<p>So I'm new to this forum, but I have always been surfing through these discussions during my college application process. I know want to pursue something in the medical field, and I really want to be a psychiatrist, specifically in the specialty of child and adolescence. I joined to see if anyone could offer me any advice or knowledge about the field. I heard psychiatrists have the lowest satisfaction with their jobs. Is this true or not? And do you think it is necessary to pursue a job that has mediocre salaries compared to surgeons and such?</p>
<p>Psychiatry's a very fascinating field. I think it has a lot of rewards, although at this point a lot of frustrations, too, because the state of the field is still emerging. Many people will come in wanting diagnoses that they don't have; many people will come in denying diagnoses that they do have; those that you diagnose will never be cured, only controlled; many of them will refuse to take their drugs, partly because they're psychiatrically incapable of following instructions; those that do take their drugs will manifest sometimes very severe side effects.</p>
<p>It is a rewarding job, because the patient interaction is very high and you can make a very dramatic difference in people who previously thought their lives were, essentially over.</p>
<p>Still, it is a job with a lot of frustrations as well.</p>
<p>Is it ... "necessary" to pursue a job with lower salaries than other physicians? Obviously not -- perhaps you meant to use another word in there. Even so, I suspect that on a per-hour basis, psychiatrists do not do too poorly.</p>
<p>Thanks. I'm actually a high school student so I could maybe change my career path down the road, who knows? I've seen that you have had some knowlege concerning pre-med topics. Do you think its better for me to attend a state school with good medical resources, such as pitt, or attend another where the name itself could give me certain advantages?</p>
<p>I don't think Pitt is a state school.</p>
<p>In any case:<a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/pre-med-topics/202936-good-pre-med-schools.html%5B/url%5D">http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/pre-med-topics/202936-good-pre-med-schools.html</a></p>
<p>Well for the university of pittsburgh, you pay higher if you're out of state, so it's most definitely a state school.</p>
<p>Hm. While that's not normally a sufficient proof (see Baylor Med), it turns out you're right. I withdraw that part of my comment.</p>
<p>I an a Child Psychiatrist and if you were to enter the field right now, you would be able to call some shots that most of those in non-surgical specialties can't ( I don't know about the world surgical specialties but I know about primary care ). The examples that come to mind are negotiating rates with managed care, or a cash only practice. There are so many psychosocial issues in the field that are demoralizing, I can imagine many psychiatrists are dissatisfied, but once you let go of the "chemical imbalance" view, and the income that goes along with that, do some therapy ( and accept losing money that goes along with that) and let go of the idea that you need to rescue or cure people for satisfaction...well... it doesn't suck.</p>
<p>In several years, the landscape might change alot, especially if we continue down the "chemical imbalance" path.</p>