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Phlebotomy
Started by Doc4daze
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feedback much appreciated.... 
You and about every other premed I know. Phlebotomy isn't that great of an experience in medicine per se. It's a good skill to have, but it won't be a major plus on your application to med schools.....Good luck.
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Here is the thing.....Phlebotomy is limited patient contact.....look for nurse aid or tech work....log some volunteer time, that is what a lot of people are looking at, what you are willing to give back to the community....see med school applicants are a dime a dozen, so you have to make yourself stand out with whatever you can....
Hands-on patient contact eh? Just about as much as you would get wiping butts at the local NH, or checking BP's at a health fair. And it's not necessarily patient contact they are looking for per se, it's the exposure to the health care field and you really don't get a true exposure being a phleb. Sorry, but that's just the opinion of someone who was a phleb for a couple of years.
Phlebotomy isn't much more patient contact than a transporter, a registration clerk, etc. No disrespect to the phlebs, transporters & clerks - all important jobs. Solid patient contact involves responsibility for pt care & use of clinical judgement.
How does it look on a med school application saying I was a vampire! 
But seriously speaking "experience" in this arena is:
1)Paramedic or Emergency medical technician( a lot of times the first to see and stabilize the patient without a team often in dangerous circumstances.
2)med or nursing assistant, PA(this is probably overboard but good)
3)At the interview its nice to say I published 7 papers in Lancet or JAMA
Its even nicer to say I wrote a grant for such and such medical endeavor
eg heart disease, cancer etc.
But seriously speaking "experience" in this arena is:
1)Paramedic or Emergency medical technician( a lot of times the first to see and stabilize the patient without a team often in dangerous circumstances.
2)med or nursing assistant, PA(this is probably overboard but good)
3)At the interview its nice to say I published 7 papers in Lancet or JAMA
Its even nicer to say I wrote a grant for such and such medical endeavor
eg heart disease, cancer etc.
Doc4daze said:
Not so much (phlebotomy as experience for PA). And most PAs want to be PAs, few look at it as a stepping stone to medical school...
- H
Phlebotomy is getting to be more and more of a requirement, by many hospitals, to get a job as an ER Tech. And *experience* as a phlebotomist is a help in getting *other* jobs. That's why I am getting *my* license.
Oh and, hospital phlebotomists have more actual patient contact than do outpatient phlebotomists; in some small hospitals, they'll also be handing you over to run EKGs and other tests.
Oh and, hospital phlebotomists have more actual patient contact than do outpatient phlebotomists; in some small hospitals, they'll also be handing you over to run EKGs and other tests.
thirdunity said:
Phlebotomy is a good skill, but it's best use in this context, like you said, is in getting you the job that gives significant clincal experience. ED tech is an example. Obtaining EKGs is another good skill, but it isn't "clinical experience" unless the job allows you to assess the pt and decide whether or not the test is needed... or decide what to do with the test results. It's the responsibility for pt outcome that creates "good" pt care experience. Just my 0.02 as a PA adcomm member.
Maybe it is? But PA school is a huge investment of time (40hrs/wk in class for a year, 40-80hrs/week in clinicals for a year or longer). Also a huge investment of money. There has got to be an easier way into med school!doc4daze said:
Besides, PA programs want students who want to be PAs... many programs attempt to screen out those who aren't truly committed to being PAs.
Carolina Girl said:
Yep - that kind of time investment is why I'm not going Paramedic - I asked my EMT instructors for advice on this and the general consensus is that the year of medic school isn't worth it if I'm only going to be working for three years.
Phlebotomy is very useful to healthcare, this way the nurses can focus on the patient with out dealing with blood draws. When it comes to blood draws/venipuncture, leave that little task to the trained phlebotomist. Mobile phlebotomy is great work also because your in the field more.
