Is EMT/Paramedic Worth it for Premeds? | Extracurriculars Explained

becoming an EMT is a great way to gain clinical experience and stand out on your medical school applications that being said it's not for everyone here's what you need to know about becoming an EMT Dodger Jubal Med schoolinsiders.com this is the second video in our new extracurricular Series where we dive deep into various pre-med extracurriculars to help you decide which ones are right for you let us know which extracurricular you'd like to see next in the comments section below emergency medical technicians or EMTs or Healthcare professionals who specialize in the treatment and transport of sick or injured patients in the pre-hospital setting they are trained to assess a patient's condition administer life support measures such as CPR and supplemental oxygen and stabilize patients for transport to a hospital or other medical facility EMTs work in a variety of settings including ambulances fire departments and other Emergency Medical Services settings there are three different levels of EMT certification each with varying degrees of training and scopes of practice EMT basic is the first level of certification basic emt's responsibilities consist of non-invasive interventions for low Acuity patients and assisting other higher level Personnel such as advanced EMTs and paramedics with higher Acuity patients examples of treatments that a basic EMT can provide include administering aspirin for chest pain providing supplemental oxygen for shortness of breath and monitoring vital signs in addition they are trained to administer basic life support including CPR bleeding control and basic Airway management Advanced EMT or aemt is the next level of certification an advanced EMT is able to perform all of the duties of an EMT basic plus limited invasive treatments to care for higher Acuity patients this includes placing intravenous catheters or IVs for fluid or medication administration administering nebulizer treatments for asthma or COPD exacerbation and placing supraglottic Airways among others the exact scope of an aemt can vary depending on the state or medical system for instance an aemt working in a more rural area may have a greater scope of practice than an aemt working in a large city the last level of certification is the emtp more commonly referred to as the paramedic paramedics render invasive treatments for severely ill or injured patients they are able to assess and stabilize a wide variety of life-threatening conditions including Cardiac Arrest respiratory failure heart attacks and severe trauma as such their scope of practice is much greater than basic or Advanced EMTs they can administer a wide variety of medications including narcotics and antiarrhythmics they can perform endotracheal intubation for Airway management cardioversions for dysrhythmias and needle chest decompression for pneumothoracies all while in the back of a moving ambulance for those looking to take their EMS career further there are additional certifications for paramedics including Critical Care paramedic flight paramedic and tactical paramedic it should be noted that all EMTs work under a medical director and adhere to State protocols which dictate what treatments or interventions they can and cannot do these protocols serve as standing orders to administer treatments without a doctor present as such the scope of practice for EMTs aemts and paramedics can vary significantly depending on the location or medical system in some instances EMTs may need to contact an emergency medicine physician for permission to administer a particular medication or intervention even when it's clinically indicated to become an EMT in the United States you must complete an accredited EMT course and pass a written and practical skills exam administered by the National Registry of emergency medical technicians or nremt for short EMT basic courses are typically 10 to 12 weeks or approximately 150 hours in duration and consist of in-class lectures practice scenarios and clinical experiences once you've completed your EMT basic course and passed the nremt exam you can apply for an advanced EMT program Advanced EMT programs consist of an additional 10 to 14 weeks or 300 hours of training similar to the EMT basic course this typically consists of some combination of in-class lecture practice scenarios and clinical experiences lastly to become a paramedic you must hold either an EMT basic or EMT Advanced certification paramedic courses are typically eight months to one year in duration which equates to roughly 800 to 1000 hours of training in addition to the length of training paramedic programs have much more intensive clinical components often consisting of ambulance ride-alongs and in the hospital training once you've become certified as an EMT a EMT or paramedic finding a job is often fairly simple as many areas face widespread understaffing most companies will require some sort of testing as part of their interview process so it's important to brush up on your clinical Knowledge and Skills ahead of time next let's talk about the benefits of becoming an EMT as a pre-med the most obvious benefit is that you'll gain a great deal of knowledge and clinical experience by working as an EMT you'll have the opportunity to take histories obtain Vital Signs perform physical exams and administer care to patients all before ever stepping foot into Medical School whereas other common pre-med jobs such as medical scribing or research are significantly Limited in their ability to interact with patients EMTs are directly involved in patient care in addition EMTs work alongside many other members of the healthcare team including nurses physician assistants and doctors this allows you to ask questions to further your medical knowledge and build relationships with people who may ultimately be able to write you a letter of recommendation for your medical school application being an EMT also allows you a great deal of flexibility that other pre-med jobs do not emergencies don't clock out after 5 PM or take breaks during the holidays as such EMTs work around the clock to deliver care to their patients in many locations EMTs also work 12-hour shifts allowing them to be a full-time employee while working only three days per week this can give you tremendous flexibility to work around your classes and other responsibilities EMTs also work in a variety of different settings although we typically associate EMTs with ambulances this isn't the case for all EMTs there are opportunities to work in medical offices and emergency departments work first aid for special events and do inter-facility transports to name a few each setting has its individual pros and cons however you can take comfort in knowing that you aren't limited to only working on an ambulance lastly becoming an EMT can help you develop your abilities as a leader and give you a taste of true responsibility for your patients as an EMT you're often called upon to care for patients in unfamiliar environments as such you need to be able to survey the scene and take control of the situation in order to effectively care for your patients which requires strong leadership skills in addition the decisions that you make while working as an EMT can have lasting consequences for your patients although all EMTs treat patients based on protocols the scenarios you'll face are not always black and white you'll regularly experience situations that challenge you to think outside of the box and use the resources available to you to deliver the best quality care to your patients although there are many benefits to being an EMT there are some drawbacks that you should be aware of first there's the time in training becoming an EMT requires any anywhere from a few months to a couple of years to complete depending on the level of certification this means either delaying your undergraduate studies or taking on a heavier course load while you complete your EMT training in contrast other pre-med jobs such as medical scribing don't require any type of certification and allow you to start working and gaining experience immediately next there's the schedule although the flexible schedule of an EMT can be beneficial in some ways it can also be challenging in others because emergencies happen at all hours of day every day of the year you may have to regularly work nights weekends or holidays while the rest of your friends are enjoying their time off being an EMT can also be incredibly stressful due to the nature of emergencies strong emotions are commonplace you'll regularly treat patients who are scared sad or even angry and sometimes those feelings get taken out on you poor outcomes are also not uncommon for instance it's estimated that only about 10 percent of patients who experience Cardiac Arrest outside of the hospital survive this means that as an em T you'll become intimately familiar with death and suffering it should come as no surprise then that burnout is incredibly common among EMTs at all levels of training it's so common in fact that most EMT programs include topics in mental health burnout and Stress Management as part of their curriculum this isn't to say that you shouldn't become an EMT it can be an incredible learning experience rather it's to inform you of the challenges that EMTs face so you can go into it knowing both the pros and the cons if you've decided to become an EMT here are some tips to help you get the most out of the experience first approach the job with a sense of curiosity although you will be limited in your roles and responsibilities as an EMT there is no limit to how much you can learn you can get as much or as little as you want from the experience it's completely dependent on you and your willingness to learn the information and the resources are there but it's up to you to seek them out next use the opportunity to hone your communication skills arguably the biggest benefit that being an EMT has over other pre-med extracurricular is that you'll be directly involved in patient care effective communication is crucial for your future career as a physician and the sooner you're able to develop these skills the better off you'll be as an EMT you'll meet and communicate with dozens of people each day use this as an opportunity to hone your communication skills and work effectively as part of the healthcare team it's also important to keep your end goal in mind although it can be exciting to get out there and start taking care of patients don't lose sight of the bigger picture some pre-meds unintentionally prioritize extracurriculars such as being an EMT over other aspects of their medical school application remember your extracurriculars are only one piece of the puzzle you still need to put sufficient time and effort into other aspects of your application including your GPA MCAT research and volunteer work although it's good to have strong extracurriculars extracurriculars alone won't earn you an acceptance to medical school lastly use your time as an EMT as an opportunity to network although most EMT jobs won't allow you to work directly with Physicians you'll still regularly communicate with them when transporting patients to and from the hospital use these opportunities to network with the people around you you never know what doors may open up for you simply because of who you know and that is everything you need to know about becoming an EMT is there anything I missed let me know with a comment below and if your dream is to become a doctor check out the med school Insider's pre-med roadmap to medical school acceptance course we cover the nuances and details of how to be a standout pre-med including course scheduling extracurriculars Beyond being an EMT research common mistakes and pitfalls to avoid and our tactics to securing full scholarships to top medical schools this is the guide we wish we had back as pre-meds ourselves we're so confident you'll love it it's backed by a 30-day 100 money-back guarantee and if you sign up using the discount code and Link in the description you'll receive 20 off the course if you'd like to be a part of med school insiders we are currently hiring we're looking for a director of content and also a few writers to help us create and manage our growing YouTube and social media presence visit medschoolinsiders.com forward hiring or click the link in the description for more details and how to apply thank you all so much for watching if you enjoyed this video check out the pre-meds guide to medical scribing or this other video and make sure to subscribe so you don't miss out on any future videos in our pre-med extracurricular series much love and I'll see you guys there [Music] foreign [Music]

Channel: Med School Insiders

Views: 55,023

Keywords: Pre-med, Premed, Med Student, Medical School, Med School, Medical Student, premed extracurriculars, what is an emt, how to become an emt, pros and cons of being an emt, best premed extracurricular, best extracurriculars for medical school, doctor, physician, clinical experience, how to gain clinical experience as a premed, best premed job, clinical jobs for premeds, emergency medical technicians, tips for getting the most out of being an emt, emt extracurricular, extracurriculars

Id: iTC0Uk_I7RM

Length: 11min 26sec (686 seconds)

Published: Sat May 13 2023