Paramedic to Nurse?

[Andreaa_e_]

I am currently a college student finishing my perquisites to apply to the many nursing programs, but in the case that I do not get in, I wanted to look at other options. I heard that if you become a paramedic, it is a lot easier to take a bridge program to become a nurse than it actually is to go through school and then get accepted. My quest is, is this true? If so, how do the bridge programs work and where can I get more information?

[AliNajaCat]

No, it's not true. There is no "bridge" between these two fundamentally different career paths.

There are people who confuse "paramedic skills" with "nursing skills," largely because they think all nursing is, is "skills," i.e., psychomotor tasks. There's overlap between many health-related fields in many task-y things, but that doesn't mean they're all on the same ladder by any means. Don't fall into that trap. You want to be a nurse, there's no shortcut. Go to nursing school, learn to think like a nurse, learn to be one.

(And "perquisite" is not the same as "prerequisite.")

[Sour Lemon]

I am currently a college student finishing my perquisites to apply to the many nursing programs, but in the case that I do not get in, I wanted to look at other options. I heard that if you become a paramedic, it is a lot easier to take a bridge program to become a nurse than it actually is to go through school and then get accepted. My quest is, is this true? If so, how do the bridge programs work and where can I get more information?

In some cases, it's easier to become an LVN and then bridge to RN. Both LVNs and RNs are nurses, though. I have never heard of a paramedic to nurse bridge program.

[Flatline, BSN, RN]

If you want become a registered nurse then become a registered nurse.

If you do not get in the first time then do not blow your time and money on a separate and very different career path. Spend your time and money studying while you wait to apply again so that you will get into the registered nurse program next time.

You don't become a plumber by going to carpenter school.

[203bravo, MSN, APRN]

There are indeed paramedic to RN bridge programs.. generally they are 1 year programs that will result in your ADN degree... In my experience they are not usually easier to get into since there are limited number of programs geared at a specific population, thus there are usually more applications than number of spots just as with traditional ADN programs.

[TheCommuter, BSN, RN]

Paramedic-to-RN transition programs exist, but they are far more limited in number than LPN-to-RN transition programs. LPN-to-RN programs are abundant.

Always remember that EMTs and paramedics fall under the medical model of care provision while LPNs and RNs belong to the nursing model. If you want to be a nurse, it is best to stick to the nursing model.