The Different Types Of Surgery Jobs

The Different Types Of Surgery Jobs
Among all of the jobs in the healthcare industry, some of the most highly compensated are those related to surgery - and with good reason. Surgeons invest the greatest amount of time and effort in education, they work under immense pressure, and they must have a skill set that very few possess. For the same reasons, it's also no wonder that there are not enough qualified people to fill all of the surgery jobs available. For someone thinking of going into the field, the following is a list of four of the most commonly utilized surgeons, as well as a brief description of each.

General Surgeon

A general surgeon is one who performs a wide variety of basic to semi-complicated surgeries, with no particular specialty. He will perform appendectomies, tonsillectomies, minor procedures on the head, neck, and limbs, hernia operations, and more. Typically the general surgeon requires a general surgery residency after medical school, but no fellowship training thereafter. He earns between $ 300k and $ 400k annually.

Plastic Surgeon

The plastic surgeon is the one you call on for vanity cosmetic procedures like face lifts, breast augmentation or reduction, liposuction, nose jobs, etc. However, they are also involved in non-vanity cosmetic reconstructions with patients who have been involved in disfiguring accidents or fires. A plastic surgeon receives several years of specialized training after completing his general residency. Those employed by hospitals make around $ 400k while private practice surgeons can make two or three times that. The advantage of being a private practice plastic surgeon is that most procedures are elective, and since insurance companies won't pay for them the surgeon is paid up front.

Orthopedic Surgeon

An orthopedic surgeon receives at least 5 years of additional training and performs operations specific to the muscles, joints, and bones. He will do hip replacements, broken bone repairs, and arthroscopy, among others. The average annual compensation for an orthopedic surgeon is about $ 475k.

Neurosurgeon

The neurosurgeon is the most highly specialized and compensated among all surgeons, and he deals with the brain and spinal cord. His post-residency education is a minimum of five years; sometimes longer. The neurosurgeon removes brain tumors, repairs spinal cord injuries, and more. His annual compensation can run between $ 800k and $ 1million annually.

There are other specialized surgery jobs including cardiac (heart, vascular system), thoracic (chest, excluding heart), ophthalmologic (eyes), ENT (ear, nose, throat), and colorectal (colon, rectum, anus). Each requires its own set of knowledge and skills, even though they overlap many times. Each one also requires a level of continuing education as a means of staying up-to-date on current techniques, methodologies, and diagnoses.

Surgery jobs require and incredible commitment of time and resources just to be licensed to practice. Once licensed the commitment is just as heavy, with work weeks typically between 50-60 hours, plus on-call periods and emergencies. But for those with a genuine interest in helping people through this sort of work, it can be most rewarding and well worth the time and effort.