychiatry)....

I agree, do whichever lines up most with what you want to do, who you want to serve, and how you want to serve them. Shadowing both PTs and MDs might shed a little more light.