In this article let’s take a look at whether dermatology is a good career option or not for you by looking at all the pros and cons of dermatology in detail.
This is the most comprehensive article you can find online on this topic so I recommend you to bookmark the article and share it with your friends who are also interested in dermatology career option
So without further ado let’s dive right in.
Is dermatologist a good career option & worth it?
Dermatologist is definitely a good career option and worth it because it is not only a lucrative profession but also in highly demand and also has less competition as compared to other careers, most importantly dermatology can give you a lot of job satisfaction and happiness by helping other people solve their skin problems and increase their confidence, You can also start your own clinic and make money.
There are some disadvantages of being a dermatologist and becoming a doctor like expensive education and continuous education, etc. But before we take a look at all the pros and cons of dermatology career, let’s see whether dermatology is stressful job or not since many people have this doubt.
Is being a dermatologist a stressful job?
No, dermatology is not a stressful job, because, You will rarely get emergency calls and midnight calls for operation and consultation because skin issues are not time sensitive like heart attack or any physical accident or mental damage and most skin issues are not also very dangerous and harmful for the body, acne and dandruff are two most popular skincare problems and
these issues are easily cured in clinic only by prescribing some medicines and practises to the patient instead of going to the operation theatre or doing some surgery so there is less stress environment, on top of that dermatologist have flexible working hours and many professionals have their own clinics to practise so they are their own boss.
And according to survey, dermatologist rate 4.1 out of 5 stars in terms of happiness and job satisfaction so dermatology is one such career which is not as much stressful as compared to other specialisations of medicine such as cardiology or opthamology.
Now let’s take a look at all the pros and cons of dermatology.
Pros and cons of being a dermatologist
Pros of being a dermatologist
High demand
One of the main advantages of being a dermatologist is there is a high demand for example in India there are less than 12500 dermatologist in the country, and there is a huge demand for both doctors and specialised doctors like cardiologist, dermatologist and ophthalmologist in the country.
Similarly if you check in America, Today, there are an estimated 9,600 dermatologists and 7,800 dermatology practices in the U.S according to IMS Health.
And World health organization recommends one doctor for every thousand patients but you can clearly see that the number of dermatologist are very low as compared to the population of the countries, there’s a big mismatch between demand and supply.
Positive impact on others
Dermatology is a specialisation which focuses on skin care and treatment of skin ailments, if you check acne and dandruff are most common skin problems for many people across the globe including India and American people.
According to a survey, 12% of Indians between the age group of 20 to 29 had faced acne issues in their life
In a study, approximately 27.9% of men and 36.7% of women reported having “sensitive” or “very sensitive” skin, and acne is also a popular skin issue in Americans with more than 50 million people facing it.
And when people face acne, dandruff and other skin issues it will decrease the self confidence and increase anxiety, lower the self esteem, and also cause depression for many people and as a dermatologist you can treat those ailments and increase the self-confidence and improve the mental health of the patients especially younger children and adults who face this issues more and you can have a significant impact in their life.
This can give you meaningfulness in your life and also a lot of job satisfaction.
Good pay
Another benefit of being a dermatologist is you can also get a good salary and pay check.
The average salary of a dermatologist is around 12 lakh rupees per annum and the experienced professionals make more than 20 lakh rupees per annum.
And if you start your own clinic then You can start treating patients & charge money per hour on average of 600 rupees per hour basis & it is the amount dermatologist are charging for every consultation in india.
The average Dermatologist salary in the United States is $360,800 as of March 29, 2022. Salary ranges can vary widely depending on many important factors, including education, certifications, additional skills, the number of years you have spent in your profession.
Good future
Another advantage is it has a good future.
The fact is millions of jobs will be replaced by automation and artificial intelligence by 2055, but it is very unlikely that AI can replace dermatologist and doctor profession because it needs empathy and human level connection with the patient which cannot be replaced by robot, similarly acne as I already mentioned earlier is one of the common skin issues many people face in their life.
And there are many causes for acne including stress, eating junk food, hormonal changes in the body in adolescent age, excessive oil production and inflammation, bacteria, medications, family history, etc and dermatologist also treat skin cancer issues of the patients and
it is observed that skin cancer can also occur due to sun rays and as the earth is getting more warmer, growing dirt and pollution, more people can get affected by skin issues not just acne but others so more people will be facing skin issues in future which is a good thing because there will be more demand of skin doctors who are basically dermatologist.
I hope you understand my point.
Flexible working hours & low stress
Another advantage is you can have flexible working hours and also low stress.
The fact is average working hours for dermatologist is 45 hours per week, because more than 30% of the dermatologist in America are self-employed and have their own clinic so they can work whenever they want.
Also, majority of them in India are running their own clinics and they make money by charging patients per hour basis.
And because they have flexible working hours, they can take weekend holidays because they are self-employed, they can also have less stress as compared to other doctors like surgeons, cardiologists who have long working hours and shifts, because of the higher workload these
doctors will often get burnout, get into depression, anxiety and mental stress due to workload but not dermatologist as skin care issues like acne are not time-sensitive, you will not get midnight emergency calls or work during the holidays as compared to other specialisations of doctors.
Most of the patients are cured by sitting in the clinic, consulting and curing the problem of the patients, This gives you a good work-life balance and also reduces stress by spending time with your family and friends in your free time.
Opportunity to work both in medical and surgical fields
Another advantage is you can get the opportunity to work both in the medical and surgical fields.
For example, if a person has acne issues, the dermatologist is more likely to cure the patient through some medicine and if someone has skin cancer or bigger skin problems then he would go for the surgical process.
More importantly, most of the work you do is consulting and curing the patient problems in the clinic itself without going for surgery in ICU so there are fewer chances of getting human errors (doctor errors Play a big role in deaths of patients) because of fewer surgery operations of people and fewer deaths and therefore fewer lawsuits filed on dermatologist as compared to other professionals in medicine industry, and also less violence against doctors.
This is a good thing because your work not be a boring and mundane task.
Regular interaction of people
Another advantage is you can get regular interaction with people and especially young people because of this you can not only solve their skincare problems but also get to know new ideas perspectives and thoughts by having conversations with them.
You can also grow your network and increase your connections with various kind of people because skin issues occur to people of different age and gender.
Work with various tools and machines
Another advantage is you can work with various tools and machines as a dermatologist.
There are various types of machines like,
- Skin Treatment Laser Machine.
- CO2 Fractional Laser Machine.
- Derma Rollers.
- UVB Lamp.
You can take the help of all these machines while curing the ailments and issues of the patient, getting to know and using these machines not only save you time but also a lot of energy and make the diagnosis and treatment easy.
These are all the advantages of being a dermatologist, Now let’s take a look at the disadvantages.
Cons of being a dermatologist
Expensive education
The main disadvantage of being a dermatologist and doctor in general is it is very expensive to become one.
If you are in India then to complete your MBBS from private college will cost you around 50 lakhs or more and you need to get your masters which will increase your expenses further,
similarly The median cost of four years of medical school attendance in 2019-2020 was $250,222 at public institutions and $330,180 at private colleges in USA.
Thankfully there are some colleges that offer scholarships and grants for the students based on their academics and financial income but still, it is expensive to get your medical school because of this there are many students who take student loans and debts to afford for the medical school.
Your physical appearance is key
Another disadvantage is your physical appearance is very important if you want to be a good dermatologist.
It is because dermatologists treat skincare problems to the patients and if he himself cannot properly take care of skin and face acne issues then it will reduce the credibility of the patients.
It is because people judge a book by its cover. It is simple, how can you let your patient believe that they can look good from your advice if you cannot do it yourself.
Because of this, in my opinion, dermatology is one such career option where you need to put special care towards your skin and physical appearance to increase your credibility towards patients, there is constant pressure on yourself to look good so many doctors take a lot of treatment and botox injections for this issue because, after some age, the skin will generally get wrinkles, scars on face which looks bad.
Growing competition
Another disadvantage is it is also growing in competition.
In 1970, there were only 4000 dermatologists in America but now in 2019, according to the American medical association there are 20000 people in this space, and currently, 37% of the people are women in dermatology as compared to 7% in 1970, so you can see there is a clear growth in a dermatologist
This is not a similar case in India, but more people are choosing medical field and trying to become dermatologist in America so there is a growing competition in that field but not as much as engineering or other career options
and the way to succeed in such competition is by growing your skills, experience, expertise, your knowledge and starting your own clinic, start consultation of clients online and find new ways of making money by offering services.
Long years of education
Another disadvantage is it takes at least eight years to become a dermatologist after your 12th in India.
If you want to become a dermatologist you must first complete MBBS which is 5.5 years long and take master’s in dermatology which is another 3 years before you can become a dermatologist.
To become a dermatologist in America, you have to complete 12 years of post-secondary education and training. These requirements include four years in a bachelor’s degree program, four years of medical school and four years in a residency.
And not just that, even after you become one, It is a lifelong learning process, You need to keep yourself updated with all the latest techniques of treatment and innovations.
Difficulty in treating patients
Another disadvantage is you can get difficulty in treating patients and explaining them the skin ailment which they are facing.
And Most people try to ignore their skin problems when it is in the early stage thinking it will not impact much but when it becomes severe then when they approach a dermatologist then he might have to convey
bad news such as the problem has become severe and cause a lot of harm to your skin and health and conversations like this can be very tough with strange people.
These are some situations where showing empathy, good communication skills, building the trust and connection with the patient are very important in dermatology career.
Sensitive conditions to face
Dermatologist also sometimes have to face some sensitive conditions like treating severe acne, dandruff, rosacea, psoriasis, dermatitis, fungi and infection of people.
And just like other professions dermatologist also have to contact with blood, pus, etc sometimes, This becomes difficult for people who are beginners but as you get more experience and practise more, You can get better at handing the sensitive conditions.
Repetitive and mundane work
As I already mentioned earlier dandruff acne and dermatitis are common problems people face with their skin, and adults are more prone to these problems so most people consult dermatologists for this matters and because you
will be constantly interacting with patients of acne issues it becomes a repetitive and mundane task after some time and your job will slowly be no longer exciting because you will face same patients with similar issues.
These are all the advantages and disadvantages of being a dermatologist.
With that said let’s end the article.
Conclusion
These are all the things you need to know about a dermatology career.
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