Far and away it is the pay. You will start at $8.50/hour for work that can be exceptionally demanding. And the pay rate may not be raised for several years. If you are placed in a high-volume clinic, you are constantly engaged in patient care and documentation. It can be nearly impossible to run a clinic and accomplish the endless paperwork that is also involved. Not to mention the vision screenings, hearing screenings and BMI screenings.
The pay is definitely not reflective of the work that we do. We are constantly juggling full clinics with an endless stream of students pouring in - some who truly need care - and some who don't. All, however, will need the same level of assessment (& documentation). You definitely need to be an intuitive and flexible person who is VERY GOOD at multitasking. It can be very difficult to complete a single task without many interruptions. This is the rule, rather than the exception. Further, you do not receive any more pay for handling a high-volume clinic than an aide working in a slower clinic receives. Nor do you receive support or assistance from PSI to help with screenings.
The pay is not reflective of the level of responsibility that we assume. We are responsible for handling all medical emergencies in our buildings. This can include severe head/neck traumas, choking, severe asthma attacks, anaphylactic reactions as well as heart attacks and strokes of staff members and visitors. And it is not unusual to be faced with emergency situations approximately 5-6 times per school year. It doesn't feel right to be charged with such responsibility while being paid little more than minimum wage.
The pay is not reflective of the "abuse" that we face from parents. We are constantly second-guessed - whether by parents or by teachers. You need to have thick skin as there will almost always be someone who disagrees with the decision that you have made. Many parents are very stressed and are facing a myriad of challenges of their own. Unfortunately, they very often take their stress out on you. Very often, you are in a position of feeling darned if you do - and darned if you don't.
Fortunately, the hours and the nature of the work (changing, challenging, interesting and fun) will compensate for these drawbacks. PSI will offer a few nominal tokens of appreciation during the school year, which is appreciated by their staff.
However, you should be made aware: The culture at PSI is non-supportive, punitive and belittling in nature. Taking a day off for illness is an extremely stressful, guilt-inducing process. If you are full-time, you will get 5 sick days. As you use them up - and approach 5 days -- or should you surpass the 5 days -- you will receive threatening letters... regardless of the cause of your absence - surgery, etc., notwithstanding. It is belittling.
Furthermore, management is too removed from daily life in a clinic. They truly believe that any yahoo off the street can do the work. Consequently, they treat you as though they can replace you in a heartbeat. They do not recognize their health aides who toil on the "front lines" with an enormous amount of responsibility and who perform with grace and professionalism. Those who have steadfastly and responsibly served with consistency and good judgment while receiving insulting pay. Those health aides are treated with the same condescension and lack of respect as the yahoo-off-the-street that they hire, who can't handle the job more than 3 days.
Fortunately, the work involves very little interaction with management and the office staff at PSI. If you are aware of these drawbacks when you begin your career at PSI, I believe that you will be very happy and satisfied with your work. The work does afford a wonderful work/life balance and the schools are staffed by friendly, caring people who will be appreciative of all that you have to offer. Those are the people you will be dealing with on a daily basis. So, overall, I would recommend PSI for people looking for a "Mom" job - or a stepping-stone job. It is DEFINITELY not a career-type job, nor is it designed to be.
