Opinion

Advice to bright students: Don't go into clinical medicine nowadays

LETTER — Posted Dec. 6, 2004

Print  |   Email  |   Respond  |   Reprints  |   Like Facebook  |   Share Twitter  |   Tweet Linkedin

Regarding "Women leading climb in med school applications" (Article, Nov. 8): What struck me most about your article was the significant overall decline in all medical school applicants.

I presume that young people have seen the writing on the wall for American clinical medicine -- especially primary care -- in terms of shrinking salaries, the need to churn out patients faster and the hassle of working with insurers, regulators and lawyers looking over our shoulders.

I have been a family doctor since 1992, and I have taken great pride in helping patients take advantage of advanced diagnostic techniques, less-invasive surgery and better drugs. But I am fighting low-level insurance bureaucrats to get patients the care they need. I never thought I would tell a bright college student not to go into clinical medicine. But now I would.

M. Dean Havron Jr., MD, Winchester, Va.

Note: This item originally appeared at http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2004/12/06/edlt1206.htm.

Back to top


ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISE HERE


Featured
Read story

Confronting bias against obese patients

Medical educators are starting to raise awareness about how weight-related stigma can impair patient-physician communication and the treatment of obesity. Read story


Read story

Goodbye

American Medical News is ceasing publication after 55 years of serving physicians by keeping them informed of their rapidly changing profession. Read story


Read story

Policing medical practice employees after work

Doctors can try to regulate staff actions outside the office, but they must watch what they try to stamp out and how they do it. Read story


Read story

Diabetes prevention: Set on a course for lifestyle change

The YMCA's evidence-based program is helping prediabetic patients eat right, get active and lose weight. Read story


Read story

Medicaid's muddled preventive care picture

The health system reform law promises no-cost coverage of a lengthy list of screenings and other prevention services, but some beneficiaries still might miss out. Read story


Read story

How to get tax breaks for your medical practice

Federal, state and local governments offer doctors incentives because practices are recognized as economic engines. But physicians must know how and where to find them. Read story


Read story

Advance pay ACOs: A down payment on Medicare's future

Accountable care organizations that pay doctors up-front bring practice improvements, but it's unclear yet if program actuaries will see a return on investment. Read story


Read story

Physician liability: Your team, your legal risk

When health care team members drop the ball, it's often doctors who end up in court. How can physicians improve such care and avoid risks? Read story

  • Stay informed
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • RSS
  • LinkedIn