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How far do you drive for work?


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167 miles one way

 

Lots of:

Sirrius/XM radio.... (Jazz, Blues, Reggae, ReachMD, DocRadio, Raw Comedy, Foxxhole)

CME Podcasts...

 

While my longest drive is only 73 miles each way... I've actually begun to enjoy the drive and the opportunity to mentally prepare before work and "wind-down" after. In my case, I usually listen to general medicine and lots of specialty specific medical/CME podcasts on the way to work and then comedy, reggae, blues, jazz on the way home.

 

Listening to something (Neuro Anatomy, Etiology, Pathophysiology, Diagnosis, Treatment of Whatever) for 1 hr a day.... five days a week, for a few months at a time... WILL make you a "subject matter expert" in whatever that is....

 

If you are a auditory learner.

 

YMMV

 

Contrarian

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Job #1- 62 miles one way. 12 hr shifts, night driving on way home. I have hit 2 deer, 2 raccoons, birds, ducks, numerous rodents, but the worst was the little bunny rabbit who went halfway across the highway, turned around and then I hit that fluffy little tail:sadface:. My last day on this job is Wednesday. I can't stand the killing! Or the 15 hour days. Or the 200 - 300 inches of snow yearly.

 

Job #2 - 50 miles one way, part-time job. I start full-time on Thursday. 8 hour shift, driving home in the light, until daylight savings time starts! So far, no animals killed. I missed the bear.

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Yes...

What you are "missing" is that once you become competent... good at something, it becomes effortless and you find that you have lots of extra time to do more of it.

 

Once you become a proficient provider.... interacting with other providers daily... if you project and maintain a respectable level of professionalism.... you will begin to regularly recieve offers for collaborative practice arrangements to do more of whatever it is you do.

 

Some of these offers will become appealing soon after you realize that your earning potiential at your present job... or any one "job" in particular is artificially limited regardless of how many extra hours you put in there.

 

The only way to skirt this barrier is to either "buy-in" to the practice you work for... open your own practice... or get another "job" to supplement your first "job."

 

Thing is... if you do it right... you could double your after tax income while only increasing your time commitment by 25%. This is possible because your second "job" is usually at a significantly higher wage than the first "job" because it is usually "per diem" ... since you negotiated higher compensation because you really don't need all the "perks" you are already getting from the first job.

 

Example:

 

Job # 1 pays you $60/hr for 30hrs/wk... $93,600/yr.

They also provide the normal and customary bennies (CME, Licenses, Vacation, 401k, Disability, Health Insurance, Dental)

 

Job # 2 pays you $70/hr for 10 hrs/wk... plus $10/hr for 30hrs/wk telephone call that reverts to full pay if you have to go in.... $ 52,000 ++/yr

 

Thats $145k for 10hrs extra "work" (still 40hrs/wk)... IF you NEVER get called in. If you get called in... it goes up from there.

 

The possibilities are only limited by your negotiating abilities and imagination...

 

Alternatively,

You can take your prematurely "stunted"-capped salary home and sit in front of a TV... or at the bar...

 

YMMV

 

Contrarian

 

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Paul...

 

Lots of PA ARE "over-worked"... but then again... LOTS of PAs are "door-mats"... aKa "Scut-Beeeotches."

 

Lots of PAs sign contracts for jobs that specify xxx dollars/yr for M-F 0800-1700... only later to find themselves in the hospital rounding at 0700... regularly leaving the clinic at 1845... and on call 2x/week... for the same xxx dollars/yr.

 

To ME...

The whole idea of being a PROFESSIONAL is the fact that I get determine who, when, what, where and under what terms I provide my services. So I personally demand professional consideration and courtesy.

 

So to answer your question... NO not typical but surely NOT rare and very possible.

 

LOTS of PAs working 4 days a week, or 3 on-4 off, or 7 on and 10 off, etc....

 

So if you were a EM PA... working 3 on 4 off at Job A... you could easily work 2 8hr shifts of those 4 days off at another ED.

 

 

If you are a CTPA working 3 on 4 off at Hospital A... you could easily cover a ICU/CCU across town 3-4 shifts a month for extra cash...

 

YMMV

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  • 2 weeks later...

btw... just had the oil changed on my commuter car. Its a loaded 2011 Nissan Juke that I drove off the lot Oct 5th 2011. I'm at 36,000 miles in 12 months.

 

Ouch! You definitely feel the pain also with that commute. I bought a Honda Insight (trying to save some money on gas) brand new with 102 miles on it, just hit 40,000 mark yesterday after one yr of driving.

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Lots of:

Sirrius/XM radio.... (Jazz, Blues, Reggae, ReachMD, DocRadio, Raw Comedy, Foxxhole)

CME Podcasts...

 

While my longest drive is only 73 miles each way... I've actually begun to enjoy the drive and the opportunity to mentally prepare before work and "wind-down" after. In my case, I usually listen to general medicine and lots of specialty specific medical/CME podcasts on the way to work and then comedy, reggae, blues, jazz on the way home.

 

Listening to something (Neuro Anatomy, Etiology, Pathophysiology, Diagnosis, Treatment of Whatever) for 1 hr a day.... five days a week, for a few months at a time... WILL make you a "subject matter expert" in whatever that is....

 

If you are a auditory learner.

 

YMMV

 

Contrarian

Where do you find the medical podcasts? Just ones on itunes or other places?

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@Contrarian:

I am doing my pre-reqs for PA school at the moment and I drive 45mins to an hour each way to and from school.

I also would like to know where you get audio medical (anatomy...etc) lessons.

I listen to Dr. Radio on XM and recordings of some of my prof.'s lectures.

Hate wasting those 2 hours a day in the car !!!

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Where do you find the medical podcasts? Just ones on itunes or other places?

 

@Contrarian:

I also would like to know where you get audio medical (anatomy...etc) lessons.

I listen to Dr. Radio on XM and recordings of some of my prof.'s lectures

 

Don't forget "ReachMD" on Sirrius radio....

 

Cleveland Clinic Podcasts

Audio Digest

AAFP FP audio

CME corner

Emory pa . org

 

To name a few... just google "mp3 audio cme".... TONS...!!!

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I drive an hour each way. I worked at an ED close to my house and only the night shifts, which caused some problems. There is nothing worse than going grocery shopping at 3am and bumping into the guys that you turned down for their pain medicine hanging out in front of the store. Took a job an hour away to avoid that very thing.

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