3 ms·

Do all doctors need residency or is it another barrier to having enough cheap doctors?

Spivak 6y ago
I’m not sure most people would be comfortable with doctors that have zero on-the-job training. There are some places that don’t require it or only require it for a short period but I think most people are in the camp that residency programs are a good thing and not an artificial barrier.
- walshemj 6y ago
  There's a joke in the NHS that when the new batch of doctors join in September - the risk on mistakes increases. I had a major operation just before 2017's intake it was interesting having a new doctor trying to cannulate me - I suspect the nurses where round the corner trying do to laugh.
phaedrus441 6y ago
Medical license rules differ by state, but doctors need at least 1 year of postgraduate training to apply for a license (though without completing a residency, which is 3 years at a minimum, career options are severely limited).
tonyhb 6y ago
It's a way of forcing ungraduated docs to pay to work. No joke - you have to pay to attend residency and work. And this isn't covered by student debt/government assistance programs. I know of several doctors who are in _significant_ debt despite working for the public sector for years. Their loans are forgiven, but the residency sits and accumulates interest that they can't quickly pay off because that same public sector work doesn't pay as well. It's not-quite slave labour.
- phaedrus441 6y ago
  What are you talking about? Residents earn a salary (just google "XYZ university resident salary" to find it...). Medical school (which is prior to residency) is where the debt gets heaped on.
  - tonyhb 6y ago
    I suppose it depends on where you study. If you're at a school (a school based hospital), you pay to go. You might get a stipend, but I know people from NYU who have had to pay to attend residency. I don't know the most about this field and you're right, a bunch of hospitals do pay. That's cool.

I’m not sure most people would be comfortable with doctors that have zero on-the-job training. There are some places that don’t require it or only require it for a short period but I think most people are in the camp that residency programs are a good thing and not an artificial barrier.

walshemj 6y ago
There's a joke in the NHS that when the new batch of doctors join in September - the risk on mistakes increases. I had a major operation just before 2017's intake it was interesting having a new doctor trying to cannulate me - I suspect the nurses where round the corner trying do to laugh.

phaedrus441 6y ago

Medical license rules differ by state, but doctors need at least 1 year of postgraduate training to apply for a license (though without completing a residency, which is 3 years at a minimum, career options are severely limited).

tonyhb 6y ago

It's a way of forcing ungraduated docs to pay to work. No joke - you have to pay to attend residency and work. And this isn't covered by student debt/government assistance programs. I know of several doctors who are in _significant_ debt despite working for the public sector for years. Their loans are forgiven, but the residency sits and accumulates interest that they can't quickly pay off because that same public sector work doesn't pay as well. It's not-quite slave labour.

phaedrus441 6y ago
What are you talking about? Residents earn a salary (just google "XYZ university resident salary" to find it...). Medical school (which is prior to residency) is where the debt gets heaped on.
- tonyhb 6y ago
  I suppose it depends on where you study. If you're at a school (a school based hospital), you pay to go. You might get a stipend, but I know people from NYU who have had to pay to attend residency. I don't know the most about this field and you're right, a bunch of hospitals do pay. That's cool.