PA3675 Posted January 1, 2012 Share Posted January 1, 2012 Hello. I am new to this site and a pre-pa student. I would like to know if the experience listed in the subject line will meet the HCE qualification for PA school? I plan to ask this question when I attend my school of choice Open House... just wondering if anyone here may know? Thanks in advance for your help. Happy New Year!:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrator rev ronin Posted January 1, 2012 Administrator Share Posted January 1, 2012 The answer, like so many here, is "it depends". Pharm tech may or may not count--while it's great familiarity with treatments and whatnot, you're not actually providing any care to patients directly. Mental health counseling is almost as descriptive as "breating" or "eating". If you've been a licensed MSW or MA clinical psychologist, then almost certainly. If you've been a camp counselor for troubled youth, probably not so much. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PA3675 Posted January 1, 2012 Author Share Posted January 1, 2012 Thanks for your feedback. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PA3675 Posted January 1, 2012 Author Share Posted January 1, 2012 Ive provided actually counseling, made referrals, prevented suicides, etc. i would think that would count for something?? I was not licensed tho! I will see what the school says at their Open House. Thank you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator EMEDPA Posted January 1, 2012 Moderator Share Posted January 1, 2012 Mental health should count, pharm may or may not depending on the program. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
winterallsummer Posted January 1, 2012 Share Posted January 1, 2012 Did you work on a psych unit as a MHT (mental health tech)? 95% of my experience as a CNA/PCT has been in mental health. 8 months working at a psychiatric hospital, the rest working the psych unit at a larger hospital. Can you explain a little bit more about what you did in mental health? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doc Savage Posted January 1, 2012 Share Posted January 1, 2012 If you want to relocate there are many schools with little or NO required HCE... I wish I had a list to give you. But the ones that require little to no experience have the highest GPA requirements and normally require almost a Pre-Med Degree for the pre-reqs that they want. I was lucky enough to have had patients explode in front of me, so I got hands on and hands in experience... Your mental health will definitely come in handy though and your pharm experience will be great. I hope you find a good school that will take you and is a good match. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PA3675 Posted January 1, 2012 Author Share Posted January 1, 2012 Did you work on a psych unit as a MHT (mental health tech)? 95% of my experience as a CNA/PCT has been in mental health. 8 months working at a psychiatric hospital, the rest working the psych unit at a larger hospital. Can you explain a little bit more about what you did in mental health? No, I didnt work in a psych ward. I use to work for DC DMH as a MHC. It was more of a call center setting, lol. No direct contact, but I did counsel over the phone. Please dont laugh!!! LOL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PA3675 Posted January 1, 2012 Author Share Posted January 1, 2012 If you want to relocate there are many schools with little or NO required HCE... I wish I had a list to give you. But the ones that require little to no experience have the highest GPA requirements and normally require almost a Pre-Med Degree for the pre-reqs that they want. I was lucky enough to have had patients explode in front of me, so I got hands on and hands in experience... Your mental health will definitely come in handy though and your pharm experience will be great. I hope you find a good school that will take you and is a good match. Thanks for your feed back. I would like to go to HU. They require 100 hours of HCE, I believe. I spoke to a former PA grad from HU whom provided me with some great information. Im going to look into volunteering opportunities very soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
winterallsummer Posted January 1, 2012 Share Posted January 1, 2012 Er, then no. It will count as volunteer or extra curricular. Will it help your app? Most definitely. Will it count as HCE? No it will not. Volunteering is a good way to go these days. You may also try getting hired on at a psych unit or hospital since you do have relevent experience, they may hire you without a CNA. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PA3675 Posted January 1, 2012 Author Share Posted January 1, 2012 Er, then no. It will count as volunteer or extra curricular. Will it help your app? Most definitely. Will it count as HCE? No it will not. Volunteering is a good way to go these days. You may also try getting hired on at a psych unit or hospital since you do have relevent experience, they may hire you without a CNA. Oh wow- thanks for your help. Im going to look into volunteering and a position in a hospital. I work for the fed govt and va usually have those sort of positions available. Thanks again... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
winterallsummer Posted January 1, 2012 Share Posted January 1, 2012 Yep that's a good idea. Another option is to take the month long CNA course and then you can work as a PCT ("tech" or "nurse's aid") which is how I, and many others, got our HCE. I've worked in psych and really enjoyed it, and if you like working on the hotline I would think you'll probably find working in psych comes somewhat naturally to you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PA3675 Posted January 9, 2012 Author Share Posted January 9, 2012 Are there many PA jobs in the psych field? I would love to work in that area. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PA3675 Posted January 9, 2012 Author Share Posted January 9, 2012 Er, then no. It will count as volunteer or extra curricular. Will it help your app? Most definitely. Will it count as HCE? No it will not. Volunteering is a good way to go these days. You may also try getting hired on at a psych unit or hospital since you do have relevent experience, they may hire you without a CNA. I looked into the CNA program at one of the CC in my area and I don't have time to complete the program. I just came from seeing my doctor's assistant (PA, graduate from UMD) and he has agree that I can shadow him for as long as I need too. Yippee! I'm also attending the Volunteer orientation at HUH this month. Thanks for your feedback. I really appreciate it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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