Rant: Doctors don't change the world. - Page 2

gamblore99 · #11 03-22-2007, 01:11 PM

m_theory,
Talking about misdiagnoses is really retarded here. That has nothing to do with the ideals of being a doctor. Doctors don't intentionally make mistakes. If anything, that is more of a reason to push our best and brightest towards the field. The reason most people push the idea of doctor is because it is a secure job with good money (the good money is becoming less and less).

That being said, I have wanted to be a doctor for a very long time. Helping people and making a difference has never been a reason for me to do it. A doctor is just like everyone else, he does his job to put food on his table, not out of the kindness of his heart.

jiggymike,
I don't really understand your rant. You are angry that people who are not really intelligent strive to be doctors and succeed?

king spew,
It does sound pretty crappy. I am hearing more and more that being a doctor you have to work non stop. I'm now considering other options.

UNiT o1 · #12 03-22-2007, 01:58 PM

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SOMEBODY COULDN'T HANDLE MED SCHOOL

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also, what about all those doctors out there in 3rd world countries trying to make a difference? especially medical missionaries who go out there w/ no pay but out of their own convictions in helping others? yeah, no impact there whatsoever. it's much better to find a cure for some disease, patent it, & charge a premium so that those who need it can't afford it. a much better impact [img]/images/graemlins/tongue.gif[/img]

Jiggymike · #13 03-22-2007, 02:04 PM

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jiggymike,
I don't really understand your rant. You are angry that people who are not really intelligent strive to be doctors and succeed?

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In a way, yes, but not exactly. As a biology major in undergrad, I was constantly in classes with people who wanted to be doctors. Many of these people were not very intelligent, they were merely cutthroat bastards who 1) wanted to get paid/family profession and 2) often had lots of money already, hence their admission into a college they probably weren't qualified to get into (NYU) as well as the reason they would be getting into med school. I am talking about a specific class of people, I guess, not everyone who is not a genius who wants to be a doctor. If someone is unintelligent but really really wants to be a doctor and works hard at it, then they deserve it and I imagine they will do a good job. The kinds of people I'm talking about could even be intelligent, it's just that they are doing it for the wrong reasons and they are real jerks about it. I imagine that these people end up being the worst doctors and being stupid just makes it worse. However, I generalized far too much in my original post and I don't think that anyone who wants to practice medicine for the right reason should be discouraged.

EricLindros · #14 03-22-2007, 02:36 PM

Hrm. If someone is very intelligent they probably don't need any of this advice.

Mine would be to do whatever it is that you enjoy doing. If you enjoy waking up every morning and going to work, then you're already better off than 85% of the people in the country.

felix83 · #15 03-22-2007, 02:55 PM

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Hrm. If someone is very intelligent they probably don't need any of this advice.

Mine would be to do whatever it is that you enjoy doing. If you enjoy waking up every morning and going to work, then you're already better off than made up number of the people in the country.

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I really don't understand the need to put a number here for the sake of making the statement seem more important, unless you have some study to back it up. Just say a lot.

disjunction · #16 03-22-2007, 03:05 PM

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Children should be brought up with the beliefs that if they work hard and exhibit intelligence they should aspire to enter the fields of medical research, law, or engineering. These are all scalable as far as impacting lives. A med research breakthrough can cure millions of disease. The courts hold government in place. Engineering is the gateway to technology. All of these fields are impacted on a large scale when a genious enters the stage. Geniouses are just flat out wasted on the doctor-patient relationship.

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I agree with the point that doctors can be a bit overrated as compared to other professions.

However, the good that a doctor does is much less nebulous. It's not as satisfying to be an engineer. Most engineering is some piece of the larger picture. And even if you do save lives, it's not the same. Google search has probably saved countless lives, right? Does the founder of Google leave work with a smile on his face because he saved 1,000 lives yesterday? Furthermore, if the google algorithm were not invented, would some other college kid have filled the void with something better?

How about the guy who just had his 2-year project cancelled, or the professor whose funding ran out due to the bureaucracy?

When you are in college you think that you can live your whole life as an engineer, satisfied that you are doing good despite the lack of immediate feedback. It's an easy thing to say. But years and years can wear on you.

gamblore99 · #17 03-22-2007, 05:45 PM

Jiggymike and others,
To me, the most important thing in choosing a job is fun/interest and money. Not hurting people is a requirement, but helping others doesn't really matter. There is nothing wrong with someone in university choosing med school for those reasons. I think people like make the best doctors.

EricLindros · #18 03-22-2007, 06:44 PM

[ QUOTE ]
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Hrm. If someone is very intelligent they probably don't need any of this advice.

Mine would be to do whatever it is that you enjoy doing. If you enjoy waking up every morning and going to work, then you're already better off than made up number of the people in the country.

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I really don't understand the need to put a number here for the sake of making the statement seem more important, unless you have some study to back it up. Just say a lot.

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Lizard King · #19 03-22-2007, 07:19 PM

A doctors sacrifices more than any other common professional. My dad who is a Doctor worked 80+ hour weeks when he was in residency. He was in ER surgery at the time and he practically lived in the hospital. He only earned like 40-50k for the 4 years he was in residency and I'm not even talking about the 8 years of school. He switched from surgery to family practice because he did not want to deal with the stress and wanted to see his kids more than once a week although surgery pays more than twice as much. In my opinion doctors are underpaid and overworked. Imagine a world without lawyers I think it would be nice actually now imagine a world without doctors, dentists or medicine half of you would have died at childbirth along with your mom.