Non-Trad help? PCT before school? Need help please!

[doctorintraining232]

Hello all!

I'm 23, I have a BS in Business with a 2.6 cGPA (yeah I screwed up a few semesters)
I haven't taken the pre-reqs all yet, but with 8 hrs of bio, 8 hrs of physics, 16 hrs of chem.- I plan to have a steady 3.5 sGPA. ( I already got a C in physics 1, an A in Gen Chem 1 and a B in Gen Chem 2)

I am starting my MBA, I also plan a 4.0 ( I hear it's good for docs and its a backup plan..)

I have been offered a job as an ICU PCT (patient care tech), I know they do really dirty work, but would it help with my admissions being I had a low uGPA? I also volunteer in the ER.
I seriously need some advice! Thank you!

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[DrMikeP]

At this rate you are looking at a <3.0 gpa. You can "plan" anything but if you don't do it then you aren't doing what is needed for med school, unless your shooting for a seat at Winston University Medical School... lol. You need at the least a 3.25+ gpa (a 3.5 c and sgpa with retakes should be your goal) for a potential shot at a DO school and that's if you had a good MCAT with awesome EC's,. A million people have an MBA, so think about what you'd want to accomplish with it and do a summer internship at a place you'd potentially want to work.

At 23 it just might be beneficial to work for a few years and figure out what you want to do with your life. Right now you aren't demonstrating what it takes for med school, so you must buckle down and change something or you are wasting your time.

 

[AnatomyGrey12]

You need to retake courses to get the cGPA above 3.25

 

[KP2AZ]

retake any class you don't have a B+ or better in. Also, shadowing in the ED is good, but see if there is a scribe company in your area (may be a bit much in your scenario, but worth a thought).

 

[ZPakEffect]

Don't do the MBA unless you think you might be happy working a corporate career. It will mean nothing for medical school applications.

PCT work is great experience if you are going into nursing. Scribing is much better if you want to become a doctor.

 

[OrdinaryDO]

Take the PCT job, don't become a scribe just because people tell you to. If you can find physicians to shadow, then do that for your physician experience, but being a PCT will offer you a learning experience with patients that a scribe will never get.

 

[ZPakEffect]

Take the PCT job, don't become a scribe just because people tell you to. If you can find physicians to shadow, then do that for your physician experience, but being a PCT will offer you a learning experience with patients that a scribe will never get.

A scribe gets to experience what doctors experience on a daily basis. A PCT experiences what a nurse experiences on a daily basis. Does being a PCT give you experiences that being a scribe does not? Sure, but that doesn't mean being a scribe isn't the better option for pre-medical experience.

 

[lolnotacop]

A scribe gets to experience what doctors experience on a daily basis. A PCT experiences what a nurse experiences on a daily basis. Does being a PCT give you experiences that being a scribe does not? Sure, but that doesn't mean being a scribe isn't the better option for pre-medical experience.

No, a scribe doesn't experience a whole lot besides charting.

PCTs spend the most time directly interacting with patients out of any position in the hospital. A lot more to gain experience wise in this regard, something that will greatly help you as you move throughout the application process.

 

[OrdinaryDO]

A scribe gets to experience what doctors experience on a daily basis. A PCT experiences what a nurse experiences on a daily basis. Does being a PCT give you experiences that being a scribe does not? Sure, but that doesn't mean being a scribe isn't the better option for pre-medical experience.

I am not going to pretend like every case is the same and no doctor would help a fellow scribe learn the ins and outs of being a physician, but through my personal experiences as a PCT/CNA over the past 6 years I can honestly say that being a PCT was by far the better choice. I have had the humbling opportunity of working for 4 major hospitals and between all of them I have easily had the better experience when it comes to patient encounters, learning skills in medicine, and being an all around better person by learning how to deal with the needs of a patient. Scribes, on a general note, are there to help take some of the work load off of the physician - whether it be documenting for them, transcribing their dictations, or putting in their orders (iffy here), but if you are with the physician as they do their rounds and all of the actual doctor work aside from the paperwork, then I would be most inclined to say that you are an exception to the job because that is not what you are there for.

To address your comment on "A PCT experiences what a nurse experiences on a daily basis." Sure, as a PCT I do experience, for the most part, what a nurse goes through, but I also have my own independent experiences that help me grow as a future physician and more importantly, as a person. When you get into medicine you will quickly realize that nurses are your number one support system, the more you know about their job and struggles, the easier it is on you and the nurse to work together. I think this is an invaluable experience in healthcare, but in the end it is your choice so I hope you like what you are doing.

 

[kamakazi5]

I have enjoyed my time as a PCT quite a bit. When deciding between PCT and scribe I came to the conclusion that shadowing would give me the exposure I wanted to determine that I would enjoy the day to day stuff. I really wanted to see if I could handle the patients which is something I feel people underestimate. Being around crazy patients, often one on one, and learning how to handle them without going crazy yourself is something I really wanted to experience.

A lot also depends on where you work. I'm lucky to work in a hospital where PCTs can do quite a bit and I get to work on the ED some. We do blood draws, EKGs, help in the trauma rooms. It can be a lot more than just blood pressures and changing patients. It also helps that I get full benefits which is very important since I left a well paying job with full benefits and I'm married.

Edit: All that said I do believe that medical schools will look at scribing more highly than most other clinical experiences and is probably the better job for many people.

 

[Ho0v-man]

Both pct and scribe are good bc they show you two sides of the same coin. The experience varies for both. Some docs will teach you a lot as a scribe, others won't talk to you when it's not absolutely necessary. As a pct, you might get to do ivs, lab draws, change dressings, etc., or just clean rooms and answer phones.

On a personal note, at my hospital that uses scribes, most of us hate them. They're all gunner premeds that think that they're doctors bc they stand next to one all day lol. They seem to be very disrespectful to the staff. Hopefully that's not the case everywhere.


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[costales]

MBAs are a dime a dozen. Heck, they admit people with 2.6 GPAs. Your chem grades show you're likely capable of the hard stuff, so concentrate on that instead.