States where you can practice medicine without residency

Question stated as above. As in, after obtaining a medical degree and passing all 3 steps of the USMLE exam, a person may go on and practice medicine without specializing?

Table of Contents Show

• Can you practice medicine in USA without residency?
• What can you do with an MD but no residency?
• Can Md open clinic without residency?
• Can you go to med school but not residency?

Thanks,
Sarah

To quickly answer your question, you need to complete a residency program.

For some things to consider (thoughts that your posts brought to my mind):

I wish I could be 17 again. Those were the best years of my life. Sadly I am only 22-23 now, but I think I can offer you some advice. First, you sound a lot like me, someone who doesn't like to be forced to do things that he doesn't want to do -- especially course requirements. So I hope I can offer you some advice (coming at the end of this reply)...

I studied hard in h.s. and college and graduated in 3.5 years (the average length was 4.5 for my degree). What did all that hurrying and rushing do for me? Nothing. Because in the end, it doesn't matter that you graduated early. There is no light at the end of the tunnel as an adult - the only thing there is retirement (if you make it) and even that's no picnic. If you spend all of your time rushing towards life goals, eventually one day you're just going to realize that you've hit a road block -- you've passed over all those little annoying stepping stones on your life journey and now there's only one left - death. That's a pretty depressing thought. You work and you work getting your degrees and then all of the sudden - BOOM!! It's all over and you get to do the same job day in and day out until you die. And then all of the sudden your life will feel incredibly pointless. You'll realize that busting your ass to 'get through it' didn't really make a difference because you would have ended up in the same place anyway. And I believe that's why the ultra-achievers who are naturally attracted to high-paying professions like medicine and law suffer so much from depression and substance abuse.

Life is not about 'sucking it up' and paying your dues while you go to med school, vet school, astronaut school, garbage man training academy, whatever. The only way you will ever have any chance of being happy is to live each day as much as you possibly can. That means making time for family, friends, and incorporating new and exciting things into your life. Your 'plan' doesn't much sound like that. Instead it reads like 'mom and dad say I have to be a doctor and I hate learning about things not related to being a doctor so I just want to be a doctor as fast as possible and then everything will all of the sudden be ok.' Sorry, I don't mean to patronize you, but that is how your situation reads.

>>>>My advice to you is this: GO TO COLLEGE (In the U.S.). At age 17, it is very difficult to comprehend lengths of time. An extra two or three years may seem like a lifetime to you, but believe me they are not, they will fly by. You can't understand this because you haven't been an adult very long. 5 years ago you were a child. 5 years from now you will still be an adult. And the experiences and personal growth you can gain in college more than make up for a year or two of lost income as a 24 year old doctor. They are PRICELESS. You sound like you are probably top of your class in high school and can probably go to a very good college on full scholarship (although it sounds like you have rushed high school and it might be too late to apply to some schools for next fall).

Why should you go to college? Because college is not about being forced to learn a bunch of random crap that you don't care about. The point of college is to educate a person, and I mean educate in a very broad sense. Being college educated means you have been taught critical thinking skills, writing/communication skills, and analytical skills. You will have been broadened culturally as well as academically. You learn to grow socially outside of the classroom (albeit this requires initiative on your own part - something I failed at and am paying for now). Your thought processes will be forever changed and you will be able to see things and make decisions about things much more wisely. Yes, I was just like the way you seem at 17 - narrowly focused on goals. After going through college, I'm more able to see the 'big picture.' If you go straight to medical school, you won't be educated. You'll be trained. Go to college, take some b.s. liberal arts classes, play sports, make friends and party with them, study abroad, pick a major that interests you the most academically, and above all enjoy the ride. If you just keep your eyes on the end goal and neglect everything else in life just so you can get there, the time will fly by and all of the sudden you will have met your goal but your life will feel very empty. I know because it happened to me. Luckily I have realized this at 22 and not 45, so I've got some time, but it's no joke when people tell you college is the best four years of your life (it was hell for me but only because I made it). It is. Anybody who tells you they wouldn't want to be 19 again is either lying or mentally ill. You are much more envied as a 17 year old with the world open to them than a 45 year old doctor with $100k in debt. Enjoy your time. If you think you're ready for the real world, you're not, trust me -- a teenager's world is a lot more fun anyway. Sorry I think I have gotten on a rant, but I think you see the point I am trying to make.

Don't try to take shortcuts. Don't live your life on the narrow. That's not living at all. Experience as much as you can. Go to college, take those pre-med classes (if you haven't already), but don't be gung-ho about it. If you're hating your time at college, you're doing something wrong. If, after your first few years, you still want to be a doctor, do it. You'll never regret it. Go to Sudan and try to shortcut it? I wouldn't take that bet. Seriously considering doing something like that shows some real immaturity on your part, and that is exactly why you should go to college. Either that or the military.