How is life as a doctor in Singapore?

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Does MOHH pay for their junior doctors to do MRCP in Singapore? How is that different from MMED?

If you are a resident exam fees are sponsored for first try.

As a resident you can apply conjoint mmed(internal med) with mrcp.
Essentially the exam is the same mrcp in singapore. But they give you a free mmed.

Alternatively you can go uk to do mrcp. Then it is just an mrcp (uk) no free mmed
As for whether is uk mrcp easier or singapore mrcp easier, really depends. Some say local profs more anal. But in uk, you need to be familar with their local diseases like porphyrias, cystic fibrosis which is unheard of in singapore.

In all honesty will someone please clarify what will happen to doctors in Singapore when in the next few years a massive oversupply of doctors becomes a reality like what some countries are already experiencing.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

In all honesty will someone please clarify what will happen to doctors in Singapore when in the next few years a massive oversupply of doctors becomes a reality like what some countries are already experiencing.

Do not worry. The prospect is non inferior to law.

For example, on the govt side, the HO starting start has seen a healthy increase from 3600 (in 2013) to 3650 (2018).
While wages for a starting lawyer NPQ has decreased or stagnated.

Generally within the govt sector, the expected trajectory is RP. Which can fetch about 6-8k, which is about the same as a lawyer who moves in house
For GP locums wise the rate has somewhat decreased from average 90-110 to 70-90 per hour.
Market pricing is subjected to seasonal shift and doctor pay must reflect fundamentals. Today pricing is an appropriate correction to the underlying fundamentals.

If you are considering between law or medicine, i would say medicine is non inferior. Not superior, but non inferior.

For superior returns, really in this day and age, a university degree does not guarantee success.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

s://.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/moh-cuts-overseas-medical-schools-approved-for-practise-in-11459004

"That is because you have fallen prey to the story sold by MOHH and MOH. The story is that there has been (and continues to be) a shortage of doctors relative to the absolute population and specific sub-population (in our case, the ageing population). In other words, when the other 2 (LKC and Duke NUS) medical schools were opened, the narrative was that more doctors needed to be churned out to meet this need.

That story is not untrue. However, the bigger and more unsettling problem is that of structural unemployment. During the time when the 2 new medical schools were training their student-doctors, MOH and MOHH brought in a bevy of foreign trained consultant doctors (UK, India, Philippines etc). Unfortunately, this move coincided with the implementation of the Residency System which has been widely recognized locally as a monumental failure.

The situation today is as such: We have too few vacant Consultancy positions and way too many junior Residents. Doctors who are in their 4th or 5th year of Residency who should be looking forward to a Consultancy when they "exit" their training programmes are instead offered peace-keeping titles such as "Senior Service Registrar" or "Resident Physician". These are dead-end positions. Most, if not all will never make it to Consultancy, until the position is vacant, and no other junior Residents (R4/R5) are groomed for it.

So, what do Junior Doctors do in this messy situation? They leave to the Private Sector. Most will locum or be GPs. Some will do diplomas in aesthetic medicine and become aesthetic physicians. Some will become medical officers in the private hospitals. Some will train overseas (yes, train. Because the local Residency is not recognised anywhere else, not even in the United States which inspired it's development). Some will do something else (e.g. Public Health, Medical Ethics, Medical Law).

All of this exacerbates the "shortage" perceived by Singaporeans in the A&Es (long waiting times), Specialist Outpatient Clinics (long waiting times...), and woefully misleading or incomplete articles such as the ones you linked above."

is this accurate?

all of my friends who secured a residency spot eventually exited to become an Associate Consultant

[QUOTE=Unregistered;119918]

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Don't have to work 55 hrs a week. Locum rates r about S$85-90 per hr on average now so about 44 hrs a week]

Do any of you know anyone who purely locums for a living?
The flexible lifestyle sounds enticing, but I can't imagine how that would provide a steady stream of income as working hours are on an adhoc basis.

I have been a FT locum for the last 10 years. Can find regular slots or adhoc slots fairly easily. Average pay S$130k per annum. Reached S$150k once but last year worked less so only S$92k. Much easier to take leave since it is no pay leave.

I am the above poster. I work 30 hrs a week only and can earn more than S$10k a mth now.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

I am the above poster. I work 30 hrs a week only and can earn more than S$10k a mth now.

Now i know why people shun locums at clinics 🤷*♂️

for males be doctor the best is to be gynecologist ... on top of good pay everyday still can see naked women for free ..... currently a undergrad studying medicine and is intending to specialize in gynecologist ..... the perks is limitless with lifetime of good $$ plus naked bodies to see .... sure will not get burnout even if long hours.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Now i know why people shun locums at clinics 🤷*♂️

We r paid hrly so doesn't mean we charge patients more to earn more.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

for males be doctor the best is to be gynecologist ... on top of good pay everyday still can see naked women for free ..... currently a undergrad studying medicine and is intending to specialize in gynecologist ..... the perks is limitless with lifetime of good $$ plus naked bodies to see .... sure will not get burnout even if long hours.

Patients do not see a doctor unless they are unwell (except maybe for Pap smear), so trust me when I say that it is actually pretty unpleasant down there (both males and females) when they are unwell.

Sometimes the odour can be so overwhelming that my stomach retches. The odour remains in the examining room even when the patient has left. The face masks helps to reduce the odour, but does not get rid of it entirely.