Category — Health Careers

Guest article by Lisa Zyga One person dies every 16 minutes in the US while waiting for an organ transplant. Although health experts can’t directly increase the number of organ donations available, a network of local organ transplant organizations can find ways to make sure that more people who need an organ get one – and one that fits. The field of organ transplantation is technologically fascinating and professionally diverse. In the 1940s, organ transplantation was virtually non-existent. Only in the past several decades has the technology caught up to allow patients a high chance of survival when undergoing transplantation. Now, the medical community faces a new problem: a lack of available organs. In some ways, finding suitable organs for patients is more important than the actual surgery, simply because of the severe shortage of organs. Only about 7% of individuals on the waiting list will receive an organ within one year. While doctors and nurses can usually perform a successful surgery, it’s somebody else’s job to line up the body parts: specifically, an organ coordinator. All organ transplants in the US are coordinated by the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS), an independent nonprofit organization that operates under the US Department of Health and Human Services. Any individual in need of an organ transplant must be registered in a nationwide organ distribution system called the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN), which is operated by UNOS. Across the country, there are nearly 100 local “organ procurement organizations” (OPOs) that are responsible for the organization of donations, as well as the retrieval, preservation, and transportation of newly available organs. Most organ donors are brain-dead individuals on life support, and their organs must be recovered quickly in order to achieve a successful transplantation. In addition, OPOs educate the public and medical staff about organ donation, and work with donor families during the entire donation procedure. OPOs hire a diverse staff, including organ procurement coordinators, donor family advocates, and technicians that perform the actual organ and tissue recoveries. Still other staff members are involved in community outreach, teaching educational classes and encouraging individuals to volunteer to donate their organs. The education and background of many OPO staff may include RN, surgical, or paramedical certification, bachelor’s degrees in life sciences, and higher education in the medical field. When an organ becomes available in the local area, the OPO staff members must work quickly to gather all the personal information about the donor to compare with a waiting list of individuals in need. UNOS has established a system that generates a ranked list of potential recipients based on several factors, such as the physical compatibility between donor and recipient, and waiting time. Once the OPO determines the best candidate and prepares the organ for delivery, the rest is up to the recipient’s surgical team. While transplantation is successful about 95% of the time, patients often must take immunosuppressant drugs for their remainder of their lives to stop the new organ from being rejected by their own immune systems. Researchers are investigating new technologies that will reduce this foreign tissue rejection response. Some scientists are even investigating “xenotransplantation” – transplanting organs from animals into humans. Until scientists find a new way to find organs for people in need, the work of non-profit organ procurement organizations will play a large role in finding and distributing body parts throughout the country.

Guest article by Mary Stasiewicz The health industry is a wide ranging industry with a number of different options for those who are interested in pursuing a health related career. Just selecting a career in this industry can be overwhelming. Besides a number of different types of doctors, other careers in the health industry include nurses, technicians, laboratory employees, dietitians, nutritionists and even personal trainers. This is just a short list of the types of careers available in the health industry. However, before you even begin to narrow down your research to the type of career you wish to pursue and the educational process involved in embarking on this type of career, it is important to determine whether or not you are well suited for a career in the health industry. This article will discuss some of the important considerations you should think about before pursing a health career. Your motivation for pursing a career in the health industry should be carefully examined. Wanting to help others is certainly a noble cause and a great reason for pursing this type of career but it is not the only worthwhile reason for pursing a career in this industry. If you are motivated by a love of math and science or even if you are drawn to the financial appeal of some careers in the health industry these can also be excellent reasons to investigate these careers. Basically, as long as you have the skills to excel in the career you choose and a dedication to succeed, any logical motivation is acceptable. Next it is very important to consider the aspect of the health industry in which you would most like to work. This is important because there are a wide number of options available. Consider factors such as whether you want to work with children or adults, whether you want to work in emergency situations, whether you want to work in a preventative capacity, whether you want to assist people in making health related decisions or whether you want to work in a hospital setting. Considering all of these factors may help you to greatly narrow down your options. You may even want to consult with a professional who can help you to determine which careers are best for you based on your preferences and your aptitude. Once you narrow down your options for careers in the health industry, you should investigate the educational process involved in starting a career in this capacity. During this research process you will learn how long it takes to prepare yourself for this career, the cost of obtaining any necessary degrees or certificates, when and where you can take classes and any pre-requisites for taking the necessary classes. Realistically evaluating whether or not you have the skills, time and money available to complete the education process will help you determine if this career is right for you. Finally, it is important to also consider how a health career will impact your family and personal life. Many careers in the health care industry, especially those based in a hospital setting, require working odd hours for extended periods of time. This can be disruptive to your family life. Understanding the types of hours involved in the health career of your choice and considering how these hours will impact you and your family will help to prevent your career from negatively impacting you and your family.

The medical school graduates of the United States and Canada are among the best and brightest of their generation. Why they choose the lofty profession may be for reasons known but to them; although the old standbys of altruism, excitement, profit, and status probably lead the list. The bigger question is why physicians of any age would leave their chosen profession.

Older docs who practiced through the “golden age” of medicine can recall when they were an honored part of the community in a much less litigious society. They could spend their 15 minutes or longer with a patient, hear their complaints, and even discuss their families. They could prescribe treatments, medicine, and tests without getting the consent of a clerk at the insurance company. They worked long, hard hours and were paid for their efforts.

The advent of HMOs and insurance oversight has created a behemoth industry that went astray. They now control how many patients a physician must see in a day, what their remuneration will be, make demands for redundant documents, and limit their ability to practice. Warm and fuzzy is a thing of the past. It is one of the most frequent reasons cited by physicians leaving practice before reaching retirement.

There have been countless stories through the years of physicians facing disenchantment with the managed care system that has become so popular among employers and even state governments for their Medicaid population. Many docs have decided it is far better to treat an indigent patient for free rather than accept government funds and the plethora of paper accompanying it. Physicians regularly explain that they must hire another staff member just to process the mountains of requests and demands of oversight. One chart analyst hired to copy pertinent data from Medicare charts for an insurance contractor, came away in disgust; explaining a full one third of the files are filled with requests for what she deemed “busy work”. The insurance company required the physician to document all the glucose levels drawn, so that a company employee could assure the treatment was acceptable. It is anecdotal; but typical.

When it comes to younger practitioners, JAMA estimates 83.2% need finance their education with a mean debt of $80,000. That’s a number that continues to rise. While they may be less sensitive to the radical changes in the profession over the recent decade, some will practice long enough to discharge their financial obligations to work off government grants and loan forgiveness; then move into the more lucrative and growing business of medicine. Others find the practice of medicine lacks the challenge they envisioned, that it requires more business acumen than they are willing to devote, and the never ending politics of hospital life does nothing to retain their idealistic hopes when deciding to become a physician. There are far less stressful occupations with greater rewards of time, money, and status.

Though doctors are leaving the practice, not all are abandoning patients. A larger number of graduates can be found with M.D.-PhD credentials. They are frequently involved in research and are making even greater strides for the medical community. Opportunities to use their skills are expanding.

As for medical school admissions, there are now more opportunities in other fields that draw the interest of applicants. Technical fields are as prestigious as medicine once was; and business alternatives lack the heavy regulatory mandates of medicine. However, there is one thing patients may take comfort in: those who decide to practice know what they want and it is to care for others despite the inconveniences.

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Guest article by Nichole Williams The best piece of advice I can give anyone who wants to become a nurse or any professional within the healthcare sector is to fully educate yourself on how to get there. The main key in all of this is to get into a career that is some-what closely related to the one that you want. Great "stepping stones" or entry-level positions to obtain experience are by working as a nurse or medical technician. One of the wonderful benefits of acquiring this experience is the opportunity to work along with nurses and physicians to learn the trade. It's certainly a good thing to learn as much as you can about the field and go to school for that profession of interest. Although getting accepted to any nursing program can be a rigorous task, luckily some programs will love the fact that a person does have some prior experience within the healthcare field. Sometimes your experience can be substituted for a required course that's needed in the program. When it comes to selecting the right nursing school, there are a few programs to be aware of and to consider. The three program options are Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN), Associate Science in Nursing (ASN) and the Bachelor Science in Nursing (BSN). The LPN route usually takes about a year to complete, the ASN program can be completed within two to three years and the BSN is a four-year program. Taking your first two years of college will increase your changes of being accepted. Most nursing and medical schools grant admission to those who have the required science, math and English courses completed by the school's application deadline. These courses are often Anatomy and Physiology, Statistics, Nutrition and Chemistry/Biology with labs. If you can, I would recommend taking the required courses for admission as soon as possible. The fastest way of getting all of the required courses out of the way is by completing them online. I was able to complete about two courses in about four to six weeks than the average whole semester. A good thing to look into is The College-Level Examination Program or CLEP examinations where if you know enough about a subject, you will just go to your nearest testing site and take that examination for a college credit. Since the first two years of college is solely based on general education courses, it's the fastest and cheapest way to complete them in a timely manner. Making great grades in all courses is critical. The majority of nursing programs will rate their applicants based on many factors including the applicant's overall grade point average in health- related courses, healthcare experience and Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation or CPR certification. In addition to the above requirements, life experiences, the number of courses completed and scores from nursing entrance examinations can all be taken into consideration. Once you have completed your program, you will be on your way to a wonderful career in nursing!