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In the midst of a grueling week when your census is running between 15 and 20 patients daily, the beeper goes off incessantly, and you’ve grown accustomed to the constant gnawing pain of your hopelessly forsaken stomach, do you ever wonder what life is like on the "other side"? You know what I mean – primary care. Yes, I said it: the specialty that few residents are fighting to get into and many physicians are trying to get out of.
While some hospitalists choose the field right out of residency, others, like me, are drawn to the field after years of struggling to meet all the demands of primary care.
I remember having a "call-back list" of over 100 items. There was Samantha, with the tiny abnormality on her mammogram. The radiologist, being as cautious as a good radiologist should be, recommended repeat imaging in a few months, but how could I make sure she wouldn’t forget? Wouldn’t I, in some way, be partially responsible if she never followed up, even if I meticulously documented my conversation with her about the importance of doing so? Could I live with myself if she came to my office 3 years later with metastatic cancer? No. There she went, onto the unending call-back list.
And there was Ralph, with the markedly elevated LDL cholesterol and known coronary artery disease. I started him on Lipitor and told him to come back for follow-up labs, but since his wife recently died, chances were he’d take his own health for granted during his grieving process, so, there he went, onto the list.
And so on, and so on. It became completely unmanageable unless I worked for hours after patients left each night.
And then there was the uncertainty about bringing home a paycheck. I worked diligently, but, as we all know, bills must get paid before we do, so there were times when I actually paid my staff more during a given pay period than I paid myself, if I paid myself at all. Regulations, bureaucracy, increasing overhead, and decreasing reimbursements, oh my! It never ended.
When I was offered a hospitalist position I jumped in, head first, and never, ever looked back. I don’t think I’m alone. According to a recent physician hiring firm report, an estimated 75% of newly hired doctors will be employed by hospitals by 2014. Of course, this figure does not just represent hospitalists, but the authors note that fewer doctors want to go into private practice, and most of us who have even been in private practice can understand why. One reason cited for the trend toward hospital employment is lifestyle.
So the next time you are tempted to throw your beeper in the trash can, just remember, our field is truly an awesome one. We work hard, but, compared to other doctors, we get to play really, really hard, too. After all, when was the last time you spoke to a primary care doctor who takes off the equivalent of several months each year? Even if you don’t work 7-off/7-on block shifts, chances are your time off - time you could be basking in the sun on a warm tropical island or skiing down icy slopes - far exceeds that of most of our colleagues.
Dr. Hester is a hospitalist with Baltimore-Washington Medical Center, Glen Burnie, Md., who has a passion for empowering patients to partner in their health care.
In the midst of a grueling week when your census is running between 15 and 20 patients daily, the beeper goes off incessantly, and you’ve grown accustomed to the constant gnawing pain of your hopelessly forsaken stomach, do you ever wonder what life is like on the "other side"? You know what I mean – primary care. Yes, I said it: the specialty that few residents are fighting to get into and many physicians are trying to get out of.
While some hospitalists choose the field right out of residency, others, like me, are drawn to the field after years of struggling to meet all the demands of primary care.
I remember having a "call-back list" of over 100 items. There was Samantha, with the tiny abnormality on her mammogram. The radiologist, being as cautious as a good radiologist should be, recommended repeat imaging in a few months, but how could I make sure she wouldn’t forget? Wouldn’t I, in some way, be partially responsible if she never followed up, even if I meticulously documented my conversation with her about the importance of doing so? Could I live with myself if she came to my office 3 years later with metastatic cancer? No. There she went, onto the unending call-back list.
And there was Ralph, with the markedly elevated LDL cholesterol and known coronary artery disease. I started him on Lipitor and told him to come back for follow-up labs, but since his wife recently died, chances were he’d take his own health for granted during his grieving process, so, there he went, onto the list.
And so on, and so on. It became completely unmanageable unless I worked for hours after patients left each night.
And then there was the uncertainty about bringing home a paycheck. I worked diligently, but, as we all know, bills must get paid before we do, so there were times when I actually paid my staff more during a given pay period than I paid myself, if I paid myself at all. Regulations, bureaucracy, increasing overhead, and decreasing reimbursements, oh my! It never ended.
When I was offered a hospitalist position I jumped in, head first, and never, ever looked back. I don’t think I’m alone. According to a recent physician hiring firm report, an estimated 75% of newly hired doctors will be employed by hospitals by 2014. Of course, this figure does not just represent hospitalists, but the authors note that fewer doctors want to go into private practice, and most of us who have even been in private practice can understand why. One reason cited for the trend toward hospital employment is lifestyle.
So the next time you are tempted to throw your beeper in the trash can, just remember, our field is truly an awesome one. We work hard, but, compared to other doctors, we get to play really, really hard, too. After all, when was the last time you spoke to a primary care doctor who takes off the equivalent of several months each year? Even if you don’t work 7-off/7-on block shifts, chances are your time off - time you could be basking in the sun on a warm tropical island or skiing down icy slopes - far exceeds that of most of our colleagues.
Dr. Hester is a hospitalist with Baltimore-Washington Medical Center, Glen Burnie, Md., who has a passion for empowering patients to partner in their health care.
In the midst of a grueling week when your census is running between 15 and 20 patients daily, the beeper goes off incessantly, and you’ve grown accustomed to the constant gnawing pain of your hopelessly forsaken stomach, do you ever wonder what life is like on the "other side"? You know what I mean – primary care. Yes, I said it: the specialty that few residents are fighting to get into and many physicians are trying to get out of.
While some hospitalists choose the field right out of residency, others, like me, are drawn to the field after years of struggling to meet all the demands of primary care.
I remember having a "call-back list" of over 100 items. There was Samantha, with the tiny abnormality on her mammogram. The radiologist, being as cautious as a good radiologist should be, recommended repeat imaging in a few months, but how could I make sure she wouldn’t forget? Wouldn’t I, in some way, be partially responsible if she never followed up, even if I meticulously documented my conversation with her about the importance of doing so? Could I live with myself if she came to my office 3 years later with metastatic cancer? No. There she went, onto the unending call-back list.
And there was Ralph, with the markedly elevated LDL cholesterol and known coronary artery disease. I started him on Lipitor and told him to come back for follow-up labs, but since his wife recently died, chances were he’d take his own health for granted during his grieving process, so, there he went, onto the list.
And so on, and so on. It became completely unmanageable unless I worked for hours after patients left each night.
And then there was the uncertainty about bringing home a paycheck. I worked diligently, but, as we all know, bills must get paid before we do, so there were times when I actually paid my staff more during a given pay period than I paid myself, if I paid myself at all. Regulations, bureaucracy, increasing overhead, and decreasing reimbursements, oh my! It never ended.
When I was offered a hospitalist position I jumped in, head first, and never, ever looked back. I don’t think I’m alone. According to a recent physician hiring firm report, an estimated 75% of newly hired doctors will be employed by hospitals by 2014. Of course, this figure does not just represent hospitalists, but the authors note that fewer doctors want to go into private practice, and most of us who have even been in private practice can understand why. One reason cited for the trend toward hospital employment is lifestyle.
So the next time you are tempted to throw your beeper in the trash can, just remember, our field is truly an awesome one. We work hard, but, compared to other doctors, we get to play really, really hard, too. After all, when was the last time you spoke to a primary care doctor who takes off the equivalent of several months each year? Even if you don’t work 7-off/7-on block shifts, chances are your time off - time you could be basking in the sun on a warm tropical island or skiing down icy slopes - far exceeds that of most of our colleagues.
Dr. Hester is a hospitalist with Baltimore-Washington Medical Center, Glen Burnie, Md., who has a passion for empowering patients to partner in their health care.
