What is a surgeon?
“In surgery, there’s always stress, and you have to be prepared for it,” says Dr. Maria Simeono, who led a team of surgeons in a 22-hour face replacement procedure in 2008. Bullet victim Connie Culp’s nearly full face transplant was the first surgery of its kind in the United States. Simeono says he subconsciously thought about the patient’s family and the rescue plan if the surgery was to go badly. “We were working towards an unknown outcome,” he says.
But after the donor’s facial arteries and veins connected with Culp’s own, the new face turned “pink” — a sign to the transplant team that the surgery had worked. It was an important moment.
Prospective surgeons must understand the cost of the work they do, but a sense of humor may also be a necessary trait. When asked what first drew him to microsurgery — a surgical specialty that requires the use of a surgical microscope — Simeono gives a two-pronged answer that shows both his seriousness and his sense of humor. First, it’s a good place to learn a lot. If one has mastered suturing and suturing veins and arteries under magnification, one is skilled enough to suture and suture larger arteries and veins that do not require a microscope. Second, it was fun. “When I was finishing med school, it was a popular field—it was usually an interesting job at the time,” he says. “Nowadays, people are talking about in vitro fertilization and stem cell treatments – which is interesting now. [Back then,] “If you were interested in surgery, you did microsurgery.”
The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects employment growth of 2.8 percent for surgeons between 2020 and 2030. During that period, an estimated 1,200 jobs will be lost.
How much does a surgeon earn?
How to become a surgeon?
1. Get a bachelor’s degree. Most surgeons begin their careers with excellent grades in their undergraduate studies. Several prerequisite courses are required to apply to medical school, such as chemistry and biology.
2. Take the medical college entrance exam. High scores on the MCAT are required for admission to medical school.
3. Excel in medical school. Medical school is usually completed in four years. The curriculum includes clinical rotations in addition to traditional courses and time spent in the laboratory. Surgical residency courses can be competitive, so success in medical school is important.
4. Undergo surgery residency. After completing medical school, you will complete three to seven years of residency training.
5. Passing the license test. Graduates who want to practice medicine in the United States must first pass a licensing exam. Medical graduates with MD degrees Take the US Medical Licensing Examination and DO holders take the Comprehensive Osteopathic Medical Licensing Examination. All states require surgeons to be licensed, although specific requirements vary.
If surgeons want to specialize further, they must apply for fellowships, which are usually very competitive and time-consuming.
Job Satisfaction
The average American works well into their 60s, so workers may have an enjoyable and fulfilling career. A job with a low stress level, good work-life balance, and strong prospects for improvement, promotion, and higher pay make many employees happy. Here’s how surgeons Job satisfaction is rated in terms of upward mobility, stress level and flexibility.