Guest MDFEVER Posted June 24, 2003 Report Share Posted June 24, 2003 I have seen statistics saying that people get into med school with pharmacy background. I am just wondering if they have finished all four years or they apply in their third year, Any ideas? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest macMDstudent Posted June 24, 2003 Report Share Posted June 24, 2003 There is one guy in my class who had finished a B.Sc. and then 2 years of pharmacy before being accepted to medicine. I also had a clinical instructor who was an Internal Medicine resident who had his B.Sc (pharm) and D.Sc. (pharm) before going into medicine. In my class at Mac we also have an engineer, an lawyer, a geography grad, a psychology grad and many nursing grads among other types of degrees that I haven't mentioned. These are some of the wide and varied backgrounds you will find at most med schools I would imagine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest tantastic Posted June 24, 2003 Report Share Posted June 24, 2003 I've noticed that Mac takes people that are one year into Physio or did a Bsc and then are one year into nursing or Pharm? Why in the world would they do that? If the person wanted medicine why didn't they just apply at the end of their first degree. In most cases, the reason is they probably didn't get in after their first degree, so they took a spot in another health care area, of which they probably never intended to work in but giving them an escape route should they not be accepted to med school. Kind of like having your cake and eating it to. Meanwhile there's an acute and almost desperate shortage of nurses, pharmacists, etc. These people take spots away from people who wanted to work in these health care fields, only to ditch the program half way through, without having even worked in the field. No offense but you can't tell if you like a field until you are out of school and actually doing the job for at least a year, at that point I could see someone finding problems with the career. The folks that just go in to these programs in fields that have acute shortages only to ditch them half way through is plain selfish, and Mac of all schools supports this detremental behaviour. I can't understand how Mac doesn't see this, at any other school this a very rare occurance, if ever it happens. I have to say I'm dissapointed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest kellyl20 Posted June 24, 2003 Report Share Posted June 24, 2003 A person should always have a back up plan in case medicine does not accept them. Why pharm or physio? b/c of high employment and good (best?) pay in the non-professional health care sector. What is really wasteful are dental students who have no intention of staying in the faculty but are just waiting for their admissions into medicine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest OU812 Posted June 24, 2003 Report Share Posted June 24, 2003 That what TT was saying!!!! It's wasteful for these people to jump into all of these programs only with the intention to run out the exit door the first chance med school accepts them. There are many applicants who would have loved a spot in these schools and would have stayed in the profession for their career. BTW Kelly120 Pharmacists, PHysiotherapists, Chiropractors, Nurses are all PROFESSIONALS. They are regulated, have licencing exams, belong to a college just like doctors and dentists. What is it with all people going into health care and being totally ignorant and disrespectful towards anyone that doesn't have Dr. in front of their name? Everyone, plays a vital role in the health of society, not just the people with Dr. in front of their names....GEEZ!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest strider2004 Posted June 24, 2003 Report Share Posted June 24, 2003 It's true. Everyone should have some kind of backup plan. It's not wasteful, but realistic. If they were applying to medicine, what would you expect them to do in the meantime? Should they put their lives on hold while they wait for the brown envelope? No! They have to plan a career in an area they prefer (gee, physician wannabees choosing a related health care field? That's a stretch). A lot of people also choose to do research while they apply to medical school. It's harder on the PIs if a student jumps ship halfway through a MSc or PhD than if they were to do a health care degree (ie. nursing, pharm, PT/OT). Why? If the student finished just one more year, they could have a manuscript, a thesis and the PI would get some credit. But if you finish one more year of a degree (heck, even your MD), what do you accomplish for society? Nothing! You would actually have to be working to contribute what you're learned. Not everyone can get what they want. Even in medical school, I've had discussions with classmates about the career they'd pick over medicine. You've got your baseball players, hockey players, singers, dancers... everyone has a 'dream job'. Don't be angry at people just because they were realistic, chose a reasonable profession and then found their 'dream job'. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest macMDstudent Posted June 24, 2003 Report Share Posted June 24, 2003 I think there is also another way to look at it. That is, having a professsional degree or training in some way can only enhance one's ability as a physician. An MD who understands research methodology from one year of a masters? Great! Probably medical research will come from that person in the future, although it may hurt the lab/supervisor that the person left in the short term, in the long term that person may have more access to funding and resources because of the MD after their name that may benefit us all in the future. Even if they don't do any research in the future, they will have a greater understanding how to read a research paper that will benefit their patients no matter what specialty they go into. The internal medicine resident with the D.Pharm. is going into nephrology to specialize in the excretion of drugs and the effect of drugs on the renal system. His research and patient care will serve a niche hard to fill by anyone with less education. Although it does create a vacancy in a program like pharmacy or physio that needs all the grads in practice, their is no binding contract that says you have to finish what you start, although it may seem selfish. We live in free society and people are entitled to change their minds and pursue alternate routes without having to explain to anybody, as far as I'm concerned. Having spent over a decade in a profession that I kept hoping I would start to like more someday before startiing meds, I am very grateful for a second career in medicine. As far as doing a degree that will give you excellent career opportunities in case you are not accepted to medicine (which is being realistic knowing the odds) is only being prudent in my mind. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Kirsteen Posted June 24, 2003 Report Share Posted June 24, 2003 Hi there, I agree with the above regarding enhancing the experience as a physician. I'm currently at McGill taking a couple of pharmacoepi courses and there's a physician who sits behind me who originally was a pharmacist who decided, after a few years of working in the field, to change careers. He's now working in internal medicine, but pursuing an M.Sc. in this area. After this set of experiences, he, as well as other individuals with similar experiences (particularly in the pharmacy field) would be well equipped to serve, and do serve, in our provincial and federal organizations, working on the approval of drugs for funding, etc., or in areas of pharmacovigilance within the big drug companies. It can be harder to pull the wool over the eyes of some of these folk with some of these types of experiences, and as Martha may say, that's a good thing. Cheers, Kirsteen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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