<p>Hey, was just wondering if anyone's willing to share what they want to specialize in once they're done with medical school. Any particular interests and why?</p>
<p>Not sure exactly what specialty yet, but I know it's going to be peds ______.</p>
<p>Looking at Pediatric Surgery, peds cardiology, peds pulmonolgy, peds critical care, and adolescent medicine. That's where I am right now, the summer after my M1 year. Would mean that I would look to match with either a general surgery residency or a peds residency. Either way it will be 6 or 7 more years of school (3 year peds residency followed by 3 year fellowship OR 5 year Surgery residency followed by 2 year fellowship).</p>
<p>Why? I really like working with kids, and I don't particularly like old people. I like the idea of the work I'd be doing having an impact for 50-60 years down the line (in that the patient is alive and having a productive live for at least that long).</p>
<p>Anesthesiology or radiology . . . I've always wanted to work in a hospital. There's also the fact that although I like surgery I don't want to work long hours or be in schooling for too long.</p>
<p>I was just wondering, besides derm, what other specialty actually give you an actual family life?</p>
<p>I'm pretty sure internal medicine/family practice/pediatricians/psychiatry have a less stressful lifestyle and more controllable hours, thus more time for family life.</p>
<p>Family life is a function of call duties.</p>
<p>Specialities with few potential acute emergencies, for instance, pathology, dermatology or radiation oncology permit relatively normal lifestyles. Any specialty that potentially requires prompt admission of patients to the hospital will limit activites -- for instance, medicine, FP, peds, most surgical specialties, anesthesiology. Specialities involved with emergent surgical intervention such as OB, anesthesiolgy, general surgery severely limit activities while on call.</p>
<p>Certain specialities which schedule work in shifts such as Emergency medicine, radiology, hospitalists, and some intensivists allow for normal activities between shifts.</p>
<p>In addition to hospital duties, clinic duties, and call duties, you should also consider potentially time-consuming charting and dictation duties.</p>
<p>i think if u r able to start ur own practice u have much more controlable hours instead of working at a regular hospital which gives more of a chance to be on call at night.</p>
<p>depends on what you mean by "own practice". If you are by yourself, then you are essentially on call 24/7 in that if you don't care for your patients, no one will. You may set the time you are in the clinic, but you still have continuous responsibility.</p>
<p>Group practices certainly help with this, or combining with other private practitioners to cover patients on a set schedule. (the surgical group that I'm currently on service with has 4 surgeons, and they combine with the other general surgery service which has two docs so the 6 of them split up call on a rotating schedule each week)</p>
<p>@Bigredmed</p>
<p>Do most doctors who start a clinic start it after 5 years or so of finishing education (i.e. residency and or fellowship)?</p>