What is the number one profession in 2014?

US News and World report has once again come out with what it considers the " 100 Best Jobs".The magazine "compared professions based on components that matter most: the number of expected openings, advancement opportunities, career fulfillment and salary expectations". US News has declared that "Software Developer" is the number one job, but being a Dentist is not far behind at number three. Physicians, on average, make more than dentists, but evidently based on their criteria being a dentist is the best job among any of the health professions mentioned.

 I certainly enjoy being a dentist and since I am self employed, I do not have to worry about being laid off. More and more, physicians and other medical professionals are working as employees of hospitals and their job security is dependent on their employer's policies and bottom line decisions.  Self employed physicians and dentists, although they must deal with the varied headaches involved with private practice, have a higher degree of independence in the manner they choose to practice their professions, than those employed by hospitals. Of course we can experience financial pressures, and these can impact in some of our practice decisions (amount of insurance reimbursement, the time spent with each patient, types of procedures offered, amount of vacation time spent, and what equipment to purchase are just some examples ) but we ultimately have the freedom to decide how we should best conduct our practices.

Given the way that our health care system has been rapidly changing, having a guaranteed income, with defined hours and responsibilities, is tempting to many doctors whether they are dentists or physicians. They should be aware that in the long haul they will not have the independence and job security that exist in independent private practice.  For a young doctor in debt, taking what appears to be a secure job usually makes sense initially. It provides steady income, well defined responsibilities and possibly a better income, than starting ones own private practice and for a doctor with many educational loans, a job is his or her best choice initially. However, I believe that most dentists will eventually either start their own practice, become partners in a dental practice or purchase a dental practice. All  these options offer a greater degree of  independence and job security than working for someone else and most dentists I know display an independent streak that makes working for themselves seem attractive.