Infp needs some career direction in medical field while raising two small kids

[klove]

Hey friends. As you've read I am an INFp. I have started a degree in psych in my early twenties and am over halfway through it. I got sick of it because I did not like the experimental part. I liked the counselling aspect. I would like to get into the medical field , but want to pick something that is perfect for my type. I am 31 and the mother of a 10 month old son and am pregnant with my second by a couple months. If I am going to trade my time with my children...I would like to make sure whatever I chose is the right pick. I am interested in occupational therapy as well, but I would need to finish my degree first. I believe it is the same with nursing. I only want to spend the time and money if I am going to love it..Are there any occupational therapist out there? Is it worth it? I was also looking into being a Cardiology Technologist. It sounds great and I do not have to have another degree before pursuing it. They also make good money which I like. Does anyone know if this would suit INFP personality type? Did anyone pursue any of these careers while raising small children? Does anyone have any suggestions for me concerning careers in medical field that I would love and make descent money without spending a billion years in school? actually any kind suggestions would be great!

 

[Udog]

Welcome to the forum.

Occupational therapist sounds interesting. I can see an INFP being happy in such a career.

IMO, Cardiology Technologist may be a bit trickier. For you, my greatest concern is your lack of interest in the experimental portion of the psychology degree. Make sure the specific things that bothered you aren't even MORE highlighted as a cardio tech.

Hope that helps at least a bit.

 

[Fecal McAngry]

You would not want to be a cardiac tech. I've had multiple EKGs and echocardiograms, including one with contrast (fun!) and it looks like a very ISTP job...

 

[Chunes]

I've known of at least one INFP who was happy in speech therapy. It's also what I'm pursuing myself.

 

[sairahola]

Hello! So I was online looking for INFP careers when I found your post.

I am an INFP and I would have to say from my personal experience that I did not like Nursing, I think we're too sensitive for that kinda work and it's very "real" and disenchanting when you can't REALLY help people who are suffering--not ideal. And remember you'll see some gritty stuff on a daily basis, not to mention the lack of caring on the part of some coworkers. I guess you get desensitized after time.

I am studying Medical Laboratory Technician now, but I am not completely sure if an INFP would like that either, because it is technical and not very imaginative, I imagine, lol. MLT's work in the laboratory helping doctors diagnose diseases, without having to see the worst of it.

I recommend you look into Ultrasound Technology (Sonography) because it is the medical field, a two year degree, it pays well, and ultrasound is non-invasive for patients. It's an exciting and emerging field!

I believe Speech Pathologists require a Masters degree, but yeah, I took a career assessment at my junior college, and Speech Pathologist was the number one profession they paired me with and in the book "What Type Am I?" they said the same thing. Maybe it's a good idea for INFP's who have the commitment to go through the schooling

 

[CrystalViolet]

Hello! So I was online looking for INFP careers when I found your post.

I am an INFP and I would have to say from my personal experience that I did not like Nursing, I think we're too sensitive for that kinda work and it's very "real" and disenchanting when you can't REALLY help people who are suffering--not ideal. And remember you'll see some gritty stuff on a daily basis, not to mention the lack of caring on the part of some coworkers. I guess you get desensitized after time.

I am studying Medical Laboratory Technician now, but I am not completely sure if an INFP would like that either, because it is technical and not very imaginative, I imagine, lol. MLT's work in the laboratory helping doctors diagnose diseases, without having to see the worst of it.

I recommend you look into Ultrasound Technology (Sonography) because it is the medical field, a two year degree, it pays well, and ultrasound is non-invasive for patients. It's an exciting and emerging field!

I believe Speech Pathologists require a Masters degree, but yeah, I took a career assessment at my junior college, and Speech Pathologist was the number one profession they paired me with and in the book "What Type Am I?" they said the same thing. Maybe it's a good idea for INFP's who have the commitment to go through the schooling

Don't be a MLT! Trust me. I'm a qualified MLT, (I managed to get into research though), but I'm back in the medical labs for the time being, though neither career is particularly satisfying. You do need imagination though, it's actually damn handy.

 

[Scott N Denver]

Don't be a MLT! Trust me. I'm a qualified MLT, (I managed to get into research though), but I'm back in the medical labs for the time being, though neither career is particularly satisfying. You do need imagination though, it's actually damn handy.

Can you expand on this??? I've actually given this exact position thought as well, as seen in my recent thread a week or two about it. I am INFP, but have spent my whole career operating technical equipment. In your experience, what were the common types there, and in what kind of relative frequency? Lots of ITJ's?

 

[kyuuei]

I could see Physical therapist or Occupational therapist easily. My mother really loved going, and the atmosphere was that it was small, homey, and you were really trying to help people. I told my mother one time when it was our second to last appointment that it was too bad there weren't classes geared around this--to strengthen people's muscles and body parts that aren't used so often.

I also agree on the ultrasound thing. I think there was a thread started around here, though I can't remember the title of it, on why it's not such a great idea to persue the Psych field. in theory, in practice it's

 

[CrystalViolet]

Can you expand on this??? I've actually given this exact position thought as well, as seen in my recent thread a week or two about it. I am INFP, but have spent my whole career operating technical equipment. In your experience, what were the common types there, and in what kind of relative frequency? Lots of ITJ's?

I will once I get sleep...although not so many N's in my humble experience, and not so many INXX's.I tend to get on more with INXX. Lots of ST's, lots of STJ's, and you would be surprised at the amount of Extroverts, but I will expand more.

 

[CrystalViolet]

Okay. Being a MLT, you work in a very rigid environment, where you almost have to account for every step, due to documentation and traceability. You also have time pressure, in order to get results out in a timely manner. It's a high stress environment, with a lot of rule following, and just plain pedantry. There's a lot of documentation, quality control etc. etc. Depending on how rigid management is, it can be a living hell for INFP, or pretty tolerable, but this job, at least for me, is highly dependent on the people you work with, for enjoyability. If there's is a good mix of F's and P's, the constrictions can seem less suffocating and the job can be enjoyable, but if it's a strongly STJ environment, there is a large amount of blind policy, and very little consideration for the actual situation at hand.
When I do work in the medical labs, I choose smaller multi discipline labs, because I get extremely bored in the bigger labs, where you specialise in one discipline.
Being multidisciplinary is not for every one, because you have to have a high capacity for multitasking, and you are constantly reprioritising the urgency of work coming in, but you have to chop and change different mindsets, which was difficult for me at first. You also need to be extremely flexible (in mind set, and with changing circumstances). This INFP is very good at her job though, because she can think fast on her feet, and I have a great strength in being to trouble shoot, and anticipate problems before they occur. I also have better management of work flow because I can visualise the whole, and I have one hell of good memory. I can keep track of multiple flows of work.
INFP will have problems, if following procedures, policies, and quality control, is put over and above, patient considerations. My main focus is getting results out for doctors so they can treat patients.
One of my main frustrations, is over trouble shooting, and on the spot repairs of analysers. In a very strongly STJ environment, if it's not in the operating manuals, no matter how logically you explain, even if QC is good, you have good reproducibility of results etc, etc it's not acceptable.
Transfusion science is particularly frustrating in this regard...I have had to some times go over managers heads, to haematologist (doctors) heads of department over certain situations, where you quite literally have patients lives dependent on the decisions you make, because it's not following the manual, or policy. No matter how you nut it out logically, and believe me, I can be logical in those situations.
One of the biggest things, I have found hard is I often get derided hard for my emotional nature. When ever I've stepped out the labs, though, people think I'm extremely cold and matter of fact...and very pragmatic.
Personal Politics can be rife, and often you end up working very hard and very long hours. It's not an ideal job for INFP, because you need a really thick skin and you need to be able to stand up for yourself constantly, and that can be exhausting. One good thing though is you don't take your job home with you, because you can't. Once you are out of the labs your free time is your own.
I could write a book on why this job is not good for INFP's, but I do have to say this, it's more of a near miss job for me. I have an analytical mind, and all said and done, I do get to say, I help save people's lives. The routine aspects and repetition are much easier to bare when managment values patient care over policy, but the focus is policy and procedure, it can be miserable.

 

[Scott N Denver]

^ have you found or seen other medical jobs that you think would be better suited for INFP's??? Virtually everything I see needs some darned accredidation or other

 

[CrystalViolet]

LOL, I was a blood collector for a while, which was even worse. I liked talking to the patients though. Unfortantly the medical industry being what it is, they like to see formal education, and those precious bits of paper. It only seems to get worse as the years pass.
Damn, I was thinking about Psych too. Obviously the lab components wouldn't bother me too much though.
The best kind of job is one that isn't so rigidly structured, where some one isn't looking over my shoulder all the time, and I get to use my brain. I can't see any thing like that in medicine until you get to middle managment. Research labs tend be less rigid IMHO.
I worked as a nurses aid when I was younger which is fun if the nurses don't treat you like a shit kicker.(I was more like a paid visitor though). I always thought being an orderly would be fun too, but it doesn't seem to be an option for me because I'm small and it can involve heavy lifting.

I think I would find my job less ardous, if my skills and inherent abilities were acknowledged as good, not some thing to be inherently suspicous of, because for all I bitch about my career, I'm very good at it. Better at it than many ST's, in fact. I learn fast, my intuitiveness is a blessing, I can concentrate for longer, being able to see the bigger picture has been a real asset. Questioning policies if they don't make sense, being able to get the best out of team members...trust me that has saved my ass time and time again. If I have a small team, I work at group cohesion. You can get more out of team members if you inspire loyalty, and just plain old fashion caring. It's good to know some one has your back in crisis.
This can often be seen as insubordination though, if team members display more loyalty to you than managment (it's happened to me). Oh, and my sheer capacity for remembering odd minutea....and weird little tricks and quirks.
Most intuitives I have crossed paths with (I'm sure it's not just an INFP thing) struggle with the mind numbing focus on the details. Medical labs are geared up for and cater to sensors, right down to the ridiculous route training, and assumption that each lab is very different ( ican tell you for a fact once you've work in a few labs, you can pretty much walk into any lab and run it.)

 

[Scott N Denver]

^ I have this silly idea that since I have a MS in physics, and work with technical equipment including lasers, that *maybe* there would be some easy way to shift over...

 

[CrystalViolet]

I think we'd be good at things like recreational therapist, jobs that require a little human touch. Social worker, any thing requiring patient contact so long as it's not too much and we can bail for a bit if we need too. I think I'd make a good ward clerk, sounds boring but they get around and they deal with every body, lots of little tasks, the super trouble shooters. INFP's get bitter and cynical in the medical industry, for we get shunned for the very things that are our strengths, and many would consider an asset on the outside.

 

[CrystalViolet]

^ I have this silly idea that since I have a MS in physics, and work with technical equipment including lasers, that *maybe* there would be some easy way to shift over...

LOL, IMHO, that would be considered an assett. I love it when people aren't scared of the analysers, and aren't afraid to pull them apart, but alas the buearocrats don't see it that way, but I don't see why you couldn't approach companies like coulter, or bayer....they always seem to be looking for techies for machine maintanance.

 

[Scott N Denver]

INFP's get bitter and cynical in the medical industry, for we get shunned for the very things that are our strengths, and many would consider an asset on the outside.

Can you expand some more on this, both the first part and the second? Is the second part saying "our peers say we care too much and shun us for that, even though people think people in the medical field should care"???

Other than not wanting to go back to school, I keep thinking about physical therapist, or MRI tech, or maybe medical sonographer

 

[CrystalViolet]

Can you expand some more on this, both the first part and the second? Is the second part saying "our peers say we care too much and shun us for that, even though people think people in the medical field should care"???

Other than not wanting to go back to school, I keep thinking about physical therapist, or MRI tech, or maybe medical sonographer

Yeah, some thing like that. My idealism is some what of a bane.
Oooo, MRI tech. Psyichal therapist could work. Generally a hard course to get into though. Medical sonographer....lots of pregnant women.

 

[Biaxident]

Can you expand some more on this, both the first part and the second? Is the second part saying "our peers say we care too much and shun us for that, even though people think people in the medical field should care"???

Other than not wanting to go back to school, I keep thinking about physical therapist, or MRI tech, or maybe medical sonographer

Yeah, some thing like that. My idealism is some what of a bane.
Oooo, MRI tech. Psyichal therapist could work. Generally a hard course to get into though. Medical sonographer....lots of pregnant women.

Here is the thing. Physical Therapy and Occupational Therapy can be a good place, if you can jump all the hurdles to get in.

I'm more familiar with OT, so I will generally stick with OT info.

There are 2 levels. Occupational Therapy Assistant: a 2 year Associate's Degree.

And Occupational Therapist: a Masters degree/Doctorate. There are no 4 year degrees for OT. It was phased out in the early 2000's if I remember correctly.

Don't have any financial problems, they frown on that.

OTAs cannot work without being supervised by an OT, better to get a Masters. You must take National or State boards($400+), sometimes both, to be licensed. As an OTA you don't have much room to be creative, as an OT you can be creative as long as you stay within budget, and can show objective evidence of progress in patients.

Paperwork sucks. Every time you see a patient you need to be able to show and document, concrete, objective, evidence that the treatment addresses the patient's problem(s). In such a way that the medical billing weenies, and insurance company flunkies, will pay for it.

It can be difficult to justify getting paid for adjusting a patient's posture in a wheelchair, so that they no longer choke when they eat. Then documenting it in such a way that you get paid. When an alert Nurse's Aide could have done the same thing, for $15 an hour.

P.S. Males have an easier time getting into OT and PT, more so OT. Since there is a shortage of men in those fields.


I'm irritated, and haven't drank enough coffee yet...

 

[Scott N Denver]

^ can someone explain how PT and OT differ? As I understand OT is much more broad

 

[Biaxident]

A decent description.

Occupational Therapy

Occupational therapy is meant to focus on a person’s functional abilities. An occupational therapist does not directly treat a person’s injury, but instead helps the person optimize their independence and ability to accomplish daily activities after an injury has occurred. Occupational therapy focuses on a patient’s life skills.

An occupational therapist will utilize adaptive tools that are ofttimes customized by the therapist. They will also do on-site assessments in home and work environments and give recommendations on how the locations can be adapted to allow a better quality of life. Think about them as “occupation” like a job, a therapist that works on a job or home site.

Physical Therapy

Physical therapy is focused more on treating an injury than working around it or trying to prevent future injuries. Think of them as more “physical” or therapists of the body instead of the occupation/job or home environment.

Physical therapists are trained on anatomy and the musculoskeletal systems, resulting in the therapist being more knowledgeable about muscle and skeletal injuries. They are specialized in rehabilitation, offering services to injured patients that may not be available through a general practitioner.

From here:
The Difference Between Physical and Occupational Therapy | Degrees In Health Care