Medical Scribe vs. Hospital Job?

[pushmid2win]

So I am applying in the current cycle and I heard that it is beneficial to have a clinical job during gap year. I've heard good things about working as a scribe for the learning experience. However, most locations are pretty far from where I live and the minimum wage pay isn't too impressive. Is there a significant advantage working as a scribe over a regular hospital or clinical job (patient caretaker, receptionist, etc.) in terms of getting accepted? And does scribe experience make things a little easier for getting used to med school?

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[WedgeDawg]

Any of the experiences you mentioned (with the possible exception of receptionist, which may still be alright) are fine clinical experiences. Schools aren't interested in what you've done as much as they are in what you've learned and what you've taken away from the experience. You can do literally anything productive (very loosely defined) during your gap year and be successful, but it is a good way to fill in gaps in your application. If you already have substantial clinical experience, you could consider doing something else instead, but if you don't have too much, then I agree that a clinical position would be a good bet.

 

[GrapesofRath]

The reason clinical jobs are recommended by many during gap years(not that other jobs are bad) is a) many pre-meds have never done anything like them before and they are good experience b) its not like research where you a key thing that can help you is how effective a job you are able to produce something. Doing research during a gap year means no posters or pubs can go on your app. There are no posters and pubs to go on your app for a clinical job. So when you put on your resume you are currently doing a clinical job by the time ADCOMS read the app you'll have a couple months of exposure and by the time of the interview it'll be more(and hence fill any clinical exposure requirements you might not have hit).

That said all clinical jobs are fine. If you were to ask for one that might really stand out it is a Nursing Assistant/PCT type job. You always hear Goro say, working with sick patients and doing real dirty work is what gets you brownie points for ADCOMs. Well Nursing Assistant type jobs are full of grunt work nobody wants to do and taking care of patients in ways people don't want to. It also pushes you with how grueling the shifts are and the timing of them(working 12 hours straight 6PM-6 AM for ex). From the friends who I know who've done this job, this has been a topic every ADCOM or interviewer seems to want to talk about come interview time and are really impressed by. Doing it full time shows a) dedication b) willingness to help out the needy in ways most aren't willing to c) great clinical exposure and an idea that you know what you are getting into.

 

[scag22]

I'm not planning on applying to medical school, but I will say that I was a nursing assistant, research assistant and scribe during my undergraduate years and all three are VERY different. I have to say that I hated every second of being a scribe, as it's overly-done for premeds and anyone can do it. Also, the job seems a bit worthless because, in all honesty, the physicians are perfectly capable of writing in the EMR themselves. In fact, they are likely to do it way better than any scribe (with the exception of the older doctors who aren't as used to technology). I just felt like their little monkey who was forced to follow them around and mindlessly do whatever they asked of me. The whole scribe thing is, in my opinion, just a way to make the physicians feel more powerful because at the end of the day, I was just their assistant.

I would recommend getting into a caregiving or nursing assisting program if you want a real clinical job that pays okay and makes you stand out. You'd a lot of patient care hours and the experience was special for me, as I helped the lives of the elderly and disabled in ways that none of my friends have ever done. It is a REAL job that's vital in health care and a great way to built connections while also adding some unique points to your application. The only downside to this is that you NEED to have the stomach for it, because you're job mostly involves doing all the dirty work and it really can get disgusting...I had to quit after a year because I couldn't take the smell or the loads of naked people I'd see on a daily basis. Also, you need to be strong enough to lift some heavy people (most of them are either paralyzed or too old and weak to move on their own).

I would also suggest that you look into health data/analyst jobs at your local hospitals in the meantime. Those jobs will not only expose you to health care (a different side) but it will also give you experience with analytical and critical thinking (and they pay well). I'm currently in the interview process for an Oncology Data Specialist position and it seems like a great job to put on my resume and future applications for a more advanced medical career.