Career as a Pediatrician after 12th: Courses, Jobs, Salary of Pediatrics

Pediatrics is a specialization course after MBBS (Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery) that accords with the study of ailments, injuries, malignancies, congenital defects, and its diagnosis in children from their birth to 21 years of age. Pediatric patients are those who fall below the age group of 21 years at the time of diagnosis. Pediatricians are child specialists who treat and diagnose childhood illnesses of pediatric patients. According to the report of Humanium, over 2.2 billion children are residing on earth at present. The average median ratio to be calculated between pediatricians and pediatric patients is very huge, i.e., 0.5-72 pediatricians per 100,000 children approximately. The need for pediatricians is growing in demand at a greater pace. Given is the data of the number of pediatricians and children present in some countries

CountriesChildrenPediatrician
South Africa19.6 million1699
Argentina1.6 million250
India158 million23,000
Nepal11 million120
Mauritius280 thousand30
Switzerland1.32 million1890
Ireland1 million150
Germany10.7 million14,000
Australia4.7 million3015
America73 million91,000
Singapore672 thousand424
Netherlands3.8 million1818
Sweden2 million934

From the above chart, we can understand that there is uneven equity between pediatricians and children which makes this a matter of concern as many children die because of lack of treatment at the right time.

Scope in pediatrics

Pediatrics is the most promising career concerning to current scenario, there are lucrative job opportunities in this profession and it has a great demand in India as well as overseas countries. After the course completion, one might work in government/private/multispecialty hospitals, health centers, child diagnostic centers, nursing homes, NGOs, research centers. Mostly, pediatricians own their clinics, they can also work as lecturers/professors in medical institutes to train students. There are enormous career paths after pursuing pediatrics, aspirants can easily find jobs in public and private health sectors.

Subject study of pediatrics

Pediatrics course is a vast subject that one needs to study, it involves the study of

  • Adolescent Medicine
  • Alternative Medicine
  • Developmental Pediatrics
  • ENT
  • General Pediatrics
  • Genetics
  • Immunodeficiencies
  • Immunology
  • Infectious Diseases
  • Laboratory Medicine
  • Medical Procedures
  • Medico-Legal Issues
  • Neonatology
  • Nutrition
  • Pediatric Anesthesia
  • Pediatric Cardiology
  • Pediatric Critical Care
  • Pediatric Dentistry
  • Pediatric Dermatology
  • Pediatric Endocrinology
  • Pediatric GI and Hepatology
  • Pediatric Hematology
  • Pediatric Nephrology
  • Pediatric Neurology
  • Pediatric Oncology
  • Pediatric Ophthalmology
  • Pediatric Orthopedics
  • Pediatric Pulmonology
  • Pediatric Radiology
  • Pediatric Rheumatology
  • Pediatric Surgery
  • Vaccinology

Career opportunities in pediatrics

This profession unfolds a prodigious career path as it provides specialization in various fields such as

  • Pediatric cardiology
  • Child abuse pediatrics
  • Child neurology
  • Neonatology
  • Pediatric hematology/oncology
  • Adolescent medicine
  • Pediatric surgery
  • Pediatric emergency and critical care
  • Pediatric endocrinology
  • Pediatric gastroenterology
  • Pediatric infectious diseases
  • Pediatric hospice and palliative medicine
  • Pediatric pulmonology

 Skills and responsibilities of a pediatrician

  • The Prime duty of a pediatrician is to provide the best medical care to the pediatric patients
  • He should be able to diagnose the illness and respective treatment in infants
  • He should be a keen observer
  • He should possess good communication skills to communicate with children
  • One should be disciplined and have the patience to deal with minors

Salary package and Pay scale

Pediatricians often get a high package after the completion of the course. The average starting salary of a pediatrician ranges between 6-7 LPA which is quite high as compared to many other courses. With experience, one gets promoted to the senior level where they can get up to 15-20 LPA in government sectors. As there is no such shortfall in this profession, therefore, private institutions also pay high to pediatricians. Payscale depends on the country in which one is working. Most of the developed countries pay a lofty amount of $26,000-$35,000 per annum to pediatricians.

Eligibility criteria and course duration

Since pediatrics is a specialization course, aspirants have to complete their MBBS to be eligible for this course. To pursue pediatrics as a career, one might complete his 10+2 higher secondary education with physics, chemistry, and biology in science stream with a minimum of 60% in boards and after that appear of national eligibility entrance exam (NEET). After qualifying NEET, candidates have to pursue a 5 years bachelor’s degree program i.e., MBBS (bachelor of medicine and bachelor of surgery). After successful completion of MBBS, aspirants can get enrolled in a 3 years postgraduate program of MD (Doctor of Medicine) in pediatrics. For admission in MD (pediatrics), one might complete their MBBS with satisfactory marks, some colleges also take their entrance exam for MD admissions.

Top colleges in India for MD pediatrics

  • All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi
  • Christian Medical College, Vellore
  • Armed Forces Medical College, Pune
  • Maulana Azad Medical College, New Delhi
  • King George’s Medical University, Lucknow
  • Vardhaman Mahavir Medical College, New Delhi
  • Lady Hardinge Medical College, New Delhi
  • Grant Medical College and Sri Jamshedjee Jeejeebhoy group of hospitals, Mumbai
  • Seth GS Medical College, Mumbai
  • St. John’s Medical College, Bangalore
  • Osmania Medical College, Hyderabad
  • Sri Ramchandra University, Chennai
  • Kasturba Medical College, Mangalore

Top colleges for MD pediatrics abroad

  • Stanford University, USA
  • Harvard University, USA
  • University of Oxford, UK
  • University of Cambridge, UK
  • University of London, UK
  • University of Pennsylvania, USA
  • University of Michigan, USA
  • University of Exeter, UK
  • National University of Ireland Galway, Ireland
  • The University of Melbourne, Australia

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