That doesn’t seem to be an absolute requirement, based on some of the doctors I know.
I am a doctor. And even though I’m in private practice and making basically nothing (because I spend way too much time chatting with my patients) I get to meet the coolest people in the world. One of my patients was an OSS agent with Julia Child. Another was Kissinger’s secretary. Still others are drug dealers (OK, maybe not so cool). Although if I didn’t waste time talking with them I’d make more money. Besides having a social life is overrated.
Anyway, when you’re in Internal Medicine it’s not so much the saving lives and the emergencies as it is realizing that holy crap I’ve been seeing this patient for 15 years and she was 76 when I met her and she hasn’t died yet. That and every once in a blue moon catching an early cancer or heart attack that could potentially avoid major problems down the road. Also, you get to hit people with that little rubber hammer and they can’t hit back.
Seriously-somedays I think hitting people with that hammer is the best part of the job.
where the hell is the "like " button for this post??? I am a nurse, but I care for two patients who were part of D day plus a guy who worked at NASA during Apollo 13, and was part of the toubleshooting team.I have found some amazing people living odinary little lives
Being “a doctor when I grow up”, wasn’t touted as an option when I was young. A nurse, yes, but not a doctor. IIRC there were very few career options available for girls, especially Catholic girls, you either became a nun, or got married and had lots of children. Having a job outside of being a nurse, nanny, or housekeeper (or other variation on that theme) was frowned upon.
Well it was where I grew up, YMMV
I am one (PhD, working as a research scientist) but have never wanted to become a physician. Biology just never really interested me that much and by the time I got to university and was surrounded by medical students (Edinburgh has a large medical school) I was glad I didn’t go down that path.