EMT Training ?

Flames9_RN, BSN, RN, EMT-B · Apr 5, 2008

Wow....and thanks for ALL the replies. Definitely got more info than I was expecting and the post is not even 2hrs old.
Granola, Mishart, Flames, Jenny.....thanks to you all. Can I ask why did you even consider the EMT route.........was it to also gain exposure before going further ? One person told me they wanted to consider CRNA.....and thought the critcal care exposure/experience would be helpful.
Flames,
Why haven't you done anything with your EMT ? Little Opportunities in your area...or just to busy ?
If you have ANY more suggestions, comments or things for me to consider....Please let me know.

I came to the USA from Canada (to be with my wife) I spent nearly 15 yrs in the Canadian Armed Forces. So I was starting at square 1! I took the EMT B program more or less because I always enjoyed the First Aid training,lol Part of the EMT-B rotation was at a few hospitals, where I got to see first hand what nurses did and found that interesting, so thats how I switched plans from going the Paramedic route to the RN route!

So why not do something with my Emt-B? Mainly because I focused on going back to school to do my pre-reqs and any of the other nursing courses I could complete, thus now all I have is the nursing courses! AND i didn't feel like running Bingos!! Some of the other students did the voluntary EMT thing, and many of them didnt actually get to do much training! The new people ran the Bingos,lol At first i asked BINGO?? Like in the game, they said yep!! I'm sorry, but Im far too old to be doing Bingos,lol I realize these services have to be paid for, but I think that $$$ should come from the govt, but thats just me!! Dont get me wrong I like to volunteer and have and still do!! Another reason for the RN route was there are far more jobs and the job is very portable.

I say go for the EMT program, its a blast. Our program had a fair bit of hands on time and our instructor was gung ho!! And like others have stated, if you do become a full fledged paramedic, some schools offer a bridge program--Paramedic to RN. If not, you have learned some very valuable skills, both hands on and theory!! Body functions remain the same,lol

newohiorn, BSN, RN, EMT-P · Apr 5, 2008

I went through EMT-basic about 8-9 years ago just because I wanted the knowledge and wasn't sure what I would do with it but figured I would volunteer. Depending on where you live that's not always as easy to do as you would think. In fairly large cities there aren't usually many fire departments using volunteers. If you go outside the city just a bit you can usually find fire departments accepting volunteers. I ended up getting my paramedic almost immediately after EMT basic, again just for the knowledge. Medic is a pretty difficult program and training where I live ranged anywhere from a very intense 5-month program to a 1-year program--mine was about 8-9 months. There were a lot of clinical hours required--I believe 100 hours riding with a medic and another 100 or so in various parts of the hospital from the ER to neonatal ICU, L&D--all over the place. Going through EMT training made nursing school much easier for me because I had some basic assessment skills and I had already memorized a lot of the basics about vitals, ABCs, etc. I also found a lot of the written tests for EMT and RN to be in the same basic style and that helped a lot as many of my nursing classmates struggled with the testing. I found medic practical testing to be way more difficult and intense than RN practical testing in that it was graded much more strictly and was much more involved than any practical testing I have done as an RN.

I eventually volunteered as a medic with my local fire department for several years (I live out in the sticks). The time commitment they required just became too much once I started working as an RN. I also found that EMT just isn't a good fit for me personally. I wasn't comfortable checking out the little old lady who fell and bumped her head and then leaving her at home if she seemed fine. I think "everybody" needs to go to the hospital for a head CT. I'm sure learning to make the decisions about who needs transported and who doesn't would have come with time--it just wasn't my cup of tea. It was lots of fun to go but I wouldn't have been comfortable making many of the decisions on my own--thankfully I was almost never the in-charge person on the truck. Guess I function better in the hospital environment.

Just my 2 cents.

medicgirl · Apr 5, 2008

Hi there. I am a nursing student and a paramedic. I think the schooling I have had and the education that has come from riding on the truck has been absolutely invaluable in class. EMT school will no doubt help you in many ways through nursing school. You will be much more comfortable with your ability to assess the patient right off the bat. You will also learn how to make educated decisions in a moments notice. Being a paramedic is what lead me to nursing school. I say GO FOR IT! You will never regret going to school and learning something. Plus it is wicked fun!

Just for your information paramedic school is now about 80 semester hours and 270 clinical hours in the hospital and 270 clinical hours on the truck. A LOT OF WORK, but very very rewarding.

DaddyO · Apr 5, 2008

A big THANKS for all the replies ! ! !

The EMT idea initially started as just a quick way for me to get exposure. But there is a lot more to gain i see. If one has the time, this seems like an ideal thing to do prior to the Nursing program even though the EMT training is a bit different...the residual effects of building confidence and just thinking quickly is important.

I can't thank you guyz enough for helping me with this. As you can imagine it is a little stressful changing careers, but I am more comfortable about my decision.

Just trying to understand how I can be the best that I can.....while making myself marketable when the schooling is over.

NeosynephRN · Apr 5, 2008

I got my EMT-B while waiting to get into nursing school. It did help me land a ICU job as a new grad. I never worked as an EMT, but they liked that I had the training. I plan on getting my paramedic also. I think no education goes wasted. But this was my path. I want to be a flight nurse so I am doing what I can to take me in that direction. Good Luck with your school!!

Nrsstudent09 · Apr 5, 2008

I am an EMT-B and I am also going to be a senior nursing student. I found it very helpful to have the outside experience for nursing school. It gives me a chance to practice assessment skills on a daily basis. In my area we run with trucks with 2 EMT's and ALS shows up later so for sometime I am on my own with my partner on even the most serious of calls such as the gunshot wounds or the heart attacks. I do not regret at all getting the certification before nursing school because I think I had a slight advantage going into clinical with some health care experience.

KyPinkRN · Apr 6, 2008

Wow....and thanks for ALL the replies. Definitely got more info than I was expecting and the post is not even 2hrs old.
Granola, Mishart, Flames, Jenny.....thanks to you all. Can I ask why did you even consider the EMT route.........was it to also gain exposure before going further ? One person told me they wanted to consider CRNA.....and thought the critcal care exposure/experience would be helpful.
Flames,
Why haven't you done anything with your EMT ? Little Opportunities in your area...or just to busy ?
If you have ANY more suggestions, comments or things for me to consider....Please let me know.

I wanted to be an EMT before I even cared about healthcare. After high school I had the typical "staight A student in hs gets freshman burnout in college" I needed adventure and was intrigued by the life of a firefighter I had gotten to know. After so many years as an EMT I realized that firefighting wasn't something I wanted to do once my daughter was born, and that I wanted to know more about how the human body works. Who knows what the next wrung of my ladder will be, but I won't just stop at RN. The most fullfilling part of my job is seeing the people who are grateful when I am helping them.

Good Luck in whatever you decide.

zamboni · Apr 6, 2008

Hi there. I am a nursing student and a paramedic. I think the schooling I have had and the education that has come from riding on the truck has been absolutely invaluable in class. EMT school will no doubt help you in many ways through nursing school. You will be much more comfortable with your ability to assess the patient right off the bat. You will also learn how to make educated decisions in a moments notice. Being a paramedic is what lead me to nursing school. I say GO FOR IT! You will never regret going to school and learning something. Plus it is wicked fun!
Just for your information paramedic school is now about 80 semester hours and 270 clinical hours in the hospital and 270 clinical hours on the truck. A LOT OF WORK, but very very rewarding.

Very well said! I've been a paramedic for 16 years, and finally got too old to do it, so I got my RN. I do love nursing, and it was always the plan...but I'll always be a medic first. I miss it terribly.

The critical thinking skills are what has saved me as a probie RN. You learn to trust yourself and your decisions, and how to make good decisions in a heartbeat (Literally!). And when my day starts getting me stressed out, I step back and thin, "Hey. It can't be worse than being out on County Road 34 with a carload of kids vs a loose bull...and the nearest backup is 30 miles away at 3:00 AM!" :smokin:

Faeriewand, ASN, RN · Apr 6, 2008

I got my EMT-b while on summer break from nursing school. It is an awesome experience. In my area you have to ride on an ambulance one year before being considered for paramedic school or I would go for it. EMTs here can only do transport. I get a lot of experience working as an ER tech and it is an interesting job.

Yeah go for it! But don't discount CNA experience either. I got my CNA and worked as one for 8 months. Good to get before starting nursing school too.

DaddyO · Apr 6, 2008

Thanks again for the replies ! ! '

I see a lot of you are talking about an ER tech opportunity. From what I am reading......the ER tech does more or is a little more advanced that the EMT-b right ?

Faeriewand, ASN, RN · Apr 6, 2008

Thanks again for the replies ! ! '
I see a lot of you are talking about an ER tech opportunity. From what I am reading......the ER tech does more or is a little more advanced that the EMT-b right ?

Nope. The ER tech is an EMT working in the ER. At least that's the way it is at my hospital. We get to do splints, check blood glucose levels, check vital signs, and when working at the podium in the waiting room we get to triage along with a nurse. But my EMT training is just the same as the guys on rigs bringing the pt's in. Paramedics have one year of training after they get their EMT-b (which means EMT basic- the first step in training)

Other hospitals have ortho techs do the splints so their ER techs don't get to do them. Some of the hospitals don't require their techs to have an EMT license. Some hospitals like their techs to have nurse assistant training. I guess each ER is different. I just looked at hospital web sites to find my job and the job description.

supafly · Apr 6, 2008

it all depends on how things are where youre at. the thing about working as a tech is youre probably going to be dealing with more pts. so if youre in a busy er, youre going to be seeing more and doing more all shift long. if youre riding ambulance, you might be hanging out at the hq or parked out in the field waiting for a call. and then when you get a call, it might be to taxicab an elderly nursing home resident to/from the hospital.

but the catch is, around here anyway, you have to have ambulance time before they'll consider you for a tech job. also, around here, emt-bs are often last on scene for the cool stuff and youre there just in time to transport the pt if they dont require a medic to be involved in transport.