emDocs - December 23, 2016 - Authors: Long B, Koyfman A and Robertson J
..."The decision to practice academic or community practice can be a difficult one to make, as there are perks and drawbacks in both settings. This post will evaluate the road to academic emergency medicine, the positives and negatives, and provide tips for success. However, before we start, we need to understand the difference between academic and community EM...
There are many pitfalls in academics. These include not enough protection from other duties (working too many clinical shifts with the expectation for academic productivity), not enough training for an academic career (research focus without training on research question and
protocol formation), failure to have a mentor (one of the cornerstones of academic success), failure to form a plan/timeline of goals, lack of balance (which leads to burnout), biting off too much, and not listening to feedback.
Importance of Balance – Maintain balance and block off time for your family and hobbies. Success takes time, and it will not occur overnight. Recent years have seen an emphasis on physician health. This really comes down to balancing many aspects of life including your shifts, academics, community activities, exercise, hobbies, family, religious/spiritual concerns, friends, and future plans. Pushing too hard and too fast with too much will lead to burnout.
The Decision – Residency is a great time to explore academics and community practice. Rotations in both settings can help you determine which practice is the best fit for you. You can always switch settings, or in other words, it is never too late to go from community to academic practice. Work on perfecting your clinical skills and management early, as this is essential to both academic and community medicine."