For the Doctors out there: Why get a Masters of Public Health if you are already a doctor?

Question

I am a undergrad at a school with a pretty good pre-med program. I want to be a doctor, but I'm thinking of taking a year off before going to med school because, in the major that I am in, I only need an additional semester to get my masters in public health. Is it worth it?

Why do so many doctors go back to school to get their MPH? What are the benefits other than gaining more knowledge of the health care system? Namely, what are the tangible benefits?

Answer 1

It's a great question, and as a Med Student we had the opportunity to take an extra year or so to obtain the MPH.  The tangible benefit of it comes into play if you'd like to engage in non-clinical practice, i.e. policy-making or some form of administration outside the realm of clinical medicine.

Answer 2

The MPH is simply a different qualification which acts as an entry pathway into other aspects of the healthcare system.  Being a doctor teaches you about health and illness in terms of the body and its mechanics: an MPH focuses on entirely different aspects of health care.  You can choose epidemiology, health economics, health policy, health administration and so on: these options can lead you into administration or government policy advisingt or similar jobs, which you aren't always qualified for as a doctor.

Or, you can use your MPH to study things like primary health care, health care in resource poor settings, medical sociology/anthropology and so on, and these are likely to assist you if you want to do aid work, or work with culturally diverse communities, etc.

The benefit of doing an mph may not immediately be financial, but you will have a far greater skills base than with only a medical degree.