Health care related careers? Your or family members jobs [Archive] - Authors Denise & Alan Fields / Windsor Peak Press Book Forums

niccig

11-30-2008, 04:08 PM

In further discussion with DH about what I want to do for work, he said I seemed to most enjoy the bone anatomy component of my archaeological osteology class, and had I considered work in the health care field. I haven't. But he's right, I really enjoyed the anatomy part of my classes and I found the human body to be fascinating.

I'm not worried about going back to school in a rigorous subject, academically I do very well and I've got a very good memory for detail - I can visually picture information that I've read. I'm not interested in medical school to be a doctor - too long school, costly education etc

I know many people here work in health care or have family members that do. Could you please share your/their experiences. I'm interested in type of job, education required, experience on the job, flexible hours as DH's job isn't flexible, possible pay range, ability to relocate as we're still discussing moving out of Los Angeles.

Thanks.
Nicci

kijip

11-30-2008, 04:24 PM

My husband is a certified pharmacy technician and a student working on becoming a PharmD. It's 3 years of classes once you start a PharmD program with a 4th year of practicums/research/electives.

Pay is quite good, easily over 100K within a couple years of hire at his current employer, where he works pt while in school. He works at a hospital and the pharmDs do a wide range of work, not just in the walls of the pharmacy. For example, they do rounds with doctors and coordinate all of the medications for patients seeing doctors in multiple specialities to make sure everything works well together.

The need for pharmacists is high, so job prospects are good for those in school now. It is also something that can have very family friendly hours, as there are plenty of daytime jobs available. He opted to become a tech first so he could make sure he really liked the field and could see himself working in a Pharmacy before he invested all the time and $$ into Pharmacy school. Turns out it is a perfect fit for him, so he would have been fine skipping that step (in our state, 9 months at a community college) but it does mean he gets medical benefits for pt work while in school, so that is a plus.

ellies mom

11-30-2008, 04:26 PM

Being an RN might be a good fit. Depending on your class load there is 1-2 years of pre-reqs. I did mine one class at a time so it took almost two years. It is pretty competitive to get into a program but every program accepts applicants differently. The program I got accepted into puts a huge emphasis on the science pre-reqs but not nearly as much as the non-science pre-reqs, for example. The actual RN is a two year degree and you can convert to a BS/RN with a year or two of additional classes (usually part-time) or you could go the 4 year college route and get the BS/RN right out of the gate.

The hours are flexible because there are so many different types of places you can work and part-time and on-call positions are readily available. The starting pay is usually in the high $20s. And they are needed every where so moving wouldn't be a problem.

MMEand1

11-30-2008, 04:36 PM

I'm an x-ray tech and will be going into MRI in January. I am also active duty military, so I can't tell you what a regular paycheck would look like. I do, however, love my job. I love the miracle of the human body and being able to see the insides of them without worrying about all the blood and guts of surgery!

The great thing about Diagnostic Imaging (of which x-ray is a part of) is that there are so many different things you can get into. Of course, there is the regular x-ray aspect, then there is Ultrasound, Cat Scans, Mammography, MRI, Nuclear Medicine, and Radiation Therapy. Each has a different pay scale and work load. I know that Ultrasound techs are ALWAYS on call, whereas Mammo and Nuc Med are not on call as much (if at all).

My schooling for x-ray throught the military was 14 months. I think in the civilian sector, it varies from 2-4 years.

Good luck! I know that I love my job and the opportunities that I get to interact with patients.

egoldber

11-30-2008, 04:36 PM

I'm considering pharmacy school at some point. My FIL is a pharmacist (not a PharmD) and the demand is really quite high. He lives in metro Detorit, where the economy is TERRIBLE, and he still has no trouble finding a job to suit his requirements.

For regular pharmacists (not necessarily PharmDs) the hours can be very long and demanding though. My FIL, at over 70, still routinely works 12 hour shifts, although partly that is his preference.

I've considered nursing school but I think I'd be a lousy nurse LOL!!!

brittone2

11-30-2008, 04:44 PM

Physical therapy requires lots of study of anatomy and physiology without a doubt!

To be a licensed physical therapist, you need a minimum of a master's degree to sit for a licensure exam. I did a 5 year bachelors/masters combo, so it wasn't too terribly long. More and more schools are switching to the DPT (doctorate in physical therapy), although there isn't really much of a difference in pay or opportunity.

PTs can work in hospitals, skilled nursing facilities, rehab facilities, outpatient offices, schools/preschools, or in home health or early intervention (also done in-home in many cases). As students, PTs rotate through several clinical environments so that they have experience in several of the above. PT students are required to do internships. In the program I graduated from, we did 2 shorter internships of 5-6 weeks each, and 2 longer internships of 8 weeks each. Most programs require a research project/thesis for graduation as well. PT students usually do "gross anatomy" labs where they dissect and study human cadavers. During my most challenging semester, I had 5 lab courses in addition to lectures. It was exhausting and grueling, and I am not sure I would want to go back to that chapter in my life LOL. It really was only one semester that was terrible, mostly because of the sheer volume of work required...many hours outside of class doing dissections, studying cadavers hands-on in lab, etc. I always had several labs each semester, but 5 in one semester was very challenging.

PTs can work part-time or full-time, but some of that depends on the setting. Some settings have more flexibility, some less. Some settings require more weekend or evening hours, some other settings don't require weekends/evenings. It really depends on what areas someone wants to practice in. PTs can subspecialize in neurologic issues, orthopedics, cardiology, women's health, pediatrics, etc.

PTs usually start with a nice solid starting salary; however, the catch is that therapists often tend to max out/cap out their salary potential fairly quickly in many cases. Salary is somewhat dependent on the region of the country like most jobs. Some PTs opt to move into administrative roles, but then you often end up no longer doing much hands-on practice and are up to your eyes with billing/reimbursement, etc. and for some people (like me!) that isn't very appealing.

Occupational therapy and speech therapy are allied health professions that are also in great demand and may be of interest to you. Many people are more familiar with PT vs. OT in my experience, but if you think one of those sounds interesting, I encourage you to investigate OT as well as a profession. OTs and SLPs rotate through various internship experiences as well. Those professions are in demand (in addition to PTs) because of the aging population, and the rise of children receiving therapies for Autism, etc.

There are also PTAs (physical therapist assistants) which is generally a 2 year program. PTAs work under the supervision of a physical therapist. THey do not evaluate patients but can carry out a treatment plan established by the PT. OTs have their own assistants referred to as COTAs.

One thing to weigh in terms of PT/OT/SLP is the cost of education vs. the salary opportunity. I went to a private university and my education was quite costly. Now that more programs are moving to a DPT, it makes the program a little longer, and even more costly. I was originally interested in med school, but decided on PT as at 17 I wasn't sure I wanted to commit to so many years of school, internships, residency, and the overall financial cost (which would then likely take the option off the table to be a SAHM in my case). I partially opted for PT because I could do my bachelors and masters in 5 years. Now that they are moving to the DPT, I often wonder how I would have weighed the cost vs. salary potential vs. investment of time, kwim? I went to school in PA, and most of the PT programs were at private universities. Some states have public universities that offer PT programs, which would make it more affordable, especially for someone interested in working part-time.

When I graduated back in 2001, a starting salary of 50K was pretty common in PA. I'm sure it has gone up since then, and obviously with experience, etc. you continue to make more money. Some PTs make more by working a 2nd job at a hospital one or two Saturdays per month for example, or doing some home health visits on the side.

kijip

11-30-2008, 04:51 PM

For regular pharmacists (not necessarily PharmDs) the hours can be very long and demanding though. My FIL, at over 70, still routinely works 12 hour shifts, although partly that is his preference.

Registered Pharmacists are no longer being licensed. So PharmD school is the only option for those looking to become Pharmacists now. At least around here it is assumed that only older Registered Pharmacists are not planning on becoming PharmDs (there are programs just for that purpose which are work compatible). One nice thing about Pharmacy work is that in many areas you can get PT work if you want it, because demand is so high. There is a lot of standing, like a retail job, in a retail out patient pharmacy.

jerigirl

11-30-2008, 05:07 PM

I am a Certified Surgical Technologist (CST). We set up the operating room for surgery and pass instruments and assist the surgeons during the surgery. (On TV when surgery is portrayed- when the surgeon says "scalpel", the CST is the one to hand it to them.) On smaller cases it can be just me and a surgeon doing the surgery and on much bigger cases there could be several CSTs and surgeons. Thru most schools it is a certificate program but some schools are starting to offer Associates degrees and a very few schools have a 4 yr degree. For my certificate program it was about 1 year of specialized course work after the prerequisites. I already have a BA so I didn't have to do some of the prereqs. After finishing the program there is a national certifying exam that you should take (most hospitals require it for employment these days). The job opportunity is vast. You can work for a hospital or surgery center and some work privately for surgeons. With some experience, you can also work for an agency that fills temporary spots (short term or long term). The pay and hours vary depending on what setting you are working in. At a hospital you might make a bit more and you probably will be expected to take call and possibly work some weekends and holidays. At a surgery center They have pretty set hours usually with no call and not weekends or holidays. With either situation if you want to work part time that could be possible. CSTs work alongside of nurses but are not nurses.

I haven't worked since DS was born, but I definitely plan to go back. I mainly did eye and ENT surgery but at the hospital where I worked we were expected to do some of everything. I really loved being right up in the action at the operative field. It is a great feeling to know that your work is really helping someone.

This is just a brief overview of this field. If you (or anyone else) has any questions about becoming a CST, feel free to PM me.

rprav8r

11-30-2008, 05:35 PM

I was going to suggest this as well. My mom is an RN in the OR, but becoming a tech is a great way to get started in the field without having to complete your RN first. My mom really enjoys the work, and has been working in the OR since before I was born with no plans to retire any time soon. It's a good fit for her b/c the patients are asleep, lol.

tnrnchick74

11-30-2008, 07:11 PM

IF its only bones/anatomy you are interested in, I would suggest some sort of medical imaging (ultrasound, xray, MRI, CT). Pharmacy requires a lot of chemistry and the programs can be quite long, though the pay is good. I'm an RN. I LOVE what I do. I work 12 hr shifts 3-4 days a week and have lots of time to spend with DS (though never as much as I would like). The nice thing about nursing is that you have lots of different avenues to go into. All of the medical fields are pretty good with the economy right now - lots of openings. I have yet to move to a different state where I couldn't walk right in and be hired.

niccig

11-30-2008, 08:07 PM

Thanks everyone. You've given me lots to think about.
I was thinking about Physical Therapist/Pharmacist/Medical Imaging. I'm not sure about RN or CST - not sure I can cope with the amount of blood. DH thought speech therapy, but as I had 3 months intensive speech therapy for paralyzed vocal cord, I think that disability rules me out, as I don't have 100% normal function.

I had a quick look in my area and both Physical Therapist and Medical Imaging courses are available at a local state college at about $20,000 for the entire course either 3 - 4 years. Pharmacy is only available at USC at $36,000 a year for 4 years! I'll need to consider my interests, plus costs.

The Physical Therapy course is having an information session in 2 weeks, so I'll try to attend that, and before enrollment they require 100 volunteer hours in a clinical setting. The Medical Imaging recommends shadowing someone at work. I also know our pharmacist very well, and think she would agree to me observing her work/asking questions. So, some opportunities to make sure it's something I want to do.

Regardless of what I choose, I will need to do some prerequisite subjects and the courses are full-time for 3-4 years. It's a decision that I'll have to be sure of, as it will impact DS's life. Sigh, this is why I haven't really done anything up until know, I feel like my decision will adversely impact DS, so maybe I should return to my old field that I'm already qualified for, but I don't want to do that anymore....

tarahsolazy

11-30-2008, 08:22 PM

Well, I am an MD, and a sub-specialist, so it took a lot of time, lol. I had 4 years of med school, 3 years of residency, 3 years of fellowship before I got my "real" job. And, unfortunately, the specialty I picked, neonatology, requires erratic nighttime work, call, etc. I am happy with the choice, but I think if I were in your position, looking to do something in medicine now with a DH working and kid, I'd probably choose nursing. The nurses get to participate in really crazy medicine in our unit, but they get to go home after 12 hours and work three days a week. My job is really workable because my DH stays home. If he were working in his field (he's a general surgeon), we'd need to have a live-in nanny, which we are not interested in.

ellies mom

11-30-2008, 10:59 PM

Regardless of what I choose, I will need to do some prerequisite subjects and the courses are full-time for 3-4 years. It's a decision that I'll have to be sure of, as it will impact DS's life. Sigh, this is why I haven't really done anything up until know, I feel like my decision will adversely impact DS, so maybe I should return to my old field that I'm already qualified for, but I don't want to do that anymore....

I did my pre-reqs part-time. I don't think it really affected DD that badly because I still had a lot of time for her. I do think the actual nursing school may have more of an effect but not more than working full-time. The way I figure is that I could stay in my old career that has long, very inflexible hours and is rather unstable or I can go to nursing school. The two years will pass either way but with the first option I'd still be working long inflexible hours in an unstable industry but with the second, I'll be finished school and able to work flexible, more family friendly hours in a much more stable industry.

icunurse

11-30-2008, 11:20 PM

brittone2

11-30-2008, 11:35 PM

Just something to look into with the PT program - many settings now require a Master's or even a doctorate to work (our hospital started requiring it a few years ago). And even back when I was in undergrad, my school was really pushing for the PT students to go on immediately for their Master's degree. So a 4-year program may turn into at least 6.

This is true. Actually, *all* PTs now need a master's or DPT to sit for their license. There are PTs who practice with a bachelor's, but they were grandfathered in because they were already licensed. THe master's became the bare minimum to sit for a license quite a long time ago...it was mandatory when I started my 5 year bachelors/masters program in 1996-1997. I believe OTs now also need a masters to sit for their license as well, but i'm not 100 percent sure about that (and yes, there will be OTs practicing w/ a bachelor's degree, but that is because they were already licensed and grandfathered in when the change took place moving to require a masters degree).

Make sure you are comparing apples to apples. There are programs that offer a bachelors in something like psychology or biology and then a 2 year master's program to get a master's in PT. There are schools that offer "pre physical therapy" but then you still have to apply to get into a master's program for PT. Just make sure that whatever programs you are looking at (to the OP), you will end up with a master's, otherwise you cannot obtain a license. Some programs combine the undergrad/graduate portions and students are accepted directly into the master's portion automatically provided they meet the minimum grade requirements, etc. each year of the program. This is how my program was. The downside is that these types of programs historically haven't been big on taking transfer students and transfer credits. The bright side is I never had to apply separately to graduate school...I was accepted into the program right out of high school.

The other catch if you look at DPT programs is that the DPT is a "clinical" degree. It won't allow you to teach as a full professor for example (would need a separate PhD in a related field like a doctorate in public health or kinesiology).

The APTA is the professional organization for PTs if you want more information about programs, etc.

hellokitty

11-30-2008, 11:56 PM

Another option is a surgical PA, specifically, ortho if you are interested in bones. They get paid much better than nurses and the education isn't really that much more than nursing, esp if you already have a prior degree. You do not even have to have a medical related degree if you decide to go to PA school. PA's are also in high demand. The only thing is that it may tend to be more of a male dominated specialty.

I'm an RN, I don't really like it that much for a variety of reasons, but I am lucky that my DH makes enough that I can be a sahm (he's a cardiovascular perfusionist). If I had to do it over again, I would have gone into OT or PT. When the kids are older, I may end up pursuing my PA or OT. I was originally thinking NP, since I already have my BSN, but ultimately I feel that PA's get more respect and better pay than NP's, which isn't really fair, but that's just the way it is and the nursing profession has shot itself in the foot for not standardizing it's educational reqs/degrees (ie: LPN, ADN, BSN, diploma trained, NPs, midwives, etc., basically too many different, "types" of nursing degrees).

elektra

12-01-2008, 01:27 AM

My mom started as an RN, got her masters in mental health nursing and then switched to health care administration pretty early on. She worked her way up the ranks and became a county health care agency director.
She would always tell me that there there are so many opportunities for nurses and you can go in many different directions with it.

kijip

12-01-2008, 01:39 AM

Pharmacy is only available at USC at $36,000 a year for 4 years! I'll need to consider my interests, plus costs.

Jaw dropping to the floor here. If we had to pay that much my husband might have to find another calling. The PharmD school here is about $15,000 per year for state residents. Expensive (at least I thought it was) but way more affordable than $36K x 4. Heck, non-residents only pay $26K a year by comparison to that $36K a year figure.

brittone2

12-01-2008, 10:53 AM

I'm not sure about RN or CST - not sure I can cope with the amount of blood. .

One thing just to be aware of is that PTs do still end up encountering blood, patients ripping out catheters, patients vomiting on them, and having to get patients to the restroom if the patient needs to go during treatment.

There are many areas of practice where bodily fluids/blood aren't as much of a frequent occurrence, but most PTs rotate through acute care (hospital) or skilled nursing while they intern. There are also PTs who do wound care (treating wounds that won't heal), so they do things like clean out wounds, poke around in them to measure depth, etc. Sometimes the wound care is handled by PTs who specifically know that area of practice, but in some acute care settings, the PTs will have to treat wounds. Just something to consider if you are truly squeamish. I just didn't want you to think PTs never encounter blood/bodily fluids, etc. They don't deal with it as regularly as a nurse, but they definitely encounter it.
(eta: rereading that, I didn't explain it very well. I've been in acute care settings where there was a devoted wound care team of PTs, and those PTs did not treat orthopedic issues, etc. in the hospital...they exclusively did wound care. In other situations, the acute care PTs handle wound care in addition to things like getting patients up and out of bed after orthopedic surgery, amputation, etc. So wound care may or may not be a regular part of the care a PT provides in an acute care or skilled nursing setting, depending on how that particular facility runs).
That said, many people start of squeamish about that stuff but overcome it while in school.

StantonHyde

12-01-2008, 02:00 PM

Psychiatric Nurses don't see a lot of blood and the work is very interesting. (never a dull day)

niccig

12-01-2008, 02:27 PM

Thanks again for all the ideas and information. I'll add RN and PA to my list of possible careers. It's kind of scary to be considering a completely different career. DH wanted to know why I never considered it at college. I did college in Australia and you specialize from day 1. I was pushed into a Law Program from high school, and the health care field was never a consideration. I'll have to brush up on several subjects that I haven't done since high school - biology, chemistry etc.

Katie - DH had the same reaction when I told him the cost of USC's pharmacy program. He's been wanting to move out of Los Angeles and said if I really want to do it, then we'll definitely move to somewhere with a cheaper program.

Beth - The Northridge program is a Masters Program, and I'll keep in mind everything that you said to consider.

bcafe

12-01-2008, 06:10 PM

niccig

12-01-2008, 06:37 PM

I am a Certified Nuclear Medicine technologist. I have a BS in Nuclear Medicine. Nuclear medicine deals with blood for almost every exam as we inject radiopharmaceuticals into patients for their diagnostic exams. Every hospital based tech that I know of has a call rotation. I took so much chemistry that I also have a chemistry minor. If you like physics--well let's just say there is a lot of physics as well. Pay for a new tech is pretty good. I would say ~$25-28/hr depending on the area.

Thanks. It's not the blood I have an issue with. I thought I had a strong stomach until a friend's baby had an explosive diaper and I was retching. After that experience, I'm not sure I'd do well cleaning up others - but I'm sure it's something I could get desensitized to.

ArizonaGirl

12-02-2008, 02:05 AM

I am a certified pharmacy technician and tried to get into pharmacy school with no luck. When I applied to pharmacy school I had a B.A. in Biochemistry, 3.98 GPA, over 5 years experience as a pharmacy technician, and an 86 percentile overall PCAT score (similar to the MCAT for med school) and I didn't get in. I am not telling you this to discourage you only to let you know about my experience.

HTH

briarrose

12-02-2008, 09:46 AM

elephantmeg

12-02-2008, 11:02 AM

I'm an RN. I have a 4 year BSN degree and have worked for almost 7 years. I work primarily as a peds nurse although I also have cross trained to the medical surgical unit next door and work there some. I have also done some building/teaching of a new nursing computer system, other random teaching (new employee orientation on the computer system, competencies etc). I may be going back to the computer part of it next week-I won't know until Wed! I love the variety and the hours. Before DC I worked a mix of 7-3/3-11/11-7 as well as some 12 hour shifts. Now I am predominately 3-11 (my choice) and work aprox 3 days a week. Working weekends means that I usually work just 2 days during the week. I love the hours/flexability that I have as a nurse and the fact that I can change around what I do/what I work. When the kids are in school I'll either go to 11p-7a or 7a-3p so I can be home when they get off. But for now I'm with the kids during the morning, they are home for naps and then they go to the babysitter from 2p-6p. It means that days like today where I didn't get to bed until 1:30 and the kids got up at 7:30 are rough but otherwise it's OK.

crayonblue

12-02-2008, 12:54 PM

Hi there, just thought I would add home care nursing. We have had both LPNs and RNs but now have only RNs for Carmen. In my opinion, this is an ideal job. Carmen requires constant medical care but she is no longer able to cry and obviously has no behavior problems.

Both of our nurses bring their laptops for when Carmen is sleeping.

I think the RNs make about $30 per hour in home care in our area (Maryland). We have 12 hour shifts and one of our nurses gets overtime pay because she works so much for us.

If I knew that I could find a job caring for a child like Carmen, I would be first in line to go to nursing school! (Not that I am biased or anything- LOL!)

ETA: No blood in this house! Well, Carmen did have a slight bloody nose once...

M&Mmom

12-02-2008, 02:58 PM

Wanted to add my 2 cents about PT. I went to USC (incredibly expensive!!) for the DPT and it was a great experience. I chose to go there because of the opportunities available - They had more clinical hours than the other schools I was looking at, I had an intership at NIH, I had a hand therapy intership (super interesting!!), a classmate did an intership in Alaska, 1 cadaver per 4 students (other school shared 4 cadavers for the whole class and the med school too), etc.

I have seen blood and what not in internships and my first job (acute care) but have now been doing early intervention for 2 years. I work with children age 0-3 in their homes. I make my own hours and make good money. One nice thing about PT is the wide range of areas to work in. If you don't like blood, you never have to encounter it after graduating if you choose your field appropriately. I don't mind blood, but decided to do home health because it allows me to be home with my kids more as I only work 3 days a week. For awhile I worked 1 day and 2 evening so I only had to get daycare/babysitter for 1 day a week. You could also work evenings and/or weekends if DH is agreeable to that - only downside is there is no time with the whole family together.

As for choosing a field now that you already have DC, I don't know if I would choose PT. It was a very intensive 3 year program. DH was fabulous and we made it through strongly, but we didn't have DC yet. I don't know if I would choose it now. But you can also look into some online courses too. I know they have transitional DPT programs online - if you already have your license you can do an online program to get a DPT - but I don't know if they have programs without having a license already.

GL with your decision and remember - healthcare is a fantastic field as there are always jobs and need.

LBW

12-02-2008, 04:58 PM

This is a great thread! I've been thinking about looking into going back to school for something related to health care. I love what I do (freelance editing) but I have no benefits, and DH's benefits are awful.

Jeri - can you give me an idea of the salary range for CSTs? I love that it's a quick certificate program in most cases. I was premed for a couple of years in college, so I have most of the prereqs.

I'm also thinking about respiratory therapy.

jerigirl

12-02-2008, 05:14 PM

Jeri - can you give me an idea of the salary range for CSTs? I love that it's a quick certificate program in most cases. I was premed for a couple of years in college, so I have most of the prereqs.

I'm also thinking about respiratory therapy.

Well it really varies. This is old info but this is a map that shows the AVERAGE pay by state.
http://www.ast.org/professionals/professionals_about_prof_stats.aspx

When I started 7 years ago (before DS), I *think* I started at like $12 an hour base pay but ended up taking alot of call since I was the "newbie". Call and shift differentials are where you can make the extra money at the hospital. Working the later shifts (evening 3-11 or nights 11p -7a) and then on weekends pay a bit extra. Most hospitals will probably give you a small raise once you get your national certification. CST's don't make tons of money. It is not something to do for the money. If you want money RN pay is definitely more. As are some of the other Allied Health careers. The website I linked above is for the Assoc of Surgical Technologists. Look around the site. PM me if you have any more questions.

Elilly

12-02-2008, 07:15 PM

I'm a Medical Technologist. I perform laboratory testing and specialize in a hematology lab diagnosing and monitoring anemias, leukemias etc. There is a great demand for us these days. Pay is about $19/hr here in the midwest. I enjoy what I do and like the fact that all bodily fluids are neatly contained in tubes before I see them!

hellokitty

12-03-2008, 12:10 AM

It looks like you got some great ideas, but I just wanted to throw one more at you. My DH is a Cardiovascular Perfusionist. Basically, he runs the heart lung machine during open heart surgery. It was two years of perfusion school after college. Then you take your boards to become certified. We have moved around a bit and it has never been a problem to find a job. Good luck with your decision.

My DH is a perfusionist as well and I wanted to share a different POV. Jobs are NOT easy to come by, esp in desirable areas. Yeah, if you want a job in Vegas or Puerto Rico, or other hellish places to work (responsible for covering several hospitals spread out across the city, overnight calls at the hospital, which is one reason why perfusionists at those type of accts have a high divorce rate, etc.), yes those jobs are always available. Or if you want to work for a 3rd party contractor, which I highly DON'T recommend, since we have been down that path before and it was a completely dreadful experience.

My DH has a good job now, but he got laid off not once, but TWICE the first six months out of school and when we were newlyweds and had a difficult time finding a job. Many of his classmates have bounced around quite a bit as well, lots of reduced or closed accts, which result in getting laid off with little to no notice. He graduated from one of the most highly respected DIDACTIC (for those not aware they have some programs that are basically OJT with little to no didactic study, these students don't always fare well on boards, if you do not pass your boards by the the 3rd time, you are SOL) programs in his field. His former job before this one was at a huge heart pgrm that went from 1500 cases/yr to 350 cases/yr in a span of five yrs. After my DH left, he found out that they laid off over half of their perfusionists at that account, so it was good that he had left, b/c he would have been one of the perfusionists who would have been laid off anyway.

The job market for perfusionists is unstable at best. Due to the high # of call (my DH is on call 50% of the yr), it also makes it difficult for the spouse (if they have kids) to work unless you have a family member or childcare provider who is available 24/7 to take the kids. I am an RN and we have small children, we have no family nearby, I cannot return to work, b/c my DH's hrs are erratic and all of his call makes it very difficult for us to deal with childcare in the case that I was at work and he was on call and he got called in and had to have someone at the last minute's notice watch the kids and still be able to be at the hospital, changed into scrubs, ready to go within 30 min from being paged. The only perfusionists I know whose spouses work either don't have kids (or kids who are grown up) or they have family in town who can help out in situations like this. The job typically pays well (but from personal exp we discovered that it can vary a LOT), if you are lucky to get into a good job and gain seniority for job security. However, it can also be very stressful, heart surgeons are among the most difficult surgeons to work with, you often put up with a lot of verbal abuse if you are stuck with surgeons that who are jerks (FYI, more than 75% of the heart surgeons my DH has ever worked with have been total a-holes and I've worked with a bunch of them too when I was in CVICU, nice ones are hard to come by) and when things go bad, they can go REALLY bad (like you can kill the patient within a few minutes kind of bad), you have to be able to think and react quickly under pressure.

JenaW

12-04-2008, 11:10 AM

hellokitty

12-04-2008, 12:38 PM

I am a PA (with experience mainly in surgery and OBGYN) but am not working right now as we have had 5 children in the last 6 years. Someone mentioned orthopedic PAs if you are interested in bones - that is a HUGE field witha high demand for midlevels, especially PAs because they can help in surgery and in the office setting. In Pittsburgh (where we lived while DH got his medical education), you could name your salary (close to if not over $100K annually) in ortho (whereas OB positions are much more difficult to find and lower paying!). The PA field in general is not male-dominated, but the ortho positions may be slightly more biased towards men (most orthopedic surgeons are men too!), but it is definitely not impossible for a woman to get into the field. I already had my BA (with mostly premed courses although I did not major in a science), so my PA program was 27 months and awarded a masters degree. I loved my job and can not wait to get back to work. I am currently considering a labor and delivery position that would allow me to work 3-5 12 hour shifts a month.

j

Jera,

Just curious, are you employed by an ob practice or by the hospital? I have never dealt with PAs in ob before, only midwives and NPs, so that is why I am wondering. It sounds interesting, as I had mentioned before, if I go back for an advanced degree, I'll probably got the PA route vs the NP route (I have a BSN). Can you chose just to do L&D or do you have to do a little bit of everything (clinic, surgery, L&D, etc.)? Is this something more common for large teaching hospitals (PAs in OB)?

JenaW

12-04-2008, 03:36 PM

Jera,

Just curious, are you employed by an ob practice or by the hospital? I have never dealt with PAs in ob before, only midwives and NPs, so that is why I am wondering. It sounds interesting, as I had mentioned before, if I go back for an advanced degree, I'll probably got the PA route vs the NP route (I have a BSN). Can you chose just to do L&D or do you have to do a little bit of everything (clinic, surgery, L&D, etc.)? Is this something more common for large teaching hospitals (PAs in OB)?

I am not working currently but am negotiating with a medium-sized community hospital (no residents in OB at all). I would be a hospital employee and work for the OBGYN Dept, which would mainly involve Labor and Delivery (admission H&Ps, discharge exams, labor orders and exams, some labor interventions (AROM, IUPC insertion, etc), occasional deliveries (especially at night), laceration/episiotomy repairs, daily rounding on postpartum and post-op women, seeing pts in triage. This hospital also has midwives as midlevels on L&D. However, the PA midlevels also see GYN cases in the ED, and 1st/2nd assist on the OBGYN surgeries (depending on the day they may have a PA assigned solely to the ORs, or if it is a slow surgery day, the PA covering L&D would be available if needed for surgery too). In the job I worked previously, I was employed by a solo-practitioner OBGYN. In that instance, I saw patients in her office, carried the pager and answered all non-OB calls, occasionally saw our own patients in the ED or hospital. I could have assisted her in the OR as well, but on the days she had surgery it was more cost-effective for me to see patients in the office than assist her in surgery.

PAs in OB are not common. But many of the docs I have talked to like the fact that we can not run off with their patients (PAs are considered 'dependent' practitioners, whereas NPs are independent and in some states can open their own clinics, and midwives obviously can have their own practices), and that we can assist in surgeries (both c-sections and GYNE surgeries). When I graduated 7 years ago, there were not a lot of available positions, but they are becoming more and more common as PAs themselves increase in numbers. Some larger teaching hospital that utilize PAs in the OB Dept department pair a new PA with a senior resident and an experienced PA with interns. The PAs allow the dept to maintain continuity of care with residents changing service every 4-6 weeks. To train, you do rotations in all of the clinical specialities. For instance, I think I had approximately 2500 clinical hours of experience - 250 in 10 different areas (peds, OB, surgery, ortho, psych, primary care, etc), whereas NPs do about 500-750 hours total, but it is ALL in their field of specialty. There really is a lot of overlap between NPs and PAs. I think it all depends on the area where you live/practice. In Pittsburgh for instance (where DH and I trained), the medical society is very inbred, meaning many of the residents who train there stay and work locally as attendings. Since the University of Pittsburgh has a nursing school, including advanced practice nursing degrees, they do not employee a lot of PAs in fields that NPs predominate (OB, peds), but rely on PAs in the surgical fields (gen surg, trauma, ortho). So those residents are not exposed to PAs, and as a result generally do not hire them when they are in practice. However, doctors that are exposed to PAs in training learn what they are capable of and tend to be more proactive in hiring them themselves. Many of my husbands medical school classmates had never even heard of PAs and had little if any exposure to them in medical school. However, in some PA programs (Duke and Yale I think) where the school has both MD and PA programs, the students take many of their classes together and thus are trained in the benefits of working together. This is something to think about when considering where you want to practice and which route (NP versus PA) to go.

Let me know if you have any other questions. I am very passionate about my job. There were times I wished I had just gone to medical school like I originally had planned, but I also know that if I had, I would not have the 5 beautiful kids I do today. In general, I am very happy with my decision to train as a PA and really miss working in my field.

J

hellokitty

12-04-2008, 07:30 PM

Jera,

Thank you so much for taking the time to share your experience and knowledge about your career. I'm totally intrigued by it. Honestly, I had never heard of a PA in an OB setting setting before, so it's just nice to hear about your experience and nice to hear that it is becoming more popular. I know a lot of PAs, but they are all either in open heart (b/c my DH is a perfusionist and b/c I worked CVICU), ortho or onc. None of those specialties call out to me, but ob is something I've been thinking about looking into. Unfortunately, I live in a more rural area, the hospital here does not utilize PAs and NPs as much as it should and it is not a teaching hospital. It's the only place I've ever worked at that wasn't a teaching hospital and you can tell, b/c they are not very progressive and can be really stuck in their ways, kind of that small town mentality. They have actually paid tuition reimbursement for RNs who got their NPs, and then never created a position for them, so they were allowed to leave to find another job elsewhere (crazy, isn't it????). Anyway, thanks again. If I have anymore questions, I'll be sure to let you know. :)

niccig

12-04-2008, 08:39 PM

JenaW

12-04-2008, 09:48 PM

Jera,
Is being a PA something you can do as a second career? I'm 35, I would need to do the prerequisite subjects (2 years) and then the PA course, and some programs near me require 1-2 years health related work before you can apply for the PA. Is it something you can start in your late 30's, early 40's?
Thanks.

Of course. Many of the people in my class were in their late 30's/early 40's and doing it as a second career. Some were coming from other health care careers (EMT, respiratory therapist, x-ray tech). Others from totally different life paths. One was a funeral home director. I met someone on rotations who was almost 50 and a banker! Seriously! Check online - some of the pre-reqs may be available that way. I took a research methods class online in 8 weeks. Also, you could work part-time in a health-related field while taking classes to cut down on your pre-program time. Check and see if the programs have any specifics regarding the health care experience. Being an EMT is a good (and usually relatively inexpensive) way to get an intro to health care. many fire departments offer the course. Some will even pay for it if you volunteer for them (that is how I got my EMT certification while in college). Some schools only require shadowing a PA. Others may have a specific list of what is acceptable, and may actually require a job with actual patient care.

Good luck, and again feel free to ask here or PM me with more questions!

J

WitMom

12-04-2008, 11:45 PM

I'll weigh in on the pharmacy side of things. I am a pharmacist, and I tolerate my job, but don't love it. I worked retail for about 5 years, which was about as long as I could stand it. When people say pharmacy is a very flexible career, it's true to a certain extent. It's flexible in that there is a high demand for pharmacists and you can almost always find a job wherever you live. It's also flexible in that you can usually find part time work if you want that. If you work retail, though, there is a limit to the flexibility. If you wake up sick, or have sick kids, it's been my experience that there is zero flexibility. You have to show up for work regardless, because a lot of times there is no one else to back you up. If you don't show up, the store doesn't open. Same thing goes for if you need to run an errand or go to a doctor's appointment during the day. A lot of times, it's just not an option, because you are the only pharmacist working, and you have to be in the store. When I worked retail, I didn't get lunch breaks or even bathroom breaks. There was too much work to do, and the pharmacist on duty could not step away from the pharmacy. I know some stores have now instituted the policy that the pharmacy closes for 30 minutes so the pharmacist can have a lunch break, so things are better than they were when I worked retail, but if I have my choice, I would never go back.

I currently work for a pharmacy benefits manager. I have an office job, and look at a computer screen all day. Not too exciting, but definitely much more flexible than my former job. I do feel a lot of times like my pharmacy education is going to waste in my current job, but I'll trade that for the flexibility that it affords me.