<p>@frugaldoctor:</p>
<p>I thought your supposed to go into medicine because your passionate about it right? It shouldn’t be about money from what they say.</p>
<p>No, it isn’t about the money. But if you can donate that much, you can impact patients in a much greater way with that $50 million than you could through medical school. What limits patients’ access if usually lack of insurance, lack of money or lack of knowledge. You don’t have to go to medical school to help patients. If you can donate $50 million, that money would provide access to roughly 500,000 primary care visits. You could set up free screening, vacations, etc. All without having to go to medical school.</p>
<p>It is true what your saying, but their could be the situation where, the child of a family of a net worth of $25 Billion US Dollars, like the Walton (Walmart) family, has a dream of more than anything to be an a neurosurgeon, and save lives by surgically removing brain tumors, clipping cerebral aneurysms, etc. No amount of money can by him the opportunity to operate on a living human being. This in turn, would require him to go to medical school and then complete a 7 year neurological surgery residency afterward.</p>
<p>However, you have brought up a very interesting and philosophical question, does one having extreme wealth make the point of becoming a physician obsolete?</p>
<p>"However, you have brought up a very interesting and philosophical question, does one having extreme wealth make the point of becoming a physician obsolete? - You need to clarify that you mean that the “point of becoming a physician” is to become extremely wealth, otherwise, your question is loosing any meanning. There are extremely wealthy people who work ike the last horse of the planet. Why? Apparently, not for the goal of becoming extremely wealthy. On the other hand, there are the bottom of the bottom who do not care to work at all, while they have the same opportunity as everybody else.<br>
So, why the extremely wealthy woulld not go to Med. School if he wants to? </p>
<p>I don’t think that extreme wealth would preclude someone from going to medical school. I worked with two attendings during my residency who were very wealthy prior to medical school. One donated millions to a children’s hospital before becoming a heart surgeon and the other work as an academic anesthesiologist. </p>
<p>My belief is that people enter the medical profession to help others by preventing, diagnosing, treating and researching diseases. IMO, the biggest problem in health care remains access. What is limiting access is inevitably money. IMO, a wealthy person who wants to help people in medicine would have a much wider impact if he/she were to provide financial access than he/she would by becoming a physician. I know that there are other goals that individuals may have that may not be met by donating money. Go to medical school! But it you have $50 million to donate for the purpose of securing a medical school admission, you are better off donating that money to allow thousands of people access to health care they otherwise couldn’t get.</p>
<p>I totally get/agree with frugal doc. If I had that kind of money I would serve on the board of some hospital or something. Probably would have a greater impact on science and medicine then I ever will as a physician-scientist.</p>
<p>MiamiDAP,</p>
<p>Anyone can go to Medical School if she or he wishes too. However, I am saying that, if one has the goal of helping patients with a better quality of life, saving lives from malignant illnesses, and improving patient outcome overall, an enormous amount of wealth, could be used as donations to medical schools/hospitals/charities/research projects, which would have a much, much larger impact than an individual physician could have on his or her own.</p>
<p>^I am lost as I do not see any obstacle in doing both. Why person who is very wealthy and wants to go to Medical School should be prevented from doing so by somebody else with certain ideas of how this person should use HIS OWN MONEY. Very wealthy can IF HE WANTS
-go to med. School
-donate a lot
-do both
-do none of the above</p>
<p>Most of the wealthy though donate a lot, it is part of their lives and has nothing to do with them going to Med. School. As I said, I am totally lost and confused and definitely missing something here.</p>
<p>I think what you are missing is that no one said they should be prevented from going to medical school. No one made requirements of what they should do with their money. If the uber wealthy want to go to medical school and/or donate money or not, go for it. Everyone would support that.</p>
<p>
Well said. I believe a long time CCer, BDM, mentioned the same point many years ago. I think he said the major problem for the health care for most people in the world is mostly an economy (money) one. If you can make a lot of money and are willing to part with your hard-earned money to enable more people to have the access to the existing medical technology, you can possibly help more people who badly need health care. That is, you may benefit more people without you becoming a physician or medical scientist yourself.</p>
<p>My point is that if you happen to have the talent to make a fortune, you are probably more capable of helping more people in need of health care if you want to. There are orher reasons than just “I want to help people” that motivates a person to become a physician.</p>
<p>You do not need to go to the third world to see it. In the south, occasionally you can read articles about how a large segment of population do not have access to the health care.</p>
<p>After the Ike hurricane had destroyed the main (the only major one in the state?) hospital near Galvestin in Texas which traditionally serves those without the health insurance, these people were basically informed that “sorry, from now on, we can not serve you any more (until we have the money to do something about it in the future - if that day ever comes.)”</p>
<p>“IMO, the biggest problem in health care remains access. What is limiting access is inevitably money. IMO, a wealthy person who wants to help people in medicine would have a much wider impact if he/she were to provide financial access than he/she would by becoming a physician.”
-This statement is clearly trying to decide for somebody else how he/she should spend hers / his money. It is not tha path that we want to go, it leads to a very very sad sytem where NOBODY has any chances whatsoever. I realize that we are on this path anyway. It does not make me to support it, no way, no how, I know all too well where it leads…MISERY and nothing else.</p>
<p>@MiamiDAP: Don’t overlook my statement “IMO” meaning that I am giving a point of view, an opinion, not a fact or a command. “A wealthy person who wants to help people” assumes that they aren’t in medicine for personal reasons but for the benefit of others. “IMO, a wealthy person would have a much wider impact if he/she were to provide financial access than he/she would by becoming a physician.” Ok, this is the section you are misreading. That statement compares 2 different choices, giving money or becoming a physician. It doesn’t limit anyone to one choice, it doesn’t “clearly trying to decide” what someone should do with their money. It is clearly showing that I am acknowledging a choice that the individual has. Btw, do you agree that the individual should be able to buy their way into Harvard Medical School? </p>
<p>So, I am completely baffled how you’ve come to your conclusion that I am telling people what to do. Can someone else please let me know if I am off my rocker on this. I would be more than happy to apologize if I gave the wrong impression. </p>
<p>
I saw it exactly as you’re describing, and agree with it. If I had the money to transform healthcare delivery at a hospital I’d rather spend my time working on that than on 24 hour calls treating a small handful of patients. I’d rather be funding others’ R01s than stressing out about writing/renewing my own. Doesn’t mean someone couldn’t do both or that someone else with money couldn’t decide to not donate any of it, just stating what I would do.</p>
<p>FWIW, I also saw it the way you described, Frugaldoctor. I didn’t read it as a black/white one choice or another type of thing. </p>
<p>As long as nobody is tellling people how to use their money, I am in, I have no problem. </p>
<p>lol I didnt think my thread would turn into such a controversial topic 
</p>
<p>@Phoenix55555
</p>
<p>It’s not your fault. Similar thing happened to me when I mentioned my top choice for medical school a few years ago. Guess what? I have an acceptance from that school. 
</p>
<p>Just ignore the noise and pursue your dreams 
</p>
<p>Haha alright ,and btw I got accepted into Vanderbilt University yesterday for UG, so I’ll prolly be going there. 
Do i need to start doing research right away? What things do I need to do right away ( I dont wanna waste my freshmen year)</p>
<p>Spend your time during your freshman year fitting in, learning the ropes, and maximizing your grades. Once you have that under control, expand out to research and volunteering opportunities. This is a marathon and not a race. Don’t burn out too early. Congratulations.</p>
<p>Also it’s much better to be a couple years into UG with a great GPA and poor ECs than great ECs and a poor GPA</p>