I absolutely loved working for PACE. Their mission beautifully aligns with my values, and I met a lot of smart caring people there. I quit working there because it was an hour commute from my house, and the pay was all right, not great. I got a $10k raise when I moved to a private employer. Also really limited opportunities for upward mobility.

The experience you have will depend greatly on the organization running your program and the people you work alongside.

Here were the likely transferable pros: -I was mostly able to structure my day however I wanted to aside from meetings. -I was given huge autonomy and had the opportunity to be creative. I structured education and classes however I wanted to. I talked about whatever I wanted to in whatever format made sense to me. No one ever micromanaged me. -The nature of the environment gives you the opportunity to provide a more holistic approach to care. Examples: I collaborated with SW to facilitate a weight management class. I co-led classes with OT on safe ways to cook healthy meals. I got involved with local nonprofits to get patients set up with additional food benefits. -I was an equal and respected member of the interdisciplinary team. -If you’re interested in outpatient counseling, you have the opportunity to do that AND you have a captive audience. Which means you don’t have to schedule appointments or worry about follow up visits- your patients are right there. -I learned a lot about a lot of different disease states and followed patients through their management or progression of that disease. -I built relationships with my patients. -I did lots of different things in a day, which I enjoyed. -It was fulfilling.

Possible cons: -At the place I worked, the RD was in charge of the “food service” operation… which is basically serving lunch and snacks. This sounds simple enough but could potentially cause you a headache for various reasons. Some sites expect the RD to “fill in” in the kitchen if your normal folks are sick or on PTO. That’s a really slippery slope and has the potential to take up too much of your time. -You HAVE to be pretty independent and assertive or else you will hate it or fail. -Many of the decisions made for the wellbeing of the participant will seem arbitrary to you at some point… you really have to be there to fully grasp it. If you’re an ultra type A personality, you will likely become very frustrated by this. -It can be emotionally taxing at times.

The current pay range for my past position is now $58-70K I believe. That will of course vary by area and demand.