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by Jarrod Shapiro, DPM
Joined Mountain View Medical & Surgical Associates of Madras, Oregon July 2008
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Once again, here are your interesting responses to the New Docs on the Block editorials. We have an active and viable podiatric community out there. Come join the conversation. Let's hear what you have to say. This week I’m letting you do the talking.
Jarrod Shapiro, DPM
PRESENT New Docs Editor
[email protected]
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I would agree with you in regards to negotiating a $10,000 relocation fee. Now-a-days, the cost of living, traveling and eating are continually increasing. If the economy was the way it was years ago (when gas was approx. $1.00 per gallon), then a relocation fee of $5,000 would suffice. When I took my first job, I was offered a $1,000 relocation fee which at the time seemed wonderful. However, after it was all said and done after the move, that $1,000 barely paid for the gas!!! So in retrospect I wish I would have negotiated ALOT MORE!!! But on a side note, for people that have to pay for things themselves, try using ABF... it is a company where they drop off an empty truck-bed in which you load it yourself. After you are done loading, you call the company and they come back and pick it up and transport it to your final destination. If you are familiar with PODS, it pretty much works the same way with the addition of transportation at a much cheaper rate. For more information go to: www.abf.com
–Damieon Brown, DPM
[email protected]
Thanks for sharing these important details. I realize that you’ve gained a lot of experience from your associate position in Michigan, but would you have made the same choice if you had it to do over again? More specifically, if you had known that you could have started a smaller, less economically impressive position close to family right out of residency, would you have done so with your current knowledge? As I look toward completion of residency, I’m torn between looking for better reimbursement far away from home or toughing it out close to family.
–Anonymous
The advice I’ve heard over my career is to look for a job where you want to live. This is a personal choice for each of us. My initial thoughts were that I would be able to visit family while having a successful practice in Michigan, which just didn’t turn out to be feasible. On the other hand, I would not change the decisions I’ve made. Every choice we make teaches us something new if we are open-minded enough to see it. I would never view my last two years as wasted time. I learned many things during this time, including practice management skills, new surgical skills, and what I truly wanted from my professional life. The past two year experience opened my mind up to so many new things that I would not want to trade that time for anything. Life is too short for regrets.
—Jarrod Shapiro, DPM
I just have to tell you I love your articles. I just started my second year in podiatry school here in Phoenix. Eventually, I see myself ending up just like you have: in a small town in the northwest.
I am saving your editorials in my gmail account so I can review them when I finally get done with residency.
Thanks for the good information; I know it will come in handy one day.
Best wishes,
Great article,
–Zack Gangwer
AzPOD
APMSA 2011 Delegate
[email protected]
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I am presently a 3rd year resident at VA Palo Alto. I am from a small rural community in the southern California desert, and hope to return there to practice in one year. I am looking forward to returning to the small town way of life. I believe it is a great place to live and raise a family without the big city worries. However having a big city close by does help with having things to do and places to go.
Thank you for your column!
–Rosario Araguas, DPM, R3
[email protected]
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I'm a young DPM practitioner like you and I've appreciated your sharing your advice and experiences. I've been a year out of residency and practice with an older DPM in a small town that's near a much larger town much like the area you are in. I work in a practice in northeastern West Virginia that's well established and I've had success here. You're right about people getting to know you quickly. I see my patients all the time at the local mall and stores and often have to stop to say hi. Word travels quickly if you're a bad or good doc in a small area. Small town people are much more compliant and friendly than patients in the big towns where I trained.
I didn't have a lot of trauma or rearfoot surgery training and that's one disadvantage for me in a small town. I'm often looked to for any and every kind of foot problem, surgery or trauma. Some things I've just never seen much before or don't trust my experience enough to get a good outcome. I sometimes have to send patients up to a university town 45 minutes north of me and that's disappointing. I could always correct that with a fellowship of some kind or scrubbing with other docs in the area. I have gotten to know a lot of the local doctors in other specialties. We all refer to each other and are supportive of each other. I'm in a lot of demand too because there aren't many doctors that want to come to WV. It's my home state, so I don't mind. Overall, I think small town Podiatry is better than big town Podiatry.
–Andy Dale, DPM
[email protected]
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I applaud you on knowing your limitations. It’s better for your patients if you’re not experimenting on them. Instead of a fellowship, which is great if you want to take the time, another option might be the ACFAS Surgical Skills Courses. These are hands-on courses taught by some of the top podiatrists in the country. Go to www.acfas.org to find out more.
—Jarrod Shapiro, DPM
Thanks again for your letters...and keep them coming.
Jarrod Shapiro, DPM
PRESENT New Docs Editor
[email protected]
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