What are some of the pros and cons of being a surgeon?

Question

I'm looking at different career options and wondering what are some of the ups and downs of being a surgeon. Is it anything like you see on Grey's Anatomy? Are you able to have any social life? Thanks, guys!

Answer 1

Do not be lured into medicine by tv shows, though entertaining and all its not really that accurate. as a far as a surgeon goes you could be very successful in life as one. you earn lots of money and you save lives, doesnt get much better than that. some cons are the time and money it takes. you must be devoted to studying hard and getting through the tough college courses and getting into a med school. being a surgeon can be very stressful as you are often on call in your internship and residency. also if anything was to happen to your eyes or hands you'd be screwed. impaired vision or a bad break that doesnt heal well could really hurt your career.  they are the surgeons most important tools. overall a surgeon is a very noble profession and its definetly worth it if your willing to get there

Answer 2

Medicine is nothing like Grey's Anatomy, Scrubs, House, ER, Holby City etc. etc.

The fact of the matter is that it is a lot more hard work, and sometimes, a lot more gruesome.

As part of the UK Foundation Course, you have to complete a rotation in surgery, and apart from seeing some horrific injuries, it also took a lot longer than it shows on television.

Surgery can take up to the likes of five hours and beyond. In TV shows, its condensed into minutes.

Some pros:

- You are the most well paid doctors in a hospital, in the UK, you earn roughly £10 000 more than internists.

- You don't deal with the patients so much. You walk in, take them through the procedure, answer questions, complete surgery, check up in post-op, palm them off onto an internist. (You could get to know the patient, but it's not a requirement).

Some cons:

- If a patient dies on the table, that is your responsibility, internists can blame fate or luck or destiny, as a surgeon, if you make a mistake, then that mistake can cost someone their life.

- You need to keep your concentration for long periods of time.

I know that sounds like a damning indictment of surgeons, but it is a worthwile career, and is worth pusuing.

And you are able to have a social life, but it will be restricted during your training. Although, you make friends in the hospital, and chances are that you'll spend most of your time in the hospital with them.

Answer 3

pros- you bank money.

        you are well respected

        you have the satisfaction of saving lives

cons- you have to go to school about 20 extra years before you are on your own

         you have no set schedule, but you are on call basically 24 hours a day

        

for the most part, it is not like grey's anatomy at all. that is just a tv show. i went to a career conference at a big hospital once and a doctor spoke to us and basically discouraged our entire outlook on the medicine field. it wasn't until i started taking pre-med classes that i realized what exactly he was talking about.