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It is greatly difficult to land a job at this time when the economy continues to weaken and crisis overwhelms the best of our lives. People now have to work harder to be able to provide for their immediate needs. They have to work on the side to be able to make ends meet. Compensation is not that high but we just take it rather than have nothing in the long run. When we are employed, the government protects our interest with what we call Employment Contract. This is a crucial piece of paper that will safeguard any worker from mistreatment and discrimination. That Basically includes Breach of Employment Contract. Some instances that breach employment contracts include harassment, unpaid salary, when terms of employment is changed and if you are accused of false allegations.

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Malpractice generally refers to any type of illegal or careless behavior in a profession. It is considered a malpractice when a skilled professional rendering responsible services fails to perform his professional services, consequently causing serious loss or damage to the victim. Malpractice can occur in the fields of medicine, law, education and other professional entities.

Laws of malpractice

The laws of malpractice suggest that before the affected service taker will start proceeding to sue the professional, he must first consult the professional and make him aware of the area of his guilt or his lack of care and the injury he has caused to the client. After the consultation is over, the client can then proceed under the guidance of State organizations and other public agencies that conducts disciplinary functions. These organizations will impose fines, suspensions, penalties and even revocation of services to the guilty party.

Medical malpractice

Medical malpractice is one of the common malpractices. It occurs everyday. It is a complaint issued by the patient against the practitioner for causing injury, damage or loss due to negligent treatments. In this matter, the doctors, nurses and the hospital staff will be brought to the front for inquiry of their services. A medical practice warranty will only be issued if the defendant is found guilty of causing damage or injury to the victim due to his negligence, lack of concentration or wrong diagnosis and treatment.

Maternity leave or what is now called parental leave, is the time a mother or the father, takes off from work for the birth of a child. Actual paid maternity leave, while the norm in every other developed country, is not like in the United States. Though some companies offer their employees, a paid time off, ranging from one to six weeks. In some cases, the employees use their sick leave, vacation leaves and rest days.

But with the passage of the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) in 1993, workers are now entitled up to 12 weeks of job-protected medical leave for birth or even adoption. Which benefits are available varies from state to state. In 2002, California led the way in enacting paid family leave, and other states such as Massachusetts and New Jersey followed suit.

Your company may have policies for different kinds of leaves. In any case, you should start researching your options so you optimize your benefits.

An employer may not single out pregnancy-related conditions for special procedures to determine an employee’s ability to work. However, if an employer requires its employees to submit a doctor’s statement concerning their inability to work before granting leave or paying sick benefits, the employer may require employees affected by pregnancy-related conditions to submit such statements.
If an employee is temporarily unable to perform her job due to pregnancy, the employer must treat her the same as any other temporarily disabled employee. For example, if the employer allows temporarily disabled employees to modify tasks, perform alternative assignments or take disability leave or leave without pay, the employer also must allow an employee who is temporarily disabled due to pregnancy to do the same.
Pregnant employees must be permitted to work as long as they are able to perform their jobs. If an employee has been absent from work as a result of a pregnancy-related condition and recovers, her employer may not require her to remain on leave until the baby’s birth. An employer also may not have a rule that prohibits an employee from returning to work for a predetermined length of time after childbirth.
Employers must hold open a job for a pregnancy-related absence the same length of time jobs are held open for employees on sick or disability leave.

Injured workers are entitled to receive benefits under the worker’s compensation law. Here are some types of disabilities where the workers can claim compensation:
• Temporary Total Disability – a benefit payable when the injured worker is unable to work because he or she is under active medical care and has not reached maximum medical improvement. Compensation is two-thirds of the employee’s average weekly wage.
• Temporary Partial Disability – when the injured worker is still able to do some work, however he or she is still recovering from the effects of the injury, and therefore, can only perform limited amount of work.

Q: May I take FMLA leave for visits to a physical therapist, if my doctor prescribes the therapy?

Yes. FMLA permits you to take leave to receive “continuing treatment by a health care provider,” which can include recurring absences for therapy treatments such as those ordered by a doctor for physical therapy after a hospital stay or for treatment of severe arthritis.

Q: Which employees are eligible to take FMLA leave?

Employees are eligible to take FMLA leave if they have worked for their employer for at least 12 months, and have worked for at least 1,250 hours over the previous 12 months, and work at a location where at least 50 employees are employed by the employer within 75 miles.

Q: Do the 12 months of service with the employer have to be continuous or consecutive?

No. The 12 months do not have to be continuous or consecutive; all time worked for the employer is counted.

Q: Do the 1,250 hours include paid leave time or other absences from work?

No. The 1,250 hours include only those hours actually worked for the employer. Paid leave and unpaid leave, including FMLA leave, are not included.

Q: How do I determine if I have worked 1,250 hours in a 12-month period?

Your individual record of hours worked would be used to determine whether 1,250 hours had been worked in the 12 months prior to the commencement of FMLA leave. As a rule of thumb, the following may be helpful for estimating whether this test for eligibility has been met;

- 24 hours worked in each of the 52 weeks of the year; or
- over 104 hours worked in each of the 12 months of the year;or
- 40 hours worked per week for more than 31 weeks (over seven months) of the year.

Q: Do I have to give my employer my medical records for leave due to a serious health condition?

No. You do not have to provide medical records. The employer may, however, request that, for any leave taken due to a serious health condition, you provide a medical certification confirming that a serious health condition exists.

Q: Can my employer require me to return to work before I exhaust my leave?

Subject to certain limitations, your employer may deny the continuation of FMLA leave due to a serious health condition if you fail to fulfill any obligations to provide supporting medical certification. The employer may not, however, require you to return to work early by offering you a light duty assignment.

Source: dol.gov

In order to be a physician Assistant you must be a degree holder and must take either of the following graduate programs: “Physician Assistant Studies (MPAS)”, “Health Science (MHS)”, or “Medical Science (MMS)”.

Physician Assistant are advance practice clinicians therefore they can obtain medical histories, perform examination and procedures, order treatments, diagnose illness, prescribe medication, order and interpret diagnostic tests, refer patients to specialists when appropriate and first-assist in surgery.

Lastly, as far as I researched the net, only US University offers this PA’s curriculum. Therefore this medical career is only applicable in the Federal state of America.

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Physician Assistant came into existence in 1960’s because of the shortage and uneven distribution of Primary care physician in the United States. Dr. Eugene Stead is the one who make the curriculum for the Physician Assistant program in part on his first-hand knowledge of the fast-track training of the medical doctors during World War 2.

To be continued….

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Occupational therapist is a health professional who undergo training on occupational therapy. Occupational therapist work with a client to help them achieve a fulfilled and satisfied state in life through the use of purposeful activity or interventions designed to achieve functional outcomes which promote health, prevent injury or disability and which develop, improve, sustain or restore the highest possible level of independence. According to article I have read they define the “Occupational Performance as the ability to perceive, desire, recall, plan and carry out riles, routines, tasks and sub-tasks for the purpose of the self-maintenance, productivity, leisure and rest in response to demands of the internal and/or external environment.” Occupational Therapist help people do the day-to-day task that “occupy” their time, sustain themselves, and enable them to contribute to the wider community.

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Since the early 1970’s, employers have encountered steadily rising health care, worker’s compensation and other disability-related expenditures. The current estimate from the Federal Census Bureau indicates that the direct costs of disability have reached an all-time high of $340 billion. That’s why the U.S. labor force is rising more slowly today than it has in the preceding three decades.

Private Insurance Companies are offering disability coverage to a selected portion of the U.S. working population. But some employers are opt to self-insure disability benefits so that they can gain maximum control over the type and length of coverage while defining the types of impairments and classes of employees to which the coverage applies.

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