If you all have been around the blogs of late, there’s been some interesting posts from DrugMonkey and DrPal or how narcotics abusers are perceived by doctors and why (comment threads are especially interesting). It’s an interesting issue and one I think a lot of people should a lot at, because it says a lot about how our society in general perceives drug addiction and how it is to be dealt with. Sci has her own thoughts on the matter, but probably won’t be able to blog on them for a while yet as other things intrude.
There’s also a great post from DuWayne on problems with the system in handing psychiatric patients. Sci recommends.
But also, you may have noticed a post from Isis on some initiatives that the National Post-doc Association is taking to help increase the stipends for post-docs. Right now, post-docs (first year) get paid $37,480 under competitive govt. training grants and NRSAs. To Sci, who is coming up from the TRUE dregs, where she’s been making peanuts, this seems like paradise (or at least a lot more than peanuts). And she’s going to start making this new salary…quite soon. But it’s still not a lot, especially if you’re going to be living in New Super-expensive City.
This money doesn’t include retirement (HAHAHAHA), neither does it include health insurance. And post-docs in general haven’t had a raise since 2006. Not only that, this pay level only applies to those that are covered by government stipends, there are some post-docs that don’t even get close to that much. And that’s sad. It’s sad for Sci, who will be comfortably housed in New City is something roughly the size of a shoebox, and it’s even sadder for those trying to raise families, or those who are having to pay back grad school loans (many of us are paid for, but even so a lot of people raising families have to take out cost of living loans) or undergrad loans, or BOTH.
But the National Post-doc Association has a way that you can help! Check out their website, and write a letter saying that we need to make more than peanuts (maybe not anything crazy like cashews, but we could make almonds or something)! They aren’t asking for much, just a 6{9f43b4361d9a125bc126dd2a2d1949be02545ec69880430bc4fed2272fd72da3} increase, but any increase is better than none, and might do things like help cover Sci’s dental (OMG THAT WOULD BE SO AWESOME). So write a letter!
