Making the commitment to become a physician shouldn't be taken lightly. It's a lifetime commitment and changes your life forever. It means sometimes shortchanging a personal life for long hours and plenty of stress, but for those who make the decision to pursue medicine as a profession the rewards outweigh the sacrifices. Being on-call, making hospital rounds and counseling patients consumes a physician's days, nights and weekends. Although physicians' salaries are generally considered generous, their financial investments in education and equipment are also significant.

Kathleen's career choice was influenced by both of her parents who are healthcare providers. Although she didn't follow the typical route to medical school, her education and work experiences between high school and medical school provided her with valuable insights that eventually led her to a career as a family physician.

Learn how one physician, who wasn't afraid to make changes in her life, left one career to make a lifetime commitment and hasn't regretted the choices she made.