How Much Does A Rheumatologist Make?
The true value of a doctor is in his or her gold mine of experiences they can draw from having dealt with a variety of challenging cases. But a poll held by Medscape would tell you that not only are rheumatologists one of the handsomely rewarded subs speciality doctors but are the most happiest as well!
What Does Rheumatology Comprise Doing?
It is the study and practical understanding of the diagnosis and treatment of musculoskeletal diseases and systemic autoimmune diseases which are commonly called as rheumatic diseases.
Rheumatic diseases are those that commonly affect the joints, muscles, bones etc causing excruciating pain from swelling, deformation, stiffness etc. An autoimmune disease is one where in the immune system of your body starts sending inflammation signals to locations that don’t need it causing undue damage and symptoms.
What Are The Ailments That Rheumatologists Are Trained For?
Diseases such as lupus, gout, osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis and chronic back pain are commonly what rheumatologists are trained to treat.
How Do They Train To Detect And Solve Such Issues?
They complete up to 4 years of medical/osteopathic education. In some countries it is 5 years. This is followed by residency for 3 years in paediatrics or internal medicine. After their residency is done with, they must enrol for 3 years of further rheumatology fellowship which will look in depth about the chronic musculoskeletal and autoimmune conditions and their respective treatment.
Once they write the board examinations, they become a board certified rheumatologist. This exam needs to be given every 10 years to ensure that they are updated and ready to take the life of a patient into their hands.
Rheumatologist: Health & Wealth
The median salary of a rheumatologist is in the ball park figure of $224,000/year. This is a handsome figure to help you more than enough run things in the house. But it is not just the monetary values that make rheumatology a hotly contested field of medicine. If that was the case then gastroenterologists earn almost $500,000 on a yearly basis, more than double the amount. But it is one the more “less stressful” of the sub specialities to practice in. This makes rheumatologist the happiest bunch in a survey conducted by Medscape, while those tied in with neurologist were the most stressed and unhappiest! Ask the best Los Angeles rheumatologist here and they will all tell you how much more relaxed they are than their peers at med school.
If you are looking for a field in medicine that has a fine balance of both wealth as well as job satisfaction, then look no further than rheumatology.