- Joined
- Apr 14, 2006
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I'm currently an RRT at the end of my second year of post collegiate practice and I'm constantly wondering how and why I got myself into this. I went through undergrad as an Exercise Science/Pre-PT major at Indiana where in my foolish 18-22 year old mind the science of the perfect pour was always more intriguing than anything Newtonian mechanics, thermodynamics, or redox reactions had to offer. I was more or less the king of the B- with a few A's and C+s thrown in to get an undergrad GPA 2.96. I backed away from PT school because my admission probability at area programs was on par with the election prospects of a Republican San Francisco mayoral candidate.
After seeing an article in the local paper I shadowed an RT and enrolled in the B.S. program at IUPUI. At first I thought I had really lucked out; all of the responsibilities seemed so exciting: ventilator management, code blue responsibilities, ABG collection and analysis, intubations (if policy allows depending on the setting). However, by the end of my two years I found that my perception was in fact not the reality. I expected to see death and knew the pts would have very morbid prognoses; I did not anticipate how quickly the depressing setting along with the mind-numbing routine of giving neb after neb and checking vent after vent would wear on me.
So here I am, my whole "career" ahead of me and I'm already sick of it. I'm considering PA school because one of my beefs with RT is the fact that anytime I think a pt may benefit from a tx modality or a different mode of ventilation I have to call a Dr., beg for an order and inevitably get blown off. I also don't feel that the field challenges me clinically or forces me to think critically or independently. I like the idea of PA school but even though most of my prereqs are probably expired I'm still afraid that my marginal collegiate record may even overshadow a 4.0 performance this time around.
Does anyone know of a PA or PT school where quality patient care experience is highly valued and grades are not the only fulcrum on which one's candidacy teters? I'm new to this list and I hope to get to know many of you.
Regards,
After seeing an article in the local paper I shadowed an RT and enrolled in the B.S. program at IUPUI. At first I thought I had really lucked out; all of the responsibilities seemed so exciting: ventilator management, code blue responsibilities, ABG collection and analysis, intubations (if policy allows depending on the setting). However, by the end of my two years I found that my perception was in fact not the reality. I expected to see death and knew the pts would have very morbid prognoses; I did not anticipate how quickly the depressing setting along with the mind-numbing routine of giving neb after neb and checking vent after vent would wear on me.
So here I am, my whole "career" ahead of me and I'm already sick of it. I'm considering PA school because one of my beefs with RT is the fact that anytime I think a pt may benefit from a tx modality or a different mode of ventilation I have to call a Dr., beg for an order and inevitably get blown off. I also don't feel that the field challenges me clinically or forces me to think critically or independently. I like the idea of PA school but even though most of my prereqs are probably expired I'm still afraid that my marginal collegiate record may even overshadow a 4.0 performance this time around.
Does anyone know of a PA or PT school where quality patient care experience is highly valued and grades are not the only fulcrum on which one's candidacy teters? I'm new to this list and I hope to get to know many of you.
Regards,
