I'm wondering if anyone has done a study about the job satisfaction of perfusionists? I'm also wondering what you would recommend as another career path since--in my admittedly anecdotal experience--crappy hours and disrespect often happen in the medical field...

@@andrapaitz4257 yup with the salaries the way they are today become a registered nurse that’s how I got started and then after 6 years in nursing as a neo natal icu nurse I went back to school and became a perfusionist biggest mistake of my life because the traveling salaries for nurses is off the charts now out paying a perfusionist and you can then be a nurse anesthetist make more money no call and more respect by a mile and not as life threatening a job no doubt you can kill a patient as a NA BUT perfusion is so much more intense that’s why my one friend left perfusion and became a NA…..PERFUSION IS MY LAST CHOICE FOR ANY JOB MEDICAL RELATED ITS HORRIBLE

This profession is good for anyone who loves the work and can perform well in this stressful environment. The ratio of males to females in this profession is only slightly skewed to males. there are plenty of female CCP that would be happy to talk to you about their experience - if you like.

Jeremy - Thanks for reaching out. A GPA of 3.4 will be competitive. Right in the middle of the pack. Personally, I'd see more value in gaining knowledge of the career. Get to know the perfusionists at your hospital and learn everything you can and let that knowledge and your passion come through in the interview. Best of Luck!

It's my pleasure

Terry - I’m so sorry for your loss. Thanks for sharing this . It is important for students to know the gravity of the profession they are pursuing. You are correct that a perfusionists job is a matter of life and death. We make decisions and take actions that can hurt or help our patients in a matter of seconds . With proper training a perfusion student will become competent and confident. But perfusionists are human and humans make mistakes, so we should also design systems and processes that will help prevent, protect and mitigate human error. Cardiac surgery is risky. Many patients are very sick and you need to be a little brave and very skilled to choose to work with those patients and try to improve their quality of life. Your message to these students is well stated. Thank you. With my condolences, Bruce

@@PerfusionEDU Thank you for your response, as I said, my family and I were obviously heartbroken for the loss, my Dad was having a pulmonary valve replacement(2nd time) and a bypass of an artery which was blocked. We understood all of those professionals operating on my Dad were trying to help him. We take comfort that my Dad died peacefully, because so many around the world die horrid deaths of pain and suffering. Your video was an excellent instruction on your profession.

sorry for your loss...but if the aorta dissected...its the fault of the surgeon not the perfusionist

@hawk2010222 Thank you for your comment, I was told that when they were bringing my Dad off of bypass, the surgeon said something to the perfusionists, apparently caused a strong force of blood causing the problem. I am not sure what goes into it or what happened, it really doesnt matter, the end result was death.

@@terrybrown2556There’s nothing a perfusionist can do to cause the aortic dissection the surgeon lied to you putting the blame on the perfusionist. CABG surgery is risky sorry for you loss

Juan - great to hear from you! Can't wait to work with you and your great group again! Thanks for reaching out!

Thanks Jorge! Great to here from you

Glad it was helpful!

Perfusion is generally a graduate level curriculum; either a MS degree or a PBC (Post Baccalaureate Certificate). There are very few BS programs left in the USA

www.upstate.edu/chp/programs/cp/cp_reqs.php

www.upstate.edu/chp/programs/cp/cp_reqs.php

Unfortunately most Perfusionists that train outside of the USA and Canada do not qualify for the ABCP examination which is the requirement for employment in the USA

Our program and others do accept international students. Here is a link to the list of prerequisites that you would need prior to application: www.upstate.edu/chp/programs/cp/pre_reqs.php

Yes, you can apply to an American or Canadian educational program in perfusion and if you are admitted and graduate then you would be eligible to take the ABCP Exam and you would have the credentials to work in the USA (though you may still have VISA issues to work out with your future employer)

@@PerfusionEDU thank u sir

Sonas where are u do bachelor's degree.

Iam also bsc perfusion technology 2nd year

Glad it was helpful!

That is interesting. Where did you train? In the USA all accredited programs are required to provide a clinical experience. If you have had the academic training but lack the clinical training, I think you wold be a competitive candidate to an accredited program in Clinical Perfusion.

Yes. All accredited programs in the USA include clinical experience within the curriculum. You will get your first clinical experience during your training.

you can find my email address on the faculty page of our department web site: www.upstate.edu/chp/programs/cp/index.php

Glad it was helpful!

Do your homework don’t believe everything you see

Medical school, then Medical College, then after 6 years, specialization in this kind of things.

In the USA the educational path to become a clinical perfusionist is generally 2 years of school after your BS degree. Here is a link to our educational program. www.upstate.edu/chp/programs/cp/index.php

@@PerfusionEDU Thanks for clarification

Glad you enjoyed it!

I’m just replying to this because I have the same question and I want to know more about it, even though I’m still a senior in high school I would like to go into clinical perfusion in my future and I feel like it won’t be a dying career. A relative had simply just told me “heart surgery isn’t going away anytime soon, and as technology progresses I feel like the demand will just go up” but I am still thinking.

This is a question that has been asked for over 30 years. It is a reasonable question as perfusion is a highly technology driven profession and one could imagine that it could ultimately be displaced by more advanced technologies. When I was applying to perfusion school in the mid-1980s, and during the advent of interventional cardiology, I was told back then by some that "perfusion is a dying profession". That was 35 years ago and we have certainly seen technology changes that have impacted the profession ... Off-pump CABGs, drug eluting stents, TAVRs ... at the same time the need for perfusionists has grown as the population ages and even now we are in a bit of a perfusionist shortage as the profession matures and people within the profession are retiring at greater rates. In summary, I think there is plenty of legs left in the profession. i would not hesitate to apply if I were in your position.

I’ve talked to several perfusionists and they all believe the opposite. They told me that it’s an expanding career and that the job market currently is very under saturated.

@@botanicalitus4194 so which mean : the job won’t die? Thanks

It actually sucks compared to the Toronto video after you watch that you might change your mind