Possibility of EMT after nursing??

[sissiesmama]

Hello all. I have been mulling over an idea recently and wanted to get any feedback someone may be able to offer. I have been a nurse since 1991 and worked on various specialties. There is one thing I have always wanted to do and need some opinions. I have always had the desire to work as an EMT. When I was in nursing school during the day, I enrolled in EMT class at night. I was about halfway done and had to have GB surgery and got behind trying to catch up on nsg school and EMT at the same time so I dropped EMT class.

After nsg school, I started on a med surg unit and telemetry. I have always loved my profession, but started wishing that I had finished EMT school. Once I transferred to the ER, I knew this was the type of nursing for me. I have worked in both big city and also small rural ERs and have seen different traumas and injuries in both.

I like to think that I am able to remain calm in a crisis or code situation. I get along well with my patient's family members and enjoyed the runs I was able to go on when doing clinicals in the ambulance in school.

I know this is totally different from ER nursing, but I just wanted to throw it out there to get some opinions. I at one time thought about the possibility of flight nursing but I saw our air ambulance crash next to the interstate in a storm and that kind of ruined that idea for me. I thought at least being on the ground might be better suited to me.

Please feel free to share your opinions and/or stories that may help me. Thanks!

Anne, RNC:D

[CraigB-RN, MSN, RN]

Opps your right. I found the march 2008 Bullitin from PA that outlines the PHRN process. Things change when you're away from a state. Not to worry the NREMT written exam isn't that difficult. If you can pass TNCC/ACLS the NREMT exam is a walk in the park.

[starryx2]

So there are just so many places to start but....

First off it depends on what state you are in and what the rules are for what you would like to get into. If you want to just go and take an EMT-B class thats fine. You will be able to practice as an EMT-B.

I am from PA. I decided after spending 2 years in the ER, some people got me interested in prehospital. When it was all said and done, I now have my PHRN, and I work full time with a local ambulance service. I find it much more satisfying then where i was at with the ER. There are a lot of differences in peoples opinions in regards to scopes of practices, protocols, and what an RN vs. Medic can do. Again it goes back to what state you are in. In this state I had to take the EMT-P National Written exam but not before I passed an EMT-B Practical exam. RN vs. Medic, in the grand scheme of things, we all work off of orders from a doctor. It all kind of depends on what kind of order it is. We are all responsible for providing high level of care. I will caution people from saying that Medics can do more than a Nurse. Or a nurse has more training. Its more a matter of everyone on different levels and where people work. A brand new nurse that just graduated from a nursing program, would have a difficult time just walking out and taking the exams to get the PHRN cert. Again there are many differences. There is a lot of subject matter that I know much more then some of my colleges only because we discuss it more in depth in our education. On the flip side when it comes to critical interventions and EMT-P does get more in depth training with the education they receive vs. an RN. In an ED there are a lot of things that an RN can not do, not because they are not capable or do not know necessarily its a matter of there is an MD/DO there that is able to do these things.

Again, all states have different requirements. I have a friend whom is an RN, but works as an EMT-B basic because he wants to do that instead of being a EMT-P.

It's all in what you want to do and what you want to accomplish with those things.