In a comment to the post I just tweeted, the Happy one expressed my sentiments precisely.
I disagree that subspecialists see sicker more complex patients. Most subspecialists can focus on their one organ. Us internists have to manage disease, even highly complex disease across many failed organs. You seem to believe it’s harder to manage one really bad organ than say 5 bad organs. I would suggest it’s easier to manage one really bad disease, no matter how hard it is than to balance the management of 5 bad disease. I see this daily as a hospitalist with subspecialists all around me writing brief episode plans for their one problem. They are educated in their skills as am I. They are different skill sets. One is not better than the other, only different.
I think all physicians bring their own unique set of skills to the table. I don’t think surgery is any harder than managing complex patients on the brink of medical failure. I don’t think my job is easier than yours. I have seen many stressed surgeons as I have internists. How you manage the stress of the job is more about your coping skills and less about the field itself.
Well said Happy
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i would emphasize that different jobs have different stresses, and that coping skills while relevant, are not necessarily more important. frequently the acuity and frequency of the situations are more relevant than the complexity or breadth in regards to stress.
fwiw i am a specialist/cardiologist, wife is a general internist. there is no way that any reasonable person could look at our jobs and not say i have more stress to deal with during the days and nights (not to say i feel more stressed out on average). i don’t know that the disease management is harder, but it is certainly different. obviously ymmv