Welcome khổng lồ our second installment in the So You Want khổng lồ Be series: So You Want khổng lồ Be a SURGEON. In this series, we highlight a specific specialty or type of professional within healthcare, explaining not only what it means to lớn be that type of provider, but also how khổng lồ become one. If you want to lớn help us decide which specialty or healthcare professional lớn cover next, drop a bình luận down below with your request. Bạn đang xem: Why i want to be a surgeon essay
If you’re thinking of becoming a surgeon and want to know what it would entail và if you’d like it, this post is for you. I’ll take you through the history, types, và duties of a surgeon, to help you decide if it would be a good fit for you!
The History of Surgery
There are several stereotypes of surgeons, one of them being that they love history. So pay attention. The history of surgery is a fascinating story, và my medical school actually provided us with a copy of An Anatomy of Addiction to lớn read prior lớn starting our first year. It’s one of my favorite medical books, covering Dr. William Halsted và the birth of modern surgery, & if you’re interested in any surgical specialty, definitely check it out.
Until the 19th century, surgeons were trained simply by apprenticeships – there weren’t formal residency programs as there are today. The length of training could vary, usually lasting anywhere from 5 khổng lồ 7 years & starting around the age of 12 or 13. That’s right, imagine a tweenie cutting you xuất hiện and be grateful that you live in the 21st century.
In the 1890’s, Dr. William Osler of Johns Hopkins introduced the concept of clinical clerkships & bedside rounds to teach his medical students, which are now the norm today. In the early 1900’s, Dr. William Halsted moved to lớn Baltimore & was appointed the first chief of the department of surgery at Johns Hopkins. The modern practice & training of surgery can be largely attributed lớn the anal-retentive, cocaine-addicted, và incredibly badass Dr. Halsted.
He not only created the first formal surgical residency training program in the U.S. At Johns Hopkins, but also pioneered many other aspects of modern surgery that we take for granted today. His advances resulted in new techniques và instruments khổng lồ reduce damage to tissues và blood vessels, such as different types of forceps, suture, và ligatures. He was also the first lớn introduce rubber gloves to lớn the operating room & was the father of modern sanitization in surgery. We call many of his lasting impressions Halsted’s principles, including modern techniques for hemostasis (meaning the control of bleeding), accurate anatomical dissection, complete sterility, & gentle handling of tissues. If you’ve ever had surgery, or even a small procedure using local anesthetic, you can thank Dr. Halsted for it not being a barbaric mess.
Types of Surgeons (Subspecialties)
There’s a wide spectrum of surgical subspecialties, và it isn’t fully agreed upon what being a surgeon entails. Let’s start with the most traditional forms of surgery.
General Surgery
The bộ vi xử lý core is of course general surgery, originally being the broadest category of surgery. However, over the decades, it has mostly been relegated lớn procedures of the gastrointestinal, meaning digestive, và endocrine systems. In medical school and residency, we joke that general surgeons are the true masochists, as their lifestyle is nothing lớn be envious of, they don’t make as high of salaries as other specialists, và they handle some of the less desirable và odorous pathologies dealing with abdominal contents và fecal matter. In all seriousness, it’s a pretty awesome specialty và I know some great general surgeons, lượt thích Dr. David Hindin who provided me some insights about general surgery when making this post. Be sure to check out his channel on You
Tube.
Surgical Subspecialties
General surgery residency is 5 years, after which you can specialize further. Colorectal surgery is a 1 year fellowship, dealing with pathologies such as colon cancer or inflammatory bowel disease. Minimally invasive surgery is also a one year fellowship, and focuses on techniques like laparoscopic surgery that are less invasive than the traditional open abdominal procedures. Transplant surgery is 1-2 years, và focuses on kidney & liver transplants most commonly, but also pancreas transplants and access procedures such as dialysis fistulas and peritoneal dialysis catheters. Surgical critical care is 1 year, focusing on patients who are more medically unstable and requiring acute surgical interventions. Pediatric surgery is 1-2 years, obviously focusing on surgery in babies and children. Vascular surgery is also a 1-2 year fellowship, dealing with procedures of the aorta, carotid arteries, varicose veins, dialysis access, or other procedures dealing with arteries và veins.
Surgical oncology is 1 year, dealing with cancer pathologies, meaning the resection, or removal, of the tumor. Breast surgery is 1 year, focusing on breast cancer & other breast pathologies. Surgical oncologists & breast surgeons remove the tumor, but don’t cover the defect themselves. They turn to plastic surgeons for complex coverage và reconstruction. Plastic surgery is moving toward an integrated residency, meaning 6 years of dedicated plastic surgery training after medical school. However, there are some more traditional independent pathways, meaning 3 years of plastic surgery fellowship after completing 5 years of general surgery. Cardiothoracic surgery is 2-3 years, focusing on surgery of the heart & thoracic cavity, although there is also an integrated pathway, which, similar lớn the integrated plastic surgery route, is 6 years. Hand surgery is a 1 year fellowship, although only a few percent of practicing hand surgeons take this route after general surgery. Over 90% of hand surgeons have completed an orthopedic surgery or plastic surgery residency first, & then take the 1 year fellowship. This was the path I was intending lớn take after completing my plastic surgery residency, but I said YOLO and resigned in 2018.
The “Non-Surgical” Surgical Specialties
There are other fields that perform surgical procedures, but some surgeons wouldn’t hotline it surgery in the traditional sense. OB-GYN doctors perform procedures like Cesarean sections, which is less refined, way more crude, & far less complex than regular surgery. That being said, OB-GYN doctors also vày hysterectomies, meaning surgical removal of the uterus, and other gynecology oncology resections that certainly count as surgery. The other surgical specialty that isn’t really surgery is ophthalmology. We generally consider ophtho khổng lồ be more of a procedural specialty than a surgical subspecialty.
Should You Be a Surgeon?
Entering medical school, surgery really wasn’t on my radar. I was enamored with the idea of being a gastroenterologist & helping pediatric patients that have inflammatory bowel disease & similar pathologies. I’ve always known that I wanted lớn work with my hands, as it’s something that comes naturally to me và I greatly enjoy it, but I soon realized that the procedures of gastroenterology aren’t as complex, nuanced, or varied as I would like. I couldn’t imagine myself doing scopes for the rest of my career. The procedural complexity & excitement in surgery, on the other hand, is second lớn none. After seeing my first case, a joint neurosurgery & plastic surgery case where we created a makeshift bicep out of someone’s latissimus dorsi, I was hooked. I couldn’t believe this was real life & not science fiction. If you want to lớn hear the full story, I talk about why I chose plastic surgery, including that amazing first case I saw, on my Kevin Jubbal, M.D. You
Tube channel.
If you enjoy working with your hands và enjoy complexity, challenge, & nuance, surgery may be a good fit for you. Other specialties may include procedures, lượt thích endoscopies in gastroenterology or skin excisions in dermatology, but they are certainly not anything like surgery. Comparing these simple procedures to surgery is lượt thích comparing driving automatic with paddle shifters to a true manual transmission car. Not that one is better than the other. It’s just not really a comparison.
Another point that comes up is one’s dexterity. After all, surgeons need to lớn be incredibly dextrous to lớn perform at the highest level. There are two things to say about this. First, having terrible dexterity và being incredibly clumsy has been a limiting factor in some people being able to complete residency, but it is quite rare. For most, they are able to learn how lớn be more efficient & effective with their hands & surgical instruments. That being said, being dextrous & working at it deliberately years before you first enter an operating room will serve you well. I credit much of my own dexterity to lớn building small mã sản phẩm cars as a kid, pursuing artistic endeavors, và even playing đoạn phim games. In medical school, I was highly disciplined about reading proper techniques for suturing, knot tying, & other basic procedures, and practiced religiously at home or even while listening in lecture. I would brush my teeth and mở cửa doors with my left hand, a habit I still practice lớn this day. This sort of dedication served me well, as attendings noticed I was operating several years past my training level. In fact, the chair at a highly prestigious plastic surgery residency even said I was operating at a second or third year resident màn chơi while I was a fourth year medical student. By demonstrating competence, you will earn the trust of attendings, and they will allow you to bởi vì more. Many medical students or interns complain about not being able to vì chưng much in the operating room. I tell them it’s probably because they haven’t developed the skills to warrant being able to vày much beyond retracting. By working at my skills, just a few months into residency I was able to do my own half of a blepharoplasty, a challenging procedure usually reserved for higher cấp độ residents, as it involves highly precise operating on the eyelids, the thinnest skin in the human body.
Surgery is awesome, but being a surgeon is not without major costs. The main factor holding people back from choosing a surgical specialty is the lifestyle, meaning your work-life balance, or lack thereof. You’ll work harder than non-surgical physicians, which only makes sense. Not only vị you have to lớn round on your patients & handle them medically, but also handle them surgically which can take several hours for each case.
Within surgery, some subspecialties have more challenging và demanding lifestyles than others. Residency for just about any of the traditional surgical specialties is going to be very challenging. As an attending, however, the lifestyles are more variable. As a general rule, any surgical specialty where taking “call” with urgent medical conditions is going lớn result in a more challenging lifestyle. Not all “call” is created equal, as sometimes when you’re paged you need to come in immediately, và other times you can just wait until you come later in the morning. When I was rotating on a sub-internship on a burn service in plastic surgery, we paged the dermatologist at 3AM for ruling out a life threatening condition, but she only showed up at 6AM. Dermatologists simply aren’t used khổng lồ life or death situations. On the other hand, trauma surgeons & neurosurgeons have the most challenging lifestyles, as their điện thoại tư vấn includes emergency situations requiring a rapid response. Other surgical specialties with more demanding điện thoại tư vấn schedules include general surgery, cardiothoracic surgery, & vascular surgery. Orthopedic surgery điện thoại tư vấn isn’t that bad, unless you specialize in orthopedic trauma. Plastic surgery call isn’t that bad either, unless you specialize in microsurgery. We’ll be covering these subspecialties in greater detail in future So You Want khổng lồ Be articles. If you’d lượt thích to be notified, be sure to sign up for our newsletter!
This may not be all that intimidating to you right now. When I was in college, I actively despised sleep, since it felt like a waste of time, and I wouldn’t think twice about having any issues with a challenging lifestyle. Truth is, the demanding lifestyle of surgery impacts everyone, no matter how efficient or dedicated or high energy you are. Pushing yourself lớn the limit day after day, year after year, is not the healthiest or most sustainable way lớn live. If you ever decide lớn have a family, or want to travel và pursue other time consuming hobbies, there’s obviously an impact there as well. For that reason, most surgeons say only choose surgery if you cannot see yourself doing anything else. The cost of becoming a surgeon is simply so high.
Are you interested in becoming a surgeon? If so, let us know down below what’s driving you, & what type of surgeon vày you want to lớn be?
Mikeie Reiland is a writer who has written features for Oxford American, Bitter Southerner, Gravy, and SB Nation, among other publications. He received a James Beard nomination for a feature he wrote in 2023.
Mikeie Reiland is a writer who has written features for Oxford American, Bitter Southerner, Gravy, and SB Nation, among other publications. He received a James Beard nomination for a feature he wrote in 2023.
Veronica Beagle is the managing editor for Education at kholike.com Advisor. She completed her master’s in English at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa. Before coming to lớn kholike.com Advisor she worked on education related nội dung at Higher
Education.com và Red Ventures as both a copy editor and content manager.
Veronica Beagle is the managing editor for Education at kholike.com Advisor. She completed her master’s in English at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa. Before coming to lớn kholike.com Advisor she worked on education related nội dung at Higher
Education.com & Red Ventures as both a copy editor and nội dung manager.
Editorial Note: We earn a commission from partner link on kholike.com Advisor. Commissions do not affect our editors" opinions or evaluations.
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If you are the type of person who works well under high-pressure situations, loves helping others và is ready to lớn take on big responsibilities, a career as a surgeon might be right for you.
The ideal candidates for surgeon careers should want to be the ones calling the shots in a time of crisis. They should also be able lớn think on their feet và tackle high-stakes challenges.
While it can take more than 13 years to become a surgeon, these professionals are among the most essential và best compensated workers in the nation. A surgeon’s work life is often high-stress and high-stakes, but it can also be rewarding on professional, personal & financial levels.
If this career path speaks khổng lồ you, read on to learn how lớn become a surgeon.
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What Is a Surgeon?
Surgeons operate on patients who have serious bodily injuries. These professionals spend a great giảm giá of their time in the hospital—specifically in the operating room—and often work odd và long hours. They can focus on general surgery or specialize in a subfield like cardiothoracic surgery, vascular surgery, or obstetrics & gynecology.
Surgery is a high-stress, high-stakes, high-adrenaline career. Good surgeons are generally team players, problem-solvers, quick thinkers và strong decision-makers who can learn new skills and enjoy challenges.
Degree Finder
How Long Does It Take lớn Become a Surgeon?
Most aspiring surgeons need lớn spend at least 13 years studying before they become full-fledged surgeons. This includes four years in an undergraduate program, four years in medical school & five years in a surgical residency in their specialty.According to lớn the American College of Surgeons (ACS), there are 14 recognized specialties within surgery:
Cardiothoracic surgeryColon and rectal surgery
General surgery
Gynecology and obstetrics
Gynecologic oncology
Neurological surgery
Ophthalmic surgery
Oral và maxillofacial surgery
Orthopedic surgery
Otorhinolaryngology
Pediatric surgery
Plastic and maxillofacial surgery
Urology
Vascular surgery
If you pursue a more complicated surgical specialty—such as neurosurgery, for example—you’ll need lớn spend additional time in a residency. The typical neurosurgery residency takes seven years to complete.
How khổng lồ Become a Surgeon
Aspiring surgeons must take the following steps lớn start this rigorous career.
Take STEM Classes in High School
Earn a Bachelor’s Degree with a Pre-Med Track
A bachelor’s degree is the first step in higher education for aspiring surgeons. Most undergraduate students who plan on applying khổng lồ medical school major in subjects lượt thích biology and chemistry. Make sure to complete all required courses in your college’s pre-med track lớn ensure you meet admission requirements for medical school. While rare, some pre-med students major in subjects lượt thích English or history.
To give yourself the best chance of earning admission lớn your preferred med school, focus on getting good grades in pre-med classes.
Take the MCAT
Biological và biochemical foundations of living systemsChemical & physical foundations of biological systems
Psychological, social and biological foundations of behavior
Critical analysis and reasoning skills
The thử nghiệm consists of 230 multiple-choice questions và takes between seven & eight hours lớn finish. Each year, you may have as many as 30 MCAT thử nghiệm dates to lớn choose from. Your target score depends on the selectivity of your desired med school.
Go to lớn Medical School
Most medical degrees take four years of full-time study to lớn complete. The first half of a med program usually consists of theoretical và classroom-based coursework, along with several labs. During the second half of medical school, students generally complete clinical rotations in different medical fields, which helps them pick a specialty. The general surgery residency is often considered particularly challenging.
Medical school is expensive. One way to lớn alleviate the cost is khổng lồ apply khổng lồ MD/Ph.D. Dual degree programs, in which you’ll perform research and earn a Ph.D. While attending medical school. These programs generally provide tuition stipends but can take six to eight years to lớn complete.
Match Into a Surgical Residency and Get Licensed
After graduating from medical school, prospective surgeons must match into a surgical residency. The match process relies on an algorithm that considers the preferences of both students & residency programs khổng lồ produce the best pairings.
The typical surgical residency takes five years khổng lồ complete, but more complex specialties lượt thích neurosurgery can require up khổng lồ seven years to lớn finish. During your first year, also called intern year, you’ll look after patients under the supervision of a fully qualified attending surgeon. You will work under supervision throughout your surgical residency, but you will receive more autonomy as you gain more experience.
Throughout medical school and your residency, you’ll also need khổng lồ complete the three steps of the United States Medical Licensing Examination khổng lồ become licensed. Most students complete Step 1 và Step 2 during medical school and Step 3 during residency.
Consider a Fellowship
A fellowship is not required in all surgical specialties; however, a post-residency fellowship can help you gain expert-level knowledge và skills in your specific surgical field. Many medical fellowships last one to three years.
Surgeon Salary và Job Outlook
According khổng lồ the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), as of May 2022, physicians and surgeons earned a median annual wage of $229,300. Between 2022 and 2032, the BLS projects a 3% job growth for these professionals, which is on pace with the national average growth rate projected for all occupations.
The BLS found that orthopedic surgery was the highest-paid surgical specialty, with a mean annual wage of $371,400. Neurosurgery is widely considered to be the highest-paying surgical specialty, but the BLS did not danh mục specific salary data for these professionals.
Certifications for Surgeons
The ACS recognizes the American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS) as the leading national authority on board certification in surgery. The American Board of Surgery (ABS) is a thành viên organization within the ABMS that handles the board certification process for surgeons.
Through ABS, candidates can pursue primary certification in either general or vascular surgery. From there, they can pursue additional certification in the following subspecialties:
Complex general surgical oncologyPediatric surgery
Surgery of the hand
Surgical critical care
