Medical Education US

I have had a few in-depth conversations, at home (relevance revealed later), with a few aspiring physicians from my University. I started by asking them why they wanted to be physicians, and most basically concluded that they would love the intrinsic nature of the job. But, what if they fell short of their dream occupation? Would they be content with a life other than as a physician? Would they be happy being denied the patient-doctor relations and all the perks that come with the status of ?Dr.? in front of the name? Many (after much coercing and a few beers) confessed that they would be left with a permanent void if they did not ?make it? and were forced to ?settle? with a career in biology or chemistry. I feel the same way; it?s either all or nothing.
Confidence is a crucial element of success, but over confidence could lead to insufficient study habits and unfulfilled dreams. But, if we are bounded by innate intelligence, no matter how hard we study, there is a good chance we inevitably will not make the team.
I don?t want to be a romantic, but reality can sting. We all have vowed to give it 100%, but if we are denied acceptance to the point of failure, what other path is there?
Sorry for the length and if I got a little too deep. But thanks for any thing you can suggest to my friends (half baked at the time) and I.

How about sucking it up. Be a man and accept failure. Most people don't like their job any ways.

Ouch! Well, Guess your right.

Interesting questions.

First, you need to explore why you feel that you can be a doctor and nothing else. This is not a simple question and requires a lot of self-exploration. People want to be a doctor for a variety of reasons, and most of them are fairly petty and often inaccurate representations of the profession.

I know when I was looking at med school most people thought that doctors made a ton of money - I think people have a much better understanding today of the fact that there are many professions where people make more money than being a doctor, especially when you work it out on an hourly basis, and even more so when you include the debt incurred for school plus the number of years training as a resident.

Another reason for people thinking they want to be a doctor is the prestige - somehow by saying you are a doctor means you have "made it" - that you have accomplished something. Maybe there is still some truth to that, but I guess since I never tell people I'm a doctor (unless they specifically ask what I do) I haven't noticed any special treatment. However, I do often get asked at parties and family functions to look at someone's rash or give my opinion on which anti-inflammatory works the best.

Related to prestige is another reason - subtle family pressure or societal pressure. People assume that parents could not be more proud than their child becoming a doctor. I dunno - again, maybe there is some truth to this, but it seems like a silly reason to pick a career when you reflect on it. Even if true, isn't it important to pick a profession you want, as this would probably make your parents happy as well (unless it involves being a drug dealer or gangster I suppose).

Finally, some people become doctors because they want to help people (believe it or not, some doctors really do want to help people). Some people use this to rationalize why they "have" to be a doctor. Being an M.D. is not the only way to help people - there are many other professions both in the health field and outside the health field that offer tremendous opportunities to help people.

Obviously there are other reasons you may have for feeling that you "must" be a doctor. What are they? Is it just a feeling you have? What does it mean when you state that you would love the "intrinsic nature" of the job? You should try to find the reasons behind that feeling.

As a previous poster bluntly put it, if you don't succeed in getting into med school, it's not the end of the world. In fact, I agree with the previous poster as well that there are many doctors who wish they had chosen a different line of work. There are also many doctors who love their work.

Until you know what about the "intrinsic nature" of the job attracts you, then you do not yet know which group you will be in. Your idealized perception of the "intrinsic nature" of the job, obviously doesn't include the awareness of the numbers of patients you have to see, the volumes of paperwork that have to be completed, the logistical issues of dealing with insurance companies, the ever-increasing malpractice insurance costs, the always looming threat of a lawsuit, the emotional trauma of seeing good people with bad illnesses, and I can go on and on.

So, bottom line - if you really want to do "x" in life, but you aren't given the gifts you need to pull it off, you'll have to find a way to live with it.

Bottom line - be realistic, and find what you enjoy that is within your grasp - those things outside of your grasp aren't always what they are cracked up to be. In fact, most things aren't what they first appear to be.

Sorry if I rambled...

If you don't believe me about medicine not being all it is cracked up to be, take a look at these articles I recently came across:

Physicians aren't what they used to be -- neither is a life in medicine

and

Generation gripe: Young doctors less dedicated, hardworking?

particularly the survey results at the end of the second article:

The survey of physicians ages 50 to 65 also asked:

If you were starting out today,
would you choose medicine
as your career?
No 52%
Yes 48%


Would you encourage your children
or other young people to choose
medicine as a career today?
No 64%
Yes 36%

What is your greatest source
of professional frustration?
Liability worries 28%
Managed care 16%
Medicare/Medicaid regulations 13%
Long hours 10%
Pressure of running a business 10%
Patient attitudes today 5%
Other 9%
No answer 9%

Source: Merritt, Hawkins & Associates