PA Update
I know that so many of you are waiting for an update on "Wild ass plan-apply to PA school". Well get ready! Basically, it's boring. I am slogging through my last prerequisite "Intro to organic and biochemistry". Did I save the best for last or what?!
Truly, this is the class that I know I will struggle with. How do I know that? Well, it's been two weeks and I already am!
This class is offered at several schools but is accepted for all of the programs in my state. When we had our obligatory introductions on the first class, it became clear that I am not alone in my wild ass plan. Indeed, the competition for these programs was never made more clear. 28 out of 30 students want to be PA's. 28 out of 30 students went home that night and cried themselves to sleep. Those that hadn't already done the math of 1000 PA school applicants for a class of 35 were for the first time feeling the pressure.
It's a mixed bag of backgrounds and ages. I am probably not the oldest aspiring PA, but the young ones are...so young. My favorite part of talking to them is when they muse "What is the fastest, easiest way to get patient contact experience?"
As a good paramedic, I take this time to promote volunteer EMS and encourage them to take a 15 week class and get out there and treat some patients. It's a win, win, win situation for them as far as I can tell. I can only hope that we can, at the very least get some good EMTs out of these aspiring PAs. (Those who don't think that 15 weeks is too long.)
While exchanging backgrounds, I did worry that everyone would hate me as a pretty well qualified Paramedic, but it turned out that...no one has even asked what I do. Ah, youth.
UPDATE TO UNPUBLISHED POST.
Now, many more weeks in, I still am terrified of this class. Not one assignment as solidified an acceptable grade one way or the other, instead, as predicted, I am teetering on the edge of something okay, and something very annoyingly not okay.
But...I will keep plugging away, making attempts to understand the un-understandable. If at a loss for direction-forward!
This class is offered at several schools but is accepted for all of the programs in my state. When we had our obligatory introductions on the first class, it became clear that I am not alone in my wild ass plan. Indeed, the competition for these programs was never made more clear. 28 out of 30 students want to be PA's. 28 out of 30 students went home that night and cried themselves to sleep. Those that hadn't already done the math of 1000 PA school applicants for a class of 35 were for the first time feeling the pressure.
It's a mixed bag of backgrounds and ages. I am probably not the oldest aspiring PA, but the young ones are...so young. My favorite part of talking to them is when they muse "What is the fastest, easiest way to get patient contact experience?"
As a good paramedic, I take this time to promote volunteer EMS and encourage them to take a 15 week class and get out there and treat some patients. It's a win, win, win situation for them as far as I can tell. I can only hope that we can, at the very least get some good EMTs out of these aspiring PAs. (Those who don't think that 15 weeks is too long.)
While exchanging backgrounds, I did worry that everyone would hate me as a pretty well qualified Paramedic, but it turned out that...no one has even asked what I do. Ah, youth.
UPDATE TO UNPUBLISHED POST.
Now, many more weeks in, I still am terrified of this class. Not one assignment as solidified an acceptable grade one way or the other, instead, as predicted, I am teetering on the edge of something okay, and something very annoyingly not okay.
But...I will keep plugging away, making attempts to understand the un-understandable. If at a loss for direction-forward!
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