Koko4

I am also under this impression. My entire view of it is that the midlevel provider takes the more standard, straightforward cases, and lets the doctor deal with the "mystery diagnosis" type cases. Could you elaborate on that a bit? I am curious, now. I have not had the opportunity to shadow, which I feel like would give me a better perspective of everything. It's nearly impossible when you work a full-time job and are working 5-6 days a week! But that will all change soon..

Thanks for the quick reply VicedRN. I see where you are coming from. It makes sense that the EMT training still seems like a logical choice to gain that HCE that I need. I will still have to take 2 semesters or so of prerequisites, between EMT and PA, to apply for the PA program. I agree that it is an emotional issue to “utilize my bachelor’s degree”. I worked really hard to obtain it, and I just don’t want to see it all go to waste. I suppose that it won’t be a waste when applying to PA school, just during EMT it is unnecessary. I was originally just going to go for an EMT-B certification, but I found out from my adviser that the state of GA has raised their standards, and you need at least an EMT-A. So that is what the 1-year program is all about, and I suppose that will be more valuable and provide me a better base with which to go to PA school with. I suppose you are right about the entire destination/journey analogy. I am pretty confident that a PA position would be a good, stable position for me in healthcare, yet it is such a daunting journey! What would you do if you could do it all over again?

I recognize that EMT and Nursing are two remarkably different fields, and I have a great respect for what both of them do. In my current situation, I am worried that if I become an EMT, I will be at the bottom of the totem pole, like Chorkle said. Keep in mind that I would not be planning on doing EMT for forever – only long enough to get a good amount of HCE up to apply for PA school. I also think that it would expose me to some of the darker sides of healthcare, and it would really test my ability to handle those types of situations, right off of the bat. I recognize that EMT would be about a year and a half from now to accomplish, and nursing would be about 2.5 years. I could earn HCE as either, and then use those hours to apply to my program of choice. Right now I am leaning towards PA for a mid-level provider, because of the fact they can move laterally from specialty to specialty without much difficulty. As I understand it, a NP has to choose a specific field and then go back to school and receive additional certifications if he/she wants to practice in a different area. I am also fully aware of the fact that “NP’s are more autonomous” and this does not bother me – I have never had a problem with working as a team or having a higher authority tell me what to do. I think teamwork is a valuable asset in healthcare, and don’t understand why people place so much emphasis on being autonomous. I am just looking for the smartest way to gain HCE and reach my end goal of being a mid-level provider. My girlfriend has a job as a MA in a dermatology lab, with a bachelor’s degree in biology. I thought about trying to find something similar and work there full-time for a year or two to obtain the hours. I know this would not give me the same experience as EMT would. If I did nursing, I would want to become an RN and maintain that level just long enough to continue on to NP. I would definitely earn more money while doing so, and would be more marketable (I feel like – correct me if I’m wrong here). If you guys were in my shoes, what would you do? A Nursing degree seems much more valuable than an EMT certification, especially since I already have an existing bachelor’s degree which I would like to make some use of. I’m sorry if I keep going back and forth – I am really at a crossroads in life and having trouble sorting this out, no matter how much reading, contemplating, and discussing I seem to do.

I am having a dilemma in picking an education route for myself... Here's a bit of background: I graduated from college 1.5 years ago with a liberal arts degree. I have been working a job in the recreation field, which is totally unrelated to what I studied (creative writing/Spanish). After talking with many friends and family who are in healthcare, I would like to try and find my own niche in the healthcare field. There are a few different reasons for this, such as job security, I am a people-person, I enjoy being on my feet/being active, and I HATE sitting at a desk, in front of a computer. So originally I wanted a way to experience a branch of healthcare without investing TOO much time/money into it, in case I absolutely can't stand it for some reason. I thought that EMT would be a good way to do this. I am currently signed up for this upcoming semester at the local community college for two classes: A&P and Med/Term, and then in Fall I hope to be accepted into the EMT program. That would be a two-semester program, and then I would be an EMT-A. My plan from there would be to work for 1-2 years as an EMT and then sign up for more prerequisites, in order to apply for PA school. If I am accepted into PA school, then it will take another 2 years to become a PA. So, EMT would take 1.5 years, then 1-2 years of working as an EMT, then 1-2 semesters of prerequisites, then 2 years of PA school means a total of around 5 years or more from start to finish. I have heard from various people that the pay for EMT's isn't too great ($10/$12), and it wouldn't be utilizing my existing bachelor's degree at all. Another route I could take would be nursing: I would have to take two semesters of science prerequisites, and then two additional classes at the University. The University that I am looking at (Georgia State) has an accelerated nursing program, which is a 16-month intensive program. After this I could become an RN, having spent approximately 3 years total in education. The pay would be much better than an EMT, and it would also make SOME use of my existing bachelor's degree. Ideally, I would work for a few years and then continue on to either NP or NA (thinking long term here - it's a good possibility I would work longer than that). One final option would be to try and get in with the local fire department. This would take approximately 6 months to be accepted into the program, then 9 months for education. I really enjoy staying active, but I am still relatively young (25) and think that the physical demands could start to become overwhelming after some time. As a long-term career, I'm thinking that firefighting wouldn't be for me. I am trying to weigh all of these options reasonably, but I am pulling myself in different directions. I would like the initial excitement of being an EMT, but think it would be rather foolish to "waste" my bachelor's degree and struggle to survive for 1-2 years on EMT's pay. Not to mention that I would be tough-pressed to find a job anyways, due to the supply/demand situation from this relatively popular certification. I would be more in demand as a nurse, and would be compensated much better, BUT sometimes reading all of these threads about how hard it is with the politics / managerial issues / short-staffing / stress / etc, it seems like it would be too much. I do enjoy working with people, and I enjoy helping people. But I don't want to be a martyr here and say that is the only reason I am considering a job in healthcare. I would like to have job stability, financial security, and feeling of importance that a job like this can provide. I'm sorry that this turned out to be so long. Any advice / feedback is greatly appreciated. As of now, after putting it all on paper and looking at the time-requirements as my main factor, the nursing route is looking like the smartest way to go.

Hey KeepCalmCarryOn, what exactly was your "path" to nursing like?? I have just finished a 4-year degree and don't know what the best jumping-off point from here would be. I'm thinking that bodily fluids aren't my favorites...so I'd be looking into something like radiation tech, for example. I would also consider others, but don't know what else there really is, to be honest! How long have you been in the program? What is it like? How did you ultimately decide on a school? And how much longer do you have to go?

Those are some major considerations to take into account. I did not know that you could shadow a nurse for a day; that would be a great idea and definitely give me a better sense of the typical day for a nurse. I have read a few posts on here and the consensus is that nurses are wildly understaffed!! As a member of the general population, I never knew this, and would never have been able to tell on a regular visit to the hospital. I guess I'm trying to say that even though the nurses are expected to do so much, they handled it pretty flawlessly. I could definitely see myself being happy doing 12-hour shifts. I would rather get it all out of the way in one big chunk, and then have 4 days a week to rest/relax/pursue other hobbies. Not to mention factoring in the commute time. I have a large aversion to vomit, and probably to diarrhea as well (never cleaned up human diarrhea though). I think maybe I could pursue becoming a radiologist tech, or something like that which would be less involved with the bodily fluids? I was actually talking to a radiologist tech the other day about some of this. This would also keep me from being on the "front lines," in the patient's rooms..I think that would be a major help in regard to my "hypochondriac tendencies". I just need a solid career, and in this day-and-age, my bachelor's degree isn't going to provide me with either. Thank you all for the input. Most of it is scary yet intriguing at the same time. If I do decide to take a program, I will feel comfortable bringing any questions that I may have here!! What do you guys think about the radiologist tech route? Are there other nursing careers which would be less "hands on" than your typical nurse? By the way, I am trying to pick/choose my words VERY carefully because realistically I know there is no "typical nurse" and I'm not trying to offend anyone!

I am 23 years old and just graduated from a university with a 4 year bachelor's degree. I was not sure what I wanted to do with my life while in school, and I majored in creative writing and Spanish. I live an outdoor lifestyle, doing things like camping, rock climbing, and hiking. For the longest time, I wanted to incorporate these things into my career. Anyways, after graduating in May I moved home with my parents and found a part-time job that I'm going to keep until I can get something more reliable.. I was recently talking to a cousin who is a male nurse out in Colorado and I was absolutely fascinated. I had never considered being a nurse, or going into healthcare (mainly because of the amount of schooling involved). After talking to him, it really sounds like a rewarding career choice and I have been giving thought to pursuing that route. I have a few specific questions pertaining to this, though. One thing is I have always been a worrier. I tend to worry about small things pertaining to my health (as in, swollen lymph nodes, slight dizziness, etc) and think that there is something more wrong with me than actually is. A sort of hypochondriac, you could say, although I don't like to think of myself as that. I don't know how this would affect me in the workplace, or if nurses get sick often due to always being around other sick people, etc. I am great with people, though, and enjoy helping people any chance I get. Also, I have my bachelor's degree from a 4-year university, like I said earlier, and my cousin was telling me that there are programs that I could take to have "fast-track" to nursing. My only concern would be that I did not take any biology/anatomy classes in my college, for core classes. He was even telling me that there are one-year programs, where the aspiring nurse goes to school from 8-5, 5 days a week, and then is a registered nurse after graduating. He called these people "one-year-wonders" :) So mainly my two questions are if I would be in a good position (educationally) to pursue this, and if the hypochondriac tendencies would prevent me from excelling in this field. I also want to add that after graduating, I am debt-free (an important consideration these days!) Thank you for reading this, and thanks in advance for any advice!