Finance Questions

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Question: I need a doctor, preferable a doctor in the emergency medicine field to answer the following questions.?

I need interview questions for a project I am doing in high school. Please answer the following.

Occupation and Title?
Formal education/specialized training required?
Reasons for pursuing a career in chosen field?
Estimated cost to reach career goal?
Ways to Finance Career goal?
Rewarding aspects of job?
Drawbacks of Job/Problem areas?
How to stand apart/make a difference in the field?
Years invested in career?
Biggest change needed in the field?
Are you involved in any volunteer work? If so, what?

Answer: Please read WWD's answer. Mine will confirm and contrast his.
Emergency Department Physician, MD
Four years college, Four years medical school, three years residency in Internal Medicine(IM).
Internal Medicine has the most career pathways available. All the medicine subspecialities require IM before trianing, i.e. Cardiology, Nephrology, Oncology, Critical Care, etc. This also does not limit you from working in an ER, except at some big city hospitals. The majority of ER physicians are trained in IM or Family Practice. I started working in ER's while in Residency. I never stopped. After a full time practice in IM for years and not having enough time for family, I started working full time as an ED physician. Since it is shift work without call, when you are off you are off. At vaction time if I want off one month I can take it without having to find coverage for my patients. More family time and good financial incentive is hard to beat.
The last figures I saw was $125,000 for Medical School. This will very with state school vs private school, prestige, location, etc. This info is freely available on the various schools website.
The best way to finance is to be born to wealthy parents. Most people borrow, borrow, borrow. Uncle Sam will pay for later service. Armed forces vs public health service are the options. You can arrange for a small town needing doctors to fund your training for return service.
As stated the big saves are part of the job. They are also rewarding. A patient coming is with difficulty breathing from an allergic reaction can be resolved with a few shots. Fixing lacerations is rewarding. Having your patients and/or patients family say thank you is highly rewarding. The money is rewarding.
Paperwork is a drawback. The pressure of not missing anything is a drawback. The constant problem of possibly being sued even if you did nothing wrong. The masses of humanity who come to you as a last resort because they are unable to afford a primary doctor. The unreal expetations of people for a quick fix/permanant cure. The deaths despite your best efforts drain on you. The reality is you are fighting a losing battle. Everyone dies.
Treat everyone the same. Do your best. Try to make people better.
ED for 9 years.
More primary care doctors to ease the load of primary care needs patients leaving the ER for emergencies. Decreased lawsuit fears by various means.
I volunteer with scouts and the occasional free health clinic.

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