Comments on: If physician salaries were lowered, would people still want to become doctors? http://www.kevinmd.com/blog/2009/01/if-physician-salaries-were-lowered-will.html Tue, 14 Feb 2012 23:57:00 +0000 hourly 1 By: Anonymoushttp://www.kevinmd.com/blog/2009/01/if-physician-salaries-were-lowered-will.html#comment-89230 Anonymous Thu, 15 Jan 2009 22:28:00 +0000 http://clients.emmense.com/kevinmd/2009/01/if-physician-salaries-were-lowered-would-people-still-want-to-become-doctors.html#comment-89230 I didn't get into this for the money; in fact, I always dreamed of working with the homeless or other disadvantaged people in a novel, out of the box way. Now as I stare down my nearly $200K in loans, my lack of savings, IRA contributions, or real estate (or even a car that's less than 10 years old), it seems like a far off dream that I don't know will ever be realized. The debt and the lack of building any kind of safety net for myself as I enter my thirties makes me wonder why I chose this path. I didn’t get into this for the money; in fact, I always dreamed of working with the homeless or other disadvantaged people in a novel, out of the box way. Now as I stare down my nearly $200K in loans, my lack of savings, IRA contributions, or real estate (or even a car that’s less than 10 years old), it seems like a far off dream that I don’t know will ever be realized. The debt and the lack of building any kind of safety net for myself as I enter my thirties makes me wonder why I chose this path.

]]> By: Anonymoushttp://www.kevinmd.com/blog/2009/01/if-physician-salaries-were-lowered-will.html#comment-89214 Anonymous Thu, 15 Jan 2009 03:08:00 +0000 http://clients.emmense.com/kevinmd/2009/01/if-physician-salaries-were-lowered-would-people-still-want-to-become-doctors.html#comment-89214 I wouldn't have. The process is far too long--thirteen years in my case--and far too expensive to tolerate a lower level of reimbursement. <br/><br/>Med students are motivated by things that interest them and that suit their particular personalities, life goals and needs. They are de-motivated by the appearances of practice areas that are not interesting, frustrate their life goals and fail to meet their needs. Practice fields that demand lots of personal sacrifice, pay relatively poorly, command little respect from patients or other doctors are going to be difficult to sell to anyone.<br/><br/>Derm pays well because it is possible to tailor a practice to your preferences (e.g., Mohs, oncology-only, etc) can be efficiently practiced in the office as opposed to a hospital, which is inefficient, allows selectiveness in participating with third-party payers, and generally enjoys respect from patients, if not from other doctors.<br/><br/>Lifestyle is not well-defined: sometimes it means short hours, sometimes it means flexible scheduling (women with children wanting part-time work) sometimes it means regular hours without call duties. Lots of fields offer some of these, EM, rads, derm, Rad. oncology, pathology, psych, ophtho. I wouldn’t have. The process is far too long–thirteen years in my case–and far too expensive to tolerate a lower level of reimbursement.

Med students are motivated by things that interest them and that suit their particular personalities, life goals and needs. They are de-motivated by the appearances of practice areas that are not interesting, frustrate their life goals and fail to meet their needs. Practice fields that demand lots of personal sacrifice, pay relatively poorly, command little respect from patients or other doctors are going to be difficult to sell to anyone.

Derm pays well because it is possible to tailor a practice to your preferences (e.g., Mohs, oncology-only, etc) can be efficiently practiced in the office as opposed to a hospital, which is inefficient, allows selectiveness in participating with third-party payers, and generally enjoys respect from patients, if not from other doctors.

Lifestyle is not well-defined: sometimes it means short hours, sometimes it means flexible scheduling (women with children wanting part-time work) sometimes it means regular hours without call duties. Lots of fields offer some of these, EM, rads, derm, Rad. oncology, pathology, psych, ophtho.

]]> By: Anonymoushttp://www.kevinmd.com/blog/2009/01/if-physician-salaries-were-lowered-will.html#comment-89210 Anonymous Wed, 14 Jan 2009 23:22:00 +0000 http://clients.emmense.com/kevinmd/2009/01/if-physician-salaries-were-lowered-would-people-still-want-to-become-doctors.html#comment-89210 Anon 2:29<br/>Don't you think its possible that the Derm mds work hard to maximize their income while they can? The earlier you can retire, the better your lifestyle! Anon 2:29
Don’t you think its possible that the Derm mds work hard to maximize their income while they can? The earlier you can retire, the better your lifestyle!

]]> By: Anonymoushttp://www.kevinmd.com/blog/2009/01/if-physician-salaries-were-lowered-will.html#comment-89209 Anonymous Wed, 14 Jan 2009 19:29:00 +0000 http://clients.emmense.com/kevinmd/2009/01/if-physician-salaries-were-lowered-would-people-still-want-to-become-doctors.html#comment-89209 The difference is what you are saying is lifestyle. The VERY best medicine lifestyle is dermatology. Yet, they still on average work 50 hours/week and when they are working they are going 100 mph. They typical see 40-50 pts a day which adds up to a lot of paperwork, work, and yes even stress. <br/><br/>If you are honest with yourself, you will realize that professors have a lifestyle that is unrivaled by any medical specialty. The difference is what you are saying is lifestyle. The VERY best medicine lifestyle is dermatology. Yet, they still on average work 50 hours/week and when they are working they are going 100 mph. They typical see 40-50 pts a day which adds up to a lot of paperwork, work, and yes even stress.

If you are honest with yourself, you will realize that professors have a lifestyle that is unrivaled by any medical specialty.

]]> By: Anonymoushttp://www.kevinmd.com/blog/2009/01/if-physician-salaries-were-lowered-will.html#comment-89208 Anonymous Wed, 14 Jan 2009 18:58:00 +0000 http://clients.emmense.com/kevinmd/2009/01/if-physician-salaries-were-lowered-would-people-still-want-to-become-doctors.html#comment-89208 Although I agree with the premise that students are motivated largely by lifestyle and may not be as altruistic, I would argue that lowering salaries may not have detrimental effects Leap purports. As a Ph.D. student studying to be a medical sociologist, my fellow peers and I will attend, on average 23-25 years of school, in long and arduous (albeit different) graduate programs. Even though we are not compensated with six-figure salaries in our late-20s and early-30s, we are often driven by the beneficial lifestyle professors enjoy. Bottom line, although our professions have much different histories, students are still motivated by the lifestyle and engaging intellectual work. Although I agree with the premise that students are motivated largely by lifestyle and may not be as altruistic, I would argue that lowering salaries may not have detrimental effects Leap purports. As a Ph.D. student studying to be a medical sociologist, my fellow peers and I will attend, on average 23-25 years of school, in long and arduous (albeit different) graduate programs. Even though we are not compensated with six-figure salaries in our late-20s and early-30s, we are often driven by the beneficial lifestyle professors enjoy. Bottom line, although our professions have much different histories, students are still motivated by the lifestyle and engaging intellectual work.

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