Source

When you’re a kid, and someone asks what you want to be when you grow up, there are always some pretty predictable answers: firefighter, astronaut, movie star. But one of the most common that comes up, again and again, is, of course, doctor. The appeal of working in medicine should be pretty obvious to just about anyone. You get to work directly with other people, saving and improving lives every single day. Of course, that doesn’t mean that it’s always going to be easy or enjoyable. The reality is that medicine is one of the toughest fields out there and if you’re not ready to handle that then you could end up having a pretty unpleasant time. Here are a few important questions to ask yourself in order to figure out if a career in medicine is right for you.

Are you willing to put in the training?

Working in medicine is, for obvious reasons, involves a lot of specialised skills and knowledge. Because of these things, it’s important to remember that you’re never going to be able to work in that field without going through incredibly extensive training. You need to ask yourself if you’re willing to put in the time and effort that most medical schools require of you. Becoming a doctor isn’t something that happens overnight. You need to be willing to put in many years of hard work in order to reach that stage. It’s crucial to ask yourself, are you willing to put in that time?   

Can you work long hours?

Speaking of time, there are few career paths that demand quite as much of your time as working in medicine. This is especially true for doctors and nurses. You need to be constantly ready for anything, and there’s always a chance that you’ll be needed, even when you thought you were having time off. Not only that but the hours can be incredibly long and exhausting. If you’re truly passionate about what you’re doing, then that shouldn’t be too much of a problem, but if you’re not then, it can leave you feeling incredibly frustrated and unhappy.

Can you handle the pressure?

Some jobs allow you to sit back, relax, and skate by putting in the bare minimum amount of effort possible on a day to day basis. That simply isn’t going to fly if you’re working in a medical environment. The reality of working in medicine is that people’s lives are often at stake and if you’re not ready to handle that kind of pressure, then you could be putting people in danger. You need to think incredibly carefully about whether or not the kind of pressure involved in working in medicine is something that you’re able to handle in the first place.

Of course, this isn’t designed to discourage anyone from wanting to go into a career in medicine. Instead, it’s designed to make you think much more clearly about whether or not it’s the right career choice for you. Because, if it’s not, then you could end up under more pressure than you could possibly handle. Of course, if it is right for you, then you shouldn’t let anything stand in your way.

Contributed Post.

If you like what you’ve read here, please let others know of this post, blog, and site.

And thanks for reading!  🙂