Where I live, there's a dire shortage of psychiatrists. Apparently psychiatry is among the lowest paid specialties in medicine, so students graduating from med schools sometimes choose to do their residencies in other areas of medicine. The plus side, however, is the fact that pdocs who aren't associated with hospitals generally don't have to be on call to the extent other docs do. Family life must be easier for them. I guess it's a trade-off.

In my experience, all the pdocs I've had over the years seem to view their jobs as "a calling." They've genuinely listened to & cared about me as a human being. I'm probably very fortunate, though. The things others have posted make me realize that's not the case for everyone.