Flight/critical care transport

[emt8194]

I have great interest in flight medicine and critical care transport.

 

I've read previous threads and saw PAs really don't have a role in either.

 

Would becoming a paramedic prior to PA school be the best option?

 

Are there any other routes to take?

[dmdpac]

Paramedic would be one option for you.  You'll be looking at three to five years of busy ground 911 experience before anyone would even consider you for a flight job.  Even then, within the EMS community, it seems like everyone and their brother wants to be a flight medic.  Competition for these jobs is fierce.

 

Ground critical care transport is another option.  It would offer an opportunity to get into a critical care environment as a paramedic.  If you choose this route don't give up on a busy ground 911 service.  You'll still be looking at three to five years of experience before you'd be considered for a flight job.

 

Another option for you is to go to nursing school.  ICU nursing is good critical care experience.  If you really wanted to get into a flight environment you can do it as a nurse.  You'd still need three to five years of solid ICU nursing experience before you'd be considered for a flight job.  Competition for flight nurse jobs is also quite fierce.

 

Is either a good option for you?  That's up for you to decide.  There are several of us here in these forums with extensive EMS experience prior to our PA careers.  Several of us, including me, have flown as part of the EMS background.  Most of us, in one thread or another, have commented positively on our EMS backgrounds as preparation for working as a PA.  (Not trying to speak for anyone.  Please don't take that last sentence out of context.)  Is either EMS or nursing a good way to build work and life experience prior to a PA career?  Absolutely.  Are either the best path for you?  Only you can answer that question.

[emt8194]

Some what off topic but what are your thoughts on PA vs RN/NP in healthcare administration. Do nurses have more oppurtunity to move up the ranks?

 

I'm currently in a post bac program and can't decide between the two :)

 

I have an ems background and previous management experience so I would like to do both at a higher level.

[fishbum]

Critical care transport has been interesting and I'm sure it'll be useful to me as a PA someday. Having said that, if I had been working toward PA school all along, I probably wouldn't have done it. It's a huge time commitment...as stated above, nobody is going to hire you without at least a few years of 911 experience (for ground or rotor/fixed wing-the experience requirement is a part of the service's accreditation). There are a ton of classes and certifications that you have to get/maintain. Sometimes I feel like I have every single "4-letter class" card there is. Of course, once you get hired you're going to need to work for a while to become really proficient and to actually get anything out of the experience. I guess my point is that doing critical care transport is a career unto itself. If your heart is set on going to PA school, pursuing this route might end up making the whole process unnecessarily longer. It may or may not be worth it to you.

 

As far as competition for jobs goes, I'll say that my service has been pretty much continuously recruiting paramedics and nurses at least since I've been here. We do get a lot of applications, but there aren't very many who make it through the screening process to get hired. And not all of these end up accepting positions once they find out about the training/standards that they'll be subjecting themselves to and that we don't get paid any more than our 911 or hospital counterparts. But, if you're among the best at what you do and are willing to work for it, then you'll get a job. 

[cop to pa]

PA and NP are both clinicians. Any admin position would be based on past experience or further education/ training. Why not retain EMT and pursue HCA?

 

You seem to be seeking for what you want to do. PA vs. HCA vs. Critical Care vs. Flight vs. Paramedic. Good questions, keep researching to find your fit. But, remember that no one job may be everything you want.