The Return of Ms. Regina St. DeMonde!!

...coming soon (again) to a dirty magazine near you sometime this fall.

And speaking of jobs, many of you have been asking, so here's a little rundown on the interesting work I'll be getting up to a lot this April: The Standardized Patient.

A glorified acting job for a med school based out in the Illinois suburbs. The gigs pay about as well as a modeling gig would ($16 hr), and last all day (8-3). Travel and food compensation as well. 

A typical day looks like this- Come in, sign in, pick up a schedule with students names, have a snack or some coffee, and go set up your room which is a perfect typical clinical exam room. Climb into my comfy hospital gown and wait.

I can't talk too much about the case that I'm portraying, or the students, due to contractual confidentiality, but the "encounters" are timed, 15 minutes. Student comes in and engages with questions and a sickness-specific physical. Then, when they leave the room, I take a computerized survey evaluating their communication skills. Sometimes the students come back in and I give verbal feedback. Most of them do pretty well.

 

Standardized Patients are also employed at UIC med school, and the cases that they use are apparently much more intense. People playing epileptics and schizophrenics and the like. I have yet to investigate the situation there so far as new hires goes.

One of the things the SP Coordinator said to me during training, which is already ringing true: "You will have renewed confidence in your line of questioning at your own doctor's visits, and a renewed sense of responsibility and entitlement to the best health care you can get."

And since everybody else I work with are actors/singers/performers, they don't edit and love to goof off. Very fun, I feel pretty lucky about the whole thing.

Let's see, what else can I tell you guys... OH!

As the weather improves I'm happy to invite you out to the "May Day" party at the X-Lab. It's a small place, but I'm sincerely surprised that mister-photographer-producer Mike Scheitler has never thrown a party there. Music, photos, booze, talented people, more music...

Saturday, May 1. (Probably)
Chicago, IL.
Email for details.

xo-
Dmj