Volunteering as EMT

[whosnisarg]

Hey guys!

First off, I love maxillofacial trauma - LOVE. I've seen some trauma cases presented to me by the OMFS I am shadowing this summer and man, I think I found a calling. I know it is a SUPER tough road and would appreciate the lack of a lecture right now. 😉

My university has a volunteer EMS for students and faculty to join and receive training/certification.

I WILL be shadowing general dentists and, to a lesser extent, that OMFS, and was wondering if my volunteering as an EMT will help for D-School applications (if not for the mere fact of volunteering, just to show I have some medical understanding).

Thoughts?

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[akaopua]

Sure, I mean its not gonna be a deal breaker either way but it can only help. I think showing some diversity is important though, make sure you have good XCs outside of school/medical

 

[WaveRace]

I did quite a bit of EMT volunteering throughout my undergrad years. It's valuable to do any impactful healthcare volunteering for the experience itself, independent of a dental school application. You can volunteer with a local fire dept, volunteer for college sporting events, and even volunteer with the Red Cross and travel to support hurricane victims. There was a serious shortage of trained volunteers to help with the immediate aftermath of the last big hurricanes. That's something you can use your training for to make a tangible difference in people's lives.

As far as making a difference with dental school admissions... I doubt it. It was never explicitly brought up at my interviews. It won't hurt, though!

 

[85-29]

Hey! So I want to preface this by saying that I am still a pre-dental and I haven't applied yet, but I am an EMT and I've been running with my collegiate EMS squad for the past three years. I love it -- the healthcare part of it and the really close friendships I've made through my EMS experiences. Regardless of whether or not being an EMT comes up during an interview, my EMS experience has been very helpful with learning basic patient assessment and emergency medicine skills. I've become proficient at quickly establishing a rapport with my patients, and working alongside field physicians, PAs, nurses, and medics. If you get involved in collegiate EMS, and if you like it, I would recommend that you take on a leadership position too (and maybe try to get involved with NCEMSF if your college's organization isn't already involved). I have taken on a leadership role and I think (and hope) that dental schools will appreciate the committment and amount of knowledge involved in both overseeing an entirely student-run ambulance organization and being an OIC for major campus events. I hope this was at least somewhat helpful, and good luck with your future!

 

[whosnisarg]

Hey! So I want to preface this by saying that I am still a pre-dental and I haven't applied yet, but I am an EMT and I've been running with my collegiate EMS squad for the past three years. I love it -- the healthcare part of it and the really close friendships I've made through my EMS experiences. Regardless of whether or not being an EMT comes up during an interview, my EMS experience has been very helpful with learning basic patient assessment and emergency medicine skills. I've become proficient at quickly establishing a rapport with my patients, and working alongside field physicians, PAs, nurses, and medics. If you get involved in collegiate EMS, and if you like it, I would recommend that you take on a leadership position too (and maybe try to get involved with NCEMSF if your college's organization isn't already involved). I have taken on a leadership role and I think (and hope) that dental schools will appreciate the committment and amount of knowledge involved in both overseeing an entirely student-run ambulance organization and being an OIC for major campus events. I hope this was at least somewhat helpful, and good luck with your future!

Thank you, 85-29! Super helpful and definitely made my choice concrete! 🙂

 

[setdoc7]

I became an EMT after being a dentist for several years. Pre hospital care and dental care, even in a hospital setting are not very similar ( I am a PD at a large urban med ctr). Maxillofacial trauma is not really an every day occurrence, and often happens to patients who can least afford proper medical/surgical care. With that said, some of the things you do (assessment, vitals, stabilization) are worthwhile skills, as well as BCLS. Build on enjoying working with your colleagues, moving into a leadership role, and taking care of people, which is what all healthcare professionals do. Your grades and standardized test scores will be the determining factors for dental school, so remain focused on those.

 

[Charles_Darwin]

I became an EMT before applying for dental school. It was definitely a great experience, although I'm not sure how much it helped with my application.

 

[NoMessEMS]

I'm an EMT-B and I volunteer with local EMS agencies and the local free clinic. Our free clinic has a dental clinic on the lower level, and as long as you're a certified healthcare provider (i.e. EMT), they allow you to assist the dentists/physicians. You might want to check out your local free clinic and see if they have something like this available! This would give you clinical volunteering while shadowing a dentist.