This is a common question physicians bring to the table when they start career coaching with me. Many are stressed, unhappy, and have serious doubts about the direction of healthcare. They are wondering if practicing medicine is the right fit anymore – or if it ever was. If you find yourself in this situation, there are a number of different questions to consider.
Why did you decide to become a doctor?
If the choice to become a doctor was not really your own and you felt pressured to choose this path, it is likely there is a different career direction you would have preferred. You may have been told what you wanted to do wouldn’t work or was impractical.
On the other hand, you may have known since you were young that all you wanted to be was a doctor. For many, this path ends up being satisfying and a good fit, but for some, the reality is far removed from the dream.
You may have been motivated by the job security and financial stability a career in medicine offers.
Or you may have wanted to help people in some way and not really known what to do and medicine seemed like a reasonable choice.
In any of the above scenarios, a doctor may ultimately decides to leave medicine, but no one scenario indicates that a clinical career can’t work out.
When did you first start questioning your decision to practice medicine?
Did you start having doubts during medical school, perhaps when you began clinical rotations, or even earlier? If you raised your concerns to anyone were you told, “Oh don’t worry. It’s normal to feel this way. It will get better when you are in residency.” And then during residency when the feelings didn’t go away were you told again, “Don’t worry, when you are out in practice, you will be much happier Just hang in there.”
While it is thankfully true that things often do get better after medical school and residency, when physicians have doubts early on that continue to persist through training, this can be an indicator that clinical medicine may not be the best fit for them, especially if there was pressure from parents or others.
Is anxiety a significant component of your dissatisfaction?
Do you find that you worry an excessive amount about your patients? Is it hard to leave work at work? Do you doubt the decisions you have made and second-guess yourself? Are you compulsive about charting and write overly detailed notes? Do you have anticipatory anxiety before doing procedures or while being on call?
Anxiety can become severe enough that unless it is effectively dealt with, it can be a reason for a physician to leave medicine. In some cases the physician is able to use medication and/or techniques to lessen the anxiety, yet in other cases, practicing medicine proves too stressful to continue.
Are you dealing with work environment or personality conflicts?
Are you having challenges with a certain person at work? Are there significant problems with leadership or management in your work environment? Are you worried that your position might be in jeopardy?
With the combination of strong personality types, doctors losing control over decision-making and the many changes in medicine, work conflict is all too common. When this problem is one of the reasons a physician is considering leaving medicine, it is often a situation that can be successfully resolved. Effective solutions may be possible at the current setting, or a different clinical position can often work out even better.
How persistent are your thoughts about leaving medicine?
Has a recent event caused you to reconsider your career, or have you been unhappy for a long time, but feel trapped and unable to see a way out?
The longer you have been feeling unhappy and the more persistent the thoughts about leaving medicine, the more likely it is that some significant change is needed. This doesn’t necessarily mean leaving medicine, but it is highly important to address the dissatisfaction.
It goes without saying that the decision to leave medicine is enormous. Many factors need to be considered in this process and it can be difficult to sort out all the variables and know where the truth lies.
What I have found in working with many physicians is that the question can be approached in a systematic way that allows for a careful and clarifying analysis. While one may not necessarily know definitively whether or not it is time to leave patient care for good, time away can help determine the answer. By keeping one’s license and board certification current, no bridges need to be burned and there are options to maintain income. If you are feeling trapped and confused, you are not alone and there are always solutions to be found.
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My work environment and personality conflicts are driving my daily anxiety regarding whether or not to leave my current faculty position. It’s nice to know I am not alone. I recently went on a much needed two week vacation with my fiance. After returning, the stress is still there and I realize that I must systematically take steps to improve my professional situation. But I am not confident enough to make this decision alone and am seeking counsel from this website.
Helen,
Thank you very much for sharing your own experience. I am sorry to hear about the conflict in your work environment. You are absolutely right – you are not alone. This is an all too common problem in any workplace and can really adversely affect one’s day to day job satisfaction. The additional stressors inherent in the healthcare environment can make conflict more likely, as well as the fact that there has been little to no training on conflict management in med school and residency. Strong egos, power struggles and the high demands of patient care create an environment that can easily lead to conflict. The good news is that more attention is being put on the problem with consultants and organizations working specifically to address this issue. I hope things improve for you. Happy to help out in any way I can.
Heather