careernav.

General Description

This is an ideal career for analytical and logical thinkers. General Practitioners assess and treat a wide range of conditions, ailments, and injuries, from sinus and respiratory infections to broken bones and scrapes; you refer more serious conditions to specialists for more intensive care. Specialist Physicians broadly work in anaesthesiology, family and general medicine, general internal medicine, general paediatrics, obstetrics and gynaecology, psychiatry and surgery.

Obstetricians and gynaecologists are specialists who focus on women’s health with responsibility for general medical care for women and care related to pregnancy and the reproductive systems. You can specialise in breast and cervical cancer, urinary tract and pelvic disorders, hormonal disorders, or childbirth and counselling women throughout their pregnancy.

Obstetricians are responsible for the health of the mother and foetus from diagnosis of pregnancy and through the prenatal months culminating in the delivery of the baby and post natal period. Your care is often as much about the mothers’ emotional and mental state as it is about her physical health and the health of her unborn child. Your services may vary from routine outpatient monitoring of the normal pregnancy, to rapid decision making and intervention in times of obstetric emergencies where the mother experiences complications and the baby’s life is threatened. Emergency often results in a caesarean delivery but if you have done your job well, a patient relationship based upon trust will help them deal with this situation.

Gynaecologists deal with disorders of the female reproductive system. You will find yourself managing a range of emotionally based issues such as a couples’ inability to conceive a child, potential infertility and sexual dysfunction. You may diagnose and advise a patient about sexually transmitted diseases and then as women age and begin menopause, once again your skills as both a technician and counsellor are required. Breast cancer, cervical cancer or urinary tract problems are real issues and many patients feel they can relate better to a female gynaecologist when discussing them.

Generally Physicians who elect to specialise in this area of medicine are trained and have an active practice as both an Obstetrician and a Gynaecologist.

What you do every day

There are days for hospital rounds and days for patient consultation. They all start early and finish late. Irrespective, your career commences as a resident working in the major hospitals. Residency is tough, hard work with long days commencing at 6.30am in the operating room and finishing once the surgeons’ patient list is completed. Your day usually ends around 6pm but once every four nights you may finish at 8am, a 26 hour shift. Patients trust you and you need to be there for them.

Medical training is exhausting, and rewarding both financially and in terms of personal satisfaction. Many physicians and surgeons work long, irregular hours; almost one-third of physicians work 60 or more hours a week.

Personality that best fits this occupation

You must have a desire to serve patients, compassion towards others, be self-motivated, and be able to survive the pressures and long hours of medical education and practice. You also must have a good bedside manner, excellent communication skills, emotional stability and the self confidence to make decisions in emergencies.

Ongoing study throughout your career is necessary to keep up with medical advances so you must have a high degree of motivation and self discipline. Employment opportunities will continue to expand due to a growing and ageing population which will inevitably increase demand for physician services.

Best thing about this career

You can make a huge difference to your patients' lives and to the communities you serve. You are challenged every day as people are different and medical technology constantly changes. The financial rewards can be substantial, so you can afford an affluent lifestyle, but in the end the status, respect and trust afforded to you is the greatest reward.

Worst thing about this career

The downsides of a medical career are: the long time it takes to finally become qualified, knowing that despite what you do people will die anyway, the long hours, and the difficulty in maintaining a work-life balance. There is a growing culture of litigation across the medical industry which has made medical indemnity a topical issue in some specialisations.