4 Reasons Why Surgeons Are Bitter
I’ve always felt strongly that unhappy people at work are unhappy people overall. This is especially true when dealing with medical specialties that essentially take up your entire life. Here are four reasons why I think surgeons are pissed off.
1. They Hear It From Significant Others
Have you ever had a bad habit that you’d like to break? Doesn’t it make you angry when others ask you about it (CAGE anyone?)? I think the same principles apply here. Surgeons, or just people in general who work all of the time have no family time. Their husbands or wives eventually get sick of it.
A perfect example is the Chief of Surgery on Gray’s Anatomy. He wants to retire, and then does so to go back to his wife. But, it’s too late. His wife has been sick of his life for too long, and there’s another man in the house.
The bitching and complaining from significant others are the early stages of what could end in disaster. Heed the warnings, and don’t end up like Dr. Webber.
2. They Have No Personal Time
Everybody needs time to themselves. Whether it be for simply relaxing or engaging in a hobby, this is a must for keeping yourself sane. Go years without any “me” time, and you can probably understand why some people are so bitter.
Make it a point to go out one day per week and do something that you really love. It will take some of the stress away.
3. They Miss Important Family Events
I’m not talking about the weekend barbecue or the missed family reunions. I’m talking about real stuff that you’re supposed to be around for.
While on my vascular surgery rotation, I overheard a phone call from my attending on rounds. He was on the phone with his wife, who was pregnant with their first child. She had an appointment for an ultrasound, and he was supposed to be there. Obviously, he wasn’t there as rounds were still taking place.
Later he joked to his colleagues that it was “just an ultrasound” and that “she’ll get over it.”
Deep down I think he wanted to be there, and because of his job he couldn’t. That’s enough to piss anybody off, I think.
4. They Make Good Money, But Can’t Spend It
Surgeons get paid well. Very well. It’s unfortunate that they pretty much hand over their paychecks. I think direct deposit was invented to cater to surgeons, who very rarely have time to actually go to the bank.
Wouldn’t it be nice to take some of that money and enjoy it sometime? Go on a 2 week family vacation, or buy a modest boat and take the family to the lake once in a blue moon? They’d love to do it, but simply can’t.
All Work And No Play
Not only do they have to deal with their own personal feelings, but a surgeon’s lifestyle has a significant impact on people in their lives that really matter.
In order to cope, they take out their feelings on residents, students, and hospital staff. I understand that they have to deal with things, but there are better ways to go about accomplishing that goal.
Are You Really Doing What You Love?
What are you passionate about? Is it really medicine, or is medicine just a guaranteed way to make a nice buck?
If you were to win $100 million in the lottery tomorrow, would you continue to do the same things you are doing now, or that you have planned to do in the future?
The question posed above is important. It’s the “truth” question. Be truthful with yourself and you’ll discover if you’re really passionate about medicine, your job, or whatever it is that you do to put food on the table.
For me, I would definitely continue along the same path that I’m on right now if I won the lottery. I absolutely love the things that I am doing, and I would do them for free if I had to. It is certainly nice that it puts a decent paycheck into my hands each month, but that’s not the point. I know I’m in the right place.
My grandfather never went to college and worked as a machinist in a plant for a good portion of his life. Very typical blue-collar work that is common for my family. He couldn’t tell me about complex chemical formulas, or the physiological changes of the human body during pregnancy. Instead, he taught me how to fix lawnmowers and cars when they broke down, and how to do odd jobs around the house.
Despite that fact that the had very little formal education, my grandfather was very “street smart.” He had lived life, and realized the mistakes that he had made. Mistakes that he could look back on and see, but that he couldn’t do much about for himself personally. He truly cared for me and wanted to change my life, to share with me some shred of information so that I could have something that he never did. One day before he passed away, he did just that.
“Find something that you love doing so much that you would do it for free, and then find a way to make a living doing it. If you can accomplish this, you’ll never work a day in your life.”
Take that to heart. I did, and it truly did change my life.
What Exactly Are the ROAD Specialties?
Veteran readers, I know this is a topic you guys are very familiar with. Please bear with me. =)
I’ve seen several hits in my stat logs from people looking for the ROAD specialties. For many students new to medicine, this might be something that you’re hearing for the first time.
The ROAD specialties are specialties that are generally considered “lifestyle” specialties in medicine. Lifestyle specialties are those that offer good pay with minimum work hours, low patient loads, above average working conditions, and typically low on-call time.
Historically, the ROAD specialties are Radiology, Opthalmology, Anesthesiology, and Dermatology. More recently, the mnemonic has been revised to E-ROAD or ADORE to include Emergency Medicine.
Anesthesiology is on the high-end of work hours, while specialties such as Pathology aren’t included. Expect the lifestyle specialties to change slowly over time as working conditions, hours, and pay fluctuate.
Other specialties that I consider to be lifestyle specialties are radiation-oncology, radiology (which is included in ROAD, but diagnostic only), pathology (mentioned above, but not included in E-ROAD), and reproductive endocrinology. Watch out, though, as reproductive endocrinology is an OB/GYN fellowship. If you can stomach the traditional OB/GYN residency and manage to match into repro-endo, your life should improve dramatically.
One specialty of special mention is Orthopedic Surgery. Despite the fact that it is insanely competitive, do not believe for a minute that it falls into the lifestyle category. The work hours are long, the work is manually intense, but the pay is great. I think the fascination with orthopedic surgery stems from manual labor with drills and saws coupled with an athletic or “appealing” build seen in most residents.
One last thing I wanted to mention is Anesthesiology. I’ve always heard the work hours and free time is great. Some of the most up-to-date data we have says otherwise. Anesthesiologists are actually working on-par with surgeons. I’m looking forward to seeing some more recent data on work hours before my argument can hold any weight. The students are still pouring into Anesthesiology as of 2006.
7 Reasons to Quit Your Residency
I found a great article today while doing my daily reading. It’s entitled 7 Reasons to Quit Your Job, but can definitely be applied to why you should quit your residency. After all, isn’t residency basically just a very, very low paying job?
His story is very similar to mine as to how he got started with his business.
Five Ways to Slack Off and Still Do Well In Medical School
Do gunners who constantly go above and beyond tend to get under your skin? Do you frequently wonder if your fellow students do anything but study? If one of your goals is to enjoy life while still doing well in medical school, here are five ways to make your medical school experience a bit more enjoyable.