What are the pros and cons of being a doctor?

Question

I want to become a doctor but i do not know if it is worth it. Help please?

Answer 1

The Cons:

Malpractice insurance has skyrocketed in the wake of many lawsuits aimed at specific physicians, hospitals, and the field of medicine in general. Distraught families no longer blame God or fate for the death or disability of loved ones, they blame the doctors who treat them. As in any profession, there are certainly some who deserve such blame. However, careful, caring physicians are more and more often finding themselves fighting legal battles for their right to continue practicing. In what other profession can a simple mistake cost a life? Doctors are not heartless, their failures weigh heavily on them. Yet neither are they perfect, and often we expect too much from them.

Today you may find an Ophthalmologist selling cars, or a Neurologist writing textbooks. Hardest hit may be the specialty of OB/GYN, whose malpractice insurance can be upwards of $200,000 per year. Many good doctors are leaving the profession, citing rising malpractice costs and a lack of respect from their patients. Pressure from powerful HMO's and the public to keep costs to a minimum is greatly decreasing the earning potential of solo practitioners. Consequently they must work longer hours and see more patients to make ends meet. One Family Practice physician recently complained that her net take-home pay after all expenses (including malpractice and student loans) is approximately $37,000 per year. Less than her husband's salary as a Chief Petty Officer in the Navy. You find many doctors leaving their practices for jobs with pharmaceutical companies, hospital administration, and research. Positions with high salaries, better work hours, and less stress.

The Pros:

Despite the changes taking place in the profession, applications to medical schools rose to an all-time high in the late 1980's and early 1990's and while they have stabilized in the last ten years, schools still receive 3 to 5 times more applicants than they have positions for. Certainly one reason for this is that medicine is still among the highest paying and most prestigious professions in the country. The following chart shows the average salaries of US physicians:

Median net income in US dollars of M.D.s after expenses in 1998, according to the American Medical Association:
All physicians $160,000
Surgery $240,000
Radiology $230,000
Anesthesiology $210,000
Obstetrics/gynecology $200,000
Emergency medicine $184,000
Pathology $184,000
General internal medicine $140,000
General/Family practice $130,000
Psychiatry $130,000
Pediatrics $126,000


However, if you are only interested in the money, you should look for another field. MBA's have a higher entry level salary and obtain their credentials much more easily. If money is your motivating factor, you probably won't get past the med school interview, and if you do, residency will probably wash you out.

As a physician you will enjoy not only monetary rewards, but humanistic rewards which are priceless. We can all imagine how painful it must be to tell a family that their loved one has just died, but can you imagine how amazing it must feel to repair the defective heart of a tiny baby? Or to remove a malignant tumor from the brain of a young mother? Or to help an injured man to walk again, thereby giving him the gift of dignity, the ability to support his family, and the freedom to play catch with his son.

The salary is probably more now since its 2007 not 1998.

Answer 2

Pros: They are highly respected individuals with a very dedicated drive.
Specialty
Allergy and Immunology $227,080
Anesthesiology $337,654
Cardiac & Thoracic Surgery $470,000
Cardiology $363,081
Colon & Rectal Surgery $366,687
Critical Care Medicine $234,503
Dermatology $306,935
Diagnostic Radiology - Interventional $424,992
Diagnostic Radiology - Non-Interventional $400,000
Emergency Care $248,721
Endocrinology $194,243
Family Medicine $178,366
Family Medicine - with Obstetrics $186,451
Gastroenterology $344,200
General Surgery $310,736
Geriatrics $162,541
Gynecological Oncology $356,756
Gynecology $224,134
Gynecology & Obstetrics $271,273
Hematology & Medical Oncology $263,284
Hospitalist $189,677
Hypertension & Nephrology $229,992
Infectious Disease $194,750
Intensivist $245,293
Internal Medicine $183,840
Neonatology $246,872
Neurological Surgery $476,260
Neurology $211,995
Nuclear Medicine (M.D. only) $300,000
Obstetrics $251,787
Occupational/Environmental Medicine $202,063
Ophthalmology $281,112
Oral Surgery $317,634
Orthopedic Surgery $409,518
Orthopedic-Medical $262,170
Orthopedic Surgery - Joint Replacement $476,446
Orthopedic Surgery - Hand $387,626
Orthopedic Surg.-Pediatrics $355,758
Orthopedic Surgery - Spine $554,054
Otolaryngology $315,000
Pathology (M.D. only) $274,792
Pediatric Allergy $163,338
Pediatric Cardiology $231,754
Pediatric Endocrinology $180,153
Pediatric Gastroenterology $216,000
Pediatric Hematology/Oncology $200,260
Pediatric Intensive Care $201,901
Pediatric Nephrology $178,181
Pediatric Neurology $197,282
Pediatric Pulmonary Disease $175,440
Pediatric Surgery $322,969
Pediatrics & Adolescent $182,186
Pediatric Infectious Disease $179,919
Perinatology $341,933
Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation $207,004
Plastic & Reconstruction $345,000
Psychiatry $186,786
Psychiatry - Child $214,873
Pulmonary Disease $238,450
Radiation Therapy (M.D. only) $356,097
Reproductive Endocrinology $316,241
Rheumatologic Disease $204,166
Sports Medicine $245,920
Surgical Sports Medicine $417,106
Transplant Surgery - Kidney $351,031
Transplant Surgery - Liver $379,409
Trauma Surgery $353,706
Urgent Care $194,687
Urology $349,811
Vascular Surgery $354,365
2006 Salaries
Cons: Hours are very long and people in America are so "Sue Happy"!

Answer 3

PROS
help others
save lives
cure the ill
make good money
be in a well respected profession

CONS
long hours
many years of schooling
tuition is high
malpractice insurance is costly
the money isn't always what it's chalked up to be
it's draining

Answer 4

Cons: Stressed workaholics... could catch every virus going.. takes a long time to graduate.. Have to watch people die...


Pros: Good pay.. you get to help people.. save peoples lives... people respect you.... you could get a job anywhere in the world..