# What Kind Of Doctor Would You Be? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 22, 2012, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-doctor-would-you-be/610340 "2012-01-22T23:42:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Dogzilla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e480ec/32.png) [@Dogzilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dogzilla)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2012, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-doctor-would-you-be/610340/41 "2012-01-23T20:54:10Z")
My Mom is an RN and always told me I’d make a great surgeon, because I’m detail-oriented and have the personality for it. In the same breath, she will also claim that all surgeons are assholes. :dubious: Thanks, mom. I would probably be a veterinarian rather than a people doc. I’d still get to do surgeries – hell, I’d get to do everything. I’ve always respected vets because they not only have to learn all the systems in a given species, they have to learn several different species. They do diagnostics and surgeries. They do their own x-rays. It’s a much more generalized sort of doctoring where they get to wear many hats, rather than just specialize in one very specific system on just one species. ---
**Author:** ![Vihaga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Vihaga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Vihaga)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2012, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-doctor-would-you-be/610340/42 "2012-01-23T20:58:52Z")
I’d probably be a surgeon. I do surgeries on rodents now (and have for years), and not to toot my own horn too hard, but I’ve always been really good at it. Even back in grad school when we were learning dissections for structural neuroanatomy, the professors would ask to keep my completed dissections as examples to use for the med school class that came next. I’m precise, methodical, and I have great hand-eye coordination, so I always thought it would be worth giving it a try if I didn’t really like what I’m doing now. I’m also an asshole, so I have that part covered. ---
**Author:** ![SciFiSam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/47e85d/32.png) [@SciFiSam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SciFiSam)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2012, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-doctor-would-you-be/610340/43 "2012-01-23T20:59:01Z")
I’d be a terrible one, most likely. But I might do OK with sleep disorders - it’s something I at least know a fair bit about, and it’s fascinating. Not sure what specialty that actually is; my consultant was formerly a specialist in asthma. ---
**Author:** ![Dogzilla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e480ec/32.png) [@Dogzilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dogzilla)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2012, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-doctor-would-you-be/610340/44 "2012-01-23T21:10:04Z")
> [@Vihaga](#): > > \ > > I’m also an asshole, so I have that part covered. 😉 Welcome to the club. ---
**Author:** ![River\_Hippie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/river_hippie/32/26_2.png) [@River\_Hippie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/River_Hippie)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2012, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-doctor-would-you-be/610340/45 "2012-01-23T22:13:15Z")
A dermatologist or plastic surgeon specializing in lasering crappy tattoos off people. I’d refuse to remove cool ones though. ---
**Author:** ![Invisible\_Chimp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/f05b48/32.png) [@Invisible\_Chimp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Invisible_Chimp)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2012, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-doctor-would-you-be/610340/46 "2012-01-23T22:37:49Z")
> [@PandaBear77](#): > > Neurologist, because the brain fascinates me, and I don’t have the manual dexterity to be any kind of surgeon. > > Alternately, a dermatologist. They have regular office hours, no weekends/holidays/4am calls and I would assume a lower risk of malpractice than other fields. I think you stole my answer, or maybe I’m stealing yours. Sounds about right to me anyway. ---
**Author:** ![Shmendrik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ee7513/32.png) [@Shmendrik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shmendrik)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2012, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-doctor-would-you-be/610340/47 "2012-01-24T00:18:45Z")
> [@SciFiSam](#): > > I’d be a terrible one, most likely. But I might do OK with sleep disorders - it’s something I at least know a fair bit about, and it’s fascinating. Not sure what specialty that actually is; my consultant was formerly a specialist in asthma. You can go into sleep medicine from a wide variety of specialties, including psychology, neurology, internal medicine, family medicine, ENT, and anesthesiology. ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2012, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-doctor-would-you-be/610340/48 "2012-01-24T00:31:54Z")
Witch doctor. Ooh ee, ooh ah ah… ---
**Author:** ![Rysdad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/7cd45c/32.png) [@Rysdad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rysdad)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2012, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-doctor-would-you-be/610340/49 "2012-01-24T00:35:05Z")
> [@Sudden\_Kestrel](#): > > A radiologist. It would be sort of like being a detective or playing Where’s Waldo? for a living. This one. Currently, I take the pictures that the Radiologists read, so I usually have a pretty good idea of what they’re looking for. Unfortunately, the internists/orthopods/etc. sometimes don’t. Don’t get me started. But it takes about 12-13 years from start to finish to become a Rad. I don’t think _anything_ could hold my interest that long. ---
**Author:** ![Sue\_Duhnym](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/91b2a8/32.png) [@Sue\_Duhnym](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sue_Duhnym)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2012, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-doctor-would-you-be/610340/50 "2012-01-24T01:05:14Z")
Something along the lines of toxicology, pathology, coroner, etc. I’m old though and don’t have the time for med school so I’m back in school for forensic chemistry. Close enough for (only) government work. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2012, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-doctor-would-you-be/610340/51 "2012-01-24T01:09:59Z")
Anesthesiologist. I think it would quite interesting, heavily based in math and chemistry. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-doctor-would-you-be/610340.md?page=2)