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Is being a doctor a hard job compared to being a nurse?
I don't know which one I want to do.
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4 answers
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Rafael’s Answer
Hi Athena, that's a really common question and it's totally okay not to know which path to choose yet. While my career is in engineering and consulting rather than healthcare, I can relate to the challenge of deciding between different career levels because I've faced similar crossroads in my own field. Becoming a doctor typically takes around 11 to 15 years of school and training while nursing can take 2 to 4 years, so the time investment is a big factor. Both are hard in their own way but the workload, responsibilities, and education required are very different. One thing I've learned from my own path is that you don't have to decide everything right now, you can start with nursing and later pursue medical school if you want, just like I started in entry-level roles and kept building up through certifications and advanced degrees over time . Both doctors and nurses make a real difference in people's lives and both are rewarding in their own way. My advice would be to volunteer or shadow at a hospital to see both roles up close, talk to people in each field, and remember that whichever path you choose you can always keep growing from there!
Updated
Hwal’s Answer
Athena,
It sounds like you're thinking about whether to go into medicine or nursing. I practice primary care internal medicine as a PA, and I think it's impossible for me to objectively compare medicine and nursing. What I know, and want to share with you, is that although I have also considered both career paths in the past, medicine ultimately has always been what I truly wanted to do. And that's what I would encourage you to focus on - find out as much as you can about both options, and think about the pros and cons of the two options. In that process, perhaps you'll start working or volunteering in healthcare and get to learn about what medical and nursing professionals do every day. And this could give you another level of understanding of what each option would mean and look like for you.
Let me know if you have any specific questions I can help with.
Good luck!
Hwal
It sounds like you're thinking about whether to go into medicine or nursing. I practice primary care internal medicine as a PA, and I think it's impossible for me to objectively compare medicine and nursing. What I know, and want to share with you, is that although I have also considered both career paths in the past, medicine ultimately has always been what I truly wanted to do. And that's what I would encourage you to focus on - find out as much as you can about both options, and think about the pros and cons of the two options. In that process, perhaps you'll start working or volunteering in healthcare and get to learn about what medical and nursing professionals do every day. And this could give you another level of understanding of what each option would mean and look like for you.
Let me know if you have any specific questions I can help with.
Good luck!
Hwal
Updated
James’s Answer
I think it is fair to say that most physician's jobs are harder than that of most nurses. Many nurses are unionized, and their contracts limit them to 40 hour weeks, and often provide full benefits when working only 3/5 or 4/5ths time. The amount of years in education and training is several more than nursing (even for nurse practitioners). Physicians also bear the largest part of responsibility for patients. They are really the captains of their ships, working to assure all on the team know their roles and have their orders.
My belief, as a physician, is that the joy and satisfaction I have had from being a physician running amazing teams in an intensive care unit - even with the long hours (60-80 hour weeks are common for many physicians) were worth the extra time in school and the stress.
There are many kinds of nurses and physicians (and don't leave out physician assistants, respiratory therapists, physical and occupational therapists, speech therapists, pharmacists...), so my advice would be to do your best to talk with, and ideally get to shadow, doctors and nurses in many different areas. Fortunately, there are many fantastic people in the San Francisco area to talk to about what is good and bad in each career.
My belief, as a physician, is that the joy and satisfaction I have had from being a physician running amazing teams in an intensive care unit - even with the long hours (60-80 hour weeks are common for many physicians) were worth the extra time in school and the stress.
There are many kinds of nurses and physicians (and don't leave out physician assistants, respiratory therapists, physical and occupational therapists, speech therapists, pharmacists...), so my advice would be to do your best to talk with, and ideally get to shadow, doctors and nurses in many different areas. Fortunately, there are many fantastic people in the San Francisco area to talk to about what is good and bad in each career.
Updated
Rita’s Answer
Personally, I think both jobs are hard.
The path to becoming a doctor:
4 years high school
4 years of college
4 years medical school
MINIMUM 3 years of internship and residency
I'm the path for nursing is less but it's still a lot of information to remember in a shorter period of time.
I think both jobs require being good in dealing with people. I think that's one of the most difficult things to learn because there is no class on how to deal with people. Most nurses work 12 hour shifts in the hospital and often dealing with the same patients for that shift. It's difficult because doctors have egos and you may be yelled at by doctors for what you did. I would tell people I would not want to be a nurse because you get yelled at by the patients, patients' family, and the doctors. A doctor often spends 15-30 minutes with a patient so if you do have a difficult patient, you just need to deal with that difficulty for a shorter period of time.
With nursing, you often work your shift and that's it. I believe most nurses work 7 AM-7 PM 3 days a week. You could be working night shifts as well. After that, you are done and you have 4 days off. Being a doctor, you finish when you finish. You may be seeing patients from 8-5 pm M-F if you only see patients in the office but if you are a Cardiologist, Surgeon, OB-GYN etc, you need to go to the hospital. Although you work in the office 8-5 seeing patients, that does not include refilling medicines, answering questions on the phone or on the portal, reviewing documents (Xrays, CT, notes from specialists) , speaking with other doctors, etc. When you finish depends on how fast you work. I know most doctors work through their lunch. And what do you do when a patient has an "emergency" and needs to be seen that day? Do you tell them your schedule is full or do you see them? Do you tell them to go to the Urgent Care? And how do you deal with it when you do "squeeze" them in and then they start asking you other questions?
If you can shadow a doctor or nurse or work as a medical scribe, that would be great. If you cannot stand being in the room, you have your answer. This is not the job for you. Even if you work as a scribe for free, I think it's worth it because if it is the job you want, you are so much ahead of your class when you go to medical or nursing school. I even challenge you to leave your job as a scribe when the doctor leaves. If the doctor goes into the office early, you go early and you leave when s/he leaves...even if you had plans to eat with your friends/family because this is what happens to you when you actually practice.
It's not an easy decision.
The best thing about healthcare is that you will always have the job but honestly, the medical system is broken. What I was paid 20 years ago from the insurance company is basically the same if not less than 20 years later. That means you need to see more patients to make the same amount of money. If you work for someone else, that may be easier but they are also pressured for you to see more patients to make a profit.
The path to becoming a doctor:
4 years high school
4 years of college
4 years medical school
MINIMUM 3 years of internship and residency
I'm the path for nursing is less but it's still a lot of information to remember in a shorter period of time.
I think both jobs require being good in dealing with people. I think that's one of the most difficult things to learn because there is no class on how to deal with people. Most nurses work 12 hour shifts in the hospital and often dealing with the same patients for that shift. It's difficult because doctors have egos and you may be yelled at by doctors for what you did. I would tell people I would not want to be a nurse because you get yelled at by the patients, patients' family, and the doctors. A doctor often spends 15-30 minutes with a patient so if you do have a difficult patient, you just need to deal with that difficulty for a shorter period of time.
With nursing, you often work your shift and that's it. I believe most nurses work 7 AM-7 PM 3 days a week. You could be working night shifts as well. After that, you are done and you have 4 days off. Being a doctor, you finish when you finish. You may be seeing patients from 8-5 pm M-F if you only see patients in the office but if you are a Cardiologist, Surgeon, OB-GYN etc, you need to go to the hospital. Although you work in the office 8-5 seeing patients, that does not include refilling medicines, answering questions on the phone or on the portal, reviewing documents (Xrays, CT, notes from specialists) , speaking with other doctors, etc. When you finish depends on how fast you work. I know most doctors work through their lunch. And what do you do when a patient has an "emergency" and needs to be seen that day? Do you tell them your schedule is full or do you see them? Do you tell them to go to the Urgent Care? And how do you deal with it when you do "squeeze" them in and then they start asking you other questions?
If you can shadow a doctor or nurse or work as a medical scribe, that would be great. If you cannot stand being in the room, you have your answer. This is not the job for you. Even if you work as a scribe for free, I think it's worth it because if it is the job you want, you are so much ahead of your class when you go to medical or nursing school. I even challenge you to leave your job as a scribe when the doctor leaves. If the doctor goes into the office early, you go early and you leave when s/he leaves...even if you had plans to eat with your friends/family because this is what happens to you when you actually practice.
It's not an easy decision.
The best thing about healthcare is that you will always have the job but honestly, the medical system is broken. What I was paid 20 years ago from the insurance company is basically the same if not less than 20 years later. That means you need to see more patients to make the same amount of money. If you work for someone else, that may be easier but they are also pressured for you to see more patients to make a profit.