The other thing people forget is the cost involved in even getting to be in practice. i make an OK living, and I don't expect anyone to cry for me, but compared to other professionals - lawyers, business execs, heck even plumbers, I don't make a lot.
It also took 4 years of college and 4 years of medical school - took years to pay off those loans. When I finished medical school I had 3 years of residency, making the princely sum of about 25K per year. Not bad for 100 hour work weeks or longer! The hourly rate is truly depressing.
Now I make a respectable income, but I am certainly not rich. In exchange for this income, I work often 12 hour days, and have the constant worries about malpractice as well as being second guessed all the time by utilization management, quality management etc.
I am lucky enough not to have weekend hours, but my husband who is also a physician works 2 out of 3 weekends and holidays, and several overnights per month. All this for less than a lawyer or business exec makes
I am not asking for sympathy - I love what I do and am fortunate enough to work part time to have time to spend with my children. But those who complain at what their doctor makes are way off base. You cannot look at the yearly earnings without taking into account the rest of the equation. /rant off
It's fair to say that doctors may be comfortable, but they are working much harder to be that way.
I work for an endocrinologist (diabetes, thyroid disorders, etc). He's been practicing in the country for about 18 years, close to 30 years total. His wife works with us as well, she has said that he works harder now for the same money he used to get 10-15 years ago...all of their doctor friends do. She says that he will put in a full Saturday in his home office dictating letters to referring physicians who are looking for answers to their patients' condition. This is in addition to seeing patients 5 days-a-week from 8am - 5pm.
What really gets to me is that we have patients that the doctor also knows socially who want to come see him "right away" when he doesn't have an opening for at least 3 weeks. This is usually for a cough, cold, or some other ailment unrelated to the endocrine specialty. They graciously offer to come over the lunch hour; like the doctor doesn't need to eat!
Not to mention the hordes of illegal aliens she will be treating for nothing at all if she covers the trauma service.
These also tend to be some of the most litigious patients around, as anyone who watches Spanish-language TV will soon gather from the quantity of advertisements for "abogados litigantes de negligencia médica."
In some ERs, it is only a slight exaggeration to say that a physician can sooner expect to be sued by any given patient than to collect a fee from him.
-ccm