Need Help

[Spineman]

I am currently an OMS-I and have a definite interest in the spine. I have for a very long time. Originally I thought I'd like to do spine surgery b/c after shadowing a few docs I really liked the surgery...but my concern is the life style. Med school with 3 little ones is hard enough as it is and I'm not sure about the residency/fellowship afterward. I recently found out about PM &R and that they have a spinal fellowship as well. I think I could be happy doing this, but I'm not sure. I know this is a little early, but I hate being confused about what kind of doc I want to be. I know the first thing is to decide if I want to be a cutter or not...and I do. But I'm just not sure about the time. I guess I need to compare the residencies as well as the work schedule when out of residency. Any help??? I guess what I'm looking for is...for those of you who are spinal surgeons or are in the process, what made you choose this over another kind of spinal work, say neurology or PMR with spinal cord injury specialty??? Also, how r the hours working (i understand long) but how well do you handle your family life while going through all of this (for those of you who are married). Thanks

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[ddmo]

I am currently an OMS-I and have a definite interest in the spine. I have for a very long time. Originally I thought I'd like to do spine surgery b/c after shadowing a few docs I really liked the surgery...but my concern is the life style. Med school with 3 little ones is hard enough as it is and I'm not sure about the residency/fellowship afterward. I recently found out about PM &R and that they have a spinal fellowship as well. I think I could be happy doing this, but I'm not sure. I know this is a little early, but I hate being confused about what kind of doc I want to be. I know the first thing is to decide if I want to be a cutter or not...and I do. But I'm just not sure about the time. I guess I need to compare the residencies as well as the work schedule when out of residency. Any help??? I guess what I'm looking for is...for those of you who are spinal surgeons or are in the process, what made you choose this over another kind of spinal work, say neurology or PMR with spinal cord injury specialty??? Also, how r the hours working (i understand long) but how well do you handle your family life while going through all of this (for those of you who are married). Thanks

Well, the first thing to be considered is that in everyday spine surgery spinal cord injury is usually a very small part of the patient load. The vast majority are fusions, laminectomies, and decompressions relating to neck pain, back pain, and neuropathies. Of course when there is acute injury requiring surgery you do that too. You have basically no involvement in their rehabilitation process, which I think is a good thing in many spine surgeons opinions. Compare this to a PMR physician who manages and oversees the long term rehabilitation of spinal cord injuries.

In terms of the lifestyles, PMR is definitely more chill, but spine isn't the worst in terms of lifestyle. It basically comes down to how much spine call you have to take and how trauma heavy the area your cover is. People are always concerned about residency lifestyle, but it's only temporary and varies as much between hospitals as it does between specialties. Choose a field on what you want to do for the rest of your life, not the next 3-7 years. In terms of family life, I think it really depends on what your wife does for a living. If she stays at home it's not as difficult as if she is also in medicine, etc.

 

[Tired]

Am I the only person who has no idea what an "OMS-1" is?

 

[Southpaw]

Am I the only person who has no idea what an "OMS-1" is?

first year osteopathic medical student?