Paramedic and nurse?

Editorial Team / Moderator · Jul 10, 2016

I am both, though I have not been active as a paramedic for a few years. I started as a paramedic and bridged into nursing after 5 years. I love both, but nursing pays better and has more role diversity for when I am old and creaky. :)

MedicFireRN · Jul 13, 2016

I am both, though I have not been active as a paramedic for a few years. I started as a paramedic and bridged into nursing after 5 years. I love both, but nursing pays better and has more role diversity for when I am old and creaky. :)

this hits the nail on the head. Also both, recently stopped working as a medic although I still am one. I love both, but nursing pays way better and has better advancement opportunities, plus more diverse options for the future.

Nalon1 RN/EMT-P, BSN, RN · Jul 13, 2016

Paramedic for 16 years then became an RN. I still keep my paramedic, but do not work as one anywhere. I make more and work fewer hours as a nurse.

I think I enjoyed being a paramedic more in many aspects, but was burned out and tired of 24 hour shifts on the ambulance and low pay in the ER as a tech. I have known a few nurses that did EMS and Hospital, but most stopped doing EMS after a few years and went to just hospital nurse. Most went into air transport since most require the RN's to also be Paramedics with experience. I do have one old coworker from EMS that still does both (EMS is his full time job, Hospital ER is his part time job) for 20 years now.

frozenmedic · Jan 9, 2017

Yup. Been there, done that.... Worked as a 911 medic for years, loved working as a paramedic, teaching paramedic initial education and critical care courses, but still went to nursing school for all the reasons other people have listed.

I had no idea going in how much I would hate bedside nursing, but I do value the concentrated critical care time it has given me, and the opportunity to really discuss patient issues and physiology with the docs.

For a while I worked as both an RN and street medic; working as both simultaneously is not the issue-it's getting the initial education and certification for both simultaneously that is tricky. This is due to the time commitment involved, and almost zero transfer-ability of educational credentials from one side to the other unless you do a specific bridge program.

Currently, I work as an ICU RN and flight RN who sits in both seats, so I maintain both credentials. I only work in the ICU to keep myself sharp for flight, I have no love for ICU nursing. I'm happy with where I am, but it was a long road to get here. When I get too creaky for flight my exit strategy is to quit the ICU and go work in hospice so I can stop torturing old people or go back to EMS education full time.

So is there any actual advice is this post? I'm not sure, but what I would definitely stress is this: to start you are going to have to pick one or the other field to focus on. Medic to nurse is the more typical "progression" as you move from a poorly respected field with limited long term career options to a well respected field with better pay and more long-term options.

As a practicing RN first it is very difficult to go "backwards" to become a medic because the pay cut is real. Although there are RN to medic bridge programs, they seem to be geared towards RNs who already work in a flight/transport environment and are just looking for the initials too add to their resume. None of the nurses I personally know who have gone that route have actually chosen to work as "just a medic" for a while.

grizun · Jan 20, 2017

Most paramedics I know are freaks in the bed. Go paramedic route.

Trauma Columnist · Jan 27, 2017

I'm in IL and we have pre-hospital RN which is a license. I've been a PHRN for 17+ years now - I run with my volunteer fire/EMS and we are ALS.

I loved the ER but no longer work in one so this is one way to keep the adrenaline rush going - lol.

Medics are woefully underpaid!!!

AnnieOaklyRN, BSN, RN, EMT-P · Jan 30, 2017

Like the others I am both an RN and a medic; however I have not found a passion for nursing so far, thus I work full time as a medic and only per-diem as a nurse.

I became a medic first and from my point of view it is VERY hard to go from the autonomy of a medic to a nurse who must rely on physicians for orders. I work in a state where EMS protocols are very generous and we only have to call for Heparin for STEMI, the rest is up to us, unless we feel the need to consult with medical control.

I got my medic in 2004 after working as an EMT basic for six years and then I went right into nursing school (It was a LONG 4 years of school to get both, because it was two associate degrees), anywho I worked for a year or so full time as an ER nurse and after taking a week off I realized how stressed and drained I felt doing nursing versus EMS. I reverted back to full time EMS and it was the best decision I made. I do two 24 hour shifts and work in a 911 only system where the FD are more than happy to do the lifting, which I am grateful for (18 years of EMS can do a number on your back and joints). I make more than I would make as a nurse believe it or not, because I have 8 hours of OT built into every week. I work two days a week and because my job is so low stress I generally can do 1 or 2 12 hour shifts a week as overtime! Eventually i will need to return to full time nursing because I am 39 now and I have been doing EMS since I was 20, thus my body will probably not tolerate it into my 50s I would assume. I want to do NICU or pediatric nursing and have not been able to find a job, as the market in this area is tough. Until I get a NICU/ peds job I will continue in EMS and I am quite thankful I am not stuck in a nursing job I hate waiting for the one I want to come along!!

Good luck! Always follow your heart. People told me I would regret going back to EMS because of the pay and blah blah. Turns out I knew what was right for my mental health and again I am making more money, especially since I can actually tolerate doing OT in EMS. The bottom line is you have to do what you feel is right for you, no one else can tell you. Also it is a very good idea to have two skill sets so you have a back up plan!

Annie

firemedic12, BSN, RN, EMT-P · Feb 1, 2017

I was a firefighter and medic for 4 years before diving head-first into the ICU. I miss my ambulance so much, but I doubt I'll ever ride one full-time ever again. Now, my pay has more than doubled with working half the hours I used to and I have multiple doors wide open to me that were closed before. Plus the portability of a nursing license is vastly easier than EMS. I also have exponentially more potential jobs in areas of medicine I didn't even know existed.

Nalon1 RN/EMT-P, BSN, RN · Feb 1, 2017

I was a firefighter and medic for 4 years before diving head-first into the ICU. I miss my ambulance so much, but I doubt I'll ever ride one full-time ever again. Now, my pay has more than doubled with working half the hours I used to and I have multiple doors wide open to me that were closed before. Plus the portability of a nursing license is vastly easier than EMS. I also have exponentially more potential jobs in areas of medicine I didn't even know existed.

The bolded is one of the big reasons the pushed me over to try nursing.

Although I was a paramedic with over 12 years experience, every place I would apply would have their own testing to be done. Written exam, skills testing, physical agility, psych profiling etc. It was ridiculous. I was a paramedic. I had the state license for it as well as the years of experience. Did not matter. And lets not even get into trying to get a job in another state if you're not National Certified.

Nursing, show you have your license, maybe some preliminary paperwork and your hired. No need to take a facilities nursing exam. Compact states lets me practice in other states if I want. So much easier.