~Confused on what I should pursue!

[Sbarnes]

Hi,

As of now I am a junior in undergrad school doing nursing courses (Pursuing RN, BSN). It seems to be going well so far but I am stongly considering Grad school. As of now I plan to pursue the DNP/NP. I know the whole story on how DNP's are wanting MD status and I would not want to be seen as a DNP who knows everything. If I back out now of the BSN and change to Pre-Med and and pursue a PA, would that seem more rewarding for me?

Also, I am more interested in the sciences (such as Pathophys and anatomy) but I really like taking care of patients (even being a CNA/MT-I get that thrill of one-on-one care).

Another thing, if I may add, How long does one go to Med School to become a PA. Becoming an MD/DO for me is not something I really want because of costs and the liability.

Thanks!

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[deleted6669]

pa school is 2-3 yrs long depending on the program.
you will get more hard science out of a pa program than an np program if that interests you.
you can still get the bsn and work for a while using that to gain experience for pa school. lots of pa's are former nurses.
for a pa specific forum see www.physicianassistantforum.com
good luck whatever you decide.

 

[illegallysmooth]

You don't go to med school to be a PA. You go to PA school - usually either a 5 year combined bachelors/masters program or a two-year masters following undergrad.

I think you should really figure out if you want to be a nursing professional or a medical professional. NPs and PAs, in general, do not have any more one-on-one care with patients than the physicians they work with. For instance, in the peds clinic where I work, they don't give the doc 15 minutes to see a patient while they give the NP 30 min. Everyone has 15 minutes for a sick visit. The NP at my primary physician's office is just as busy as the MD. They are trying to do mostly the same job, but the difference is that my MD was trained from day 1 to be a physician, while the NP was trained in nursing and then took further classes in diagnosis and pharmacology. He cannot and does not handle very complicated cases (I'm not making a judgement here, I have talked at length with him and this is straight from his mouth). The NPs at the peds clinic function very well in that capacity, but they often have to consult the physicians (every day) for anything complex.

If you want to be taking care of people - dressing wounds, dispensing meds, placing IVs, watching for their status to change, managing hygiene and personal needs, etc - become a nurse and you'll be happy.

If you want to be diagnosing illnesses and deciding on treatment, become an MD/DO or a PA.

 

[jacketwrestler]

In your position, I would finish the BSN program, get some experience in the field that interests you the most and go from there. I think a BSN is one of the best bachelor's to get in all undergrad degrees; there's alot of chance for advancement in many avenues of healthcare. This opinion is coming from an AA-S.

 

[Paseo Del Norte]

Except many of the BSN degrees lack much in the way of good science courses that count toward getting into physician assistant programmes and the like. However, I tend to agree, you got into the programme you may as well finish.