# College and Paramedic School?



## yankeefan213 (Jan 9, 2011)

I am a 16 y/o high school junior in NJ. I took the EMT-B course in Paramus over the summer, and am now volunteering at my local ambulance corps and loving every minute of it. I am also a very good student (GPA ~ 97/100, 2220 SAT, currently enrolled in 3 AP classes) and have a (remote) chance at playing baseball in college. 

I hope to go to medical school, and feel that the paramedic course would offer me several advantages including patient contact/experience, practical knowledge that would be useful in medical school etc, and also a job after college were I to not get into medical school. 

What I'd like to know is this: Is it feasable (has anyone done it?) to be enrolled full-time as a student in college and take a paramedic course at a community college on the side? Any insight/perspective would be appreciated.


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## usafmedic45 (Jan 9, 2011)

> patient contact/experience



It won't make you stand out on medical school applications.  Probably about 1/3 of applicants have some form of EMS credential and of the several folks I know who sit on medical school admissions committees, unless you have YEARS (10+ was the figure given by two of these folks) of experience in EMS it's viewed in much the same way as if you put down "President of the Pre-Med Club; volunteered at the local free clinic and organized other volunteers too!".  

The general consensus seemed to be that while working in EMS demonstrates a high tolerance for the BS associated with dealing with patients, their families and nurses it implies very little in regards to what it means to be a physician which is what they are looking for in pre-med clinical "experience".  One of them went so far as to say that she and her colleagues can pretty much pick out who the Type-A personalities with short attention spans among the applicants are simply by looking to see if they list EMS experience as an extracurricular.  



> practical knowledge that would be useful in medical school



As several of my medical student friends who were medics before matriculation have told me, the "practical knowledge" is not a big help.  Veneficus can give you more insight on this one since he is actually a medical student.  



> Is it feasable (has anyone done it?) to be enrolled full-time as a student in college and take a paramedic course at a community college on the side?



I wouldn't recommend it.  Do you really want to risk tanking your GPA simply for your paramedic credential?



> also a job after college were I to not get into medical school



This is why if you're smart, you'll major in something other than chemistry, biology, physics or biochemistry (the traditional premed  majors).  Pick a bachelors degree in something with a job attached to it. 

Also keep in mind that most people who go into college as "pre-med majors" do not wind up applying for whatever reason.


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## Icenine (Jan 9, 2011)

You hit a hot button there ^ the med schools think you should be working on a degree with the intention of not getting in as well.

If you do some looking you'll find there are a lot of highly respected schools that actually frown upon science degrees.  Johns Hopkins for one. See the link below under "Baccalaureate Diploma"

http://www.studentdoc.com/medical-school-requirements.html

That is only one of many times I've seen similar suggestions as of late.


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## yankeefan213 (Jan 9, 2011)

For some reason the site won't let me quote. But in response to usafmedic45:

I agree its not worth tanking the GPA over it I was just wondering if it were practical to try, so let me phrase this another way: What is the weekly time commitment for paramedic school (class, studying, practicals etc)?

Or are there programs that accelerate and can be finished in a summer/semester?


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## TransportJockey (Jan 9, 2011)

yankeefan213 said:


> For some reason the site won't let me quote. But in response to usafmedic45:
> 
> I agree its not worth tanking the GPA over it I was just wondering if it were practical to try, so let me phrase this another way: What is the weekly time commitment for paramedic school (class, studying, practicals etc)?
> 
> Or are there programs that accelerate and can be finished in a summer/semester?



Traditional class is 2-3 semesters, at least 8 hours of classroom work a week, plus 12 hours or more of clinical time a week.


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## yankeefan213 (Jan 9, 2011)

jtpaintball70 said:


> Traditional class is 2-3 semesters, at least 8 hours of classroom work a week, plus 12 hours or more of clinical time a week.


 
Including gen ed? I have been checking out some programs' gen ed requirements and I think I could place out with my AP credits that I will hopefully get when I test in May.


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## TransportJockey (Jan 9, 2011)

yankeefan213 said:


> Including gen ed? I have been checking out some programs' gen ed requirements and I think I could place out with my AP credits that I will hopefully get when I test in May.



Not including the pre reqs (at my program in NM those were A&P, Adv Trauma, Drug Cal, and Pharmacology, which I doubt your AP credits would cover)


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## yankeefan213 (Jan 9, 2011)

jtpaintball70 said:


> Not including the pre reqs (at my program in NM those were A&P, Adv Trauma, Drug Cal, and Pharmacology, which I doubt your AP credits would cover)


 
Agreed. I was referring to some school's math/english requirements. 

I have seen references to "medic mills" on this site. What are these exactly (web link would be helpful)? Are they doable over a summer?


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## usafmedic45 (Jan 9, 2011)

> Including gen ed? I have been checking out some programs' gen ed requirements and I think I could place out with my AP credits that I will hopefully get when I test in May.



Put it this way....if you're going to be in a decent program, you're going to eat up whatever time you would have beyond your normal coursework (non-paramedic courses) and social life.  In other words, say goodbye to sleep, a girlfriend and all of the other things that make life in college bearable if you want to try to get your EMT-P while in college for something else. 



> I have seen references to "medic mills" on this site. What are these exactly (web link would be helpful)? Are they doable over a summer?



Think of them as the Carribean medical schools of the EMS world:  Yes they will get you qualified as an EMT-P but a lot of places will not consider you for employment if you come out of there so you're putting yourself at something of a disadvantage before you're even out the door. 

They also bite you in the butt because you come out undertrained and ill equipped to function clinically in most cases unless you have a LOT of previous medical experience and education to rely upon.


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## yankeefan213 (Jan 9, 2011)

Sorry again having issues with the quote button. @usafmedic45:

I can definately see your point regarding time issues.

As far as the medic mills, how specifically do they leave you behind? Don't all programs have to teach to the same curriculum (DOT/NREMT)? I guess you're talking about the difference between some no-name community college and Harvard, as it were?

Also, could you provide a list/links of medic mills? I'm just curious. 

Finally, are medic mills doable in a single summer? I understand what you're saying about putting you at a disadvantage, but if that's the only way this could work for me it might be worth a try. At least its something.


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## usafmedic45 (Jan 9, 2011)

> As far as the medic mills, how specifically do they leave you behind? Don't all programs have to teach to the same curriculum (DOT/NREMT)?



Nope.  Medic mills are simply those programs that either compress the program so much that they have to cut corners (leave stuff out) or they are simply money making operations where "you pay, you pass".  

BTW, the minimum curriculum on paper (the DOT standard) is barely sufficient for someone who is going to be working autonomously.   It's actually laughable how minimal the education standards are in this profession currently.



> I guess you're talking about the difference between some no-name community college and Harvard, as it were?



Not at all.




> Also, could you provide a list/links of medic mills? I'm just curious.



I don't have one and even if I did, I would not give it to you.



> Finally, are medic mills doable in a single summer?



Depends on the program.  Any program worth going to and paying a lot of money to attend?  No.



> I understand what you're saying about putting you at a disadvantage, but if that's the only way this could work for me it might be worth a try.



Why is it so important to you to have your paramedic credential?  Ask yourself: "Do I want to be a physician or do I want to be a paramedic?"  If you really feel the need to have both, then ask yourself _why_ you really want the paramedic credential given that it will not help you achieve the other goal you have.  Nothing says you can't get your paramedic credential AFTER medical school.    

Most importantly, are you really willing to endanger patients simply to get another bullet on your AMCAS?  Getting turned lose with insufficient education and the poor clinical oversight (especially in concert with the average maturity level of an 18-20 year old; BTW, this is coming from someone who was a first responder at 15) is asking for some patient to pay dearly.  



> At least its something.



Sometimes nothing is better than something.


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## Melclin (Jan 10, 2011)

usafmedic45 said:


> Why is it so important to you to have your paramedic credential?  Ask yourself: "Do I want to be a physician or do I want to be a paramedic?"  If you really feel the need to have both, then ask yourself _why_ you really want the paramedic credential given that it will not help you achieve the other goal you have.  Nothing says you can't get your paramedic credential AFTER medical school.



+1 on this. 

The answer, I suspect, is that you love getting hands on and you wanna do something that will allow you to be hands on earlier than medical school.

Pretty much everything is better than high school. Even the good parts of high school suck compared to university. Then, assuming you actually like your career path, working s**ts all over university. I'm deducing from your love of the EMT-B thing that you get a lot of satisfaction doing something real and something that has actual meaning as opposed to the arse load of abstract learning you do in highschool and, to an extent, at university. Although that might just be me projecting  (I even enjoyed stacking shelves at Safeway because it had an actual effect, however small). If I'm right about that, then you are potentially sacrificing long term satisfaction (medical school, MD) for short term potential 'gains' as a paramedic. You will regret that. Try and have the maturity to work towards the higher goal and take solice in the fact that you will not have to wait until you are a doctor for more of that real world fun/learning that has actual meaning. Firstly you can continue to get it from your volly EMT studd and secondly its pretty much only gets better after high school. 

Usafmedic is right about the patch factories. I just finished a paramedic bachelors degree and it doesn't feel like I have enough knowledge. That's because we have a system that teaches you enough to show you how much you _don't_ know. For the most part, America doesn't, and that is dangerous.

So work hard at school, and keep the balance in your life that you seem to have already. Without that balance you'll burn out, regardless of whether or not you chose to be a doctor or a paramedic. If you try to chose both, you might end up with neither.


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## usafmedic45 (Jan 10, 2011)

> The answer, I suspect, is that you love getting hands on and you wanna do something that will allow you to be hands on earlier than medical school.



But there are so many things better to spend your time being "hands on" with than patients while at university.


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## Melclin (Jan 10, 2011)

usafmedic45 said:


> But there are so many things better to spend your time being "hands on" with than patients while at university.



You cant seriously be suggesting that swimming in a sea of experimental drunken women is better than cleaning up an 89 year old dementia patient with gastro can you?

You're just so jaded and burnt out mate.


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## rescue99 (Jan 10, 2011)

yankeefan213 said:


> I am a 16 y/o high school junior in NJ. I took the EMT-B course in Paramus over the summer, and am now volunteering at my local ambulance corps and loving every minute of it. I am also a very good student (GPA ~ 97/100, 2220 SAT, currently enrolled in 3 AP classes) and have a (remote) chance at playing baseball in college.
> 
> I hope to go to medical school, and feel that the paramedic course would offer me several advantages including patient contact/experience, practical knowledge that would be useful in medical school etc, and also a job after college were I to not get into medical school.
> 
> What I'd like to know is this: Is it feasable (has anyone done it?) to be enrolled full-time as a student in college and take a paramedic course at a community college on the side? Any insight/perspective would be appreciated.



I have several friends who were Medics prior to medical school. Not one of them regrets his/her decision. In fact, each of them agree, it was a good choice. Not suprising, they are all DO's. I agree however, that going to Medic class and carrying a full load would be a difficult job. Ask Lifeguard for Life...he's done it. 

As a community college instructor, there are pre-med,  pre-med grads, grad students and nursing students in every semester. I believe this semester there are 4 in my class alone. One full time grad student cracked me up when he said he was taking the EMT-B course so he could go to all of the U of M games for free . Smart, ambitious and money-wise!


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## usafmedic45 (Jan 10, 2011)

> Not suprising, they are all DO's.



Which begs the question:  How were their grades?  Also how long were they medics before going to medical school?


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## TransportJockey (Jan 10, 2011)

rescue99 said:


> I have several friends who were Medics prior to medical school. Not one of them regrets his/her decision. In fact, each of them agree, it was a good choice. Not suprising, they are all DO's. I agree however, that going to Medic class and carrying a full load would be a difficult job. Ask Lifeguard for Life...he's done it.
> 
> As a community college instructor, there are pre-med,  pre-med grads, grad students and nursing students in every semester. I believe this semester there are 4 in my class alone. One full time grad student cracked me up when he said he was taking the EMT-B course so he could go to all of the U of M games for free . Smart, ambitious and money-wise!



What do you mean it's not surprising they're all DOs? I'm just curious...


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## Markhk (Jan 10, 2011)

jtpaintball70 said:


> What do you mean it's not surprising they're all DOs? I'm just curious...



In my limited experience during the application process, Osteopathic DO medical schools (versus allopathic MD medical schools) seem to value students slightly more when they have prior healthcare backgrounds. 

To give you an example, the standard AMCAS allopathic medical school application requires a personal statement and gives you a section for the 10 extracurricular/jobs/interests/awards & honors you have. 

In contrast, the AACOMAS osteropathic medical school application specifically has a section for "work experience", where you can, as an EMT/paramedic, elaborate on the quality of your experience as a healthcare provider. (The application also then has a separate extracurriculars, volunteer work, awards, honors)


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## Markhk (Jan 10, 2011)

yankeefan213 said:


> What I'd like to know is this: Is it feasable (has anyone done it?) to be enrolled full-time as a student in college and take a paramedic course at a community college on the side? Any insight/perspective would be appreciated.



I think it's wonderful that you have the interest and determination to pursue school while increasing your breadth of prehospital knowledge. Just keep in mind that applying to medical school is not a simple affair. You WILL study HARD for the MCAT, and you will be slammed with the science courseload in college for Gen Bio, Upper Div Bio (Genetics, Biochemistry, Cell/Molecular Bio), Chemistry, Organic Chemistry, Math (Calculus without using a graphing calculator). It is VERY tough to say to yourself, "I know I want to get hands on experience, but I need to do these classes first"...when we're in our young college days we want to be saving lives constantly...but sacrificing the EMS side in order to study hard is one of the things you might have to do while in college. 

One thing to consider if you really want to become a paramedic is to do as much as you can as an EMT in college (get that experience really working on your BLS skills in a campus EMS service, volunteer squad, etc until you are a BLS stud), finish all the premed requirements (classes and MCAT), graduate from college then take a year off to go to medic school while you're applying to med school. 

Good luck, I really do hope you are able to pursue your dreams.


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## rescue99 (Jan 10, 2011)

jtpaintball70 said:


> What do you mean it's not surprising they're all DOs? I'm just curious...



Nothing really other than DO's are more whole patient oriented.


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## TransportJockey (Jan 10, 2011)

AH K. Thanks guys  Reason I asked is medical school is still a dream of mine, even if I don't know how the hell I'll get there/pay for it.


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## usafmedic45 (Jan 10, 2011)

rescue99 said:


> Nothing really other than DO's are more whole patient oriented.


That's a load of crap.  It's just one excuse (along with history) that the DO programs use to keep themselves from being rolled into a single degree with the allopathic guys.  It's kind of like saying that modern paramedics trace their heritage back to Johnny and Roy where as the basics are the "descendents" of the funeral home ambulance services of the pre-1960s.   I say this as someone who formally worked at an "osteopathic" hospital.  The attendings used to laugh at the premeds who would come into shadow and spout off that crap.  According to them, the only differences are the licensing exams, the presence of a few more residency programs that they can apply to, some historical BS that no one cares about and the additional training in musculoskeletal care. 



> graduate from college then take a year off to go to medic school while you're applying to med school.



Why would you take a glide year simply to get you medic license when you're not going to have time to use it?  There are so many better options to use time off for.


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## rescue99 (Jan 10, 2011)

usafmedic45 said:


> That's a load of crap.  It's just one excuse (along with history) that the DO programs use to keep themselves from being rolled into a single degree with the allopathic guys.  It's kind of like saying that modern paramedics trace their heritage back to Johnny and Roy where as the basics are the "descendents" of the funeral home ambulance services of the pre-1960s.   I say this as someone who formally worked at an "osteopathic" hospital.  The attendings used to laugh at the premeds who would come into shadow and spout off that crap.  According to them, the only differences are the licensing exams, the presence of a few more residency programs that they can apply to, some historical BS that no one cares about and the additional training in musculoskeletal care.



I'm not an M.D. or a D.O. I expect they will each defend their choices.


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## usafmedic45 (Jan 10, 2011)

rescue99 said:


> I'm not an M.D. or a D.O. I expect they will each defend their choices.


Well, I've never met a DO (and I know a lot, including several who sit on the admissions committees or administrations of osteopathic medical schools) that actually believes that modern DOs and modern MDs have any difference in the "whole person" approach.  As one of them put it, it might have mattered 30 or 40 years ago, but unless you ask or see their diploma chances are you'll never know who is treating you just based on how they treat you.

BTW, my primary care doc is a DO and I never knew that until I heard him make a comment about having attended Kirksville (the flagship school of osteopathic medicine) one day.


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## rwik123 (Jan 10, 2011)

usafmedic45 said:


> Well, I've never met a DO (and I know a lot, including several who sit on the admissions committees or administrations of osteopathic medical schools) that actually believes that modern DOs and modern MDs have any difference in the "whole person" approach.  As one of them put it, it might have mattered 30 or 40 years ago, but unless you ask or see their diploma chances are you'll never know who is treating you just based on how they treat you.
> 
> BTW, my primary care doc is a DO and I never knew that until I heard him make a comment about having attended Kirksville (the flagship school of osteopathic medicine) one day.



Are DOs able to practice in the same specialties as MDs?


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## yankeefan213 (Jan 11, 2011)

Melclin said:


> +1 on this.
> 
> The answer, I suspect, is that you love getting hands on and you wanna do something that will allow you to be hands on earlier than medical school.
> 
> ...


 
A lot of truth in that. I actually don't mind to much the abstract learning; I find some of the material quite interesting. I agree with a lot of the things you say. Sometimes you can't have it all and I think that I will be much happier as a doc (I'm thinking trauma surgery and doing some time in the military at this point, obviously subject to change). I have thought about other careers (law, business, law enforcement among others), but I just don't see myself doing that for 40 years. I think milmed appeals to me in somewhat the same way paramedicine does--I'm a hands on, get dirty and do something kind of person, and I don't want to be stuck behind a desk or in a lab for my entire career. I know its really cliché, but I do enjoy the idea of seeing myself make an immediate impact on the world, even if its only a few people, and doing it in the military appeals to my other favorite cliché, duty to my country. (Don't take this to mean I'm being phony, this is just how I feel about myself now). 

Like you suggest, I am working as hard as my schoolwork allows on being the best EMT-B I can be (I pull as many extra hours as I can).


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## Markhk (Jan 11, 2011)

> There are so many better options to use time off for.



That is certainly true, but a decent number of premeds these days take a few years off before applying. You could go to medic school and work a bit, then apply. Motivations to go to paramedic school vary considerably, but it sounds like the thread-starter does have a genuine interest in EMS, so it would be cool if he could nurture that at some point. (As people have pointed out time and again...EMS care and medicine are quite different.) I feel lucky to have had a chance to do the pre-hospital thing at a younger age before applying to med school...it sure beat a heck of a lot of other "premedical experiences" that were available to undergraduates at my institution. 



rwik123 said:


> Are DOs able to practice in the same specialties as MDs?



Specialties are determined by your ability to get into a Residency program (e.g. Internal Medicine, Emergency Medicine, Anesthesiology etc.) To get into these programs, you need to take graduate level exams; for MD residency program they look at the USMLE, for DO residency programs they look at the COMLEX. However, to keep their options open, a lot of DO physicians will take BOTH the USMLE exam and the COMLEX, so they can apply for both types of residency programs. As such, there is no reason why a DO physician can't do the same specialty as a MD.


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## usafmedic45 (Jan 11, 2011)

> That is certainly true, but a decent number of premeds these days take a few years off before applying.



Mostly because a lot of them have no choice (finances, etc) or because they have to do post-bacc or graduate programs to have a chance of getting in.



> I'm thinking trauma surgery and doing some time in the military at this point, obviously subject to change



Ah, to be young, naive and idealistic again....no offense intended.



> and I don't want to be stuck behind a desk or in a lab for my entire career.



If you don't want to get stuck behind a desk, don't spend time in the military.  If you get above the rank of lieutenant colonel, you'll be spending a lot of time on administrative crap. 



> I think milmed appeals to me in somewhat the same way paramedicine does--I'm a hands on, get dirty and do something kind of person,



You do realize that most physicians and medical personnel in the military don't have jack crap to do with the parts of the system that seem to be appealing to you.  Don't go walking in assuming that you'll be assigned a surgical slot simply because you are a surgeon.  You can get stuck doing primary care roles even if you're a general surgeon (which is what a trauma surgeon actually is in most cases) simply because the military always has a shortage of docs (mostly because they don't treat them all that great) and next thing you know instead of being wrist deep in someone chest in a war zone getting your hands "dirty" you're finding yourself sitting on a base in Thule, Greenland managing the cholesterol meds of overweight senior NCOs.  

Also, as a combat veteran, I would like to point out that the reality of caring for wounded- especially in the military- is not fun, at least not for very long.  It's soul crushing, draining, exhausting and absolutely heartbreaking at times.  You're a first person witness to some of the greatest waste of human life on this planet.  Even as bitter and misanthropic as I am, it grinds you down and you never look at the world the same way again.  So before you go thinking it's an exciting career where you get to "do something", remember that it's someone's son or daughter's suffering and sacrifice that is giving you the chance to do that.  

Actually, chance is the wrong word....the obligation to do that.  After a very short while, unless someone is exceedingly immature or a flat out sociopath, they find themselves wishing dearly and perhaps praying to their chosen deity that they don't have to do anything tonight.  Part of this is selfish- "Just let me sleep", "I can't take this anymore", etc- and part of it is altruistic in that no medical provider who is working off of truly decent motivations ever wants a critical case to fall into their lap.  

The famed German politician Otto von Bismarck is reported to have said "Any man who has looked into the glazed eyes of a soldier as he lays dying on a battlefield will stop and think long and hard before going to war".  He was speaking about the politicians and generals.  No good commander, military or otherwise, is selfish with or acts without concerns for the lives of his men.  This is why Richard Winters (the commander of the famed E/506th PIR, 101st Airborne) who died a few days ago was so widely respected by his men.  He cared for them and looked out for them.  President Bismarck might not have been talking about military medicine, but he very well could have been.  As someone who is haunted by the glazed eyes of a different generation, I think anyone who goes into that field needs to remember why they are there and the price they will pay for the privilege to be allowed to serve as a part of the teams who stand as the last line of defense against death for our soldiers, the enemy's soldiers and those simply with the misfortune of living in a war zone.   The price you pay is always your innocence, often some sliver of varying size of your sanity and, if you're unfortunate, your life.  

I realize you're just a kid, but I was too when I got into EMS and when I went into the military.  I wish someone had been upfront with me about these things when I was your age.  If they had, I probably would sleep better at night.


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## Markhk (Jan 11, 2011)

For the premed, I think it's sometimes hard to read advice that is "the cold hard truth" but USAFmedic45 really speaks on the truth on the topic. 

What "military medicine" is can be tough to understand for the person looking in. Most of us just get ideas from watching Wade in Saving Private Ryan. (I would suggest anyone interested in milmed to watch "Fighting for Life", a documentary on USUHS and military med http://www.fightingforlifethemovie.com/) The military loves to throw terms around like "Flight Surgeon" (which, in reality the position does not involve surgery at all) that sounds exciting but is really quite routine. Military medicine training does involve a lot of "contingency medicine" training and care for the austere environment, but it is also a lot of "hurry up and wait". 

By the way, usafmedic45, thanks for your service. It is appreciated.


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## usafmedic45 (Jan 11, 2011)

> By the way, usafmedic45, thanks for your service. It is appreciated.



Not a problem.  Be sure to say the same thing to any service member you see.


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## yankeefan213 (Jan 11, 2011)

Markhk said:


> By the way, usafmedic45, thanks for your service. It is appreciated.


 
Agreed. I want to thank all military servicemen, past and present, who put themselves on the line so that others don't have to. 





usafmedic45 said:


> I realize you're just a kid.


 
I absolutely positively detest any arguement beginning with that phrase. While I am sure well intentioned, (and I have been listening to what you have to say usafmedic45, believe it or not I truly do listen), I find that using that phrase starts a debate by subjugating the "kid." I find it condecending and hubristic to think that in some circumstance, somewhere that some "kid" hasn't done something better than an adult. While I fully (all too fully) understand that I lack experience and knowledge to to my age, please do not patronize me. 

Yes, I understand your point about the service; I have done some other research. Thank you for your insight, it is enlightening, and I will consider it as I would any other advice I recieve here or anywhere else. And what you say about "wishing someone had been upfront with me about these things whe I was your age," is a large part about why I started this thread in the first place. I am trying to see through others' eyes as best I can.


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## usafmedic45 (Jan 11, 2011)

> believe it or not I truly do listen


That's good to know.



> I absolutely positively detest any arguement beginning with that phrase. While I am sure well intentioned, (and I have been listening to what you have to say usafmedic45, believe it or not I truly do listen), I find that using that phrase starts a debate by subjugating the "kid." I find it condecending and hubristic to think that in some circumstance, somewhere that some "kid" hasn't done something better than an adult. While I fully (all too fully) understand that I lack experience and knowledge to to my age, please do not patronize me.



It's not being patronizing.  It's a statement of fact.  I'm in my thirties and I still get called "a kid" by folks with more experience than me.  

So far as comparing your age to your experience and knowledge level, I will state you seem to be quite exceptional which is why I am trying to look out for you.  If I didn't think you were worth the trouble (like most teenage EMS personnel) you would be truly getting browbeat.  Ask anyone on here:  I have zero tolerance for BS and if I think you're able to learn, willing to learn and have something to offer your patients and your collegues, I will do anything to help you.  If I thought you're not worth my time, I'd have already torn your heart out and taken a bite from it.  LOL

All I want is you to not make the same mistakes that I did because reading your posts is like getting inside my own head at 16.  Anything you need, all you have to do is ask.


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## yankeefan213 (Jan 11, 2011)

usafmedic45 said:


> That's good to know.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


 
Thank you. I play baseball, and you always know who the best kids are because they are the ones the coach always yells at when they make a mistake, not because they do it more often, but because those are the kids who will internalize the coaching and change their error, and not become downtrodden and melancholy because they got chewed out. 

I am new to the site and EMS, but you will find that I do not BS. When I say something I am sincere in what I say (excet for the obvious sarcasm lol). I figured when I posted that I had a 50/50 shot of recieving the response you just gave me or a complete *** chewing. Thank you for choosing the former.


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## usafmedic45 (Jan 11, 2011)

> I figured when I posted that I had a 50/50 shot of recieving the response you just gave me or a complete *** chewing.



Yeah...that's pretty close to correct.


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