Can Bad Students Become Good Doctors?

Can a slow learner become a good doctor?

I can only answer from the perspective of a physician that was educated and trained in the U.S. Please know that I hate to ever be anything other than encouraging.

The problem is not being a good doctor. If you are bright, hardworking and compassionate you will be a great doctor.

The problem is jumping through the myriad of hoops that go along with our education and training. Medical school and residency are brutal. You have to learn and assimilate huge amounts of information very quickly. If you can’t keep up, you will be unceremoniously dumped.

Your workload as a practicing physician is quite high. You have to learn about your patient. You must review vitals, labs, imaging, pathology, op reports, exams, and specialist input. You have to integrate this information, apply your medical knowledge, and seek to fill in any knowledge gaps rapidly. Now you have to take all of this information and come up with a list of possible diagnoses and a cohesive plan.

Oh, by the way, you have to do this for twenty patients, almost simultaneously. Nurses are lining up for urgent matters. You are constantly interrupted by family members, the lab, Radiology, and emergencies. You may have been on your feet fueled by caffeine for thirty hours.

Further, if you screw it up, someone might die.

So while you may have the qualities that make a good doctor, the pace of the training and work might make it impractical for you.

That’s just my experience. Feel free to prove me wrong.

Peace.