How to choose a career in medicine : Respectful Insolence

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How to choose a career in medicine

Category: Humor • Medicine
Posted on: May 9, 2006 2:01 PM, by Orac

Via Kevin, MD and The Huffington Post, of all places:

While you're at it, remember to follow the medical student food pyramid. (Of course, the pyramid left out Doritos and Coke, my Breakfast of Champions when I was a first year medical student.)

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Comments

That breakfast of champions is healthier than the breakfast of champions for supermodels: coffee and coke. Or the breakfast (lunch?) of champions for successful businessmen: martinis and coke.

Oh, you meant that coke. Nevermind.

Posted by: RPM | May 9, 2006 2:31 PM

After many of the posts here lately, I was expecting "belief in young-earth creationism" to be featured prominently on that list.

Posted by: Miguelito | May 9, 2006 3:55 PM

That chart left out Medical Student ---> Delusional Religious Fundamentalist ---> Surgical Gynaecology.

Posted by: Paul | May 9, 2006 4:04 PM

want to triple board in pediatrics, general psych (just cuz they make you), and child and adolescent psych.

i'm too lazy to actually figure out what I should be, but what I really am is a crazy procrastinating jerk who loves kids.

That's not on the chart.

Posted by: IndianCowboy | May 10, 2006 1:41 AM

Well, all the paediatricians i know who've seen this thought it was very funny... and very true...

Posted by: M | May 10, 2006 4:09 AM

The lack of Family Medicine on the chart is telling.

As far as the food Pyramid is concerned, my third year was influenced slightly by Amy behind the counter at the Bagel and Ice Cream shop around the corner from my apartment. Curse the Millionaire Playboy who stole her away. Substitute bagels on the bottom and ice cream at the top. Heck, if you alternate cinnamon raisin and butter with lox and cream cheese, you get a balanced diet right there without the ice cream...

Posted by: epador | May 10, 2006 9:39 AM

Good god.... i will end up in emergency medicine. This is from BMJ Xmas edition 2 years ago... still funny

Posted by: neil | May 10, 2006 5:49 PM

i dont get the opthalmologist one... well the afraid of the dark thing yeah, but the hard-working thing? what's up with that?

Posted by: lia | May 10, 2006 7:41 PM

Then there is wannabe medical student who got a "C" in organic chemistry at age 20, 25 years later on is in PA school...

Posted by: Jenny | May 11, 2006 5:44 PM

agree with Lia, "hark working" should be changed to "neurotic" or "obsessive". "Not so much" still OK then.

Posted by: surtr | May 27, 2006 9:14 AM

Could you add:
Nearly Dead -> Intensive Care

Posted by: Richie James | June 15, 2006 11:09 PM

my name is chris. im currently a senior in high school with an average of about 3.3 . i also attend the local college and have 10 credits with 7 more starting in august.
i dont really know what i want to do yet. i think im at the point where i give my self headaches just thinking bout what i want to do. i would really like to be a doctor but am i smart enough? i want to be able to, when i have a family , support them very well. i like nice things and the only way i see this happining is if i become a doctor.what should i do????

Posted by: chris | July 15, 2006 2:31 AM

Chris said "but am i smart enough?"

I only graduated with a 3.82 in high school, so I just became an aerospace engineer (well, I skipped taking biology due to having a sadistic lab partner in 7th grade. I did this deliberately so I could take chemistry and physics and still graduate a year early). Somewhere along there was the learning to use the "shift" key on the typewriter. Something that also exists on computer keyboards.

Here's a hint: learn how to use the "shift" key on the keyboard, when to use it... and how use "punctuation". Then you might have a chance.

Posted by: HCN | July 15, 2006 3:35 AM

Chris,

Do you spend alot of time text messaging (or texting, or instant messaging, or whatever they're called)? It looks like you try to save space writing by dropping punctuation, using all small letters, leaving out prepositions and skipping spaces between sentences.

One thing you'll notice by reading doctor blogs is that most of them are well written. Click on the links to the left for 'The Cheerful Oncologist' and 'The Examining Room of Dr. Charles' to get a taste of some very witty writing.

Just looking at what I've written, I sound like an English teacher. Actually, I'm a chemist. But thanks to Mrs. Gosnell in high school, I know how to put a sentence together.

Posted by: Renee | July 15, 2006 9:40 AM

This was fun to read and interesting. Forty-four years ago, I graduated from highschool with a 3.9 average, but never really thought I was that smart. Now, I wonder why people think 3.3 and 3.5 are so great! I'm too darn old now to have much of an opinion other than, is 3.3 good nowadays?????

Posted by: Brendagee | July 26, 2006 11:35 PM

Interesting!

I am proof that your theory/test works, I have ADHD and wound up in emergency medicine...

Isn't it ironic - dontcha think?

Posted by: Geneva | August 12, 2007 5:06 PM