Medicine or Biomedical Science? Advice please :)

wild_swan

Hey - I could do with a bit of advice here career/college wise. I'll explain a bit about my situation & any advice - honest, harsh etc. welcome please!!

Basically I'm trying to decide between going to study grad med (I'm dabbling in gamsat study at the mo!) - which would be in 2010 providing i got the gamsat scores - or going to study some biomedical sciences course - which would be this september - am thinking of human health & disease in tcd - OR I've an offer for science communication in dcu.

Ok - heres the thing - I've Crohn's disease - and if I'm entirely honest about it - to date I've had to defer college exams, take years out etc as a result of it. At the moment - for the last 5 yrs - since I've had it I've only once gone 5mths where I could study ok- basically this is the longest I've gone flare free. I've recently changed doctor and I know way more about my disease now in terms of self management, pacing myself, my triggers, working with my drs etc. And I'm going on to try stronger medication combinations in a few wks - again if I'm honest - not to sound like I'm badmouthing the medical community but there was a large element of mismanagement on their part of my disease in the past (would have to write a book here to explain this ) Should my disease be a factor to consider? – I’m not sure at this point if I’m determined or stubborn ☺

So really what I'm getting at here is whether or not my illness should be an influencial factor into which career path I follow. I'm VERY set on going on to study medicine - primarily due to my own personal experiences. I have grave suspicions if I did not at least give it a go I would regret it. I am concerned as to if I'm able physically to contend with a medical career - as it stands I'm not there but I have reason to believe that health wise I will improve - but again I'm wondering could I be putting myself in a situation where I could make myself sick so to speak.

I'm not the type of person to get stressed out by exams or ongoing study - if i do something I don't like on the other hand I do get stressed & so does my crohn's. What really appeals to me in terms of medicine is the interaction with patients - again here this is mainly because I've seen a lot because I've been sick alot! (sometimes I think I've seen more than the average med school graduate) Also the challenge of piecing together a diagnosis & following the patients disease/recovery. I'll also willingly read medical articles and get involved with patient support groups etc. when I’m at my sickest with no effort/struggle on my part.

I do love the science aspects as well hence the consideration of biomed - basically I'm considering this if my health is going to get in the way it may be an easier option - However theres no patient interaction - and the more I think about it thats what I really like - patient and disease - whereas I may only get the disease aspect in biomed. Would this form of a career sound like it would be satisfying as a 2nd place replacement for medicine?

Another idea I have is to do graduate medicine - and If after I find it taxing health wise I could always go & do a msc in biomed & follow on from there? I’m also toying with the idea of doing a msc in science communication in september – as an ease back into college & study – I’ve looked into it & its not too intense & would allow me time to study for the gamsat – Or should I start a biomedical science course & start study for the gamsat & if that doesn’t work out at least I can follow on the biomed course direction?

Also are there some specialities within medicine which well to put it bluntly are easier in terms of working hours, physical work etc - (not to imply anyone is dossing!) i.e. go on to be a g.p & work part time? Also is there flexi training for junior doctors here - ie train less than full time?

Any advice at all here would be much appreciated

Thanks

jen_23

Hi Wild-swan!

It sounds like you have put an awful lot of thought into this.
You have to consider though that with the medicine route when you are in your intern year you will be working round the clock every hour that they give you.
I was looking into doing this myself not so long ago and a few things that out me off were your 5 years by the time you have finished (inc your intern year) and then up to 7/8 (I can't remember precisely) years training for the exact specialty you want to go into (it is less for GP though).

But as you said it is patient interaction which is obviously the most important for you.

Biomed then the hours would be more regular. You would atleast have a routine. I work in a lab (not biomed - research) and it can be stressful sometimes but I never get bored with it:)

Do you aready have a science based degree? Another option for you might be to do a research PHD? You could try to get one specifically researching diseases such as crohns disease which might be of interest to you?

It does sound to me thought that you have your heart set on medicine. I find that when you really want to do something you always have a way of working around a situation to make it happen.

The best of Luck with whatever you decide to do.

drzhivago

jen_23 wrote: »

Hi Wild-swan!

It sounds like you have put an awful lot of thought into this.
You have to consider though that with the medicine route when you are in your intern year you will be working round the clock every hour that they give you.
I was looking into doing this myself not so long ago and a few things that out me off were your 5 years by the time you have finished (inc your intern year) and then up to 7/8 (I can't remember precisely) years training for the exact specialty you want to go into (it is less for GP though).

But as you said it is patient interaction which is obviously the most important for you.

Biomed then the hours would be more regular. You would atleast have a routine. I work in a lab (not biomed - research) and it can be stressful sometimes but I never get bored with it:)

Do you aready have a science based degree? Another option for you might be to do a research PHD? You could try to get one specifically researching diseases such as crohns disease which might be of interest to you?

It does sound to me thought that you have your heart set on medicine. I find that when you really want to do something you always have a way of working around a situation to make it happen.

The best of Luck with whatever you decide to do.

working hours changing dramatically so dont let that put you off medicine

from the original post the ongest you had without bad flare up is 5 months that might make the college part of the medical course difficult, exams are a relatively fixed animal dates wise but not insurmountable

6 years in college, a bit longer than other courses but again more time to learn about your own disease and get a routine before you enter the working world

Dont worry about the time it takes to specialise in a field because when you find the right one you will be working in it anyway so best of luck dont let the disease put you off medicine, there are ways of working that bit out

tallaght01

I did both Biomed + Medicine.


Medicine was much harder. But it will open more doors for you. Having said that, it's not all it's cracked up to be as a career, and I think people have a very idealistic view of it that, in my opinion, bears very little resemblance to the reality of the job.

I wouldn't like to have done it with Crohns disease.

But if you were just going to get the medical degree, and not do your internship, then as a simple undergrad degree, medicine is highly thought of, and can get you places.

If you really want patient contact, you could do a less physically demanding clinical job, like speech therapy or physio. Much better hours and a lot less stress.

DrIndy

sound advice from Tallaght01.

Purely from you potentially working in the Irish Health Service - the hospital will be very, very unsympathetic to you regarding your medical condition - this is why they make female doctors do on call (36 hour continuous shift - lets not delude ourselves we ever get proper sleep) right up until they are about to take maternity leave (which is disgracefully short in ireland IMHO). They will not pay any heed to the fact you will need time off at certain times.

Working in other countries though would allow you to train flexi-time or half-time should you need it and would be more supportive (I was absolutely gobsmacked in Oz about how helpful the medical admin are here!!!).

Certain fields are more regulated with set hours such as pathology, microbiology, GP and dermatology - but they may not suit your interest (although in fairness - you can specialise in GP and do whatever the hell you want nowadays and run all sorts of special interest clinics).

Are there barriers? Yes. Will it be difficult? Yes. Will this realistically stop you if you have the will to do so? NO!

But as Tallaght01 said - don't ignore the allied health disciplines - those are the disciplines that truly make long term gain and allow you to really work with people to make them better in ways medicine can never allow you to.

Tree

my two cents, doing biomed science, love it. Full of the wonders of science, and if you dont like it (i know a number of folks who didnt after the placement) you can go on to work in labs in different disciplines in industry. There's also the route of doing post-grad medicine after the biomed degree. I would recommend the biomed science as a good all round science degree, there's elements of pathology and clinical biochemistry and haematology that would be relevant to a subsequent medical degree.

Personally the idea of constant patient contact is horrifying, being nice to the odd sick acquaintance is tough enough, doing it all day every day would be impossible for me, working in the service industry has me turned off ppl for life i'd say.

brozio

If you decided to go down the biomed road don't forget to consider Maynooth, I did the biomed course there and really liked it. The classes are quite small and im sure the lecturers would be very understanding if you got sick. The course also has alot of immunology in it which would be useful if you wanted to look into doing research into crohn's disease further down the line.
Best of luck

Tree

Didnt know they ran a biomedscience course in maynooth. is it recognised by the amls?

Gazza22

Tree wrote: »

Didnt know they ran a biomedscience course in maynooth. is it recognised by the amls?

I didn't know there was a Biomed option at Maynooth either. From looking at the course structure i'd imagine the course material would be accepted by the acedemy but ultimately a graduate would not be eligable for academy memership since there is no clinical placement, similar to the UCD course.

I'd imagine a graduate of Maynooth could try secure a placement in the UK and then possibly apply to the acedemy stating their case! DIT and i think GMIT in the past offered a post grad placement but as you know this doesn't happen anymore. Look after our own, as such.

haemfire

The only biomedical science courses recognised by the AMLS is GMIT, DIT and CIT, You will be unemployable at the end of any other biomedical science degree, and you are just as eligible to do graduate medicine here and abroad in you graduate from GMIT, DIT and CIT, you have absolutely no advantages whatsoever by doiung a uni biomedical science degree

tallaght01

haemfire wrote: »

You will be unemployable at the end of any other biomedical science degree,

only if you want to work as a hospital lab technician.

haemfire

name a single job you can get from a Uni biomed degree,

sunnyjim

tallaght01 wrote: »

only if you want to work as a hospital lab technician.

Someone else will probably correct me, but... AFAIK a hospital lab techie doesn't need a full honours degree, or accreditation by AMLS. To be a Med Lab Scientiest however, you'll need a degree from 1 of the big 3 or your standard uni degree, experience and be recognised by AMLS.

tallaght01

haemfire wrote: »

name a single job you can get from a Uni biomed degree,

My 4 best mates from uni where I did biomed.....

1 went straight to analysing water samples for pathogens with a water company. He's now doing a PhD.

1 worked in the uni as a lab tech. She did her PhD, and is now a lecturer.

1 went to work in an hospital haematology lab.

1 got into the graduate scheme for one of the big accounting firms, and is now an accountant.

Only the minority of my class went into hospital work. Lots went to work for drug companies, or did further study.

Tree

ucc's biomed programme was/is run in conjunction w/ CIT. met a good friend of mine in the hospitals while i was doing the midprogramme cit placement and she was doing the post degree ucc one. afaik places were preferentially given to cit students, and then to ucc lads.

eth0_

haemfire wrote: »

name a single job you can get from a Uni biomed degree,

I know two biomed grads.
One works for the NHS blood bank as a BMS. The other did a PhD and teaches biomed in uni.

Yillan

If I can, I'd like to hijack this thread as it refers to the Biomed IT v Uni Debate. What are the major differences between the DIT BioMed and the NUIG BioMed? There doesn't seem to be any anatomy or pharmacology in the DIT degree, is this true?

I'm leaning towards the degree in DIT. Would this limit me as regards further study, if I choose to do something like regenerative medicine or cancer biology? People on this thread have suggested that a person can get a job in a medical lab even without AMLS membership, so there wouldn't be much of an advantage in doing the DIT degree if that was my sole aim. If I was looking to do graduate medicine, wouldn't the NUIG degree fit better as I'll already have done some of the major subjects. Is the DIT degree a little restrictive by comparison?

Any advice would be great thanks.

haemfire

Yillan wrote: »

If I can, I'd like to hijack this thread as it refers to the Biomed IT v Uni Debate. What are the major differences between the DIT BioMed and the NUIG BioMed? There doesn't seem to be any anatomy or pharmacology in the DIT degree, is this true?

I'm leaning towards the degree in DIT. Would this limit me as regards further study, if I choose to do something like regenerative medicine or cancer biology? People on this thread have suggested that a person can get a job in a medical lab even without AMLS membership, so there wouldn't be much of an advantage in doing the DIT degree if that was my sole aim. If I was looking to do graduate medicine, wouldn't the NUIG degree fit better as I'll already have done some of the major subjects. Is the DIT degree a little restrictive by comparison?

Any advice would be great thanks.

no there is no pharmacology or anatomy in dit biomed, but on the other side you have alot of very relavent subjects that a uni biomed degree doesnt have such as clin chem, haematology, blood, trans,cellular pathology and medical micro, a degree from dit would be extremely yseful for research even moreso than a biomed degree from nuig, if you do biomed in a uni you will have to do something else afterwards, in order to get amls trainee program if you have another degree you would have to be extremely lucky, many graduates start from 1st year in med lab after they relaise it will take them years to get a trainee program, uni biomeds go back to do biomed in its after they graduate, if your goal is to get grad med i;d say do any course that you can get a 2.1 in and worry about the gamsat later

Yillan

Exactly what I was looking for. Thanks a lot haemfire

haemfire

btw why are you considering dit biomed and not med sci in gmit? when ur considering biomed in nuig

Yillan

I'm from Galway, but I was under the impression that the course in DIT had a better reputation. Which is the better course? Staying Galway doesn't really appeal. Likewise GMIT is more of an 'IT' than DIT is if you catch my drift. It's probably not the right attitude to have to ITs. Should I look to broaden my horizons?

Yillan

I just read here that BioMed in DIT is 5 years, but this is wrong yes?

Also if some of that article is to be believed, the placement in GMIT is only 6 months, whereas the course in DIT is an entire year

Gazza22

Yillan wrote: »

I'm from Galway, but I was under the impression that the course in DIT had a better reputation.

Yeah it is highly regarded.

Yillan wrote: »

I just read here that BioMed in DIT is 5 years, but this is wrong yes?

It used to be 5 years but for the year beginning 07/08 it was reduced to 4. The course structure was shuffled a bit e.g biochemistry added to first year etc. Some argue the course has become a lot tougher since it was reduced to 4 years.

Tree

Correction to haemfire: the dit course does involve a part module on pharmacology, there is also one and a third module's worth of pathophysiology.

I did three years in CIT, commenced the UCC part (under the five year old school regime, you had to complete your CIT degree in ucc/cit or in dit) and found it not ot my liking, and moved to DIT where I am just finished fourth year. Personally I preferred CIT to all options, though that may be my bias as a cork woman.

Jaafa

Sorry to dig up an ancient thread but had a few questions relating to this topic.

I'm currently about to start biomed in UCD. Now a few people here have been saying that its a disadvantage to do Uni Biomed v IT Biomed. Is this still the case?

Basically I have two options that I may do when I'm finished the course.

1.Grad med
2.Further study (master's etc) with the aim of going into medical research.

Am I at a disadvantage for either of these seeing as I'm in a Uni? And if so is there a way around it?

Also I hear that many of the Med modules will be covered in Biomed so if I do Gradmed I can get an exemption. Does this make the course much easier?

Thanks.

Buttons_sb

Sorry about bumping up this thread again aswell, but I have similar questions.

Just finished my arts degree but always knew I should have transferred to science as thats what I plan on doing now! If you do bio med science as a postgrad will that still open the doors to study medicine or further study in science itself even though it is a postgrad?
Appreciate any advice as I have very little knowledge about postgrads etc!