Have you ever thought about becoming a physician? If the answer is yes, then this article is for you! This article offers an in-depth examination of a physician's career, beginning with their work environment, salary, and the additional training required to stay current. It also explains the usual educational journey to become a doctor, the potential dangers of the job, the average age of retirement, and the impact this career has on people's lives. It will be my pleasure writing this article since I also wish to practice medicine. Have a good read!
To be a physician comes with a lot of responsibilities, strong knowledge and communication skills. Physicians are attentive to details, empathetic and compassionate towards their patients and their families. Unfortunately, they will also have to face challenges, stress and performance anxiety. Doctors are highly respected for their professionalism, humility, and selflessness. What makes them so prestigious is the trust patients put in them to save their lives, knowing only a few people can do it.
Physicians will be examining patients in need, analyzing and investigating the possible causes of pain. Doctors will also diagnose, plan the courses of treatment and prescribe medicine to relieve the patient from their illness. Physicians will accompany their patients throughout their recovery journey with follow-ups and by keeping their medical records. Finally, specialized physicians will perform surgeries.
Depending on the physicians' careers, a typical day can take various forms. For example, as a family physician working in a clinic, the doctor will receive multiple patients throughout the day, including those from either annual check-ups, abnormal pain or illnesses. The doctor will perform an assessment and examine the patient to pursue the diagnosis and provide any medication if necessary. If a patient's condition seems too alarming, the family physician will redirect the patient to urgent care or a specialized doctor for an in-depth examination. Finally, the family physician will also take care of the lab results and the paperwork.
Depending on the physician's career path, doctors work in various settings, including hospitals, clinics, private practices, and universities as instructors.
After completing high school, a student who wishes to become a physician will go to college in a four-year premed program. In the final year of the college program, you will apply to different medical schools and take the MCAT. A successful result on this test will allow you to enroll in medical school. In the first two years of medical school, you will attend multiple medicine classes such as advanced biology, anatomy, pharmacology, and physiology. The last two years will apply the class material into practice by interacting with real-life patients, offering diagnoses and courses of treatment. Once you have completed medical school, students will obtain their medical license by passing the medical boards (USMLE) to obtain the right to practice medicine. Finally, you will complete your three-year residency program in the medical field you would like to specialize in.
Becoming a physician takes hard work, but this dedication is highly rewarded. For instance, in Canada, the average annual income of a physician is approximately $400,000. However, the revenue of doctors who specialize in a particular part of the body can vary from $300 000 to $900 000.
Since the study of the human body is continuously evolving, it is common for doctors to stay updated with new advancements. The Continuing Medical Education offers courses to doctors through conferences, lectures, workshops and research into new medical discoveries, accumulating annual credits. This program also ensures doctors are adequately using the newest tools and are trained to undergo the advanced surgical procedures.
Some dangers a physician may encounter will manifest themselves on their mental health. Their high-stress profession can easily become psychologically dangerous by repeatedly facing their patients' suffering and death. Doctors also have to diligently work for long and continuous hours, affecting both their physical and mental health.
It is doubtful that physicians will be replaced by robots because only humans can build a safe space filled with compassion and trust to ensure the patient is well-taken care of. More often than not, doctors make meaningful decisions to make sure the patient can get better. However, some decisions become ethical, such as end-of-life care; artificial intelligence is incapable of using its judgment for the better good.
In Canada, most physicians will retire at the age of 65. However, depending on the type of medicine practiced, the gender and the location, the retirement age can vary from the late 50s to the early 70s. Since doctors need incredible dexterity and agility to provide cautious care for their patients during surgery, doctors must be certain of their capacities.
As of right now, I am still in the premed program at Montmorency College. My education journey is different from the regular two-year program since I am also a student-athlete. I wish to obtain my diploma in two years or less and begin med school soon after. I believe it might take me around ten years to fully become a doctor. Hopefully, by the age of thirty, I will officially be a physician.
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