u/BugOnly1157

I don't have to take A&P 1 or 2 for my RT program, as I took them about a year and a half ago and those credits counted toward the program.

Problem is, I recall /very/ little about those classes--they were online, and done very quickly, so I want to be able to review some of the material before the program starts.

Any recommendations or resources on which topics I should review to be best prepped for this program?

Oxalate stone former here, I pass a stone or two a year: I just went to the eye doctor and was told I have macular degeneration/CSCR, and the route to slowing the progress was to start taking daily AREDS 2 vitamins, which would add more than 500mg of Vitamin C into my daily intake.

I have read that Vitamin C increases stone risk. What are some things I can do to counteract the increased risk with the increased intake? (besides drinking enough water)

I start classes in August at Tidewater Community College. It requires relocation for me, and I would need to be able to pay rent in Virginia Beach while I attend school.

I work from home in my job, and just recently brought a proposal to my boss to see if he would allow me to shift my work hours so I can attend classes during the day, in person. He didn't seem thrilled, and told me he needed the week to think about it.

Admittedly, I'm sweating this a little, as the success of this program hinders on me having some kind of income for living expenses, tuition, textbooks, uniforms, etc. for this program. But I need to prepare for the worst, in case he declines and I'm out of a job.

Did you work when attending classes? If so, what kinds of jobs are available that I should consider with hours that exist outside of 9-5 business hours? Admittedly I have zero healthcare experience, so my options are limited. Any ideas or insights are greatly appreciated.

Edit: Any suggestions regarding hospital positions that require little- to no-training or school would be greatly appreciated as well!

I have a group interview to get into Tidewater Community College's Respiratory Therapy program on Friday, and I've been getting increasingly nervous about it. I have no idea what to expect, I've never interviewed for a program like this before. Does anyone have any insight on what I should expect or come prepared with? I'm worried I'll be tested or asked about prerequisites or A&P, which I haven't taken in quite a while. Should I study up?

I spoke with an RT about my interest in becoming a Perfusionist. My current path is to train as an RT, get certified in ECMO, and then apply to a perfusion program.

Knowing this, the RT that I spoke to recommended Perfusionist Assistant or Autotransfusion Tech over Respiratory Therapy.

Does anyone have experience in either of these roles, and can you tell me the salary and education differences in the two as they compare to RT?

As title suggests, I'm scrambling a bit as I'm realizing deadlines for applications are either passed or closing very soon. I'm trying to apply to a Respiratory Therapy program at a Community College in either Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, or New York. Does anyone happen to have any connections or recommendations for good schools that have applications for fall of this year still open?

I had an assignment in one of my classes a few months ago that required I interview someone in a healthcare field, and the questions proved to be incredibly insightful for various fields in healthcare.

I've recently been seriously considering Respiratory Therapy, and would SUPER appreciate the opportunity to ask these questions to someone who has been in the field! I have questions about day-to-day, education paths, workload, etc. I would estimate the interview wouldn't take more than maybe an hour. I would be happy to set up an anonymous google meeting link, no face is required, just a quick voice call would be greatly appreciated, if anyone is willing! Definitely open/hoping to interviewing more than one person, as well!

I am currently 33, single, gay, and shifting careers. I am searching for cities to relocate, and Delaware seems to be a decent state that is close to family and friends. I want to start applying to school programs (specifically to get a degree in Respiratory Therapy, preferably at a community college, but open to other options)

I'm looking for a city that has affordable rent, close to a city/suburban life, queer life with a similar age group, and close to decent hospitals or colleges. Hoping to check as many of those boxes as possible, but definitely open to hearing other options. Any and all insight is greatly appreciated!

Is there a resource that contains a list of RT programs by price, by chance? Or is the list too large? I'm looking to start applying to programs, but it's difficult to navigate and search for local schools or programs by price. Any experience or recommendations that could provide insight would be greatly appreciated!

Edit: I would love to hear personal experiences if possible--I need to relocate, and this program would help me decide where I want to move. I'm not concerned with finding programs near me, in fact I am looking for the opposite. Preferably on the East Coast...?

Apologies for the incoming long post, but any and all insight would be so greatly appreciated.

I'm 33, I've been a graphic designer for the past 10 years in a corporate capacity, and it has sucked every ounce of fun out of being creative, and I am nothing short of miserable at my job every day. I am lucky I get to do it from home, but the pay is abysmal, and the company I'm working for is a joke. I'm so tired of living paycheck-to-paycheck, and working in the business of selling people things they don't need.

It's been an interest of mine for a very long time to work in healthcare in some capacity. But it feels like there are thousands of roles or jobs to consider, and knowing nothing about any of it, it's been difficult to figure out a path to work toward. For the last 5 years, I've been asking friends, friends of friends, family members, or anyone else who will humor me if they have any insights on healthcare positions. One that I finally found was perfusion.

It had everything--minimal training program of 1-2 years for a position with much higher pay, and something that remains on the "sidelines" while still being vital to the operating room, which provides the fulfillment of helping people I am seeking with a healthcare position.

So, I set out for that path. With no prior healthcare education, I began online classes last year for a bachelors in Health Sciences at Thomas Jefferson University, where I intended to also take the perfusion program. I graduate this August.

At the beginning of this year, I started speaking with staff at TJU to figure out how to apply for this program, and to my incredible disappointment, one of the advisors I spoke with told me "...I have to level with you, we get about 300 applicants a year, and only accept 13." It shattered me, to be honest. With zero working experience in any healthcare capacity, I knew my chances of getting this job in a timely manner suddenly were incredibly low. I had NO idea starting this path how competitive this position was.

After thinking about it for a while, there's been some doubt that's been taking over in my mind, and I think I need to accept that perfusion may not be for me *right now*. But I wanted to expand my search a bit to see if there was anything similar in the interim that I could work toward. Again, with such little experience or knowledge, I have no idea where I should even be looking.

My question/TLDR;

What other professions in healthcare are similar to perfusion with the following aspects that I'm looking for:

• Short training/programs
• "Sideline" positions (I'm nowhere near brave enough to go the nurse/doctor route being face-to-face with patients)
• Emotionally fulfilling
• Decent pay
• Maybe less competitive than Perfusion