25 Years to be a Physician?

Does it really take that long?   Well let’s do the math:

Kindergarten-  1 Year

Elementary School – 6 Years

Middle School- 2 years

High School- 4 years

College- 4 years

Medical School- 4 years

Residency- 4 years

1+ 6 + 2 + 4 + 4 + 4 + 4= 25!

Is the privilege of being called “doctor” worth trading in 25 years of one’s life?  Still not sure… but what about when you consider the three ring circus like environment healthcare has become in this country?  In a thought provoking manner, the following article attempts to enlighten us on such a question.

http://www.theonion.com/content/news/6_year_old_stares_down_bottomless

“It’s difficult to know the effect on his psychological well-being when he grasps the full truth: that his education will be followed by approximately four decades of work, bills, and taxes, during which he will also rear his own children to face the same fate, all of which will, of course, be followed by a brief, almost inconsequential retirement, and his inevitable death.”

What advice would you give that poor little 6 year old inside of you if you could go back in time?