What is a Doctor?
A doctor is someone who maintains or restores human health through the practice of medicine. He or she faces the challenge of diagnosing and treating human disease, ailments, injuries, pain or other conditions. This is done by listening to the patient, understanding the problem, and then using their scientific expertise to know how best to treat the ailment or concern. There is a specific type of doctor for almost every major system located in the human body.
A doctor can be found in several settings, including public health organizations, teaching facilities, private practices, group practices and hospitals. They have some of the most diverse and challenging careers available and are part of a universally well-respected profession.
What does a Doctor do?
A doctor's schedule will differ depending on the kind of medicine they practice. There are typically three categories of doctors:
Doctors that work in hospitals
Approximately half of doctors work in a hospital setting, either as a surgeon or as a specialized doctor. There are many medical specialties to choose from (at least thirty) and within these specialties, there are many sub-specialties. For example, a medical student can choose to become a neurosurgeon and then within this become a sub-specialist in pediatric neurosurgery.
Doctors that work within a community
The other half or so of medical students will end up becoming general practitioners - seeing patients of all ages within a particular community. They are the frontline and first point of contact in a patient's health care. They diagnose and treat their patients for all sorts of ailments, and also refer their patients to the appropriate specialist doctor when needed for specific medical opinions and advice. There are other types of doctors who can also work within a community, such as those who work in paediatrics, obstetrics, and sexual health.
Others
There are medical students who prefer to take a different path and pursue a career in academia. This involves doing research as well as teaching other students and medical professionals. Other students may use their medical degree to delve very deeply into research-based careers in a particular field that interests them - breast cancer, neurological disorders, or environmental pathology are examples.
Being a doctor, like any other career, has its pros and cons:
Pros
Helping People
Respect in Society
Job Opportunities
Various Career Paths
Monetary Benefits
Ability To Help In Areas Of Need
Cons
Long Course Duration
High Fees For Schooling
Continuing Education Needed
Long Working Hours
Responsibility
Lawsuits
Stress & Burnout
Ultimately, a doctor strives to be a cohesive person that tries to help other people by being caring, knowledgeable, understanding, prepared, and ready to give his or her best - not always able to save lives however able to make them as good as possible.
What is the workplace of a Doctor like?
There are many workplaces available for doctors. Some start working at an existing practice while others open their own practice. Large hospitals are always eager to take on new staff members. It is believed that a lot depends on personal preference as the environment in each place will be different (i.e. a government hospital vs. a private hospital).
A doctor typically works very long hours and has to be available for emergencies. These hours are spent seeing patients in an office-based setting, running tests as well as interpreting them, prescribing medicine or treatments, doing rounds in the hospital, making notes on patient's physical conditions, advising patients on how to stay healthy and talking to them about further treatment. They keep up to date by taking classes and regularly reading books and medical journals.
A doctor that also performs surgeries will usually work two or three full days in the office and then two or three days in the hospital operating room performing surgeries. Doctors will also invest time completing administrative duties such as updating patient records, returning phone calls or dealing with various office issues.
Are Pharmacists doctors?
A pharmacist has a doctorate degree - a PharmD, or Doctor of Pharmacy. Many professions require a doctorate degree (for example, a professor, a phsychologist, etc). However, they are not "doctors" like your medical doctors are. For example, while in a crowded airplane flight, someone yells out "is there a doctor in the house?" would or should a PharmD stand up and approach in the affirmative? Probably not. Clearly here they are referring to a physician that has completed medical school and can take charge in a medical emergency.
Different Kinds of Doctors from A to Z
There are different types of doctors according to their specialties. There are doctors for heart problems, ENT problems and for bone and muscle problems to name a few. Having a proper knowledge of these different specialty areas of doctors will be quite useful when you need to make a visit to the doctor for a particular illness. Certain designations for doctors are common. These include general practitioner who is a neighborhood doctor and provides medicines for almost any ailment, and trauma doctors who offer medical aid in emergency rooms. Below is a list of some medical professionals.
Types of Doctors from A to Z
Audiologist - This is a doctor who handles problems with hearing. These doctors also help hearing impaired children learn to communicate.
Allergist - This is a doctor who helps with allergies. Any allergies you may have, such as, hay fever or asthma, will be checked out by this doctor.
Andrologists - An andrologist is a specialist doctor that helps in diagnosing and treating male reproductive system disorders.
Anesthesiologist - This is the doctor that helps you to sleep through painful operations and medical diagnoses. They are responsible for administering the anesthesia and are present during surgeries to help in complications arising from anesthesia medications.
Cardiologist - A cardiologist is certified to treat any problem dealing with heart diseases and cardiovascular diseases.
Cardiovascular Surgeon - This doctor carries out surgical and invasive techniques dealing with cardiovascular diseases.
Clinical Neurophysiologist - This is a doctor that diagnoses any problem dealing with the central, peripheral and autonomic nervous system with the aid of electrophysiological tests.
Dentist - Any dental problem from tooth decay to dentures to retainers are handled by a dentist. They also treat any gum diseases and oral defects.
Dermatologist - This is a doctor that treats any ailment related to the skin and its appendages such as hair, nails, etc.
Emergency Doctors- When talking about types of doctors, these are doctors who handle trauma and emergency conditions in the Emergency room (ER) and are available at all times. Emergencies treated may vary from poisoning to broken bones, burns, heart attack concussions, accident trauma etc.
Endocrinologist - Thyroid problems, hormone problems or any problems with the endocrine system is handled by an endocrinologist.
Epidemiologists - This is a doctor who specializes in epidemic illnesses which are highly viral. They are more of scientists who identify new diseases, virus mutations and develop cures and modes of prevention of diseases with vaccinations, etc.
ENT Specialist - This doctor treats problems with the ear, nose and throat. An ENT surgeon would be a specialist who will be performing surgeries on these parts of the anatomy.
Family Practitioner - A family physician is the neighborhood doctor who is general physician treating illnesses and medical issues of all sorts, at all ages & medical non-emergency conditions. If the condition is serious, they will refer to a specialist relevant to the field of the illness.
Gastroenterologist - A doctor for illnesses related todigestive system including the common problem of gastritis and acid reflux.
Gynecologist - Any problems with the female reproductive system is referred to and treated by a gynecologist.
General Psychiatrist - Any person with mental illnesses such as schizophrenia, depression and anxiety problems is treated by the general psychiatrist.
Hematologist - Blood and its diseases are studied by a hematologist.
Hepatologists - This doctor is responsible for diagnosing and treating diseases of the liver.
Immunologist - This is a doctor responsible for studying everything about the immune system and treats any diseases related.
Infectious Disease Specialist - An IDS studies and treats diseases caused by viruses, bacteria, fungi, parasites and will identify outbreaks of epidemics and pandemic situations.
Internal Medicine Specialists - These doctors are responsible for diagnosing any illnesses and managing them with nonsurgical treatment. These are usually unusual or serious diseases.
Internists - These doctors focus on medicines related to adults and have special expertise in the areas related to the prevention and treatment of adult diseases.
Medical Geneticist - A doctor who is responsible for testing, identifying and treating patients with genetic diseases and disorders.
Microbiologist - A microbiologist is a doctor who studies the causes, diagnosis and treatment of infectious diseases where microbes are involved.
Neonatologist - A doctor for new-born babies, premature or critically ill babies.
Nephrologists - This is a specialist doctor that treats kidney diseases and renal problems with treatments such as dialysis.
Neurologist - This doctor studies various brain disorders, such as Parkinson's disease and Alzheimer's disease.
Neurosurgeons - These are the specialist doctors who carry out surgeries on central and peripheral nervous system diseases and the brain.
Obstetrician - This is a sub specialization in the gynecological field of study and handles various aspects of the female reproductive system, such as childbirth, caesareans etc.
Oncologist - An oncologist is a specialist physician that diagnoses and treats cancer patients with drugs, chemotherapy, radiation and when needed, surgical interventions.
Ophthalmologist - This is a doctor that treats eyes and various eye defects, blindness and performs different eye surgeries.
Orthopedic Surgeon - If you suffer from arthritis and osteoporosis and other bone related illnesses, or broken bones, an orthopedic surgeon needs to be consulted.
Orthopedist - Broken bones from falls or osteoporosis is treated by an orthopedist.
Primatologist - If someone is having a high risk of pregnancy, this is the doctor who should be consulted for special care and treatment.
Pale pathologist - A doctor that studies ancient diseases.
Parasitologist - A doctor that is responsible for study of parasites, their pathology and parasitic diseases and treatment of these diseases.
Pathologists - Specialist scientists who are doctors that study abnormalities in living organisms and study DNA, tissue, blood and other various human and animal cells. They are also responsible for performing autopsies on dead bodies to determine the cause of death.
Pediatrician - This is a doctor who treats children for any illness from birth to adolescent.
Plastic Surgeon - If you are not happy with how you look, a plastic surgeon can change your appearance by performing cosmetic surgery on you.
Physiologists - A physiologist is a life science doctor who specializes in physiology and help rehabilitate.
Physiatrist - The doctor whose specialty is medicine and rehabilitation of the body and muscles.
Plastic Surgeon - A plastic surgeon is a doctor that can transplant skin, muscles or change the structure of a face or other body parts for cosmetic and reconstructive purposes.
Podiatrists - This is a specialist doctor who treats disorders of the foot and ankle.
Psychiatrists - These doctors specialize in mental illnesses and will study, diagnoses and counsel and treat mental illnesses such as Bipolar, dementia, depression, Alzheimer's, etc.
Pulmonologist - A doctor who is responsible for diagnosing and treats lung conditions and treating or managing critical care patients admitted in the ICU with ventilator support.
Radiologists - A doctor who specializes in use of X-rays or other imaging technologies in order to diagnose various illnesses.
Reproductive Endocrinologist - This doctor treats various reproductive problems that include sexual disorders and infertility problems etc.
Rheumatologist - A physician is responsible forhandling autoimmune disorders and allergic conditions.
Surgeon - A surgeon is a doctor that specializes in surgical operations and will have their own specialties such as orthopedic, ENT, brain, nuro, cardiovascular, maxillo-facial surgery, plastic surgery, and transplant surgery.
Thoracic Oncologist - This doctor deals with cancer of the lungs, esophagus and chest.
Urologist - Any urinary problems and urinary tract infections are treated by an urologist.
Veterinarian - While other doctors are responsible for treating humans, the veterinarians are responsible for the treatment of sick animals.
Apart from these main types of doctors, there are other lesser known specialization areas for doctors. However, having a proper knowledge of these common types of physicians is a good starting point.