Days in the Life of a Doctor

I think most people still have that engraven image of the wealthy doctor in their minds. Of course, there will be some who are wealthy, because of long, stable medical practice or they were born into wealthy families or they have businesses. But how about the rest of the doctors who, after graduation from medical school, will have to continue to struggle to provide for their own needs, who could not ask money from their burdened parents anymore for payment for clinic slots in big hospitals and who, because of the lack of monetary resources, will have to settle with working (“moonlighting”) temporarily in multiple hospitals? Manageable, if you’re unmarried. But, what if you’re a family man?

Here’s a glimpse at the life of a doctor, from an article by Dr. Henry Delgado, posted at the pinoyMD mailing list:

Doctors in the country have different lifestyles. They are in a kind of living according to where they started. Some were very fortunate to have wealthy supportive parents. They could afford a residency in a hospital which would give a $250 per month stipend, some $170 per month, some as low as less than $100. But still they could use cars, eat in reputable restaurants, take a leave and have an out-of-town vacation, have family and kids with nannies, a decent kind of living. No struggle at all. After the training program, there’s a condo clinic waiting, stocks (worth millions) in one of the biggest hospital in Metro therefore, privileges of practice; by that time his kids are going to school and can still afford their tuitions, books, and uniforms. Their problem starts on how to maintain that lifestyle.

Others were less fortunate. After med school, parents could only afford to give some cash to start. With same salaries, they ride jeepneys, get wet during rainy days; eat in a neighborhood carinderia, during paydays, sometimes McDonald’s or Jollibee; live in a humble apartment with an electric fan beside when sleeping. This is albeit easy when single. But if with family, ask milk samples from med-reps or his baby, store drug samples just in case someone gets sick, hop for bargain sales of clothes and wear at SM, if nanny is not feasible wife stays at home, and the doctor earns their living. They struggle everyday for survival. No savings at all. If baby gets seriously sick, even with a free PF, hospitalization entails debt. He can use credit cards if he have, or borrow from friends and folks, or make loans in SSS or GSIS. By the time he finishes his 3-year program, he is debt -ridden, no hospital to start to, no clinic privileges. To start a practice, he figures out that he needs at least $7,000 for hospital stocks, roughly $500 for repairs and finishing of his clinic, $300 for government dues and permits and certain kind of amount for other miscellaneous. And he just came from a $250 per month salary for 3 years. And his kid will
start schooling.

Others are above this level. Wife also works and earns higher than is. Of course, lifestyle would change. They could afford a car but the wife would use it, the doctor would commute. They eat in a reputable restaurant, the wife pays the bill. They could afford a housing loan but under the name of his wife because she pays the monthly amortization. The doctor is in-charge of the monthly utilities. They go shopping, the wife buys for his clothes and for their kid. He has credit card but an extension of his wife’s so she could monitor his shopping. His kid would not approach him to ask money because his kid knows that his dad has none. After his residency program, he has no money to start with. No more salary, so he asks “temporary allowance” from his wife. And suddenly the doctor became a burden, so situation becomes annoying to his wife. He would start on HMOs which would give him hardly $200 per month, enough only for his everyday gas for his 10-year-old car and lunch.

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