Need career advice

I will go for the first responder class first then. Any extra knowledge to help me out on the job or in training would be great.

This makes for my 5th post so now I can send PMs yay!
 
First responder was a great class for myself, but basically keep your ears open and your hand up to ask questions. It's my opinion that it takes more effort to fail the class then pass it.
 
First responder is worthless if you are going to be wanting a job. take emtb, it will cover.everything first.responder did and more.
 
Some rural towns still employ emr's as a first response because emts may be far and few between. It will give a nice view into ems but not the job you want to hold forever and would be worthwhile to eventually attend an emt program.
 
chedfredson said:
I will go for the first responder class first then. Any extra knowledge to help me out on the job or in training would be great.

This makes for my 5th post so now I can send PMs yay!
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I know you're unsure about where your career paths are going to take you, but I don't think I'd bother taking a first responder class. It's long enough to not be insignificant, and it really does not put you in a position to experience much of EMS. If you're in a rural area maybe a local rescue squad/FD will have a role for you, but I doubt you'd see enough call volume to get any sort of feel for the field. Take a course that could possibly yield you a job. You might find out you hate EMS when you start working on a truck, but there are other options. Here in my part of Colorado the only requirement for working as an Emergency Room Tech is being an EMT-B.
 
You may be able to take first responder for free if you join a local CERT

(Community Emergency Response Team). A few just use medical first responder as their Level I (medical) training. Make sure they are certified to teach and will give you a certificate or card. CERT training is after-hours (so a day job is possible) and usually free. You would probably have to go through all three levels to get there, but, hey, it's fun, often with free tools and stuff, and not bad to know either.
It isn't a real "stepping-stone", buit it will get you some training, and help fill an otherwise devoid stretch in your resume.
 
My reasoning for wanting to take the Emergency Responder class was just to add onto the EMT course, thus to hopefully make me a better and more educated EMT. I don't expect to just leave it at that and hope that it would get me a job. I absolutely would continue on and take the EMT-B course right afterward. Doing it that way, do you guys think it would be beneficial or just pretty much a waste of time and money?

I still do not know what to do yet. I guess it boils down to this: EMS just interest me in itself, while nursing is...I feel a bit bad admitting this...I like it because it offers a lot of job security, lots of different positions, lots of jobs out there, good benefits, decent pay, and then my only actual reason for wanting to pursue it is because I would want to work as a nurse in a Psych Hospital/Treatment facility/whatever or something similar, but I realize that I probably wouldn't be able to get into that work immediately because I would need experience to get hired. Other than that, it really doesn't interest me a whole lot (not like EMS does)...but I feel like working with patients with psychiatric problems is the one thing in life that is a calling for me and I don't know that I could ever feel completely fulfilled in life if I didn't do that sort of work.

I've looked at careers that are specifically about mental health (Psychologist and such) but all the ones I've found typically required Masters degrees, and I KNOW I'm not cut out for that.

I thought today that maybe I should do EMS because I think I would truly enjoy it and on a part-time basis work as a Psychiatric Aide/Tech somewhere (which I think you can be with just a high school diploma, though of course I'd have issues actually getting the job when competing with others with diplomas and experience). Agh. And I've also thought about getting a Nursing degree to use and fall back on in case and also go for EMS...

I don't know what to do!
 
Taking a first responder class won't really make you a better EMT, it doesn't cover anything that a Basic class doesn't. Sure I found it useful to know how to backboard someone before class, but those that were taking the class for the first were not at a discernible disadvantage. The basic class is not difficult and is designed for people with no medical knowledge. My instructor preferred students with no experience so he did not have to deal with already-learned bad habits.

Also, I have a friend that works as a mental health tech and you're correct, all that's needed is an HS diploma. Be prepared to work for similar if not lower wages than EMS though.


Sent from my out of area communications device.
 
Personally save your time and money and just take EMT-B. No matter what someone tells you it really isn't that difficult of a class. New Jersey allows 16 year olds to be certified EMT-Bs.

You'll get more out of it if you have some college level science background, especially if you decide to go medic. I didn't have much and I'm doing fine in medic school but it took a lot of work to get the A&P buttoned down.
 
I agree with what people are saying. I took EMT-B at a community college, but in order to get into the class I was required to take first responder. It was a huge waste of time. EMT isn't too bad. Just cut out the middleman and go for it.
 
As an ER nurse for almost 9 years, if you become an EMT-B you always have the option of continuing or working in an ER as a tech or something along those lines. Getting a license to be a CNA usually means you'll end up in a nursing home somewhere - that's not all that much fun. An EMT-B class usually is a great step into the field of EMS to get your feet wet and see how you go from there. You aren't committing at that point and if you like the beginner side of it you can go from there.

Shifts in nursing and EMS all vary quite widely, but if you're worried about time/committment, etc take it slowly. I did my pre-reqs for nursing first (the biology, anatomy, etc) and then went to nursing school after. It's not awful and the pay difference is considerable. I'm sure you can take care of yourself on a paramedic salary - but I probably make twice what the medics in my area make. (just a guess! I could be wrong! Don't flame me please!) and it's more steady and I have better opportunities.

Finally, as a nurse, you always have a back-up plan. I always tell my paramedic friends - what happens when you get burnt out? If you hurt your back? What do you do then? As a nurse there are always - ALWAYS other options to keep in mind.
 
I think I am going to take an EMT-B class this summer (to avoid driving the distance to the college during these winter months as it's a 50 minute drive I think). It's not that costly, not a big commitment like nursing school, and will give me time to prepare and maybe grow up a little more. I'm already excited, though. I feel like it would be a much better route for me than a CNA class...I don't really want to work in a nursing home.

The security, large amount of jobs, and lots of different places to work is a big reason to go into nursing. I am worried about what I will do, if I go to be a Paramedic or something, if I burn out or get injured. I don't know what my backup plan will be. I thought about doing something a bit different than nursing like becoming a Respiratory Therapist but, as some say, it sounds boring. I don't know what my backup plan will be yet but I guess I have plenty of time to figure that out.
 
I realize that people do care how much people make in the field that they are trying to get into. But, it's all about the life style that you live.
Any job that you get, you're going to have to start at the bottom and work your way up to a better salary.
I have my EMT-B and some about 24 credits of college behind me, while my friend who has a Masters in Economics from a University is making the same money as I am with us both being brand new in the field. If I stay where I'm at and he does the same, I'm sure he'll be making more than me in 5 years. But, for now and with starting college again, I think that this is a pretty awesome job to have.

My father always told me, "If you do what you love to do. You never work a single day of your life."
 
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