RE: Recent disturbing postings

From:"Dawson, Glen"

David,
 
Very succinct...but I believe that this particular thread was already over.
That is...until now.
 
Glen D.

-----Original Message-----
From: David Costanzo [mailto:stoli@martini.as]
Sent: Friday, June 27, 2003 12:16 PM
To: histonet@pathology.swmed.edu
Subject: Recent disturbing postings


Today someone handed me copies of several posts from this listserv on the
subject of pathologist's assitants. I have to say they are quite alarming
and amazing at the same time.
 
Terry Murphy says "the majority of them......arrogant and self serving"
 
Elliott Osterhaus, M.D., Ph.D. writes: "from the $40-55 per hour they get,
they don't appear to do much"
 
These are disturbing accusations. First, on average a path assistant DOES
NOT earn $55.00 per hour, NOT EVEN CLOSE. That would amount to $123,200 per
year. In a recent survey I conducted nobody earned that much (60
respondents). The average is far lower. As a matter of fact 95% of path
assistants earn less than $39.00 per hour.
 
Even more disturbing is the continuing trend to attmept a comparison between
path assistants and histotechnologists. There is ABSOLUTELY NOTHING WRONG
with being a histotech. I do not feel they are inferior, nor do I feel the
environmental staff at the hospital are inferior. However, comparing a
histotch to a University trained path assistant is not apples to apples.
Many of you may feel hostility because you know of a histotech that trained
on the job and poof - became a path assistant. I assure you if this is the
case (AND they passed the national AAPA exam) they were held to the same
difficult standards that us University trained path assistants were held to.
They are just as deserving of the job as I am. Just because they got their
start as a histotech does not mean that they are stilll histotechs. Many
M.D.'s started out in nursing - does that mean a nurse can suggest he/she is
of the same calibre still? Of course not!
 
Do not hold resentment to pathologists assistants because you think they
should be held responsible for helping you do YOUR job in busy times. Who
helps them when they are busy? It is not your job to gross a few colons to
help them, likewise it is not their job to cut controls for you, or
accession for that matter. The job of a path assistant is different than the
job of a histotech, we just work in the same room. You have your duties, I
have mine. I know nothing about immunohistochemistry, and a tech knows
nothing about staging a cancer case. Our roles are different. Stop the
senseless bickering and comparison of apples to bananas. It is ridiculous.
 
We are supposed to, as adults, work together with positive attitudes. We are
all here to serve the patient. This does not appear to be the case in
instances reported on this listserv, but they are not from my experience the
rule. I have never had a problem with a histotech, I have made many friends
at work. I am not sure what your problems are, or where they arise. But be
sure to remember a path assistant has as much duty to do histology work as
an OR nurse has to cook for the cafeteria.





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