Choose medicine

The life of a doctor is totally overrated. Don’t you think so?

Well, then again, I’m not surprised when we’re bombarded by the media with images of super cool doctors like House and McDreamy portraying the role ever so heroically. Moreover, I think we have too many medical based TV series these days. Seriously, people need to shift away from this fascination they have with this job and its environment.

I speak from fresh first-hand experience – it is not a cool profession. It’s a job given way too much of glory, so much so it transforms into this wonderful dream for youngsters and the naive, as I was before, until we finally arrive at the destination of our working place.. disillusioned, disappointed. It was not what we thought it would be.

Of course, I must emphasize that it does have its elements of nobility – seeing the sick and providing the best we can for them with all the knowledge and skills which we possess. It’s a good thing… yes, there are times when it’s satisfying.

But it’s still beyond overrated in the eyes of our society. Wake up, people. Why is it such a popular choice of career among the young these days, I just don’t understand.

It’s a job of heavy hours and limited sleep. It’s physically demanding, emotionally taxing and mentally exhausting. Sometimes you get selfish colleagues and ones whose attitude and bare knowledge can shock you to bits. Then there’s the ones above you that has beyond-the-clouds expectations of you. Your financial returns will never exceed your financial investment. Your patients can range from the ones who just hates the guts of you to those whose medical problems are so complicated that you feel like pulling your hair out.

In short, it’s like any other job. It’s a tough life. Don’t be in it because you want to be cool like House. Be in it because you have the passion … … well, because you want to be cruel to yourself.

I read this little funny piece some months back and thought I’d share it here. Those from the medical field will totally get the humour behind it. (uh-hum. Excuse the language. It becomes part of us eventually when we get stressed out)

Choose medicine.

Choose nights, choose PRs and scrotal exams, choose being bleeped when you’re taking a shit, choose bare below the elbows, choose and book, choose being so hungry you enjoy hospital food, choose never seeing your friends again, choose not washing your hands for a change, choose dehydration, a f***ing big cannula, Quality Street over Roses, MRSA, choose scrubs (watching it or wearing them). Choose cyclizine the morning after the mess party, choose Adele the Australian physio, choose sitting in the mess watching mind-numbing, spirit-crushing game shows, stuffing junk food into your mouth praying that you’re bleep won’t go off. Choose MI over PE because someone’s got to make a diagnosis. Choose bd, tds, qds, those f***ing T’s with the dots on them.

Don’t choose life, choose medicine.

 

 

 

PS: Someone needs to create an exciting tv series drama about engineers or architects or accountants.