Had some passion for checking on children’s health and treating them? If yes, then you have thought of one of the most rewarding careers to take. Pediatricians are doctors who diagnose and treat medical issues concerning children. They usually focus on children from an early age to adulthood. There are several types of pediatricians that you can find in the hospital. Some of them are pediatric cardiologists and pediatrician oncologists.
Before taking this career, you should familiarize yourself with the pros and cons of this career. Some of the responsibilities pediatricians have are to provide preventive care services, treat illnesses, diseases, and injuries in early and late childhood, monitoring the growth of the children and how they develop.
Pros of being a pediatrician:
1. Good compensation-Pediatricians are compensated well. They earn an average salary of $170,000 every year. If you consider working in a private environment, you can expect to be paid higher salaries.
2. The career is flexible-If you specialize as a cardiologist, pediatrician oncologist, or specialize in child abuse, critical care, endocrinology, or adolescent medicine, you are likely to have a very flexible working time. Verily, specializing will offer you more opportunities and a better salary.
3. The demand for pediatricians is very high-The The demand for these specialists is very high. As long as the population will continue to grow, the demand for children specialists will continue to rise too.
4. Flexible working time-As a specialist pediatrician, you are likely to enjoy greater work flexibility. You are very likely to work for fewer hours compared to medical specialists. The majority of pediatricians work for 5-9 hours.
5. You have an opportunity to improve public health-These specialists have a greater chance of improving public health. Pediatricians participate greatly in vaccines and immunization. They also raise awareness about the same.
6. Increased satisfaction-The most common reason people choose to be pediatricians is because of the desire to help children. If that is what you have in heart, I can assure you it will be satisfactory.
7. Breaks-Pediatricians just like other specialists have a chance to spend some of their time with their families. They attract several breaks over their career.
8. it’s an exciting career working with children and interacting with different kinds of people is very satisfying. Working with children of all ages will make your work more satisfying.
9. it’s a rewarding type of job-Pediatricians have several methods of making money. Verily, they are trained to provide care to patients, and hence their demand is on the constant rise and their chances of making money are in direct proportion to the demand.
10. A chance to work anywhere-Pediatricians are in demand in almost all countries in the world. What this means is that you can work anywhere you want at any time.
Cons of being a pediatrician:
1. Balancing career and family is difficult-we all know doctors are busy people. Some pediatricians can work for long hours and at the same time be ready for emergencies which leaves them with little time with their families.
2. Pressure- In this field, the pressure is high-this is because of the cost of lawsuits and insurance for medical errors. However, if someone is an expert, these changes will reduce drastically.
3. Lots of risks-Pediatricians deal with many kinds of diseases and infections which increases their chances of contracting the same infections. This means that pediatricians live in high chances of risking their lives and those of their families.
4. It’s costly to study-Studying any medical course is very expensive in most countries. This is an indication that you are going to invest much of the money to graduate as paid.
5. It takes longer to learn-just like any other profession, studying medicine and specializing as a pediatrician takes a lot of your time. You may take up to 7 years to graduate from a medical college.
6. It can be very stressing-one of the main downsides of this profession is that there are so many responsibilities on your side. Kinds cannot explain their problems, they are also very nagging and can make your career very stressful.
7. Irregular working hours-You never know when you will be required to report to work. Office-based pediatricians are likely to maintain normal working hours.
8. Communication difficulties-Children, especially in their first stages of development, are very unlikely to explain their troubles. This makes it hard and stressful for your career.
9. Difficult patients-you will encounter all forms of patients in this career. Treating some of them can be stressful.
10. Emotionally draining-you will have to follow a child from the time they are born to the time they break the line to adulthood. Seeing your patient suffer for this long can be emotionally draining.
