why peds?

[lg2005]

curious as to why you are going/went into pediatrics. I personally, very simply, enjoy the kids. Adults are big complainers, noncompliant and hard to sympathize with.

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[trauma_junky]

curious as to why you are going/went into pediatrics. I personally, very simply, enjoy the kids. Adults are big complainers, noncompliant and hard to sympathize with.

They are the only true cohort that is innocent and their problem is not from years of noncompliance and irrational health decisions. Plus I love kids!

 

[EVMSPeds]

my sentiments exactly. plus kids don't usually smell that bad. seriously. an 80 year old who wets the bed? gross. a 5 year old who does it? endearing.

They are the only true cohort that is innocent and their problem is not from years of noncompliance and irrational health decisions. Plus I love kids!

 

[14022]

my sentiments exactly. plus kids don't usually smell that bad. seriously. an 80 year old who wets the bed? gross. a 5 year old who does it? endearing.

What about a 25 year old? If you find that endearing, we should mate....uh, i mean date.

And I had a kid with encopresis the other day. She encopresed (if thats a word) in the exam room. A clear exception to an aforelisted comment.

 

[Cardsfan]

Compared to my medicine expereince, I saw a lot more interesting pathology on peds, especially on inpatient. All the weird syndromes and congenital stuff is fascinating.

 

[WheelMan]

well, kids are simply a lot more easier to deal with than adults, coz unlike adults, they dont really think much about their appearance, like being concious about themselves.

 

[ItsGavinC]

Hey all, I'm one of your dental counterparts, but I'm very interested in pediatric dentistry.

One of the common qualms of pediatric dentists is the PARENTS. Sure, the kids are typically awesome, willing to learn, love their doc, etc. But how about the parent side of things?

To a pediatric dentist the WORST thing about the job is the parents. The parents whine, bitch, moan, and complain much more than the kids do. Same thing in peds?

 

[oompaloompa]

Hey all, I'm one of your dental counterparts, but I'm very interested in pediatric dentistry.

One of the common qualms of pediatric dentists is the PARENTS. Sure, the kids are typically awesome, willing to learn, love their doc, etc. But how about the parent side of things?

To a pediatric dentist the WORST thing about the job is the parents. The parents whine, bitch, moan, and complain much more than the kids do. Same thing in peds?

I agree, in fact, I think one of the saddest aspects of pediatrics is that a number of the child's medical problems are directly due to the parents themselves, often because of negligence or just plain old stupidity. In the pedi ER the other day, I had a woman who chain smokes 3 packs a day(inside the house) complain of her daughter's dehabilitating asthma. She was obviously more concerned about the inconvenience caused to her and was completely resistant to the idea of not smoking around her daughter(Can't you just give her something?) To top it all off, a woman who smells strongly of alcohol and spends at least $12 a day on cigarettes has the nerve to ask for a prescription for Children's Tylenol "because she can't afford it." Ridiculous. Of course, I know that there are children in worse situations, but the above scenario is becoming so common that it just really gets old.

Still, on the positive side, I still believe that sometimes we can intervene early enough to actually make a difference. That's what I really love. It may take 10, 20, 30 years to show it, but by doing some fairly simple things we can "save" these kids from so much in coming years.

 

[Nikolas]

are you there?
now?

 

[hedera916]

Pediatrics is one of my top choices for residency simply because it is, for me, an innately fun field of medicine. You can't get any cuter than working with kids everyday.

 

[Barry Otter]

Because I hope to have some positive influence on their lives before they eventually become the drunks, sinners, ******, liars, cheaters, and motherfuc*kers that they are destined to be.

Pediatrics or bust.

 

[14022]

Because I hope to have some positive influence on their lives before they eventually become the drunks, sinners, ******, liars, cheaters, and motherfuc*kers that they are destined to be.

Pediatrics or bust.

And it is nice to counteract the effect of the poor parenting that the "drunks, sinners, ******, liars, cheaters, and motherfuc*kers" who conceive these kids provide to them.

 

[Doc34]

Do any of you feel that you mifht be compromising your personal life by going into pediatrics? Like lots of weekend or nights call.
Is it less than Med.?

 

[kas23]

Do any of you feel that you mifht be compromising your personal life by going into pediatrics? Like lots of weekend or nights call.
Is it less than Med.?

I don't know where you got your info, but on a cush scale of 0-10, peds is about a 6-7. I would place medicine about 5-6. And no matter what residency you do, you will be working weekends and will be on call (except for derm and a couple others)

 

[Leukocyte]

Do any of you feel that you mifht be compromising your personal life by going into pediatrics? Like lots of weekend or nights call.
Is it less than Med.?

Dealing with kids and their overprotective parents can be very stressfull.

Definately, Peds is more stressful than Medicine.

 

[finnpipette]

I don't know if I'm considering peds for all of the wrong reasons. I thought I wanted to IM, but I'm sick of diabetes/HTN, non-compliant patients, hearing people whine, can't stand to do another pap/breat exam and people who are sick because of years of abuse to their body. Aside from specialties, that leaves peds, possibly EM. Is process of elimination a bad way of going into treating those charming little devils?

 

[14022]

I don't know if I'm considering peds for all of the wrong reasons. I thought I wanted to IM, but I'm sick of diabetes/HTN, non-compliant patients, hearing people whine, can't stand to do another pap/breat exam and people who are sick because of years of abuse to their body. Aside from specialties, that leaves peds, possibly EM. Is process of elimination a bad way of going into treating those charming little devils?

I don't think process of elimination is a bad way of going as long as you enjoy the choice remaining after you have eliminated the others. Personally, I think medicine is too difficult and too stressful of a career, regardless of the field, to go into if you do not enjoy it. Peds is especially difficult because pay is poor, parents are often either overbearing or neglectful, and the kids aren't as cute when you're gagging them with a tongue depressor. But I enjoy the culture of pediatrics. I love being on rounds in a children hospital and see a kid towering at 3'2" walking around in blue hospital pajamas walking around the halls with his IV pole. I love doing an exam on a newborn with one hand. I love seeing patients get better, which you do not always see on the adult side. To me it is all worth the difficult parts of peds.