What is defined as applicable HCE?

[228]

I am pursuing a degree in Therapeutic Recreation, should have my degree by the summer(also have a BS in Psych). Anyway, I would be able to work with severely disabled in clinical and outpatient settings. Would this be applicable HCE? Is it outside the realm of your "typical" medical job? I guess that I could always go back and get a Phlebotomy certificate, but working with the disabled is my passion.


I am still a couple years out from applying, my stats are not good--only a 3.0 cGPA including undergrad courses taken after graduation, 3.3 sGPA...I do have great shadowing experiences though. Shadowed a doc in Kenya for 3 months working with children/adults from a refugee camp, also have a large number of leadership positions. Also shadowed three OT's in various hospitals. Total shadowing experience w/ doc comes to around 500 hours, with around 200 for OT.

Do i need to pursue another field besides therapeutic recreation if I am to eventually apply to PA school? And are the adcoms strigent on all shadowing experience being under a doc or under a PA?


Thank you for your time.

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[228]

anyone? lol

 

[Dynamo24]

What you're talking about should be good. Any hands on where you are a care provider (eg. Nurse, EMT, etc.) is good HCE. Check schools websites, they usually have a hard definition of what they are looking for.

 

[pamac]

I am pursuing a degree in Therapeutic Recreation, should have my degree by the summer(also have a BS in Psych). Anyway, I would be able to work with severely disabled in clinical and outpatient settings. Would this be applicable HCE? Is it outside the realm of your "typical" medical job? I guess that I could always go back and get a Phlebotomy certificate, but working with the disabled is my passion.


I am still a couple years out from applying, my stats are not good--only a 3.0 cGPA including undergrad courses taken after graduation, 3.3 sGPA...I do have great shadowing experiences though. Shadowed a doc in Kenya for 3 months working with children/adults from a refugee camp, also have a large number of leadership positions. Also shadowed three OT's in various hospitals. Total shadowing experience w/ doc comes to around 500 hours, with around 200 for OT.

Do i need to pursue another field besides therapeutic recreation if I am to eventually apply to PA school? And are the adcoms strigent on all shadowing experience being under a doc or under a PA?


Thank you for your time.

If your grades are decent, then you probably would be able to find a program that would be fine with your background. But programs that aren't so focused on real HCE are generally sticklers on academic performance... At least that's what I've noticed. If your grades are on the lower end, you generally have to do some academic heavy lifting to compensate, or else obtain good HCE and apply to a program that is HCE focused.

 

[Makati2008]

If your grades are decent, then you probably would be able to find a program that would be fine with your background. But programs that aren't so focused on real HCE are generally sticklers on academic performance... At least that's what I've noticed. If your grades are on the lower end, you generally have to do some academic heavy lifting to compensate, or else obtain good HCE and apply to a program that is HCE focused.

Agreed.

 

[jessjlstar]

I am pursuing a degree in Therapeutic Recreation, should have my degree by the summer(also have a BS in Psych). Anyway, I would be able to work with severely disabled in clinical and outpatient settings.

I saw that you had shadowed three OT's, so I'm assuming you know what they do. But a Psych/Therapeutic Recreation degree is the PERFECT background for occupational therapy. And, even better, you would constantly have the opportunity to work with people that are disabled, both mentally and physically.

However, PA and OT are vastly different. If you're going into the medical field because you want to be the one to diagnose a patient and prescribe the therapy, then PA is obviously the field to be in. But if you want constant contact with disabled people (in settings ranging from inpatient to outpatient to home health to schools) then I would highly advise you to look into the field of occupational therapy further.

Just as a bonus, you probably have all of the psychology requirements, so those prerequisites would be fulfilled. Other general prerequisites (these are not exact, just common for most schools) includes:

• Anatomy
• Physiology (or A&P I and A&P II)
• Statistics (most schools accept Psychological Stats)
• Physics/Kinesiology/Biomechanics (if the school requires physics, physics must be taken; however, many schools give you the option of any three of those courses)

Additional requirements vary by school.

From the few sentences I know about you, I feel that you should at least consider OT as a viable option. The schooling is not long--only 2 to 3 years for a Masters--and the lifestyle, from what I have heard, is comfortable. You can work part-time or PRN if flexibility is a priority (this is one reason why I am going to pursue OT!).

*I'm not trying to take anything away from the PA profession--I actually wanted to be a PA not too long ago. I simply wanted to inform the OP about what the job had to offer.