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Plight of Doctors After Medical School 2
August 5, 2005
Conclusion
My previous article talked about various job opportunities available for doctors. Now, the challenge is applying for the job and getting hired. It is always best to be prepared. After all, the saying “Let’s cross the bridge when we get there,” will not be applicable in job hunting. “Forearmed is forewarned,” would be more appropriate.
I usually arm myself with two things when looking for a job – EXPERIENCE and TRAINING. Experience is gained as you go along. So for fresh graduates, you can work on training.
When getting started, such training courses as BLS, Basic ECG and ACLS are very helpful. The Office of Education and Research of the Philippine Heart Center offers these courses every month. The registration fee for BLS is P500. Basic ECG is P2000 and ACLS is P2500. That’s a total of P5000 investment to help you get a better job.
Now, if you are considering to be a vessel physician, you need to spare another P5000 for the BSC-PSSR (Basic Safety Course with Personal Safety and Social Responsibility), previously called the SOLAS (Safety of Life at Sea). It is a challenging course which includes firefighting, personal survival technique, elementary first aid, and PSSR.
I mentioned medical transcription in my previous article. I’m mentioning it again because there is a big market in the US for this type of business. And a transcriptionist can earn up to P4000 a day. The required training can be obtained from medical transcription academies. However, you will be spending around P15,000-P25,000 for a three-month course. You have another option though. A few companies would offer training not just for free but they will even pay you for it. And if you are good enough, they will hire you after training.
Other trainings would be available on-the-job. I know two WVSU-COM alumni who are Quarantine Medical Officers. They underwent a three-month training with the Bureau of Quarantine rotating in the different ports and airports.
Clinical research training is usually given by pharmaceutical companies. But you can download the so-called GCP (Good Clinical Practice) Guidelines in the internet. You need to know this by heart before you can conduct clinical trials.
Training is such an important aspect when applying for a job. It will even broaden the job opportunities available for you. A friend completed a caregiver training course in order to be able to give the training himself. A colleague now conducts BSC-PSSR. I used to train medical transcriptionists and editors. Now I do clinical research training programs. A few months back, a group of Singaporeans came here to undergo that training.
With training comes jobs. With jobs comes experience. With experience comes more jobs.
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Views expressed on this column and any other by-lined articles on this site are the authors' own and do not necessarily reflect the views of the organization or its members.
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