[snowwrestler]

Flying a plane is way less complex than medicine. A pilot can hand off a flying plane way, way, way more easily than a doctor can hand off a patient with a complex set of symptoms and treatments.

I should also point out that the vast majority of doctors don't work 120 hours a week continuously, rather, they experience higher-than-usual clusters of working time vs. not working time. That is, they might be on rotation for 36 hours straight but then off for 36 hours or more. And some of their shifts might only be 8 hours. Residents work longer hours, but are supervised by doctors.

I know several ER docs and they all cite the dangers of patient hand-off as the main reason they continue to support long shifts.