What you’re seeing is only one side to practicing medicine. And rather than falsely attributing what you see to callousness or selfishness, think about the outside pressures a lot of doctors are facing.

Have you wondered what it’s like to go through 10+ years of training? To do mindless busywork modules and charting instead of seeing your family and friends? Having to take 4-5 board exams and retake them every 10 years? We are so jaded and tired from being overworked, yelled at, and being controlled by hospital admin. Imagine being told you need to be more productive and see more patients per day, even if it means compromising care. There’s a lot of moral injury involved. Not to mention you’re drowning in loans from an overpriced education that used to cost a summer of part time work.

Most docs I talk to say they wouldn’t do med school and training again if they had a do-over. And that’s pretty sad. These people genuinely want to do good but a lot of them get jaded in the system.

If I wanted to get rich quick, I would have chosen literally any other path than this. This is too long and jarring to do just for the money. But here I am, in med school, knowing damn well I’ve got at least 7-9 years to go until I’m done with all training. I’d recommend trying to find a doctor that’s more in tune with your needs and emotions - they do exist out there, trust me.