Do you remember reading the part of Living High And Letting Die where Unger advocates earning to give, and do you remember how that struck you given your later conclusion that this might be better than doctoring?
My thinking was more along the lines that medicine would be one of those very high impact careers, and more fine grained distinctions like maybe being a more lucrative doctor was good, or trying to compare good done by the average doctor to the average donation didn’t cross my mind.
Hey there—love your post but I’m slightly unconvinced. I don’t think we have a monopoly on altruism, however, I do think medical doctors are more effective then you’ve laid out. For example, every time you convince a patient to quit smoking, or even plant the seed in their mind, surely that’s worth significant QALY? I imagine doctors are often part of a causal chain when patients make decisions that save their lives or improve their welfare significantly. Every time a healthier diet is encouraged, a patient is referred mental health services, a person is referred to rehab etc. I see 50 or so patients a day, and if even 7 patients per week take up potentially life-amending advice, that seems pretty impactful. Though obviously doctors are replaceable, but that seems a different matter
Thanks for this Greg!
Do you remember reading the part of Living High And Letting Die where Unger advocates earning to give, and do you remember how that struck you given your later conclusion that this might be better than doctoring?
The honest answer: it didn’t!
My thinking was more along the lines that medicine would be one of those very high impact careers, and more fine grained distinctions like maybe being a more lucrative doctor was good, or trying to compare good done by the average doctor to the average donation didn’t cross my mind.
Hey there—love your post but I’m slightly unconvinced. I don’t think we have a monopoly on altruism, however, I do think medical doctors are more effective then you’ve laid out. For example, every time you convince a patient to quit smoking, or even plant the seed in their mind, surely that’s worth significant QALY? I imagine doctors are often part of a causal chain when patients make decisions that save their lives or improve their welfare significantly. Every time a healthier diet is encouraged, a patient is referred mental health services, a person is referred to rehab etc. I see 50 or so patients a day, and if even 7 patients per week take up potentially life-amending advice, that seems pretty impactful. Though obviously doctors are replaceable, but that seems a different matter