Turn That Clown Upside Down
Here is the less talented and less good looking half of Doctors By Day, Dr. Corey Pham.
Doctors By Day: Why did you want to start this blog?
Corey: I have met and befriended lots of wonderfully incredible and interesting people who just so happen to be healthcare professionals. The lasting impression they leave on me isn’t based on the degree they possess. Instead, I love how funny, creative, gifted, well-traveled, and enjoyable their company is. I want to celebrate these individuals because they are doing something very selfless and thoughtful when they could be doing anything else.
DBD: Where have you traveled and absolutely loved?
C: Barcelona, Spain was something else. Very tourist heavy, but it never felt busy to me. There was lots of history and artistic architecture to appreciate. Grand and majestic landscapes to view from high points all over the city. I thought it was nice to travel to a country where all the tourists spoke English as well. I went all over Asia in 2010 and couldn’t communicate with anyone so that was like visiting my grandma except no one was related to me. At least not to my knowledge.
DBD: If you could go anywhere, where would it be?
C: I’ve never been to Africa. I would love to go on a safari and see rhinos and giraffes. I probably wouldn’t shoot a lion or anything like that. I was hoping to go to South America this summer, maybe Peru or Argentina. I’ll keep my fingers crossed that I can make it happen. Kind of impartial to Zika Virus though.
DBD: What do you enjoy doing most with your spare time?
C: Is it boring that I enjoy sleeping with my spare time? Who doesn’t enjoy a good nap? Work is my ball and chain, man. I am a moderately active runner and I’m training for the Rock ’n’ Roll Half-Marathon in March 2017. I really got into basketball about 4 years ago so I follow the NBA pretty heavily now. I received a basketball as a gift recently and have been shooting hoops and dunking over elementary school kids.
DBD: Who are some of your heroes?
C: My mom. She’s the epitome of sacrifice in my opinion. I contribute everything I have and have accomplished to her. Thanks, mom. I also look up to Bob Dylan, Bruce Lee, and Barack Obama.
DBD: If you could do anything else, what would it be?
C: I would love to write screenplays for all genres of cinema or direct short films and movies. I enjoy writing, I’m just so awful at it.
DBD: If that dream job paid the same amount as medicine, which one would you have chosen?
C: If I was paid what I make now (which isn’t much), I would 100% write screenplays and pursue film full time. I love the use of film as a medium to tell stories, making people laugh, and sharing the human experience from different points of views.
DBD: What do you like least about your profession?
C: How rushed it feels. There are so many people who need help and I have to find a happy and healthy medium between being efficient and not compromising my work. I see 24-30 patients a day currently and I do my very best, but it can get overwhelming and I feel pretty burnt out.
DBD: If you could go back in time, what would you tell 18 year old you?
C: You shouldn’t have eaten that sandwich you found on the bus. Or the one you found in the library garbage can. Definitely don’t eat that salad you found in the men’s locker room. Don’t do it, man. I would also tell myself to be more appreciative of my time and everything else in my life. I would tell myself to be kind, to be more thoughtful.
DBD: You are a San Francisco 49ers and Golden State Warriors fan, what are your thoughts on those teams right now?
C: This is a bad time for Bay Area sports if you’re not a SF Giants fan or something. I know nothing about hockey, but watching the Sharks lose in the Stanley Cup just made me angry and disappointed. The dismantling of the Niners was a travesty and a reflection of the piss poor management from Jed York. Can we fire him? The Warriors just lost the Cavs in the NBA Finals and that broke my heart into a billion pieces. I haven’t been this sad since my dad left me. Thankfully, I got over that.
DBD: Advice for someone who dreams of being a dentist?
C: It’s a wonderful profession, but be sure there’s nothing else in the world you would rather do. Dentistry and healthcare as a whole is a lifelong commitment. Or I would tell them to consider maybe a military (Army, Navy, Air Force) scholarship or a program that pays for your dental/medical school if you serve on an Indian reservation for a certain number of years. That way if you decide you hate it, you have zero debt and can do other things while being called “doctor.”
DBD: Assuming that you didn't have someone else pay for your medical school, how do you feel about the amount of money you had to borrow to become a doctor?
C: How am I supposed to buy my own practice? How am I supposed to buy a house? How am I supposed to get married? Or have kids? Just kidding, I don’t want any of those things. It’s a lot of money. As I stated earlier, I wish I considered some kind of scholarship or loan repayment options. I love helping people and using dentistry as the means to do that, but it’s a pretty expensive way to help people.
DBD: Knowing what you know now, would you pick medicine again?
C: I wouldn’t hate myself if I was more enthusiastic and passionate about writing screenplays and directing films. I know there are people who pursue what they love and money follows. If not picking medicine would guarantee a more ideal scenario then medicine is definitely the underdog.
DBD: What are your long term goals in your personal and professional life?
C: Grow up a little bit. Make more time to travel. I would like to unburden myself of a significant amount of student debt, but who knows how long that will take. If I’m still sane in a couple years, maybe open my own practice with my buddy from dental school and practice the kind of dentistry I know my patients deserve. Or maybe go into dental academia. That doesn’t seem so stressful and I love teaching those who know less than me because it makes me look smart.
Corey stays in his Golden State of mind by daydreaming about dope new basketball shoes, thinking about his next trip anywhere but here, and eating things he didn’t find in the garbage can. He’s currently working on starting a podcast where he talks about God knows what with his buddy Shyam. You can follow him on Instagram @FatDentist.
