Tell me what to do with my life

Hello,
Longtime lurker, first time poster.
I am a former EMT - went through the class while in high school, then worked in an amusement park for a year or so (so do not have ambulance experience). My certification is now lapsed. My experience since then includes two tours overseas with the military, two degrees (both humanities-based, no science and math classes except those required), and five years working as a 911 dispatcher.
I recently left my dispatch position to take what I thought would be the perfect job, working a 9-5 schedule in an office. This is the first time in my life I have worked a traditional office job, and I am finding it is not for me. I miss shift work, overnights, etc. However, I did leave dispatch because I was beginning to be burnt out after working several major incidents and dealing with the constant flow of tragedy on the phone year after year.
So now I am beginning to explore alternative options - I am pretty sure I am not made to be an office worker, nor do I want to simply return to my prior career and experience the burn-out and stress in the same way.
The two options I am considering are paramedic and nurse (not interested in law enforcement, firefighting, and too old now to re-enter the military). My questions are;

1) Whatever path I chose would required me to work part-time and take out loans (and I have a house and child, among other financial obligations), so I would want to be able to get into a job right out of school and get through school as quickly as possible. The area in which I live (Western WA) is said to be saturated with paramedics. Considering I have a degree and some experience, is it possible to be hired without moving to Eastern WA or being a firefighter? Are there alternate jobs if I don't get an ambulance job right away?

2) What about job opportunities for nurses?

3) Is it possible to move from Paramedic to Nurse (later, or if I change my mind) without having to re-do all of the schooling? And if so, how are these programs usually run?

3) Are there any accelerated programs for either Paramedic or Nurse that anyone has personal experience with and would recommend, or would not recommend?

4) Is it possible to keep things varied with either of these certifications and avoid the same burnout that I experienced as a dispatcher? I.E. move companies, types of jobs, etc. when needed?

5) Any other words of advice? What would you do with your life if you were me???? I'm still fairly new to considering this and would appreciate ideas from anyone working in health care, or any PM's if anyone is in my area and has direct experience with companies and schools.

Thank you all in advance for your help!

1) it will be tough, not going to lie, but it is doable. Currently you aren't certified at all, with no recent experience. see if you can do paramedic school part time, and if they have a program that will work with your full time schedule. How attached are you to living in Wa? if you are willing to move from western Wa to Eastern Wa, can you move to another state? Also, currently you are at least 2 years from having your paramedic certification, so I wouldn't quit your job tomorrow.

Also, many many places are experiencing a so-called paramedic shortage; what is really occurring is there are plenty of open spots, but few pay well, so they don't have people lining up to fill those spots (with certain areas being the exception to that statement) . So the jobs are out there, if you are willing to relocate, and if you are willing to accept their terms of employment

2) waaaaaay more nursing opportunities.

3) yes there are; however you don't have them. You might be able to squeeze in a BS to BSN, which can sometimes run for one grueling year, but it doesn't sound like you have the background for them (sorry). Check your local colleges, see what they have to offer.

4) yes. I dispatched in a busy system for 5 years. I never want to go back to dispatching full time every again. Nursing has more opportunities, better pay, and better advancement... tell me again why you want to become a paramedic?

5) advice: go back through an EMT class, and earn your EMT cert. Keep the 9-5 job. enjoy weekends off, and the time with your kid. if you miss odd hours enough, once you get your EMT cert, get a part time job on an ambulance, doing nights and weekends, in addition to your full time job (you did say you have a house). Personally, I did office work for 3 years, then 10 or so years of shift work, and now that I have a family, I am enjoying my decent paying office job, and part time shift work (the occasional evening shift teaching, the occasional overnight shift, and the occasional weekend shift, on my schedule).

It is also very difficult, however not impossible, to work full time, go to school full time, do well in both, and still spend time with your child. good luck with whatever you decide.

DrParasite - thanks for the great reply! It sounds like we have some similarities in background, and I completely agree with you on the financial piece - having my family live partially off loans is something I'd like to avoid - and I'd really really like to avoid it if I'm not marketable when I'm done. I'm not looking to relocate to Eastern WA, and all the other states where I have family are ones where public safety is paid much less. So, I guess what I would be looking for is a paramedic job in Western WA, which it sounds like you're confirming is.... unlikely? I appreciate the perspective and advice - will keep researching programs. Thank you!

Ouroboros said:

DrParasite - thanks for the great reply! It sounds like we have some similarities in background, and I completely agree with you on the financial piece - having my family live partially off loans is something I'd like to avoid - and I'd really really like to avoid it if I'm not marketable when I'm done. I'm not looking to relocate to Eastern WA, and all the other states where I have family are ones where public safety is paid much less. So, I guess what I would be looking for is a paramedic job in Western WA, which it sounds like you're confirming is.... unlikely? I appreciate the perspective and advice - will keep researching programs. Thank you!

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There’s a ton of info about the paramedic situation in western Washington in this forum. Just search for it. I got my medic cert in Tacoma, as did @PotatoMedic. Neither of us live in Washington any longer.

Ouroboros said:

I guess what I would be looking for is a paramedic job in Western WA, which it sounds like you're confirming is.... unlikely? I appreciate the perspective and advice - will keep researching programs. Thank you!

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Not at all; the only thing I know about Washington is that Kings County Medic 1 is located in Seattle, and that Seattle has the space needle. And supposedly pot is now legal in that state. That's it.

My response was more general statements in response to your question. I think the real question is, what do YOU want to do? Do you want to be a medic (I hear KCM1 is one of the best to work for, but the initial orientation process is intense)? Can you handle working 60 hour weeks regularly, for low pay, including nights, weekends and holidays, where you don't see your family as much as you like, where you will have limited opportunities for advancement? Or do you want to be a nurse? Can you handle 40-50 hour weeks, 12 hour days, when you are on your feet for 12 hours straight, where you will have to ask a doctor to do almost everything, where it is tough to get that initial good job, but lots of bad ones? And of course, the two scenarios are generalizations, so not every job will apply.

If you are looking for 24 hr shifts, the ability to earn money sleeping, where you have a lot of freedom to make clinical decisions, go paramedic.

If you want 8-12 hour shifts, the ability to work weekdays only during your career, more income potential, and more respect among the medical community, go nursing.

Like I said, it all boils down to what you want.

Also, I know you have roots now (the little one and the mortgage payment), but would you be up to relocating? as in applying to "big name paramedic agency" and relocating to somewhere where you have no family connections upon accepting the job? There might be few good paramedic jobs in Western Washington, but you might be happier in North Carolina, Texas, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, etc.

I can't make the decision for you, but we tell people all the time, if you want the really good job, you should expect to make sacrificed in order to obtain it.

Go back through EMT-B, then take 10 day/ 2 wk course on hyperbaric chamber operator.Due to diabetes ' epidemic' and resultant non- healing lesions, hyperbaric treatment is booming....no meds, nobody dies, fairly autonomous position, salary in RN range.

There are a whole bunch of other allied health positions you could think about in addition to nursing. It's not unlikely you'll be in for 2 years of school, so don't rule out respiratory therapist, radiology technician, sonographer. I doubt any of these are as flexible as a nursing degree, but are usually 2-year programs that pay $50-60k/yr and might better align with your interests.

Also, if you're academically inclined you could think about becoming a PA - also a 2-year program but it's a master's degree, much more rigorous and competitive to get into a program, and you'd probably need to spend a year taking pre-req courses, and would probably have to move to wherever you got into a school...

Ok... So i read some of the posts. My advice is go straight to nursing. If you are having the 9-5 try to get a job as an ER tech maybe. The pay is decent, not great but better than private EMS as a paramedic. If you want to be a medic in Washington and only a medic then king king county, Whidbey health, Skagit county, Cascade health, and Prosser are your only options for a career that you can afford to live. Though there might be two more that I can't remember how to spell. And those jobs are rare and usually require experience.

If you are willing to move then being a medic is possible. But honestly just go straight to nursing. Pay is better, better career advancement opportunities, only work 36 hours a week vs 48-52.

Awesome, thank you to everyone who took the time to reply! I had not heard of hyperbaric technicians before, and that was a good avenue to research. I love working in public safety and I love living in this area of the world - it sucks that it's so hard to combine those two things. I have been researching paramedic schools - they are few and far between, tons of hoops to jump through, and I don't have the prior experience in health care they are looking for. But, that's OK - I have applied to community college to take my EMT class again and then will start working on the 4-5 nursing pre-req classes and see where life takes me between now and then. All that can be covered by my GI Bill and/or getting a sponsorship from a volunteer fire department, so no financial risk as long as I keep my day job. Maybe by the time I am ready to get back into nursing I will have adjusted to the sweet 9-5 life and not having to deal with other people's problems? We will see, but thank you to all of you for your advice and input, it is truly appreciated!

i feel your frustration. i have done office work for 11 years and i hate it. I am an EMT and I am in an AEMT program. It is pretty rough, I am not quite sure I will pass this AEMT program. It was tough with the EMT certification, but I didn't question if I was going to pass that. Juggling school work, full-time job, wife/3 kids, baseball practices, soccer practices, church activities etc is grueling. I am usually too tired to study at night. I have 100 hours of clinicals in this class as well. Finding the time for that is going to be a challenge. I knew what I was getting into, but that doesn't make it any easier. I am 39, I wish I could go back in time and go into the medical field, instead of business administration at a 4 year school. However, that obviously isn't an option. So i live in regret everyday. I plan to guide my kids better than I was. I don't want them stuck in careers they hate.

IamNomad, I was 39 when I decided to get into EMS. Like you I had been working in an office environment, and had become disenchanted. To make the switch, my wife and daughter had to share the compromises I made in discretionary time and availability. It can be worthwhile for all.

So the GI Bill pays a housing stipend on top of school at the school zip side's E5 BAH with dependent rate, IF at least ONE CLASS IS ON CAMPUS per semester. This means you can make a tax free $2505 for a school in Seattle during the semester, prorated for partial months. Don't waste gi Bill time on EMT unless it's part of a degree, the course is cheap enough to pay out of pocket. Same for medic unless you're after a degree.

I'd go to school around work for nursing (the expensive one) and take EMT as an elective.

mgr22 said:

IamNomad, I was 39 when I decided to get into EMS. Like you I had been working in an office environment, and had become disenchanted. To make the switch, my wife and daughter had to share the compromises I made in discretionary time and availability. It can be worthwhile for all.

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cool, so i am not a weird old geezer trying to get into a young person's profession.

IamNomad said:

cool, so i am not a weird old geezer trying to get into a young person's profession.

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Weird maybe, but definitely not old.