EMS Training Before Nursing School?

[chris4219555]

I am going off to college for my freshman year in the fall. I have already been accepted into my schools nursing program. My mom said I won't earn much money getting a job for the summer and suggested the idea of doing EMS training through the county fire department. It is free to get the training and everything, but it is non-paid volunteer work. I was just wondering how much would the training/job help me going into nursing school? I would imagine there would be overlap between the two professions, and being an EMT would be good experience.

[__patiently_waiting]

How have you been accepted into your school's nursing program if you haven't even started college yet?

& I'm not sure if that would help you or not, but volunteer work in a medical related field is always a plus.

[akulahawkRN, ADN, RN, EMT-P]

While there is some overlap between EMS and Nursing, at the EMT level, this is very minimal. I'm not knocking EMS or Nursing for this. I will say that you'll probably have no disadvantage later on if you do volunteer your time (even though it's not nursing) than someone that doesn't, or at least has no patient care experience besides nursing school. Aside from certain skills, I would suggest "forgetting" that you're an EMT (at the end of your EMT training) because it's just not nursing. The thought processes are just, well, different and you do different things (sometimes the same things) with different short and long term goals.

[Fireman767]

Im an EMT (6+ years now) and i will say it is helpful to a point. EMT follows the medical model while nursing follows the nursing model. For EMT you make a clinical judgment and diagnose a patient to your ability within 1-2 minutes and act fast to reverse the condition and transport if needed. However nursing you diagnose the patient using nursing diagnosis and treat the person as a whole. EMT will lay the groundwork, the anatomy of the body, common and serious issues that help. I passed intro to nursing and the OB/Peds rotation as a breeze because my training was well (also helped that ive delivered babies in the field and ambulance and know the process).

if you want a better hands on experience go CNA, however EMTs who are nurses can get better jobs as a nursing student because they have autonomy (they can be a paid EMT, ER technician, student nurse technician, etc). CNA is closer to a nurse than an EMT is, EMT is closer to a doctor than a CNA is.

[I.C.UNurse]

EMT experience would not necessarily hurt your nursing skills, like Fireman767 said, they are different levels to each. I myself am a adult ICU nurse and have more autonomy than a med-surg/OB nurse. While your correct to a point about nurses following a nursing model, but we are expected to know the medical and holistic model together. We are expected to make a diagnosss and medical judgement within seconds, not minutes. Like I said the experience would not hurt you, but know that a CNA would be more helpful to you so you become more familiar with nursing and doctor terminology, equipment, procedures and heart rhythms and algorithms. Also, you would get paid for it! Hope this helps!

[ArrowRN, BSN, RN]

I totally agree with d fireman767. I was a former EMT for over 4 years. Right now I'm in nursing school and its 2 totally different models. Actually in my view being an EMT first was actually a disadvantage because I had to "unlearn" my way to medical thinking. The EMT's learn via the medical model...Nursing school has its own nursing model...yeah you learn medical stuff but the focus is way different.I had a heck of a time figuring out what a nursing diagnosis really is...still do. Only thing I hope is my experience will help me land a job in the ER and of course I wont be the one fainting in OB clinicals next semester lol