Neurology Vs Internal Medicine - washingtonianguy

[ArchivalUser]

Neurology at some great University places ...(UT and Wisconsin and Wayne state) Vs Internal Medicine in Bronx..OR Illinois (Springfield).

Very Very confused

Pros : Neurology : Very cerebral and lifestyle branch..more competitive residency .. more prestigious to match in to.. BUT not so competitive fellowships... (wrt IM subspecialties?)

Cons of neurology: very passive.. No managements.. low satisfaction.. in practice and NOT big bucks also...

pros : IM ... good subspecialties.. like GI cards.. (BIGG bucks!!) also hospitalist and internits are in good demand NOW...lots of case diversity

CONS: matching into IM.. (I know is tough BUT IM is genrally 30-40 people in large programs.. and I really really wish to subspecialise.. )

I am NOT interested in Rheum... Nephro.. Allergy Immunology and Academics

I like Cardiology..Hem Onc OR Crtical care OR gastro-Hepato... all of this is a 4 years + after IM!!!! BUt average payscales are significantly higher!

Please do not advise me,....things like ( u are in wrong profession for making bucks etc etc) I wish to work hard and earn big ...like all of us!!! so money is very important! please dont disregard that fact!

ANy inputs on Neuro VS IM... Please help me think guys and gals... Should i rank my neuro high OR IM higher...

[ArchivalUser]

I work with a Neurologist.She doesn't make too much bucks.So you right.I am going to run her clinic in her absence from coming monday for a wk untill she gets back.Since she does'nt want to lose pts, she asked me to run it for her....lol...n trust me its doable ...i guess for a wk.

[ArchivalUser]

Hey .. good rimantidine.. Thanks and good for you!!! So in a typical day,.. in daily practice.. what do you do... Like what kind of patients do u see... ?

[ArchivalUser]

You want to make $$$$..Go to cardiology.They play in money.
I love hema & Onco too.
Nobody is going to stop you from making $$$.The truth is ,whoever want to come to the United States wants to earn $$$.
Another harsh truth is ,you are in perfect business to make $$$.Its not about humanity anymore.Unfortunately, medicine nowadays is all about making bucks.

[ArchivalUser]

We see patients with strokes like hemiparetic,hemiplegics,pt with hypertension who needs echo(TTE done in her clinic by cardiosonographist),epileptics, Subacute combined degenration of the spinal cord,headaches( various kinds),MS pt and any other pt in need of EMGs EEGs, obstructive sleep apnea pts,narcoleptic pts,all kind of psychiatry(since she wants to make $$$).she also calls herself a psychaitric. The neurology residents while pursuing board exams also get trianed for psychiatry.she is board certified by neuology boards.
Psychaitric pts include shizophrenia,depression,bipolars etc.
we also see cardiac pts in need of Doppler US for extremities, and transcranial US and cranial and extracranial blood flow.

[ArchivalUser]

hey chill dude... I am not sitting and comparing humanity and bucks$$$

making Bucks is NOT an antipathy to humanity .. moi friend!!! the difference is ... With humanity and bucks... You can actually help... With humanity and NO bucks.. You can stand and watch.. with little opportunity to help! lol

I dont wish to diverge from my topic...Neuro Vs IM

[ArchivalUser]

hey rimantidine... managements... ? ... Do u actively intervene.. and do stuff Or just refer.. ?

[ArchivalUser]

@ Washingtonguy...
Good thread..

I like your post because i too have interviewed in both Neurology (big universities) and Internal Medicine (good community and university programs too)..

There are pros and cons of every field you go into.. I would advise you go in filed you are more interested and would be more comfortable to treat patients... Money is in everyfield.. even FM guys earn big than IM guys these days because of change in health care plans...so you never know..

Neurology... Neuro is itself a specialty branch so if you see moneywise, Neurology guys earn on an average $30-40K more annually than IM guys.. That also depends upon years of experience, and state in which you are practicing...Agree that there are low satisfaction in terms of neuro patients getting better, but there are lots of challenging cases that you will dealt with... Again that depends upon how you look at it.. Its not true that there are not competitive fellowships after completing 4 years NEURO.. Stroke, Vascular Neurology, Interventional NEUROLOGY are upgrowing fields and its demand is expected to rise with more aging population.. And the payscale of these fields are in $300 k's.... PAIN is also a subspecialty which you can do.. I am telling this because i am interested in going for PAIN fellowships (especially if i match into INDIANA UNI).. 1-year of fellowship and then you will earn between $300-400 K...Its simiple, more procedures you do, more reimbursements you get... Its not easy mind you, but its like the same if you are planning to go for GI or Cards after doing IM... Other good fellowships includes EMG, EEG, Epilepsy, Neuromuscular.. You will always earn more if you are doing these 1 year fellowships as you will be reimbursed more for reading EEG's, EMG's or doing biospies (nerve or muscle)..

Internal Medicine... I like it because it involves entire body and not limiting to one particular system or organ.. But its getting more tough these days to get into competitive fellowships like Cardio, GI especially if you are doing your IM from small programs.. Hospitalists and internists are more lucrative these days and it doesn't require hassles of doing research, electives, building your application for competitive fellowships...

So in short, if you wana earn big, there would be equal opportunities available in both fields.. The INTEREST in the filed matters the most... I personally feel NEUROLOGY is challenging as you will see weird cases all times, and it would always be challenging to diagnose and treat those patients... If you are interested in research and academics, you can spend your entire life on doing resesarch in one particular disease

I would advise you to rank that field which is more interesting to you and in which you wana spend you entire life.... There shouldn't be REGRETS afterwards...

Hope this helps !!!
Again, i like this post !!
GL

[ArchivalUser]

ait ...am chilled now after you chilled me...lol

i actively participate dude...not just refer.i got a very good LOR from her.she hired me after i volunteered for 6-7months.Thats different am not earning too much....another lol.
but i don't complain and cant complain.i went there to volunteer to get LOR.I didn't know i'll get hired for 3days/wk.

[ArchivalUser]

After i read patel's long paragraph.i would still not recommend neurology to anyone who wants to play in ks.No matter what, interventional neurology is hard to get.Too much work to become money making machine.