Anesthesia

[Guest druggist]

Hello everyone!

 

I have a question, one that I have struggled with for some time, and as next year I will be applying I thought I would bring this issue out for other premed people to share their thoughts. I do not believe, at present, that I would prefer a life of primary care. My research has involved considerable work in and around the profession of anesthesia. I am greatly interested in anesthesia's scope of practice--critical care and life support; the safe, careful use of extremely narrow therapeutic index drugs; pain management, both acute and chronic, perhaps in a clinic setting; and of course, surgical anesthesia (using drugs to induce a state of unconsciousness, analgesia, anterograde amnesia, and depending on the level, loss of autonomic support). However, my dilemma is that I do not know how to argue AGAINST going into primary care when asked: "tell me druggy, what type of doc would you like to be and why," a common med school admissions query. I could say "well, I want to care for those greatly in need (critical); study the use of xenobiotics in medicine at it's extreme; teach; blah, blah." But, really, I don't see how I can say greater things than what any other future primary care doc could regarding the intimacy of their role in medicine and the ultimate goal--promotion and maintenance of health and ideal quality of life (or perhaps quality of life is inherent within the the term "health"). Future primary care docs can go into continuity of care (lacked in anesthesia); development of a relationship and repour with patients (again, lacked); preventative medicine (lacked); etc. Many of these issues are not present in an anesthetist's practice; with the exception of treatment of chronic pain, a debilitating illness. However, it is anesthesia that I would like to do, I enjoy the academics, working with other professionals, seeing patients improve in front of your eyes (rarely done in medicine, as improvements in primary care settings usually take place over time), etc.

 

My question is, should I just say that I am considering primary care in an interview? Or should I go with what I would HONESTLY like to do, regardless of the less powerful motives for me to choose this specialty after completing medical school (haha, should I get in anyway).

 

Cheers everyone,

Druggy

[Guest Unknown </username> <dateline>1118446800</dateline> <title>Unknown</title> <pagetext>(This]

(This post is missing and can not be restored)</pagetext>

</post>

<post>

<thread>N</thread>

<threadtitle>Anesthesia</threadtitle>

<threadviews>0</threadviews>

<threadsticky>0</threadsticky>

<poll></poll>

<username>

 

Unknown

 

 

</username>

<dateline>1118446800</dateline>

<title>Unknown</title>

<pagetext>(This post is missing and can not be restored)

[Guest Unknown </username> <dateline>1118446800</dateline> <title>Unknown</title> <pagetext>(This]

(This post is missing and can not be restored)</pagetext>

</post>

<post>

<thread>N</thread>

<threadtitle>Anesthesia</threadtitle>

<threadviews>0</threadviews>

<threadsticky>0</threadsticky>

<poll></poll>

<username>

 

Unknown

 

 

</username>

<dateline>1118446800</dateline>

<title>Unknown</title>

<pagetext>(This post is missing and can not be restored)