Earlier quoted context omitted.
but.. why?
It’s extremely beneficial to the people who are already doctors (dramatically increases salary, prestige, power), and that is a powerful group in most societies.
So beneficial that they commit suicide?
The darker side of being a doctor (2017)
281–290 of 521 posts
Re: The darker side of being a doctor (2017)
#282Earlier quoted context omitted.
Have you? I’d love to hear that answer.
I have. Longer shifts with fewer turn-overs results in better patient outcomes.
That's strange as you would expect quality to suffer in every single respect when forced to work inhumane conditions. I would find a different mechanic if I thought the one I was considering was miserable from being overworked.
Was there an explanation for why outcomes improved? Perhaps it is necessary to look into who conducts these studies as I imagine someone up the ladder profits greatly from having 1 doctor do the job of 2.
Re: The darker side of being a doctor (2017)
#283I am a working physician (50+) that is currently in training to become an IT professional, preferably working with development of new patient records systems. Being a physician is just not very intellectually challenging, more emotionally challenging, programming is in my mind a real challenge.
Any others with experience of changing fields?
Re: The darker side of being a doctor (2017)
#284I am a working physician (50+) that is currently in training to become an IT professional, preferably working with development of new patient records systems. Being a physician is just not very intellectually challenging, more emotionally challenging, programming is in my mind a real challenge. Any others with experience of changing fields?
I'm an anesthesiologist. Two years ago I switched to doing 100% software engineering. I had already worked in software, but not full time. There were many reasons. More time with my family was a big one. Work not being intellectually challenging was a another.
Re: The darker side of being a doctor (2017)
#285I am a working physician (50+) that is currently in training to become an IT professional, preferably working with development of new patient records systems. Being a physician is just not very intellectually challenging, more emotionally challenging, programming is in my mind a real challenge. Any others with experience of changing fields?
Moved to IT (in a pharma context) after 5 years of experience in hospitals by chance. I like to tell myself that I gra itated towards it since I always wanted to be an engineer. I will not stop being a doctor and I may never quite be an engineer, but I enjoy what I do.
Re: The darker side of being a doctor (2017)
#286One of my friends I grew up with was “that kid;” smartest in the community, funny, played a mean guitar. Everyone loved him. Top of class. Harvard. Harvard med. Top placement for residency. Something happened during that time and he killed himself. It was absolutely unexpected from all of his friends. Shocking to say the least. Apparently it turned out to be stress from work, his hours, his fear of failing. Who will ever know, but it has been many years and it still stings.
Re: The darker side of being a doctor (2017)
#287> I have lost control of my days. I had worked in a hospital where I was oncall 24/7, 12 days out of 14. I had fortnightly weekends off. When I was preparing for surgical exams, I’d be working and studying from 6.30am to 10pm everyday, seeing my family only on the weekends for lunch. I had worked in a hospital network that covered 4 campuses and drove 500kms a week when covering these sites. I had worked in a hospital where I didn’t get home for days at a time, sleeping overnight in hospital quarters, outpatient clinic benches and in my car.
We have to stop Medicare. It's not sustainable.
Re: The darker side of being a doctor (2017)
#288It seems the two better solutions are either government financed hospitals, which are always hopelessly overpatient but as a doctor you are more free, because they usually don't get paid much and anyone who works in a gov hospital is upmost welcome. And the other option are overpriced private hospitals where you don't have so much financial pressure.
"Patient satisfaction officers, Theatre Utilisation officers, Patient Flow Coordinators. These are all business roles" Forget all this nonsense the man who saves lives is the surgeon and doctor. People are very grateful to the people who actually save their life.
Re: The darker side of being a doctor (2017)
#289Earlier quoted context omitted.
but.. why?
It’s extremely beneficial to the people who are already doctors (dramatically increases salary, prestige, power), and that is a powerful group in most societies.
But the article is about burnout. Surely that can't be great for existing doctors, either?
Re: The darker side of being a doctor (2017)
#290Earlier quoted context omitted.
Facilities can be built. Training programs can be expanded. Those are reasons why programs can't be doubled this year, but inside of a few years it's all possible. This problem has been cooking for decades. What actually happened was cartel shit. https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1997/03/09/r...
I agree with this - in the US we have nurses picking up doctor roles (e.g. anesthesia), hours-worked caps, PAs (physician assistants) also picking up doctor roles, tons of international physicians coming for underserved specialities (family medicine, pediatrics, psych, etc). And of course, residents super overworked. I think it speaks for itself that making medicine 2x - 3x more people per year would help the problem…
“…doctor roles (e.g. anesthesia)…” Anesthesia has primarily been a nursing role, and it’s been this way since the American civil war. Physicians didn’t really want any part of it early on as it wasn’t very prestigious or lucrative. Nurse anesthetists have historically provided and continue to provide the vast majority of anesthetics, in the US at least.