Why would being a physician's assistant be better then being a doctor? i need good reasons!!?

Question

I don't want to go to medical school but i need to have some reassurance that being a physicians assistant would be a good job!! pleaseeee! :)

Answer 1

-You would still get good pay and do approximately the same thing
-You'd be almost exempt from frivolous lawsuits
-You get to get paid quite a few years earlier
-You can always go back to medical school if you feel you made the wrong decision

Answer 2

You still have to go to medical school to be a PA, just not as long as to be a doctor. You pretty much get to be a doctor and check patients and prescribe drugs, but you don't have to carry the malpractice insurance, etc. Being a PA is a very good job, you get a lot of the perks of being a doctor without all of the responsibilities and without having to go to school as long. You do have to have some med school though and go do rotations at a hospital and you'll never be your own boss.

Answer 3

I see no problem with your plans. You have a base salary coming in to support yourself while you pursue other means of making a living. Don't listen to your family... they have no idea what doctors in general are up against these days. The payments on medical school education, plus continuing education for re-licensing is costly. An actual doctor pays out major money for malpractice insurance premiums... and the responsibility is outrageous. I know several doctors who took their licenses and went into holistic (nutritional therapies) practice. I know one medical doctor that went into homeopathy. I know several nurses that do strictly energy work (reiki and t-touch). When Obama gets done installing a bunch of arbitrary treatment rules and nationalizing medicine, and takes the profit from them practitioners, nobody will have access to medical care any more. It will be yet another big give-away program for the pharmaceutical industry, and most people will not be able to afford it. Everyone will probably go to holistic care instead, which I see as a good thing.

Answer 4

Looks like good answers, but let me just tell you a piece of advice I was given when making that same decision. People who wanted to become doctors but became PA's instead are often unhappy with their jobs. I have a classmate who is an example. He is a PA who went back to med school.
It isn't better or worse, you look at the job and decide which suits you better. If you want to be a PA then go for it. It pays well, you get to see patients, and it doesn't take nearly as long.

Answer 5

I am going to school to be a physician's assistant, too. What made my decision was the malpractice insurance and the fact that it's less schooling. PA's make 100,000/year which isnt much less than a doctor. Those were the reasons that helped me. IT's the same job but less responsibility. Less time, and less money!!!

Answer 6

Being a physician's assistant is better than being a doctor because it's not as stressful as being a doctor, you are still getting paid a six figure income, you still work with patients on a daily bases, you can prescribe medicine, and you do not have to pay for malpractice insurance.

Answer 7

By virtue of the profession, being a doctor of course is much better but such profession is loaded with responsibilities. A doctor decides what to do with his patients and take responsibility of his actions.
If you are not so strong to carry the implied responsibilities of the practice of your profession, being a physician's assistant would be a better option. The responsibilities are much lesser than that of the doctor, there would be a lesser decision making and in general a lesser risk. In most of the time you will be required to abide with your doctor's decisions and plans though you could have your opinion heard.

Answer 8

If a PA can pull down 120K/year, then it hardly justifies the bang/buck ratio of med school and then post graduate training. I know some MD's that have 5-6 years of post grad training and they don't make 120K. Granted there is a lot more to the study of medicine then the bottom line, but the reality of the situation is that all of those student loans do need to be repaid at some point.

Good luck with your decision making.

Answer 9

You spend much much less time in school is the first plus but you will never had that MD after your name or be called Dr. so and so...The money is good for a PA ($65k-$100k)...you do pretty much everything a gen. dr. does such as fill scrips, make assessments on what is ailing a patient, refer them to a specialist...we actually prefer seeing my daughters PA over the primary physician...he is just much better w/ kids!

Answer 10

I don't think that being a PA is better then being a doctor. But you have to do what is right for you. Medical school is very hard and the board exams are even tougher....not everyone can do it