What Now?

Now that I've graduated it seems obvious that I am going to spend my career being a physician, but what isn't so obvious is what, exactly, I will be doing. Unlike an undergraduate degree where most people don't actually "use" their degree in their career field (with the exception of very specific degrees like nursing or engineering - though I have a cousin with an engineering degree who apparently is going to work for an accounting firm), I thought that once I graduated medical school it would be fairly obvious what I would be doing for my job. However if you were to ask me what I will be doing or where I will be in 5 years, I honestly don't have an answer for either question.

In some respects, I feel a little let down by the osteopathic education system. Don't get me wrong, I feel adequately prepared to be a physician. But I feel like I could have had better counseling, better guidance, more help during my third and fourth years of school in regards to what I would be doing after graduation. I also feel a little restricted with residency choices, especially compared to MD students who have a lot more choices. Sometimes I wonder if I am doing the correct thing with residency - just settling here because it was convenient. Settling because Sarah already had a job and we already lived here and we really like Indianapolis and we are close to family, etc. I didn't do much of a search. The hospital I am at is small but the residents ahead of me seem more than competent and most of the staff and physicians are quite nice.

There are so many options and choices for me to make. Am I going to work mostly in an office or hospital or a mix? Am I going to own my own business or work for a hospital? Am I going to work at nursing homes or in emergency rooms? I have really enjoyed obstetrics so am I going to do an obstetric fellowship and incorporate that into my practice? There are lots of questions and to an extent it annoys me a bit. There is part of me that wishes I knew the answers now. I guess that is part of what makes life exciting - not always knowing what to expect.

For now my job is to go to work everyday, work hard, help my patients, and learn as much as I can. I am only 26 now, so I should be finished with residency and be a board-certified physician before I am 30, which is pretty darn young for such a position. I feel like there is always time to do what is necessary if I don't like the situation I am in. It is a multi-step process and so far I only have a few of the steps finished. Sometimes I just wish I knew what was going to happen because a large part of me is ready to leave this month-to-month stuff behind and move into a more regular long-term routine. As of now I am basically doing more of the same from the past two years which is why I always kind of hesitate when people ask me "How does it feel to be finished?"