What It Takes to Be a Doctor
People often know at a young age
that they want to become doctors. Perhaps they are naturally good at math and
science. Maybe they have a desire to help people and to make a difference in
people’s lives. Or, they may just want a job that is full of challenges. These
are all very good reasons to consider a medical career. However, anyone who
wants to become a doctor must understand how much work it takes to achieve that
goal.
The road to becoming a doctor is a
long and difficult one. In fact, doctors go through more education and training
than almost any other type of professional. At the very minimum, it takes
eleven years to become a doctor, and longer for highly specialized medical
fields. Still, most doctors love their work and believe it was well worth the
years of effort.
The First Four Years
Aspiring doctors spend the first
four years of college earning their bachelor’s degrees. Many students major in
what is known as “premed,” which has a curriculum that is heavy in science and
math. Premed students study such things as physics, chemistry, and biology, and
take other advanced mathematics and science courses. During this time students
often volunteer or work part-time in hospitals, clinics, or doctor’s offices,
so they can gain knowledge and experience.
When premed students are in their
third or fourth year of college, they apply to medical school. There are nearly
150 medical schools in the United States, and acceptance to these schools is
highly competitive. Students must achieve a high score on an examination called
the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT). They must complete an essay to explain
why they want to be a doctor. Many schools require letters of recommendation.
Also, the grades the students have earned in college are an extremely important
consideration. Medical students almost always have grade point averages of 3.5
or higher.
Intensive Study
Once students are admitted into
medical school, they spend the first two years on what is often called “heavy
book learning.” They attend classes in anatomy, biochemistry, and physiology.
They study pathology, medical ethics, and laws that govern medicine. They learn
about the human body and how it works. They learn about disease and how the human
immune system fights disease. They also study pharmacology, which is the
science of medications.
During the second year, students
begin to learn about basic medical tasks. This includes learning how to examine
patients, how to take medical histories, and how to diagnosis certain
illnesses.
Learning on the Job
The third year of medical school is
when students do their clinical rotations, which means they work with doctors
and other health care professionals. They observe and assist internists,
surgeons, and pediatricians, as well as radiologists, neurologists, family
practice doctors, and ER doctors. This gives students an opportunity to
experience a wide variety of medical specialties. It also allows them to work with
many different patients. As they gain knowledge about the different areas of
medicine, most students make decisions about which field they like best.
Pediatrician Heather Burrows says
that the clinical rotations are a wonderful chance for students to find out
what being a doctor is really like. One of her most memorable experiences
happened during her third year of medical school, when she was doing a rotation
in OB/GYN. It was the middle of the night, and a woman was about to have a
baby. Dr. Burrows describes the situation: “I was going to assist with the
birth, and I was exhausted from working so many hours. All I wanted was for her
to hurry up and get it over with so I could go to sleep. But then the baby was
born… and it was the most amazing thing I’ve ever seen. All of a sudden, I was
wide awake. I was so excited to be a part of this experience, helping to make
this miracle happen.”
Choosing a Specialty
Students continue their rotations
during their fourth year of medical school, but they begin to take on more
responsibility. Also, this is when they decide on their specialty. By their
fourth year, they have had a chance to explore many different areas of
medicine. They have seen real-life doctors in action, and they have worked
alongside them. So the next step is to choose the medical field they want to
pursue and graduate from medical school. Finally, they are officially doctors.
Doctors-in-Training
By the time students graduate, they
have completed eight years of formal schooling. However, their education is far
from finished. Their next step is the residency, which is
usually performed in a hospital under the direction of experienced physicians.
A residency is an intense, hands-on medical training period that lasts for a
minimum of three years. Some take much longer. For instance, residencies in
anesthesiology and obstetrics take four years. An orthopedic surgery residency
takes five years, and a plastic surgery residency takes six years. During this
training period, residents are paid a salary for their work.
New
doctors who are interested in a highly specialized field, such as neurosurgery,
must perform residencies that last for six years or more. One example of this
type of residency program is at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle. Dr. Richard
Winn is the chief of neurosurgery, and he supervises the program. Each year,
more than three hundred doctors apply—and only two are accepted. Plus, not only
is the program hard to get into, it takes eight years to complete. A sign on
Dr. Winn’s office wall explains why his program is so difficult and why it
takes such a long time. It reads, “If the training is tough, the war will be
easy.” Harborview’s neurosurgical residency program has been called the best in
the country.
Once doctors have completed their
residencies, their formal medical training is finally complete. However, before
they can practice medicine, they must get a license from the state in which
they plan to work. When they are licensed, doctors may set up their own private
practice or join a practice with other physicians. Or, they may go to work for
hospitals, health departments, laboratories, or other medical organizations.
What Makes a Good Doctor
Doctors work hard—very hard. Anyone
who has put in the time and effort it takes to earn a medical degree is well
aware of that. However, there are also other qualities that doctors need.
First, they need to care about people. This applies to all doctors, even those
who specialize in research or radiology. They may not work directly with patients,
but their work still revolves around helping people. Doctors also need to be
excellent thinkers. They must be able to examine a sick patient and figure out
what is wrong. Then, they must be able to decide the best way to treat the
patient’s illness or injury.
A Special Kind of Person
Dr.
Dana Gossett is an OB/GYN who became a doctor for several reasons. She wanted
to help people and to have a positive impact on their lives. But she also loves
the science that is involved in medicine. She enjoys knowing how the body works
and why disease happens. Dr. Gossett shares her thoughts about some qualities
that doctors need: “Attention to detail is critical—little things can mean life
or death in medicine. The physician MUST be able to
listen—the patient frequently can tell you exactly what’s wrong, if you can
listen. And the physician must be [understanding]. If you can’t place yourself
in your patient’s shoes and understand how scared/happy/painful/etc. their
situation is, you will not be able to help them as much, and they will not
trust you as much.”
It takes a special kind of person
to be a doctor, and it is not the right career for everyone. However, for
people with the right personal qualities—as well as the willingness to complete
years of medical education and training—becoming a doctor is the best possible
choice they could make.
