MA's the fastest growing med feild !

nursesaideBen · Apr 30, 2007

I don't know about MA's but I worry that medication aides will start replacing nurses in nursing homes and assisted living, heck I've already seen it happen at one assisted living facility where I live.

ann945n, RN · Apr 30, 2007

I must be honest and admit I am bitter about MA taking over what i consider RN jobs.... Also people thinking they are RN's or calling themselves RN's when I have been working my butt off to have the honor to use that title....

TheCommuter, BSN, RN · Apr 30, 2007

Read the quote below, as it sums things up nicely. :)

Hello fellow professionals,
May I have your attention please. An allnurses.com user by the name of nursebrandie made a valid point in the emergency nursing subforum that I would like to discuss with all of you. We were discussing the use of paramedics in the ER, and it was mentioned that the two professions were interchangeable. This is alarming to a professional nurse such as myself. We must not give give up our career roles to other specialties. Any of you that do not believe this is an issue, please consider the following:
1. Anesthesia started out being administered by nurses, that's right, nurses...not physicians. Nursing gave this role up to physician anesthesiologists. Yes, we still have the CRNA profession, but now there is a new role out there called the Anesthesiologist Assistant (AA). It is a master's degree program that physicians created to keep the midlevel anesthesia providers under their thumbs. The position pays as well as, if not more than, a nurse anesthetist.
2. Physical Therapy and Occupational Therapy started off as subspecialties of nursing. Yes, PT's and OT's were orginally nurses that received specialty training in the activities of PT and OT. But we gave these positions away too and now the PT has become a clinical doctorate degree and the OT has become a master's degree.
3. Midwives originally birthed babies, not physicians. In fact, the first known male physician to witness a live birth dressed up as a woman to see the event, and when it was discovered, he was burned alive at the stake. Yes, we still have nurse midwifery, but it never should have been given to the male physician group. And also look at what CNM's get paid compared to OB/GYN physicians...for pretty much the same job.
4. RN's used to be able to mix drugs in piggybacks for I.V. administration. Now pharmacists have completely taken over that arena too. Why is this important? Well, just this...did you ever need a drug in an emergency situation, like Mannitol, but had to wait for a pharmacist to mix it and you get it back in 30 minutes when you could have mixed it in 5 minutes flat? Look around you...nursing's skill set is being taken away, but our nursing leaders are demanding us to have more education. Why? Nurses aren"t smart enough to use strict aseptic technique to mix drugs in an emergency situation?
5. Why is it that nurses cannot endotracheally intubate except in an ambulance or flight nurse role? Why is it that a paramedic can put in an EJ IV line, central line, or chest tube but nurses cannot except if employed in a flight nurse or ambulance role? Why is it that are profession seems to want us more educated but we have allowed ourselves to become "dumbed down"?
So yes, the idea of paramedics taking over the ER nurse's role is a real threat, and it should not be taken lightly. Paramedics are great to have in the ER...but paramedics are paramedics and nurses are nurses.
Embrace your skill set, and do not allow others to take anything more away from you! You went to school. You learned the skills. You know how to critically think! Nurses are more than just well educated technicians. I am more than a butt wiping, pill pushing, bed making technician. So are all of you.
Keep this in mind as you move through your career. Nurses need to come together, not grow apart if this profession is ever going to be something more.
Mark

Sheri257 · Apr 30, 2007

Most of the MA's in my area can't find a job and, some of them are going to nursing school because the job opportunities are so limited so... it doesn't seem to be much of a threat, at least in my neck of the woods.

:typing

TheCommuter, BSN, RN · Apr 30, 2007

Most of the MA's in my area can't find a job and, some of them are going to nursing school because the job opportunities are so limited so... it doesn't seem to be much of a threat, at least in my neck of the woods.
:typing

I'll add that MAs tend to be employed at doctors' offices and clinics. It is rare to see MAs hired into the traditional hospital setting, unless they're serving as the ward clerk or unit secretary.

pagandeva2000, LPN · Apr 30, 2007

I wouldn't worry too much about MAs, because they are specifically trained to work in a clinic, mainly a privately owned one, and they work under the license of the physician. They are not trained in the other aspects that nurses have been, nor are they taught the nursing process. I can understand the uproar of an MA claiming to be a nurse...that should't be, but, otherwise, not. They can't even work as a CNA in LTC without the additional certification, even though, theroretically, they have more more skills. They are not, for the most part taught bedside care, either.

PeachPie · Apr 30, 2007

The education is such a freaking gyp! There are 2 MAs in my class who had to start from scratch because their past credits (even A&P) were not accepted! They also pay many, many times more than they would a nursing program. What concerns me is that it's not really centralized. Any little school can offer an MA program, and can charge premium rates under the guise of, "It's a fast-growing field, we offer a fast-track, and you don't have to wipe butts like nurses!" For a lot less money and the same amount of time, you can get an LVN license, which has a bigger job market, you can go back and get your RN, and is recognized all across the country.

Don't get me wrong, I have been greeted and treated at clinics like Planned Parenthood by great MAs, but after hearing about the job prospectives and the lack of transferability, I think that the job is highly overrated and the schooling can be a borderline scam.

chuchie, ADN, BSN, MSN, LPN, APRN, NP · Apr 30, 2007

Ugh.....I fell for it myself and it's sitting in the pit of my stomach. When I was in Cali I completed one of those programs that has caused me the most debt that is greater than any amount that I have acrued through working for my nursing degree. I just loved sitting with the transfer specialist at my school back in my home state and having the words "Well.....none of the credits are going to transfer" ruin my spirits. If only I could do it all over again.....I was also informed of the almighty in-demand field and that jobs should come knocking at my doorstep. After I "graduated" I couldn't find a job for the life of me afterwards. I hope everyone will spread the word to others who are considereing that route and informing them of how it REALLY is!

pagandeva2000, LPN · Apr 30, 2007

Ugh.....I fell for it myself and it's sitting in the pit of my stomach. When I was in Cali I completed one of those programs that has caused me the most debt that is greater than any amount that I have acrued through working for my nursing degree. I just loved sitting with the transfer specialist at my school back in my home state and having the words "Well.....none of the credits are going to transfer" ruin my spirits. If only I could do it all over again.....I was also informed of the almighty in-demand field and that jobs should come knocking at my doorstep. After I "graduated" I couldn't find a job for the life of me afterwards. I hope everyone will spread the word to others who are considereing that route and informing them of how it REALLY is!

I am sorry to hear that, because I had gotten the same medical assisting training for $300 and got plenty of jobs at agencies afterwards.

jjjoy, LPN · Apr 30, 2007

Some private MA programs in So Cal charge close to $10,000 for a 9 month program!