You like the idea of dick jokes and, well, more dick jokes.

Let's debunk the public perception myths of what it means to be a urologist and give it to you straight.

This is the reality of urology.

Dodgeball, med school insiders dot com Welcome to our next installment in So You Want to Be and the Siri's.

We highlight a specific specialty within medicine such as urology and help you decide if it's a good fit for you.

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Urologists are surgeons of the Euro genital tract.

If you need it to urinate or to reproduce, chances are urologists operate on it.

This includes the kidneys, your eaters, bladders, prostate urethra, test ease and more.

Urology also deals with some of the most sensitive parts of health, including sexual function, fertility, urinary continents and gender identity.

For this reason, urologists are well versed in having complex quality of life conversations and delivering compassionate care.

Many people have never even heard of the field of urology.

But when you get intractable pain from a kidney stone or a test ease that has twisted on itself at 2 a.m. you'll thank your stars for the field of urology.

Contrary to popular belief, urologists are, in fact, riel surgeons.

They don't just treat esti eyes all day.

Neurology residency involves rigorous surgical training, and they are the experts at operating on various structures within the pelvis.

Many also believe that urology Onley applies to men.

Turns out many women seek treatment from urologists for cancers of the euro, genital tract and issues with avoiding.

In fact, there are even some subspecialties within urology that treat women almost exclusively, although there is some overlap between Oh, Begin and urology, gynecologists focus primarily on the female reproductive tract, whereas urologists typically focus on the male reproductive tract and the urinary tract of both men and women.

Urology is unique among surgical specialties because of the blend between clinical medicine and surgery.

Early on in a urologist career, they may focus more on surgery, but it's common for older urologist to phase out and focus more on clinic as they may be less enthusiastic about standing in the operating room for hours at a time in clinic urologist share many similarities with medicine doctors.

They'll be counseling patients on lifestyle modifications for an overactive bladder, prescribing medications to assist with erectile dysfunction and working up the causes of recurrent kidney stones.

They may also perform small procedures in clinic such as vasectomies and sis Tosca peas, where they insert a camera through the urethra to visualize the bladder sounds comfortable in the operating room.

The cases are varied.

They can break up kidney stones or vaporised prostates using lasers, or use robots and laproscopic procedures to remove kidney or bladder cancers.

Neurologists also perform a variety of open surgeries with kidney transplants or lymph node dissection.

Urology has a high degree of procedural variation.

One day you may be performing a quick in office vasectomy that takes less than 30 minutes and the next a complex bladder reconstruction lasting several hours.

Some urologists may enjoy the complex life or death surgeries, where you carefully dissect around the aorta and vena cava, removing lymph nodes and curing a patient of cancer.

Others may like the quick but equally satisfying cases where you retrieve a large stone and relieve a patient of some of the worst pain of their life.

And all in under 30 minutes, you can be the cancer sling hero who saves the day, or the quality of life captain that helps a man stay continent and everything between urologist that practice in academic settings focus on research, teaching residents and take care of patients inside and outside of the operating room.

Some academic urologists spend most of their time engaged with teaching and clinical work, while others may have just a half day of clinic and procedures per month.

While the rest of the time is spent doing basic science research, the practice of a community urologist can very quite a bit from mostly in the clinic to spending the majority of their days in the operating room.

Regardless, these urologists devote 100% of their time to patient care After four years of medical school urology.

Residency is an additional five or six years, depending on the program, as six year programs have a dedicated research year built in in your first year of residency, also known as Intern Year, you'll be developing fundamental operating room skills.

But the majority of your time will be spent learning how to manage floor patients as a PC y two and p g y.

Three Meaning postgraduate Year two and three Euro Urology Junior resident and you'll be seeing urology patients that come in from the emergency department, managing patients on the urology floor and working on smaller cases as 1/4 and fifth year.

You're now a senior resident, and you've paid your dues.

Now it's time to shine and learn as much as you can in the O.

R.

You'll be doing larger open cases like kidney transplants and large reconstructive and Uncle Logic cases.

You'll also be mastering the use of the surgical robot to respect kidney, bladder and prostate cancers.

While it's much more fun, there's also much more responsibility that comes with it.

You'll be the top level resident, and as such, there are additional administrative duties to make sure everything within the urology service is running smoothly.

If a program has a research year, it's typically done between the 3rd and 4th year.

However, these are becoming less common as urology trainees are valuing the prospect of shorter training and sooner independent practice.

There are several benefits to a research here, though, you can explore an intellectual curiosity, whether it's basic science research, to understand how a checkpoint inhibitors work and prostate cancer or develop a new device to address premature ejaculation, you can explore barriers to health care, access and many other facets applicable to urology.

If you have a research, this is your time to scratch it full time for an entire year.

Research years are also often a much appreciated pause from the rigorous and high intensity surgical training that is the norm of residency.

If you're interested in a career in academic medicine, a researcher gives you an opportunity to publish additional papers present at conferences and network with the top dogs in the field.

Urology is unique in that it participates in its own match rather than the NRM P that is the norm for other medical and surgical specialties.

The application process is quite similar, but you'll be applying sooner than your entire MP colleagues and you'll match in January or February rather than March.

As I've covered in my surgical stereotypes, video urologists have the best jokes in the business.

A robust sense of humor is almost required to be a part of this field.

After all, a good part of your day is speaking with patients about their erections.

The stereotypical medical student applying to urology has a great sense of humor, doesn't take themselves too seriously and loves to be in the O.

R.

These are the happy surgeons, some of the kind ist and most affable in the operating room.

Unlike some other surgeons, you won't see them throwing instruments in the O.

R.

Or having a temper tantrum with Scribner's.

Think of them as having the skills of a general surgeon, but the kindness of a family medicine doctor in terms of competitiveness.

Urology is up there with other surgical subspecialties.

In 20 2400 and 84 applied and 354 successfully matched.

That's a match rate of 73%.

The precise steps scores are not well defined since they don't participate in an RMP.

Estimates forced up one and Step two are similar to those of something like TNT or orthopedic surgery around 2 45 to to 50.

While board scores are important, letters of recommendation hold heavier weight than usual.

That's because urology is a smaller specialty, where urologists all know one another.

More or less, a glowing letter from a prominent urologist can transform an applicant with below average board scores and 28 more attractive applicant.

For this reason, away rotations were by medical students.

Rotate for one month at an outside program are quite important in urology.

This allows the students to impress prominent leaders in the field and secure strong letters of recommendation.

After completing neurology residency, you can sub specialize further with a one or two year fellowship.

Little known fact 50% of infertility in couples is due to the man urologist.

Specializing in andrology are men's health champions and specialists, infertility and sexual dysfunction disorders.

The bread and butter is varied, including Varicose elect amis, which is surgically treating dilated veins near the test ease, which can compromise fertility or even performing surgical sperm extraction while operating under a microscope.

If you want to get Botox on your scrotum, also known as crow talks, then these are your guys.

Andrology Fellowship will also teach you how to perform penal prostheses, dramatic chord innovation and even reverse a vasectomy.

This is a one year clinical fellowship, but may also include one year of research as well.

Female pelvic medicine and reconstructive surgery, or F p.

M.

R.

S.

For short is a fellowship available to those who have completed either a urology or oh, begin residency from urology.

It's a two year fellowship, and if you're coming from over Gein, it's three years.

These are the masters of reconstructive surgery of the Euro genital region, including repairing Fischelis, reconstructing Yuri throws, creating urinary diversions from the intestine and resolving vaginal prolapse just to name a few.

Many F P M RS programs also offered training and gender affirming surgery for transgender patients.

Examples include McCoy Dio, plast ease or female to male surgery, whereby you reconstruct the lower genital tract to create a small Penis from the clitoris.

Depending on the complexity of the surgery, urologists may work alongside plastic surgeons during these cases.

If you want to learn more about plastic surgeons, including gender reassignment surgery, we've covered that any previous episode of So You Want to Be Transplant.

Fellowship in urology lasting two years, is relatively small compared to others, as most transplant surgeons come from general surgery, residency and are trained to perform other solid organ transplants In addition to the kidney, the hours for this fellowship are intense as you'll be woken up in the middle of the night to take a private plane or helicopter toe, harvest an organ and transplant it to a new recipient.

These are the adrenaline junkies and perfectionists of urology.

After all, every detail and every suitor needs to be perfect.

Toe have a successful transplant.

Endo, Urology and Robotics is a one year fellowship dealing with the SciFi of urology.

You'll hone your skills on the surgical robot doing with some of the most complicated urology cases with minimally invasive approaches.

There are even treatment modalities for benign prostate disease using lasers and water vapor.

Talk about futuristic urology is a two or three year fellowship, often with a dedicated research year where you'll be specializing in the minutia of urological cancers.

The surgeons have a reputation of being mawr on the serious side, as their bread and butter is something life or death for their patient.

Urologic oncologist build long term relationships with their patients as they'll follow a patient's cancer for several years before deciding to operate, and will continue to follow their patients for the rest of their lives as urologic cancers tend to recur.

Pediatric urology is a two year fellowship.

But don't worry.

It's much more than just circumcisions.

They deal with all the urologic issues of Children, including Hypo Speediest Repairs, whereby the your ether opening is on the underside of the Penis rather than at the tip.

There are more complex cases to.

For example, Children born with severe anatomical birth defects precluding normal urination may need surgery that allows them to categorize themselves from their belly button.

Pedes urologists are especially meticulous and precise as they are dealing with smaller structures than other urologists.

There's a lot to love about urology.

First life as an attending has much better work life balance compared to most other surgical specialties.

After residency, expect 40 to 60 hour workweeks.

Your patients will also love you because many of your interventions will have an immediate and positive effect on their quality of life.

Urology patients tend to suffer from sensitive health issues for many years before they seek care, and they're understandably incredibly grateful when you can help them maintain a robust sex life or even help them be continent, meaning not leaking urine throughout the day.

There's a great deal of variety and urology, and you can adjust based on your preferences over the course of your career.

Younger urologists with more energy may choose to perform more complex Uncle Object surgeries most days of the week.

But as you get older, maybe you want to transition to primarily a clinic.

Focus practice with some minor surgeries on the side.

Compensation is also on the higher end, as it is with most surgical subspecialties and urologists make, on average, $408,000 per year.

While urology is an amazing field, it's not perfect.

In fact, urologists have some of the highest burnout rates reported amongst all of the medical fields.

In a recent Medscape Burnout report, urologists topped the list at 54%.

As with other surgical residencies, you can expect 80 hour work weeks as the norm during your training.

Urology is also a specialty that has conditions requiring immediate and urgent treatment.

That means you could be called in during the middle of the night for a patient that is septic from an infected kidney stone.

Although infrequent neurological complications can be some of the worst, including gnarly penal prosthesis, infections and extreme electrolyte abnormalities that could be life threatening and patients who have had their bladders or kidneys removed.

If you want to work with your hands, enjoy the path of physiology of medicine like building long lasting relationships, love the operating room and are prone to making dick jokes.

Then urology may be a good fit for you if you want to be a surgeon but still have a healthy work.

Life balance.

Urology is unique in being able to provide that urologists also love playing with new gadgets, lasers and toys in the operating room.

As it's a highly innovative field and in terms of personality, those who are happiest in urology have a great sense of humor and don't take themselves too seriously.

Lastly, because urology is a highly competitive field, you'll need to crush your boards home and away rotations and knock it out of the park with the research to And who better to learn from and be mentored by then urologist themselves Big shout out to the urologist at med school insiders that helped me in the creation of this video.

If you need help facing your M cat us.

Emily or other exams.

Our tutors can maximize your test day performance.

If you're applying to medical school or urology residency, our urologists can share the ins and outs of what it takes and how to navigate the competitive process.

Most effectively, we've become the fastest growing company in the industry, and it's no surprise our customers love us because we're committed to delivering results, period.

Learn more at med school insiders dot com Thank you all so much for watching.

If you enjoyed this episode, you may also enjoy our surgical speciality stereotype video or another.

So you want to be episode like plastic surgery, much love and I will see you guys in that next one.