Posted on Mar 17, 2017
SGT Writer
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SUNY is hiring for PC Support Technician and I'm curious about it. Maybe some employees here would have some insider info.

Otherwise, I'll roam the hospital looking for answers before its too warm.
Edited >1 y ago
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SSgt Ryan Sylvester
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Currently an IT Specialist at a VA hospital. LTC Broom highlighted one of the big components of life in IT at a hospital... information management and information security are huge deals, thanks to HIPAA. If you deal with a lot of electronic patient files, you will see a lot of security devices... cryptographic thumb drives and the sort. And trust me, they are not fun to deal with. You'll see a lot of equipment that you just don't see in any other environment, and you'll have to learn how it integrates with the network and systems. Your network, by the way, will likely be segmented a lot more than another organization of similar size. Your systems will likely be running on older OSes and programs, because those are sure to be secure for storage and transmission of PHI/PII (vulnerability assessment is a huge undertaking to roll out any new program version, even versions that are already outdated). And you are probably going to be operating with a subpar budget more than any other field's IT component.
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SGT Writer
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Doing more with less - new things with older things. Sounds like Army to me. And I'm used to dealing with PIA crypto equipment.

Is there HIPAA training I'd need to know beforehand? Is there HIPAA things that I should know in general?
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SSgt Ryan Sylvester
SSgt Ryan Sylvester
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SGT (Join to see) - Not really anything you need to know beforehand. Think of it like INFOSEC or OPSEC. Except with stiff fines. In the hundreds of thousands. Per instance.
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SSgt Ryan Sylvester - No. Its bed time. I refuse to think of any of that on my way to bed. I want to sleep. But thank you.
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LTC Kevin B.
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Edited >1 y ago
Oh the health industry is very unique. I suppose it really depends on the details of the position you're seeking though. IM/IT within the health industry has a huge following. Healthcare Information & Management Systems Society (HIMSS) is the professional organization for people pursuing functional IM/IT career paths within the industry. Check out their website and see if they intrigue you. If you're a student, the annual membership is only $30. You may even be able to snoop around in their job bank. I'm not sure whether or not that requires a membership though. You can find it under the Professional Development tab (look for HIMSS JobMine) on their website.

http://www.himss.org/
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LTC Kevin B.
LTC Kevin B.
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SGT (Join to see) - Yes, I do know some people in HIMSS. The field includes everything from lower-level people who deal with very technical issues (techies) to people who extract and analyze data from within the various information systems (health informatics) to people who aspire to be CIOs (executive-level managers). It really just depends on your short-term and long-term career goals regarding types of jobs and types of work settings. The health industry is very unique, which SSgt Ryan Sylvester and SSgt Ron Dexter both address rather well.
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LTC Kevin B. - Are there any members you know here?

I've tagged HIMMS hoping that those certified may be able to provide any input on the thread.

Lt Col (Join to see) and LTC Nanette Patton, hello. Would you be able to share any insight on working IT in a hospital setting?
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LTC Kevin B.
LTC Kevin B.
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SGT (Join to see) - Are you up in Syracuse? If so, I don't know any members up there. My contacts are in the St. Louis area.
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LTC Kevin B. - Yes, still in the Orange.

It's okay. SUNY medical is a walk away. ;)
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SSgt Ron Dexter
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Edited >1 y ago
Generally,PC support is PC support. The difference being the mission of the organization. In a hospital setting, things are usually more urgent than say, an insurance brokers office. When things break in a hospital, they need to be repaired ASAP. Unless of course SUNY is independently wealthy and is able to have a redundant system in ever corner!
I work in a hospital (the VA). I've been here for 3 years, and although I'm not a front-end PC Support Tech, I do deal with the clinical staff on a daily basis in regards to our Electronic Health Record (EHR) system. I've had to learn an entirely new language and learn how to write emails differently than when I worked in the banking world. Clinicians usually won't read past the third line of an email! :-)
There is never a dull moment in healthcare! Good luck!
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SSgt Ryan Sylvester
SSgt Ryan Sylvester
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Your folks read the third line? Dang. Our's don't typically read past the third word.
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So the job is pretty much firefighting all day but with death lurking more heavily? No hazardous duty pay this time...
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SSgt Ron Dexter
SSgt Ron Dexter
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SGT (Join to see) - Yea, that about sums it up!
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SSgt Ron Dexter
SSgt Ron Dexter
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SSgt Ryan Sylvester - LOL! I was being generous. It can be very frustrating at times.
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