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Degree: Get a degree in Biology, PreMed, Biomedical Engineering...whatever will help toward your future ambitions of being a PA. Working in a hospital: get a job as a PCA, PCT or CNA. Most hospital jobs require no experience for these positions and most provide the training.

If you want to be a PA, go get a bachelor’s degree, work in a hospital for a bit, apply to PA school and work as a PA. Working in a non-emergency office setting, would be fantastic for someone with epilepsy. That being said, I have a severe heart condition (have been in cardiac arrest and have...

I would pull traction on one if: A) It was the only way to control blood flow or B) It was the only way to control pain If you have good pain meds and they still have a pulse, splint in a position of comfort and transport.

I’ve done it before. Typically would only do it if temp was above 104-105.

That’s outrageously cheap compared to nearly every other university in the US.

In my EMS (ground) job, I keep it in my personal bag. I use whatever cheap stethoscope is with the gear and I go grab mine if there is something serious I am having trouble hearing. In my nursing job, I wear it around my neck until I use it, then I leave it on the counter and clean it before I...

Does your state ask you about marijuana on your application? If you answer untruthfully and get caught, you could potentially lose your card forever.

Congrats! I also just became an RN last Christmas. I did both full programs as well. Welcome to the dark side.

I was WAAAYYY wrong when I posted this several years ago. Smoking is social history.

Weight, Height and Calculated BMI are observations. Obesity is a medical diagnosis.

I have completed Paramedic school and RN. I am currently in a Master’s of Science in Nursing degree. I still work in EMS as a Paramedic/Crew Leader/Shift Supervisor as well as an RN in an ED at a Level I Trauma Center. With 7 years experience in EMS, I make $13/hr without benefits. I am often...

For me, the 3 things that made the biggest difference: -Taking a basic stats class. -Getting onto a research project and watching the different sections come together. -Taking a course in writing academic papers. When I took “Evidence Based Nursing Scholarship” at OSU, you had to write a giant...

Interesting. I’ve never heard of a policy like that.

EMTs are like a super-advanced lifeguard. They have a lot of knowledge in stabilizing threats to life, but the initial training doesn't really go in-depth into medicine. The thinking is very straightforward: If A, do B, if B, do C, etc... There are some new concepts and some memorization, but...

It's really going to depend on what part of the country you are in. In some places, I've heard of people who have 2-3 year experience in a slow, rural 911 system as a paramedic and get on to a flight crew without any additional certifications. In other parts, people have a decade of busy 911...

The only time I’ve ever cared about a breathalyzer was a patient who responded appropriately to questions, AAOx4, denied need for EMS, no obvious signs of drug use, but had witnessed, severe, sudden onset of ataxia and could barely walk, despite protesting that he was fine. Pt mildly smelled of...

I guess I just don’t understand that system. I lived in a 3rd world country (Guatemala) for 2 years and access to doctors, pharmacists and even a few physician’s assistants was expensive but still affordable for just about anyone. If you couldn’t pay, there was always some connection to get...

No, I didn’t.

Genu Valgum? Send them to be evaluated by a medical practitioner.

My experience is that some things never bother me and some things do. I’ve done CPR on someone and been thinking about what to get for lunch. On the other hand, I’ve watched a baby die in someone else’s arms on a call I was barely connected to and went home and drank beers in the bathtub...