RN to Paramedic in Canada

[fhcp1220]

Hi, I'm new to this website and I had a few questions. Currently I will be heading to either University of Toronto or University of Ontario Institute and Technology for four years to obtain my Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree. After I receive my degree, I wanted to obtain my paramedicine diploma from a college. I was wondering...

1.) Do you believe that a university's name has a lot to do with your employment? (Does it matter which university you go to?) Because I am torn between attending the University of Toronto (which has an excellent name) and attending University of Ontario Institute and Technology (which is a new and upcoming university that is receiving excellent recognition for its' nursing program). The only problem is that in order to attend the nursing program at the University of Toronto is that you must finish 2 years of health sciences and reapply to the nursing program, so it is not even a guarantee in getting in after the 2 years at the school. University of Ontario Institute and Technology, however, is different. Once you apply and get in, you are in the nursing program.

2.) Is there a bridge program for RNs to Paramedicine? Or a joint program in Ontario/Canada? I have been researching for a while and can't seem to find any Canadian universities that offer this.

Thank you! :typing

[Rhone]

Regarding the first question, I don't know how different it may be in Canada (I'm in the U.S.), and I'm no expert on the subject even here, but I think importance of school prestige really depends on the field you're in. For a scientist (researcher), being affiliated with a prestigious university probably helps them get more respect and notoriety. Perhaps people applying for corporate jobs might get a little advantage from a big Ivy League name like Yale or Harvard (not sure what the Canadian equivalents would be) on their resume.

But nurses? As long as your school is fully accredited and you're able to get licensed in your State/Province, I don't think potential employers will care too much about where you got your degree.

As to your second question... again, I don't know if perhaps it works a bit differently in Canada, but here in the States RNs receive more education, and make more money, than paramedics. Hence, an RN-to-Paramedic bridge program wouldn't make a lot of sense. There ARE, however, some Paramedic-to-RN bridge programs that work similarly to LPN-to-RN programs (not sure if Canada has any, though).

[loriangel14, RN]

If you want to be a paramedic why not go straight into a paramedic program? Why spend the time, effort and money to get your nursing degree when you plan on being a paramedic? Rns get more education so a bridge would make no sense.

[student456]

I live in Canada. There is no difference from where you graduate nursing school....ive heard negative things about u of t nursing from people, as well, its not guaranteed that you will get in after you do your 2 years of general science before hand. You have to have a certain gpa to even apply. I would pick UOIT over u of t. As well, u of t nursing is like super expensive - i think the last time i checked its 6800$ per year. Go to another GTA school - I know seneca, york, ryerson, GBC, centennial, etc all have nursing programs and they are roughly around 5200$ a year for nursing and once your in your in. With u of t your taking a chance that A) youll have high enough grades to apply and B) your competing against other people to get in after 2 years. All schools have pretty similar cirriculums I believe.

[S.T.A.C.E.Y, LPN]

Check out this website:

http://www.health.gov.on.ca/english/public/program/ehs/edu/equiv_qa.html

In Ontario, you don't even need to do the college program to become a medic if you are an RN. The website above explains it all.

And as for needing a name behind your nursing licence.....nope! Everyone is so desperate for a warm body nobody cares where you went to school. I would caution you to look beyond the name of the school and see if it is the type of program you want. Some programs are more clinical focused, while others are more theory/researched based.

[Fiona59]

Is he asking about becoming a paramedic or physicians assistant or even a nurse practitioner???

[S.T.A.C.E.Y, LPN]

Paramedic.

[Fiona59]

Just never heard of "paramedicine college" before. That's why I was wondering about Physician Asst. Paramedics train through the tech. schools out here.

[S.T.A.C.E.Y, LPN]

Training for medics varies province to province. Paramedics in Ontario complete a two year community college diploma as a minimum. U of T has a set up with Centennial (?) where they do a joint paramedic diploma and degree in paramedicine in four years. You can do the private paramedic program through CTS, it only takes a year, but is three or four times more expensive (I think...). As an RN in Ontario, you can just do a certain amount of ride time and then challenge the EMCA exams.

[rkpara]

Hi there, I cannot answer your question for you, but here is some helpful advice:

1) If your end goal is to become a paramedic, DO NOT WASTE YOUR TIME BECOMING AN RN!! Waste of time and money. I suppose it might improve your chances of getting hired as a paramedic, as there is a lot (and will be more) of competition out there. But if you become an RN, getting a job that pays more than a paramedic, should be easy.

2) Contact your potential employers and ask them whether they prefer a degree/diploma from one school over another. They are the ones who will be doing the hiring, and the ones making the decisions.

3) Contact the counties, governments, etc, who mandate what is required and recognized, IE: Taking your paramedics course through say Georgian College (or any community college that offers the course), as opposed to a privatized college, like Everest or CTS. Is your diploma worth anything? Again, contact your potential employers and see if they have any stigma against one college versus another. They may have hired a few people from one college or university and had some bad experiences, which will make them adverse to hiring from there again.

4) If your end goal is to become a paramedic, do not forget to do volunteer work. Volunteer as a firefighter (not all areas have volunteers though), or volunteer with St. John Ambulance as a Medical First responder... etc etc. Again, this field is competitive (as are Police Constables and Fire Fighters) and this volunteer work will improve your chances, and give you contacts.

Hope this is helpful! :)

Kind regards,

Rob

[Fiona59]

Wow, yet another long dead thread comes to life.

[heartnursing]

UOIT IS AWSOME! :)