There are huge problems with U.S healthcare ,but I want to work in medicine.Now what?

[balali10]

<p>I am interested in becoming a doctor. I am interested in family practice medicine or a specialty like dermatology. I think I would like to work in a suburban or rural area as opposed to an urban environment. I would like to be able to work in medicine and best serve patients. I am not sure if I would be better off pursuing a specific medical career like nursing. </p>

<p>Q1-<br>
How can I figure out if I have what it takes to be a doctor or work in a medical career? </p>

<p>Q2-
What are some good schools that really emphasize getting experience and a good knowledge of the field of medicine?
(I’m at a liberal arts school now and they don’t provide a lot of extra education or other information on medicine outside of regular science classes).</p>

<p>Q3- What can I use to help me figure out what I am most qualified and able to do before I put a significant amount of time or effort into a career in medicine?</p>

<p>Q4- Are there any alternatives to going straight into school fresh out of high school especially if I’m not completely sure what I want to do?</p>

<p>Q5-
What does it really take to be a doctor and work in the medical field?
Most things I read about this career path makes it sound very, very difficult and discourage me from actually pursuing this career. The doctors I have met seem like intelligent people who work very hard. </p>

<p>Q6- Where can I get good, realiable information on medicine and medical careers? I do use the Mayo Clinic website and I have looked at the U.S. government career website</p>

<p>Background: </p>

<p>I am a student in my first semester of college. I am interested in the medical field. Much in the same way some students choose to go to community college before regular college I chose to go to a lower level college so I could better adjust to living on my own and have some time to get a better idea of what I want to do. Right now I am trying to get set up as a volunteer in a nearby hospital. I’m not sure what I want to do. Many of the students in my high school class were pursuing careers in medicine and hoping to become doctors. </p>

<p>My mother is an RN with her BSN who has been working in hospitals and in public health for over 20 years. She suggested I think about nursing, nurse practitioner, physician assistant, or physical or occupational therapy programs</p>

<p>Why I think I want a career in medicine: </p>

<p>-My high school education was strong in the sciences </p>

<ul>
<li>The physicians and medical professionals in my local community are overworked and desperately want and need more people to work in the medical field<br></li>
</ul>

<p>-There are some poor doctors from other countries working in my community whose educational background is not what it should be
I live in a country where I have an opportunity to receive an adequate education and where there are many good educational programs in the medical field</p>

<p>-I had A and B grades in high school and I am capable of attaining those grades in college </p>

<p>-I really enjoyed my anatomy and physiology class in high school and got through my AP Physics and Chem courses </p>

<p>-I write everything down </p>

<ul>
<li><p>I enjoy researching things. I really enjoyed doing research projects in school on rare diseases and medical ailments </p></li>
<li><p>I find medical ailments and disease fascinating </p></li>
</ul>

<p>-I enjoy the natural/ biological sciences</p>

<ul>
<li><p>My brother is majoring in biology and the stuff he gets to do in his internships interests me </p></li>
<li><p>I really admire my Mom who is an RN with her BSN. I think she gets to do really interesting things in her work. I could see myself doing some of things she does in her job. </p></li>
<li><p>I enjoy observing other people and their habits</p></li>
<li><p>My family practice physician, dermatologist, optometrist and dentist are all really good doctors that always explain things well and have helped me to become a healthy person. I admire these people and appreciate the affect they have had on my life</p></li>
<li><p>I have had doctors explain things to me and I often find what they say really interesting </p></li>
</ul>

<p>-I would like to be in a field where I feel needed and find what I’m doing useful to myself and other people </p>

<p>-I have worked in teams and groups before in school science labs</p>

<p>What’s preventing me from pursuing my career: </p>

<h1>1 -Participation in Intercollegiate Athletics</h1>

<h1>2- Being at a school which puts little emphasis on the medical professions and careers in the medical field</h1>

[Ederiss]

<p>Alright, let’s see.</p>

<p>Question 1:
My only suggestion would be to try and get as much experience and knowledge about your profession of interest as possible. You mentioned your interest in family practice and dermatology. Try shadowing these doctors if possible to see if it’s something you really do want to do. In fact, you said that you enjoyed your interactions with your family practice physician, dermatologist, optometrist and dentist. Maybe you can ask them if it’s possible to shadow them. Optometry and dentistry will be different pathways than an MD so keep that in mind. You said that you were planning on volunteering at a hospital. That may give you a perspective as well. You also mentioned that your mom is a nurse. She could give you an insight into the medical field as well.</p>

<p>Question 2:
I’m not really sure I understand this question. There are some schools that are reputed to have better pre-medical programs than others. In my personal opinion, though, theoretically all schools should be able to prepare you in the sciences you need for medical school. Of course, some schools might prepare you better than others, but as long as you have an adequate grasp on your subjects, you should be okay. Of course, I’m proposing this all from a theoretical perspective so I could be completely wrong.</p>

<p>Question 3:
I think this is a question that you have to answer yourself. If you have a strong passion for medicine, give it a try. If, however, you find yourself more interested in something else, say philosophy, give it a try. Since it’s your first semester of college, you have a little freedom to explore what really interests you so take advantage of that.</p>

<p>Question 4:
I’m not really sure I understand this question. I guess you could not go straight to college and get a job instead. There’s also summer programs you could try to explore your interests.</p>

<p>Question 5:
The career pathway to becoming a doctor will likely be one that is tedious, time consuming, draining, expensive, etc. but, if its truly your passion, it will be very rewarding. I’ll just lay out what you’re looking at, if that’s what you’re asking.
Basically, you’re going to need at least a bachelor’s degree in undergraduate (it doesn’t really matter in what, as long as you get your prerequisites for medical school complete). The prerequisites generally are:
1 year of inorganic chemistry with laboratory (This is likely your general chemistry)
1 year of organic chemistry with laboratory
1 year of biology with laboratory
1 year of physics with laboratory
1 year of math
1 year of English
Some schools require Biochemistry as well. I think I’ve heard that most medical schools are moving towards including this as well. Prerequisites can differ by school though, so check up on the schools you plan on applying to.
After your undergraduate education (4 years), you will hopefully matriculate into medical school (another 4 years). After that, you’ll hopefully get into residencies. The length of time spent in residencies depends mainly on what your focus is. Family medicine residencies might be shorter as compared to something much more specialized, such as a cardiothoracic surgeon. Of course, while this is the theoretical plan, people can deviate from the pathway. They may finish their undergraduate faster or apply to a specialized medical school program where they finish in 3 years or apply to a joint program (such as MD/JD). Of course, along the way will be lots of “fun” tests, such as the MCAT and USMLE.</p>

<p>Question 6:
You can try the Student Doctor Network forums for some more information, though take it with a pinch of salt that these are the ordinary applicants since theoretically, the more driven applicants would go there thus leading to inflated scores and credentials. If your college has a premedical advisor, you could try to ask them for help as well. The AMCAS website would be a good resource I believe. Also, try Wikipedia (Yes, that very reliable source). You can then further Google some of the things you’re curious about. While this sounds unreliable, it can give you a general feel for how the medical career will be like. Most of the medical schools should have their own websites if you want to peruse them.</p>

<p>Hopefully, I answered those questions adequately. If not, query away.</p>

<p>As for your introduction, you seem to be interested in healthcare, but are unsure if you want to be a doctor or something else? If so, let me offer you some advice. An interview question that might come up in medical school interviews is, “Why do you want to be a doctor? Not a nurse? A physician’s assistant? etc.” So, it’s a good idea to figure this out now. The career pathways for each of the health professions differ to some degree. So, if the length of your training to reach your career path is a deciding factor, do some research into the health professions you’re interested in. I wouldn’t say that any of the health professions are better than another. After all, each of these professions are important in healthcare. What it all boils to then is what you’re interested in. As a doctor, you might have more authority concerning patient matters. As a nurse, you might be able to spend more time with patient care. So, figure out what appeals to you.</p>

<p>Under factors preventing you from this career, you put intercollegiate athletics. I’m not really sure why this would prevent you from that. You can do both. It might be more strenuous but it’s not like you’ll be studying nonstop (that’s probably more medical school and, even then, you will still have some time off to pursue other interests). As far as your school putting little emphasis on the medical professions, that shouldn’t be too big of an issue. I’m guessing here, but I don’t think health professions schools will frown on you if you came from a school that didn’t emphasize the medical professions. After all, by applying, you do show that you took the initiative to complete everything that was required to enter that school, regardless of where you studied. Of course, I’m hypothesizing here so I could be completely wrong.</p>

<p>Hope that helps in any way, shape or form.</p>