Tough decision- Paramedic or Respiratory Therapy?

[Reuben De La O]

So I am new to this forum and this is my senior year in high school so I'm starting to think about what to go into. Right now I'm working as a CNA in a hospital and I have done some job shadowing with the paramedics, and I love what they do, but I have seen what our RTs do and I think that is interesting too, but I've never job shadowed them. I am taking an EMT class next month and I don't plan on dropping it. I am just stuck on which one I should do, or if I should maybe just do both? Thanks for the help!

 

[Flying]

Being an EMT is not a bad first gig, and as you might have seen, working prehospitally gives you a unique view of patients, being the first point of contact for many households.

Don't get stuck on this decision though, make being a RT your priority. You will have many more options opened up by your education, including working prehospitally as a paramedic.

 

[Gurby]

Regardless of what direction you end up going, you won't regret becoming an EMT. Also, a lot of the gen-ed and basic science courses required for an AS in paramedic are the same ones you'd need to become an RT. I would strongly recommend going for an AS degree at the minimum.

If I was you, this is what I would do:
*Finish the EMT course, get a job as an EMT.
*Graduate high school.
*Start taking college courses that will count towards an AS degree in both paramedic or RT (so you don't have to decide right away which one to go into): general chemistry, biology, A+P, english composition, psychology, math (probably statistics and calculus), random electives that seem interesting and fulfill requirements, etc.
*Do some shadowing of RT's as well as ride-alongs with paramedics.

Try to make the best decision you can, pick one and go for it. You're young and have so much time.... You can always become a paramedic and then go to RT/nursing/PA/med school after a few years, or you can go be an RT for 10 years and then decide you want to become a paramedic.

 

[Flying]

Gurby has the more honest assessment here, you can probably go either way. I simply drew on what I knew about the path of a pulmonologist, which is obviously entirely different. Bad brain.

 

[Carlos Danger]

Both paramedics and RRT's have pretty limited career options, and it's not uncommon for folks in both fields to start looking at doing something else after a few years. Nothing wrong with that; just important to keep in mind. Both also provide a good foundation if you decide to move on.

Just spend time with both and choose whichever looks more like something you'd be satisfied doing every day.

 

[SandpitMedic]

Gurby, spot on post.

 

[Akulahawk]

I agree with most of Gurby's post. I would suggest looking at not just RT or Paramedic, but look more broadly at the medical field. From what I've seen, only a few places truly offer a degree for Paramedics. In my eyes, an AAS isn't quite up to there... go for an AS at the minimum as the AS requires a little more broad education than the AAS does. What I'm about to say may irritate some people here, but look at the broader picture. What you're going to want to do is look at most of the nursing programs in your area and see what they require for prerequisites for entry to their programs. I'm not saying that you should go nursing, but the prerequisites for a nursing program will give you an excellent foundation for going into any medical field. If you were to complete the typical nursing prerequisites and pursue a paramedic license, you will have a much easier time working through the paramedic program because you will understand the science behind what you are learning. This should translate to being a much better clinician later. The same thing goes for respiratory therapy. From what I understand, respiratory therapy prerequisites are very similar to nursing prerequisites, therefore by completing all of the nursing prerequisites you should be able to also apply to respiratory therapy school.

As has been stated above in this thread, respiratory therapy and paramedic practitioners do not have much flexibility in where they can go after they complete the program. If you are a respiratory therapist, you can practice as a respiratory therapist in several different venues such as long-term care, ICU, general inpatient, ER. As a paramedic, you have generally reached the pinnacle of your career and therefore you have no more avenues for advancement in patient care unless you change fields. In my case, I am a nurse as well as a paramedic. I have a lot more flexibility right now in terms of where I can go and what I can do as far as patient care is concerned. I work currently in the ER, and I'm looking to transition to ICU. If I get bored of ICU down the road, I have the option to yet transition to another field. By continuing my education, I can extend my ability to provide patient care.

Lastly, if you do extremely well in your prerequisites, and you have a fairly high GPA, I would suggest that you look at attending a university and attaining a four-year degree. You may very well be able to go much further by attending either PA school or medical school. Both typically require education well beyond that of a four-year degree, but for someone that has strong academics, and a love for medicine and patient care, that may be an option. The reason I suggest this is not because I think that you are capable of being a physician or that being a physician is the cats meow, but rather to highlight the fact that you have many more roads available to you than what you might now consider. Please do not get me wrong, I have the utmost respect for paramedics (I am one) and for respiratory therapists, as I work very closely with them. I'm just simply asking that you look more broadly at the field of medicine in general before you narrow things down and prematurely close some doors that might be rather fascinating if you went through them.

 

[GirevikMedic]

Remi makes a good point here. At one time I was considering the possibility of heading down the RT route after having been a medic for a little while. The problem I had/have is actually a fortunate one to face. I make too much working where I do (as much, if not more than a new RT). It wouldn't make sense to incur the debt - the only program(s) in my area I found was about 40-50k - to not bring home any more money, let alone less. Luckily, I'm not unhappy or unsatisfied in my current role it was just a curiosity I was looking into.

As others have said, though, take your time. You're young and time is one thing you have an abundance of. Take some classes, get some experience, do some research and build a plan from there.