Advice Needed

jaksasquatch

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Hello all,

Just graduated from EMT-P school back in December. A little background, I'm 20 years old and now the youngest provisional paramedic in my service. I had about 10 months of EMT experience prior to paramedic school, for most of my career (and school) I've been the "white cloud". I suppose this just is what it is. I did awesome in paramedic school, got a 96% on the state test. I was *almost* always told by my old paramedic partners that I was a solid EMT and that the paramedic transition shouldn't be hard. Most of them let me "play" in the back on scene while I was in paramedic school. Since starting my companies FTO/provisional program I have had nothing but confidence/motivation issues. I head in to work and seem to be almost reverted back to my days before even being an EMT. I get on scene and fairly consistently fail to get a detailed differential diagnosis running in my head. I'm reverting back to protocols and in turn being very "cookbook medic like" per my preceptors. Everyone is starting to label me as the proverbial "book smart and no common sense" guy. I'm at the stage now where my confidence and motivation are shot and sometimes I wonder if I'm in the wrong profession.

My question is, did anybody else who made the move to paramedic, and especially those who did it at my age (with little life experience before) have any of these problems? What did you do to get through it?
 
Honestly it's just going to be time and experience that will get you to move away from being just a cookbook paramedic. There is nothing wrong with being one in the beginning, until you get yourself more comfortable with doing the job. As I've always told new EMTs and Paramedics that I was training as an FTO, observe what I do but try to do it your own way that works for you. The biggest thing I have told new providers is to try to develop a rapport with the patients, it not only makes getting information from them easier, it also will help make you more comfortable doing the job.
 
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