nurses – Page 2 – watercress words by Dr Aletha

Update September 19, 2022

I wrote this post several years ago in my early blogging days. I’ve updated it with recent statistics and added a link to a more recent article about healthcare workers. Thanks for visiting.

The Helpers-a book review

Starting from the pandemic’s quiet beginning late in 2019 through the vaccine distribution in early 2021, the author unfolds how the pandemic impacted their lives, their families, and communities. Despite being front line workers, they suffered the same things others did-isolation, loss of jobs and income, demanding work schedules under pressure; and for some, infection,…

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Healthcare job statistics

According to the Bureau of Labor statistics (U.S. Department of Labor)

Overall employment in healthcare occupations is projected to grow 13 percent from 2021 to 2031, much faster than the average for all occupations;
expected to result in about 2 million new jobs over the decade.
About 1.9 million openings each year, on average, are projected to come from growth and replacement needs.

The median annual wage for healthcare practitioners and technical occupations (such as registered nurses, physicians and surgeons, and dental hygienists) was $75,040 in May 2021, which was higher than the median annual wage for all occupations of $45,760;

healthcare support occupations (such as home health and personal care aides, occupational therapy assistants, and medical transcriptionists) had a median annual wage of $29,880 in May 2021, which was lower than the median annual wage for all occupations.

the original 2015 post

Previously I wrote about physician salaries after Medscape magazine reported the annual physician salary survey. In it I explained how doctors are paid and where other health care dollars go. It became one of my most viewed posts.

Physician jobs

Physicians are paid differently, like other professions. Some physicians are employed by a corporate entity such as a hospital, others are self-employed, that is they own the practice. While some physicians have a set annual salary, or hourly rate, other physician income is based on how many patients they treat-office visits, surgeries, procedures, xray or lab consultations (which can be remote, so called telemedicine). Sometimes it might be a blend of the two.

non-physician clinical health professions

There are numerous non-physician clinical health professions-nursing, pharmacy, physical and occupational therapy, chiropractic, dentistry, optometry, audiology, dieticians, nutritionists,to name a few.

Support staff

Besides physicians are the support positions, those people in a hospital or clinic who don’t have medical training but whose work enables the rest of us to do our jobs.

These include maintenance, laundry, housekeeping, food services, security, transportation.

Technicology, administration, and finance

Nor does it include IT (information technology) professionals; the use of medical computer devices and applications, called medical informatics, is now a specialized profession.There are receptionists, customer service reps,human resources, billing and coding.

Other occupations directly or indirectly contribute to health care.

taking blood pressure — measuring blood pressure- a skill most health professionals learn

laboratory — Laboratory testing is vital to providing health care.

MRI machine — Diagnostic imaging- CAT, MRI and PET scanning have increased our ability to see inside the human body compared to plain x ray.

exploring the HEART of healthcare

Medical stethoscope and heart on a textured background

Dr Aletha

The United States observes National Nurses’ Week every year in May; it is well deserved.

National Nurses Week begins each year on May 6th and ends on May 12th, Florence Nightingale’s birthday.

two hospital personnel working with patients' records at a nurse’s station. — Few nurses wear white uniforms or caps now. And most hospitals and clinics have digital medical records. But this is how medical care was done for many years. Photo credit Bob Sanders, used compliments of the Centers for Disease Control, CDC

collage of nurses working with patients in a mission clinic — CompassionLink medical mission trip- nurses on our team work with patients in Panama

I am a physician because of a nurse. As a child I was interested in health care and decided to become a nurse- that’s what girls did in the 1970’s. I needed advice so I talked to the nurse at my high school about her career.

After answering my questions, she looked straight at me and said, “Aletha, have you thought about going to medical school?” Until that time, I had not. But from that suggestion my path changed and grew into a medical career .

Some of my best friends have been and are nurses. They understand my crazy life. Since the majority of nurses are women, we have that common bond; they understand juggling a career with marriage and motherhood.

a doctor and nurse talk to a patient in an Asian country. — A local nurse assisted me with a patient encounter in Thailand

Unfortunately, nursing, like medical practice, has become heavy on documentation. I hear my nurse friends lament the amount of time they spend charting at a computer instead of caring at the bedside.

The American health care system is changing in ways sometimes characterized as an overhaul- payment reform, new delivery methods, quality measurements, patient engagement are all buzzwords now. But one thing hasn’t changed.

There are still women and men who choose to become nurses, not for a lucrative salary, or a convenient work schedule, but because they want to make a difference in the world, one patient at a time. For that, we offer our appreciation and respect.