Doctors' pay

@civil servant: thanks alot for the info. was initially under the impression that majority of their pay is based on surgeries. cheers!

Sir,
I was wondering how much experience do u require before working as Consultant in Anaesthesia? I have 6 years experience in Anaesthesia out of which 4 years is in Ireland in top hospitals

Thanks,
Praveen

For an applicant who wishes to practise as a specialist in Singapore, he must first obtain specialist accreditation from the Specialists Accreditation Board (SAB). The application form for specialist accreditation may be downloaded from the website: http://www.hpp.moh.gov.sg/SAB/SAB_Home.html.

Upon obtaining a Specialist Accreditation certificate from the SAB, the doctor is required to register his name in the Register of Specialists with the Singapore Medical Council before he is allowed to practise as a specialist in his field of specialty. The application form for specialist registration may be downloaded from the website under 'Download Forms'. A one-time fee of SGD$500 is applicable for specialist registration.

Doctors applying for specialist registration must register at least 1 registrable postgraduate qualification into the Register for Medical Practitioners. Please refer to FAQs on Medical Registration for details on the procedure for application for registration of registrable post-graduate qualifications.

what will be the pay scale for an mbbs doctor with 7yrs exp in singapore general hospital adn will i get a housing allowance

Well MO can get 3.5k to 6k so if u no post grad qualification, then should be around there.
http://www.physician.mohh.com.sg/career.html

[bjhchong]

Are we missing out something here?

We are only focusing on the $ part of the job. From what I understand, doctors typically endured a long tedious practical training phase (during which they have no life & suffers miserable pay) before they are eligible to be a GP. A GP typically earns quite like a typical professional salary. A GP inspired to be a specialist has to take up further studies (typical > 3 years, & more practical training), at their own time & expense...

Yes, a doctor earns a lot... thing is: is that the life you want to live? Or should I put it this way: Is it your passion?

[Husky]

Just to add on to what bjhchong has mentioned. End of the day, being a doctor is just like being any other professional. You toil like a dog for a few thousand dollars. In terms of pay/work ratio, you will be much better off being say an auditor. My friends in accounting/finance are all earning more money than my doctor friends.

If we were to talk about GPs running their own clinics. It's just like setting up any other business. Of course, the chances of success is somewhat higher given that people will always need medical care and the formula seems easy. But I have heard of clinics losing money before simply cos there are too many competitors nearby etc.

As a pharmacist by training, there are times when I wondered if I should have studied medicine and became a doctor instead. (and yes, people ask me the same question very often) Everytime I look at my doctor friends slogging their lives away, I am glad I didn't sign up for medicine.

[quek]

Originally Posted by Husky

Just to add on to what bjhchong has mentioned. End of the day, being a doctor is just like being any other professional. You toil like a dog for a few thousand dollars. In terms of pay/work ratio, you will be much better off being say an auditor. My friends in accounting/finance are all earning more money than my doctor friends.

Not quite. Doctors are well respected and enjoy a comparatively higher perceived social status than other professions. Doctors save lives or at least give a better quality of life to patients. They get respectable salaries too.

As for slogging part, it's debatable. I know of friends in IT who frequently have to work feverishly in cold data centres for long hours, sometimes overnight, especially when there's a project roll out or major bug fix. And they don't get paid a lot.

[Husky]

Originally Posted by adbie

Not quite. Doctors are well respected and enjoy a comparatively higher perceived social status than other professions. Doctors save lives or at least give a better quality of life to patients. They get respectable salaries too.

I mean the same in the context of clocking your hours and getting a pay at the end of the month. Intangibles like social status are very hard to measure. Besides, not every doctor is the ethical healthcare professional you expect he/she to be.

Originally Posted by adbie

As for slogging part, it's debatable. I know of friends in IT who frequently have to work feverishly in cold data centres for long hours, sometimes overnight, especially when there's a project roll out or major bug fix. And they don't get paid a lot.

Yes. It's debatable. How much should we pay for someone to save your life? To endure the mental stress knowing he/she might kill you if he/she makes a mistake?

Specialist doctors earn A LOT. Just in today's Business Times (weekend edition), the house of Dr CC Lau is featured. The Ear Nose Throat specialist's house at Holland Road is scarily HUGE, with a saltwater swimming pool to boot. You should see the pictures of its facade.

I heard oncologists, heart surgeons and paediatricians in private practice, among others, are also just as wealthy, if not wealthier.

That's why I say to smart kids - go be a doctor if you have the inclination, but aim high. Aim to be a specialist and plan to go into private practice.

As an aside, I find something that tickled me in the article:

... Lau, who is a strong advocate for alternative sources of energy. He adds, "We shouldn't be killing the Earth and should build more houses with this in mind. We try not to use air-conditioning, and we have stopped using hot water for bathing unless it is a cold and rainy day - it saves a lot of energy. If everybody in Singapore would stop using hot water to bathe on hot days, think of the amount of energy we could save."

Call me sarcastic or rich-envy or whatever, but I always think: wouldn't it be better if these rich people stop being such pretentious hypocrites. We all know THEY are the energy guzzlers. One less bungalow and one less lambo would probably provide for hot water showers and air-conditioning in an entire HDB block.

Ok, I'm exaggerating, but Lau reminds me of Al Gore, who is the other funnyman who produced a save-the-earth docu-movie but privately owns a gigantic energy-sapping mansion that consumes 20 times more electricity than the average American. See Al Gore, Hypocrite? (read beyond the urban legend part)