Questions from an inquiring mind...

[JMHarris]

I'm a married, mother of one. I've always had an interest in the medical field but for one reason or another decided not to go into it at the time. Life happened. Got married, had a child. Long story short, my child has cystic fibrosis and short bowel syndrome and as a result, he spent 12 months in the hospital total and has been through multiple organ transplant eval and a grand total of 10 surgical procedures. (5 intestinal surgeries, 5 central line placements). Being there for all of this... living, breathing, and eating hospital food for so long and hospital life becoming my life, I rediscovered my desire to be in the medical field, except this time I have even bigger reasons to pursue it... my son, and the hundreds of other families we've met in our sojourns to hospitals both local and nationally.

 

I've devoured medical journals, case studies, learned more about gastroenterology and surgical procedures than I ever knew possible all in an effort to understand and learn as much as I can about my son's unique medical situation. I've requested a detailed explanation of all of the surgeries and was fortunate to have some awesome surgeons working on my son who spent hours talking to me and answering all of my questions... and would even share with me their perspectives and knowledge beyond my son's care. Doctors, PAs, nurses and family and friends have all been impressed by my attention to detail and are encouraging me to pursue a medical career and in thinking about it have mentioned the PA route as a possibility among MD or RN.

 

My son is now stable and doing very well, (no hospital stays in a year), so my husband and I are thinking now would be an excellent time for me to go back to school. I've begun the process of looking at PA schools and realized that most PA schools require years of medical experience before acceptance, so I'm debating whether to get my CNA and work 2 or 3 years doing what I can to get experience before going to PA school (if I started now that would mean about 7 years total before being done with school), pursue being an RN while planning to go on to PA school (about 7 years from start to finish RN to PA I think), or go ahead and finish prerequisites (1.5 years) and see if I can get into medical school. (8-9 years including residency?). I know medical school is a major step and it would mean a lot of sacrifices, but I have no doubt that I have the drive to make it through whatever route I choose and my husband is fully supportive.

 

I also know I would have a very different perspective from most going into the medical field having seen it from a parent's perspective, and I think that would be a huge asset in being a PA or doctor. Thoughts? Suggestions??? I'm looking for any and all input.

[bellajoy]

Become an RT! Get your prereqs, medical experience and be able to help individuals like your child hands on! I have always loved helping CF patients...they are an interesting group of patients: both the most difficult (but understandable because it can be a rough life) and the nicest. I am sure your RTs are some of your favorite people...at least I hope so. It has been the most excellent experience for me prior to PA school. (i start in June!)

 

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[Firemedic13]

You need to decide whether or not you would like to be a MD/DO, or a PA, or an NP.

 

Each has their own advantages. If you want to start school sooner, obviously DO school (which is friendly to non-trads) might be your best choice. But it could be a longer path depending on residency choice. 1.5 years for pre-reqs, plus 4 for school, plus 3-7 years for residency. But you would get to do research and surgery if you wanted.

 

If you are OK with only one specialty (for instance FP) NP might be the best choice, especially since you could work during school, making it easier on your family.

 

PA has a lot of benefits: shorter than MD, ability to change specialties, educated in the medical model. Also consider than many programs these days will take a high GPA person with less experience. So a year or two of HCE with good science pre-req grades might get you done with PA school in 4-5 years total.... depending on your GPA.

 

Research each path, consider the needs of your family, and then make the choice that makes the most sense for you, I would say.

[marilynpac]

Do the CNA to RN first, from there you can decide PA/NP...

[JMHarris]

Would it be worth the school cost of an RN program if my focus was to be a PA? I don't have a desire to do nursing long term. I have tons of friends who are nurses and I've heard enough from them to know I wouldn't be completely fulfilled being a nurse. I also like research and would like to have the option to pursue that too... are there Medical Research positions for PA's?

[marilynpac]

You don't need to be a PA/NP to do medical research. In fact why put yourself through the grind of either school, instead go for a BioMed degree and take it from there. Have you googled it to see what info there is online, or spoken to a school counselor? Go get the CNA, it's very short and you can get your hce at your discretion while you're doing your undergrad. Start doing research to see if you like it, if you don't then apply to PA school. You should have built up your hce by that time and you should be a competitive applicant. Good luck!

[cecilia]

In your case, why not talk to a PA counselor first? You may not need any medical experience. I am sure you know more than any CNA..it would be a waste of time and money to pursue that degree. It is almost like you have done a mini residency already. Even though your child is stable right now, I would not pursue MD/DO school, not because of the school training but because of the hours you will be forced to put in residency. Becoming a PA would allow you to practice medicine and spend time with your family.

[Firemedic13]

In your case, why not talk to a PA counselor first? You may not need any medical experience. I am sure you know more than any CNA..it would be a waste of time and money to pursue that degree. It is almost like you have done a mini residency already. Even though your child is stable right now, I would not pursue MD/DO school, not because of the school training but because of the hours you will be forced to put in residency. Becoming a PA would allow you to practice medicine and spend time with your family.

 

But any HCE experience will help the application... no matter what. It isn't like it is going to hurt the OP to have the HCE to apply to additional programs.

[JMHarris]

Thanks. I've made the decision to go ahead and complete all the prereqs required for both PA and med school... Then I'll make my decision in 3 years once I've got some actual medical experience under my belt as a CNA and have aced my science courses. If I get a decent MCAT and GRE score, I'll have my choice to make then. I have a low GPA (3.1) to rehab before I can apply anywhere. If I ace the science classes and have a high sGPA then I may have a shot at getting into MD or DO schools from what I've heard. I really appreciate all of the replies! I'm sure I'll be lurking a lot as I start and go through my science prereqs.

[COTA for now]

Why not an LPN program? That isn't too much of an investment in time or money, but way better experience than as a CNA. Also, you could see about getting a job in GI or pulm office with your knowledge. It would pay better as an LPN, and give you more options while you continue your schooling. They can work in hospitals or doctor's offices, amb-surg centers, home health, etc.

And honestly, everywhere I've worked, CNAs have so many patients and so much to do, if they are regularly spending time reading patient's charts, then they aren't getting everything done. Most places have a separate book for CNAs with flow sheets, ADL cards and stuff like that.