Cool Jobs Q&A: Hospital videographer

 

TORY ZIMMERMAN, 35

• Hospital videographer, Hospital for Sick Children
• Average yearly income: $50,000-$80,000

How did you get into this field?

My background is in photojournalism. I did a couple of years of freelancing, and then this job came up in April 2013. I actually applied to medical school, back in the early 2000s. I’ve always had an interest in children and in health care.

What education or skills do you have?

I majored in sculpture in university, but I was never without a camera. I knew I would be some sort of fine artist. I did the photojournalism program at Loyalist College in Belleville, Ont.

Describe a typical day on the job.

Every day is totally different. I do all the video for the hospital. Because there’s only one of me, I get requests that are so varied. I can do video for professional education, parent and patient education, research, and lectures. I’m with patients about 30 per cent of the time. I also do PR work and put together media packages. And I do diagnostic medical photography. Patients come in for photos throughout their care. It’s part of their record. I do get scrubbed into surgeries, which is super-cool.

What was your most memorable moment?

There’s a program called Artemis. It logs data from bedside units, like IV poles, in the NICU (neonatal intensive care unit). It’s able to predict when a baby might have an onset of infection or a decline in some sort of vital measurement. It’s already saving lives. So we’ve been packaging a story about that to release to the media. That was really amazing.

What are the pros and cons?

I don’t know that there are any cons, aside from vintage technology at the hospital that sometimes doesn’t play videos. The pros are overwhelming. I feel so proud that what I’m doing is creating a better environment for patient care. At the end of the day, it’s all about the kids.

What advice would you give to someone interested in this job?

You have to have a wide variety of skills. I have to be a one-woman show. You have to be interested in medicine and constantly willing to learn. You have to love people and be good with people. If you’re not good with people, you’re not going to be good at the job.

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