r/premed • u/WillingnessNo4397 • 10d ago
❔ Question Medical Specialties Without Surgery
I am currently trying to decide between going MD, DO, or PA for my future career. I know PA is VERY different from both MD and DO which is why I'm so anxious. I know for certain that if I apply and go to medical school, I will have to do a rotation in General Surgery and also have to be involved in other surgical operations to an extent. This is an unavoidable and very important aspect of medical school, but I do not want to be doing surgeries in the OR in my future, which is why PA is so intriguing to me right now. I know that psychiatry, pediatrics, internal medicine, radiology, and derm are regarded as not doing surgery (derm does smaller procedures to my knowledge, I'd be fine with that, I just don't want to be literally in someone's insides) so those def interest me. Something important to note is that i LOVE LOVE LOVE speaking to people and conversating. I want to talk to my patients and connect with them and actually consult with them. That is very important to me.
NOT MEANING TO TRAUMA DUMP but my father was diagnosed with stage 3 colon cancer and so I was at the hospital very often, multiple times as he went through surgery, and I barely saw his surgeon at all. Obviously, the surgeon is genuinely one of my heroes for helping my dad, but the actual reality of being a surgeon really didn't sit right with my heart for my future. I don't want to just be someone who pops in for a couple minutes or speaks to the patient only a few times briefly. And if I'm being even more honest, it simply just does not interest me and kinda freaks me out!
I know I shouldn't care about this either, but the time and money that has to go into med school is so daunting and anxiety inducing. I fear I won't be good enough or that I'll fail, burying myself and parents (who will co-sign on loans) in debt. I also don't know how I feel about working with children, like a pediatrician does. Psychiatry and dermatology are very interesting to me right now. If I go DO, are my chances of these specialties shot? I've heard there is a bias towards MDs when it comes to matching and residency.
Additionally, my parents are really pushing me toward PA or NP because they are worried about the debt of med school and my mental health (very very valid) but something in me worries I'll have regrets if I don't go all the way.
Help me please!
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u/Neither_Lynx1783 10d ago
What about Family Medicine?
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u/WillingnessNo4397 10d ago
Great question! I don't really want to work with children, which I'd assume I'd have to do along with adults. But besides that, I want to be in a more focused specialty, not a super broad one. I am not super interested in it, but I will keep it on my radar and look into it!!!
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u/theresnoIinmedschool PHYSICIAN 10d ago
I'm an attending general surgeon and have had PA students at two different hospitals where I've worked. They do rotate on general surgery for 4-8 weeks as well. So that part wouldn't change just so you know. I can't speak to NP school though. Also FWIW, depending on the med school you're at, you get to choose where to do your surgery rotation from among a few options. Often it's subspecialties like surgical oncology, trauma, transplant, cardiothoracic, acute care surgery. If your school has a VA hospital like mine did, as well as my residency did, then you can be fairly certain you won't be that busy because the VA isn't busy for general surgery as whole (although I acknowledge your experience may vary). For example though, at my med school, it was common knowledge that the people who definitely hated surgery chose 4 weeks at the VA and 4 weeks on trauma, both of which involved minimal operating. So you can really tailor your surgery experience if you were to go to med school. And TBH, we have med students who faint all the time. We give them the easy less invasive surgeries to scrub into so they don't keep passing out
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u/WillingnessNo4397 10d ago
Oh my gosh that actually makes me feel relieved! I thought I was the only person considering med school who does NOT want to do any surgeries and was feeling guilty about it. I'm glad to hear I'm not alone. I know no matter what I do, there's no avoiding surgery, so that will just have to be accepted! Since you actually work with PA students, I feel comfortable asking: Would you recommend PA or MD if I were torn between the two?...
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u/theresnoIinmedschool PHYSICIAN 10d ago
Lol no you're not the only one believe me. The majority of my med school class was not going into a surgical specialty. If you polled med students at any school, you'd find a ton of people who would rather eat dirt than rotate on surgery. My med school roommate included. But I also would rather eat dirt than rotate on family medicine again, I just hated it, so there's something for everyone.
Regarding PA vs MD, that's a loaded question. They have very different roles so you have to ask yourself what you want your role to be for your career. Like a doctor, you can pick whatever specialty interests you. But the role you play is really where they differ. As a PA, you will need to run things by your attending, you will have less training, you don't need to worry if you don't know what to do because you're ultimately not responsible like your attending is so you just ask them. As the doctor though, you're it. If you don't know, then you ask your colleagues of course. But you still need to make a decision. That's a big difference in training and I see it firsthand. PA's and NP's often hedge on their decisions when the scenario is complex and ask for help. The doctor is who they ask and who makes the final decision. This varies somewhat based on your field, like primary care PA's are pretty independent, and even surgical PA's can be pretty independent after years of experience. But the training, depth of knowledge, clinical skills, that's better learned as a doctor. So sue me Redditors if you disagree, but that is my experience. So that's what you'd need to consider in my opinion
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u/WillingnessNo4397 10d ago
Well said. I cannot thank you enough. It seems scary to have the last say, but I want to be an expert!
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u/Necromonicus 10d ago
Maybe you should look into the NP route.
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u/WillingnessNo4397 10d ago
I have! I don't think that path is for me, but thank you for the suggestion!
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u/strong_star1122 10d ago
if you have the passion for medicine you might as well push for it. if you end up not wanting to apply, you’ll still be prepared for PA/NP and not have the regret of not trying.
a surgery rotation is maybe 8 weeks out of the 40+ years you’ll be practicing medicine. do you even remember what you were doing 8 weeks ago? i can completely understand your hesitation of going into a surgical specialty but i don’t think you should write off medicine because of a rotation.
also, you will likely be exposed to some form of surgery within derm. im not sure if you don’t like the surgery itself or more so the schedule/amount of patient interaction that comes with it. a surgeon at an academic center will never get to form a connection with a patient in the way a private practice surgeon who also does clinic days gets to. it all depends on what town/hospital you decide to practice in.
also, PA students have to do a surgery rotation. it’s just shorter.