NEET-PG counselling sees rush for medicine over surgery
The latest NEET-PG counselling has revealed a strong preference among young doctors for non-surgical super-speciality courses such as General Medicine, Cardiology, and Neurology. Senior doctors highlight that surgical branches demand long hours, high stress, and delayed professional settlement, while MD courses offer quicker independence and stability.
Hyderabad: A majority of young doctors across the country who secured high ranks in recent NEET-PG examinations are preferring non-surgical super-specialty courses (Doctor of Medicine or MD), which typically deal with high-volume chronic diseases that utilise advanced non-surgical techniques like minimally invasive procedures.
Doing away with surgical branches, this year’s NEET-PG counselling witnessed the highest competition for non-surgical specialty branches such as MD in General Medicine, which is most sought after, followed by Cardiology, Gastroenterology, Neurology, Nephrology and Endocrinology.
Some other non-surgical specialties that were in demand included Medical Oncology, Critical Care Medicine, Clinical Immunology and Rheumatology.
Senior doctors point out that a surgical specialty (MS-Master of Surgery) is demanding while an MD enables young doctors to quickly settle by allowing them to start their own independent practice.
Surgical specialties, over the years, have become highly demanding, which involve long and unpredictable hours, intense mental and physical stress in the operating room and higher risk of burnout. Surgical specialties also involve spending a lot of time under the wings of a Professor of Surgery.
“A physician, radiologist, or dermatologist can build confidence within the first few years of training. In contrast, most surgeons must work under senior mentors for many years before they feel fully ready for complex surgeries. Surgical mastery is a long steep climb often extending beyond residency,” says senior neurologist, Dr Sudhir Kumar.
On an average, young doctors pursuing surgical specialities often experience later professional settlement, typically between the age of 35 to 40 years or more, whereas non-surgical fields often allow for earlier income stability and independent practice.
“Almost all of our seniors pursuing MS are experiencing intense mental and physical stress. There is a need to prioritise a more controllable lifestyle and better mental well-being. That’s why, I chose to pursue a non-surgical speciality,” says PG doctor (Nephrology), Dr. Suresh Kumar.
Senior doctors also point out that many senior surgeons struggle with medico-legal cases and litigation whenever an unfortunate death happens on the operating table.
Key factors driving away top PG rankers from surgical specialties:
Surgical branches are perceived as highly stressful, impacting lifestyle
Pursuing surgery takes a long time to start independent practice
Surgical practice requires higher financial investment in equipment and infrastructure
Medico-legal cases and litigation pressure are high in surgery
Surgery requires a lengthy commitment to training under mentors
Young doctors prefer stability, predictable hours and quicker professional settlement
