I'm currently an RN with my BSN. I have long been debating on which route to take to go back to school. I have worked predominantly in the ED, more specifically in in a children's hospital the last year. I want to specialize in either emergency medicine or trauma. I have been getting mixed opinions on which route is the best for what I want to do.
My resume for school is a 3.4 GPA. If I chose to go to MD or DO school I would need about another year of undergrad classes part time to finish i.e. O Chem I/II, Biochem, Physics I/II. I know the route to become a physician is the 4 years of school, 3 years of residency, and then usually a 2-3 year fellowship before I'm officially on my own and can practice wherever I choose. I have no problem going to school for a long period of time, but I'm curious about several things. With the new plan the AMA is looking at is that all advanced practice RN's must be doctorally educated (unless they're grandfathered in). I'm not sure which route is better because I want to be able to practice to the full extent of my scope and knowledge. Some of the NP's and PA's I've worked with in the ED usually work fast track or take the non critical patients. I don't want to go back to school for 4 more years and move away from the trauma and critical patients I love caring for now, and begin taking care of the sniffles and rash patients some of them take.
I have seen some of the NP's I work with are specialized in trauma or emergency and have a wider scope, or at least the hospital allows them to take the very ill and traumatic patients. I've even seen some NP's working on/with a flight crew or critical transport crew. Does anyone have any further knowledge on this because I would love to hear all sides, and welcome any pros/cons. Thanks a lot guys!!!
I'm currently an RN with my BSN. I have long been debating on which route to take to go back to school. I have worked predominantly in the ED, more specifically in in a children's hospital the last year. I want to specialize in either emergency medicine or trauma. I have been getting mixed opinions on which route is the best for what I want to do.
My resume for school is a 3.4 GPA. If I chose to go to MD or DO school I would need about another year of undergrad classes part time to finish i.e. O Chem I/II, Biochem, Physics I/II. I know the route to become a physician is the 4 years of school, 3 years of residency, and then usually a 2-3 year fellowship before I'm officially on my own and can practice wherever I choose. I have no problem going to school for a long period of time, but I'm curious about several things. With the new plan the AMA is looking at is that all advanced practice RN's must be doctorally educated (unless they're grandfathered in). I'm not sure which route is better because I want to be able to practice to the full extent of my scope and knowledge. Some of the NP's and PA's I've worked with in the ED usually work fast track or take the non critical patients. I don't want to go back to school for 4 more years and move away from the trauma and critical patients I love caring for now, and begin taking care of the sniffles and rash patients some of them take.
I have seen some of the NP's I work with are specialized in trauma or emergency and have a wider scope, or at least the hospital allows them to take the very ill and traumatic patients. I've even seen some NP's working on/with a flight crew or critical transport crew. Does anyone have any further knowledge on this because I would love to hear all sides, and welcome any pros/cons. Thanks a lot guys!!!
First off, you need to make sure you spend due time shadowing providers, both NPs and physicians, in the roles you are interested in prior to making any decisions. I have known many people that "only wanted" trauma that quickly figured out it wasn't the right career for them. Remember, the grass is greener from the other side.
In all honesty, with a 3.4 GPA you will have a tough time getting accepted to medical school, and many quality NP programs. If you can finish out your pre-reqs and raise that above 3.8 things will be better for you in addition to scoring high on the MCAT.
If you want to be the big shot in the ED/trauma team then MD/DO is the only route you should consider and event hen you may not be what you want. An NP workign in a rural hospital may have that role but you aren't going to be the person on the evening news talking about reattaching someone's three severed limbs. On the flip side, any provider role will be a big change in practice for you: taking care of trauma and critical patients as an RN is much different than as a provider.
NPs are often used on flight crews as they compliment paramedics very well.
BostonFNP, APRN
2 Articles; 5,584 Posts
First off, you need to make sure you spend due time shadowing providers, both NPs and physicians, in the roles you are interested in prior to making any decisions. I have known many people that "only wanted" trauma that quickly figured out it wasn't the right career for them. Remember, the grass is greener from the other side.
In all honesty, with a 3.4 GPA you will have a tough time getting accepted to medical school, and many quality NP programs. If you can finish out your pre-reqs and raise that above 3.8 things will be better for you in addition to scoring high on the MCAT.
If you want to be the big shot in the ED/trauma team then MD/DO is the only route you should consider and event hen you may not be what you want. An NP workign in a rural hospital may have that role but you aren't going to be the person on the evening news talking about reattaching someone's three severed limbs. On the flip side, any provider role will be a big change in practice for you: taking care of trauma and critical patients as an RN is much different than as a provider.
NPs are often used on flight crews as they compliment paramedics very well.
Bottom line: shadow, shadow, shadow.