NP. Vs. PA vs. CRNA

AspiringSomething · Mar 4, 2021

Hello healthcare workers! My name is Peter and I am 24 years old. I have worked in veterinary medicine for the last 10 years (yes I started at the very early age of 14) and only until recently (the last 1-2 years) have I made the courageous decision to leave my veterinarian dreams behind and make a leap into healthcare.

I have an undergraduate bachelors in business admin/MGMT and a masters in Healthcare administration and management. While my interests were designed around going to vet school I decided very early on to become an untraditional applicant by pursuing degrees outside of the”science-norm”.

Within the last year I have spent an absurd amount of time researching careers in Medicine that might appeal to my personality and career goals. To give you some insight into my special interests in medicine, I have worked in emergency, critical care, and anesthesia in veterinary medicine for quite some time. Given the fact that I want to pursue a career in medicine but still enjoy life as a young adult, and enjoy my relationship before a wedding and children, I have narrowed my career goals down to three options: Acuate care NP, ED or CC PA, and CRNA.

So here is my predicament.....

First, I have always wanted to be a “provider”. Veterinary nursing was a journey many vets take in order to be strong applicants as vet students. With that being said I am ambivalent about becoming an RN before pursuing an NP or CRNA degree. The idea of bed side nursing is not appealing. Instead I look at it as a form of training - not a career. Is becoming a nurse worth it? How long do most applicants nurse for before applying to An NP or CRNA degree? How difficult is bed side nursing compared to veterinary nursing?

Second, given the fact I already have a bachelors and masters, the idea of going backwards and completing a one year program to obtain my BSN on top of a masters or even Doctorate (to pursue an NP or CRNA job) is almost impractical (but not impossible). When in hindsight I could fulfill a provider role sooner as a PA by applying to a PA program which most do not require nursing background, experience in healthcare, or a specific undergraduate degree. Would I be foolish to go into nursing when I could become a PA in half the amount of time?

Third, career growth and outcomes are vastly important to me. I do not want to be stuck doing the same thing forever in addition to not wanting to be stuck in the same role without growth for too long. As a PA there are not many options outside of a clinical role. An an NP, nurses have a wide array of job opportunities: ie NP, nurse management, nursing, CRNA, program directors, and management options. PA’s have the luxury of moving across any speciality but lack autonomy in practice. NP’s have more job opportunities but must pursue education specific to career outcomes. My question - how many career and leadership opportunities do PA’s have outside of being a mid-level provider? Are nurses respected by the medical team as much as PA’s are or is there a cultural difference between both communities?

Any opinions from experienced nurses, NP’s, PA’s, and CRNA’s would be extremely helpful as I have one more year to decide before accepting even more student debt!