What do you nurses think of these allied health professionals?

IHeartPeds87 · Dec 4, 2009

I'm interested to learn about your views of hospital chaplains, occupational therapists, radiation therapists, and respiratory therapists.
Each of these professionals bring a unique talent and set of skills to the hospital. Chaplains share the power of prayer and get to see patients in some of the most vulnerable states in their lives to offer spiritual and emotional guidance. Occupational therapists help people get back to where they were before a procedure damaged their abilities. Radiation therapists work making use of powerful beams of energy to destroy cancerous and non cancerous growths and tumors. Respiratory therapists are trained to manage patient respiratory conditions, monitor breathing, and even intubate patients during some cardiac arrests.
All the above professionals are amazing. Especially when we get the golden opportunity to see them come together for the sake of a patient. Truly a beautiful display of teamwork.
I'm interested in your thoughts of these professionals because they are possibilities for me should I choose to opt out of nursing school. No offense to nurses, your skills are also highly valued, but may be too generalfor my taste.

Agreed, healthcare is a team effort. Everyone comes from a unique angle to benefit the patient. What made me choose nursing and not one of the other careers as you mentioned? The focus on patient care in nursing is unparalleled. I have taken patients to occupational therapy appointments, and at most an occupational therapist spends an hour a day with a particular patient. Granted, they may have upwards of 5-6 patients in a day, but the emphasis isn't the same. Nurses are with the patient for their entire shift. In a blizzard/extreme situation, occupational therapists, speech therapists, and chaplains don't HAVE to come in for that day. Counties have been known to fly in nurses because nursing care isn't an option, it isn't a benefit, it is necessary.

I mean absolute no disrespect to members in other professions of healthcare. I am simply explaining why I want to be a nurse, and not another one of the respected professions that you mentioned.

Here's my general take on it: Nursing is an extremely rewarding and frustrating career. Nurses go through each end of that spectrum, pretty much every shift. Other jobs in healthcare are also important...but the range of rewarding and frustrating doesn't "extend as far" ... on each side of the spectrum.

That's my opinion, anyway. And I wouldn't be suprised if occupational therapists believed that their job was the most extremely rewarding career...after all, thats probably why they picked it!!

and, I don't really understand how you can say that nursing is too "general." Nurses work in specific areas of health...a labor and delivery nurse has a completely different job description than an operating room nurse....

86toronado, BSN, RN · Dec 4, 2009

I know I couldn't do my job without the respiratory therapists... a lot of the patients on my floor are vented, and even more have regular breathing treatments that I wouldn't have time to keep up with.

As far as occupational therapy, again, that's a member of the healthcare team that the patients on my floor would be lost without. A huge portion of our population are CVA's, and TBI's, both of which rely heavily on OT to get back to their baseline functioning. While we are an acute facility, the rehab for our patients starts on day one, with PT, OT, and ST.

Hope this helps. As far as the chaplains, and radiation therapists, I don't deal with either too much on my night shifts, but I have a cousin who does radiation therapy, and he does make a lot more money than me

elkpark · Dec 4, 2009

For what it's worth, the OTs I've known over the years have been happier being OTs than the RNs I've known have been happy being RNs ... They are able to offer a lot of concrete, meaningful services to people.

In my experience, all the hospital chaplains I've known have been ordained clergy who took additional training (CPE) to be qualified as chaplains, so, if pursuing ordination as a member of the clergy of some religious denomination is not something you would do anyway, that's quite a lot to take on. I've worked with some really super chaplains over the years, and have a lot of respect for the v. difficult, challenging job they do.

I don't have a great deal of experience with or opinions on radiation therapists or resp therapists. They sure are lifesavers if you need their particular services, though!

murphyle, BSN, RN · Dec 4, 2009

We loved our Respiratory Therapy techs during my preceptorship in SICU. Since we primarily dealt in open hearts, everyone came to our unit vented, and many of them stayed that way for the first few post-op days. (Accelerated weaning protocol is great until you get that 80 y.o. COPD, CHF, etc. who barely got off the pump and now isn't waking up.) There was always at least one RT on the floor for us, and they handled everything from breathing treatments to terminal weaning (and also taking the time to teach the SN in their midst all about ventilation!) Likewise Radiology, as all of our patients were guaranteed at least two portable chest X-rays (one for extubation, one for chest tube D/C), and most of them wound up getting cardiac echoes, head CTs and other such imaging as well. OT/PT we didn't see too much of - their job started once our patients made it out to the med/surg floors - but they, too, get a lot of respect in my book.

Nobody in healthcare does it alone, and there really isn't any such thing as a job that's more important than the others. I know I'd have a hard time being an RT, just as our RTs all said "I don't think I could ever do your job." It's all where your skills and your passion are focused.

"For what it's worth, the OTs I've known over the years have been happier being OTs than the RNs I've known have been happy being RNs ... They are able to offer a lot of concrete, meaningful services to people."

Interesting. For the record, probably about a quarter of my cohort of accelerated 2nd degree BSNs were ex-OT/PT, and they all say they're happier as nurses... take that as you will.

RedCell · Dec 5, 2009

I'm interested to learn about your views of hospital chaplains, occupational therapists, radiation therapists, and respiratory therapists.
Each of these professionals bring a unique talent and set of skills to the hospital. Chaplains share the power of prayer and get to see patients in some of the most vulnerable states in their lives to offer spiritual and emotional guidance. Occupational therapists help people get back to where they were before a procedure damaged their abilities. Radiation therapists work making use of powerful beams of energy to destroy cancerous and non cancerous growths and tumors. Respiratory therapists are trained to manage patient respiratory conditions, monitor breathing, and even intubate patients during some cardiac arrests.
All the above professionals are amazing. Especially when we get the golden opportunity to see them come together for the sake of a patient. Truly a beautiful display of teamwork.
I'm interested in your thoughts of these professionals because they are possibilities for me should I choose to opt out of nursing school. No offense to nurses, your skills are also highly valued, but may be too general for my taste.

Hospital Chaplains are discriminatory against humanists (very lacking in cultural sensitivity if you ask me)

Occupational Therapists interfere with Percocet consumption and Oprah watching time

Radiation Therapists practice witchcraft and their patients usually die anyway

Respiratory Therapists...well they are usually good for bumming a smoke off of in the most dire of times. Best of all it is usually an unfiltered Camel tucked in between a vial of albuterol and ipratropium in their front pocket.

On second thought, I usually like RTs.

Blackheartednurse · Dec 5, 2009

they are monsters if you ask me, just kidding though:yeah:

Indy, LPN, LVN · Dec 5, 2009

I don't see OT and ST much but their recommendations come in handy for, say, my guillian barre patients, some of whom never seem to sleep. I have laid eyes on one chaplain and one nun since starting nursing, and the nun was during a school clinical rotation. It's nice that they showed up but I usually find myself having to provide those services. I work with some awesome techs and nurses who will step in and help me when patients are in spiritual crisis; some I can deal with and some just need another person's touch.

I like the Xray folks and usually offer to help them with positioning. The allied health professional that I have the most respect, admiration, and affection for outside of nursing is the respiratory therapist. I'm a hands-on learner, so it follows that RT's taught me more than school ever could about pulmonary. As a new grad, I was blessed to know some absolutely wonderful therapists on nights who weren't condescending and did take time to explain things. I work in LTAC now and we have very few patients who aren't under respiratory's umbrella. It is a joy to work with them, and to realize that the teamwork definitely helps the patient have a good outcome.

RNperdiem, RN · Dec 5, 2009

I think of the Respiratory therapists as my brothers-in-arms. Their jobs have a lot of similarities to nursing in that they get their patient assignments and give report and start assessing their patients just like nurses.

RT is the allied health professionals I work with the most.

PT and OT are not a big part of patient care in ICU, and their consults are brief.

Xray comes maybe once or twice a day for portable Xrays, I appreciate any procedure that can come to the bedside.

Chaplins usually show up for family conferences or during a code. I have not had much a chance to get to know them well.

MedSurgeMess · Dec 5, 2009

I have respect for all of my allied health brothers/sisters. We are all in this crazy game together and have the patient outcome at heart. Yes, even the chaplain has to think about that so that can minister appropriately.

elkpark · Dec 6, 2009

Hospital Chaplains are discriminatory against humanists (very lacking in cultural sensitivity if you ask me)

That's not been my experience -- the hospital chaplains (real, trained chaplains, not just someone's pastor who happened to wander into the hospital) I've known are educated and work v. hard to respect and work with each individual's personal beliefs and values, not to impose their own. Of course, I'm sure there's a wide range of possibilities out there, and always a few "bad applies" in any barrel.

work&play · Dec 6, 2009

The OT working at a school I onced worked in was the happiest person on earth! She came in and worked with our preschoolers in special education on how to hold a pencil,crayon, or cut shapes for an hour.

She then moved to other special education clases and worked with the other students, but we could still hear her lough. Such a happy person!

Now, my brother- in-law's wife is an RN ....and the unhappiest person on hearth! She's always engry! She flips her middle finger at me when she sees me for- I don't know what reason. She's such a mess!!

Thanks to her, I don't want to be a nurse!