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Ground support
Carolyn Schjaerve, RN, represents another aviation-related
career, albeit a ground-based one.
Schjaerve, 61, is a nurse manager for the medical
clinic at San Francisco International Airport,
which provides health care services to airport/airline
employees, nearby companies and airline passengers.
The SFO Medical Clinic has eight examination
rooms and sees 40 to 50 patients a day. The clinic
is always staffed by at least one doctor and registered
nurse, as well as an X-ray technician, medical
assistant and four receptionist/administrative
assistants. The clinic is run by St. Mary’s
Medical Center, a division of Catholic Healthcare
West.
“You never have the same day twice; it’s
full of surprises,” said Schjaerve, who
has been at the clinic for 25 years. “You
always have different patients walking in.”
Along with pilot physicals and physicals for
people applying for permanent residence visas,
the clinic sees employees who have taken sick
or been injured on the job.
The clinic also treats passengers who become
sick or injured during a flight, and provides
counseling, medicine and shots for people preparing
to travel outside the country.
Schjaerve said passengers often come to the clinic
suffering from vomiting and diarrhea or injuries
from climbing in and out of the courtesy van.
Other common problems are bladder infections,
blocked ears and heart problems. Schjaerve even
has delivered a baby on the waiting room floor.
“You name it, we’ve seen it,”
she said.
High morale
Morale at the clinic is high, she said, and people
hired to work there tend to stay for many years.
“There’s no attrition in this clinic,”
she said. “When they get here, they stay
here. They love it.”
Schjaerve said to work in the SFO Medical Clinic,
nurses must be certified to conduct breath-alcohol
tests, administer drug tests and be qualified
in audiometry and spirometry. They also have to
pass a basic life-support class and advanced cardio
life-support class.
Many airlines employ occupational health nurses
and run their own clinics.
Lynn Zonakis, RN, a certified occupational health
nurse, is a general manager for Delta Airlines
responsible for overseeing six Delta clinics and
planning and delivering health care to Delta employees.
Zonakis, 48, said nurses who work for Delta and
other airlines have to have more than clinical
skills. They also need to be able to manage programs,
educate employees and managers on health care
issues, act as a liaison between the two and provide
case management via telephone.
“An occupational health nurse who sees
him or herself solely as a clinician—and
there are many who do—is not nearly as effective
in the corporate arena,” she said.
Nurses conduct FAA-mandated hearing and drug
tests and manage work-related injuries. But their
focus is more on corporate wellness and helping
employees return to work after an injury or illness,
rather than clinical treatment of patients, Zonakis
said.
Zonakis said occupational health nurses who work
for airlines make between $42,000 and $65,000
annually, and salaries for nurse managers begin
at about $50,000 and exceed $70,000 at the upper
end.
Little travel is involved in the job, she said,
and Delta screens out employees whose primary
goal is to get a job with good travel benefits.
“The challenge to management is to identify
applicants that first and foremost are occupational
health nurses and occupational health case managers,”
Zonakis said, “and secondarily enjoy the
environment and benefits of working in the aviation
industry.”
Contact
Scott Williams at ScottWilliams21@msn.com.
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