Talking to other people who had gone through paramedic school gave me the impression the commitment was going to be very difficult and scary. Many of my peers gave me the impression that if you want to be successful you would not have any free time or be able to work outside of school. These conversations created fear, leading me to wait five years before entering a paramedic program following the completion of my EMT program. I knew I wanted to be a paramedic, but what if I wasn’t successful?

            To preface this article, I worked for five years in an emergency veterinary clinic, followed by five years as a scribe in the emergency room, where I documented patient care for ED physicians. I also started volunteering with an agency when I got my EMT. By the time I finished my paramedic program, I had ten years of medical experience and five years of volunteer experience at a relatively busy agency. By volunteering with an agency and following doctors around, I gained a lot of emergency medical knowledge. I was able to listen to doctors explain medical concepts to patients and families, hear their reasoning for performing certain exams and ordering various tests, and understand their process for reaching differential diagnoses. 

            Firstly, I feel that having some experience in the field before paramedic school is invaluable. Those who have experience seemed to have less difficulty understanding content presented in class and performing assessments compared to those who do not have prior experience. Additionally, paramedic school is a huge financial and time commitment, so having experience will help you decide if this is something you truly want to do. Knowing this is a career you enjoy will help keep you motivated when it feels like there is no end in sight. 

            Secondly, I had heard others talk about how time-consuming school was and how all their free time was used for studying. It wasn't until I entered a paramedic program that I fully understood the truth about this. Paramedic school is a significant time commitment, so if you have a family, a job, or other obligations in life, you will need to be organized and learn effective time management strategies. There were barely enough hours in the day and I often had to choose between making food or sleeping because I felt as though I did not have time for both. I also was unable to study while working but did have the benefit of learning from the doctors I scribed for. Therefore, in a way, going to work was studying for me because I was in the medical field. My tip is to rest as much as you can because you may end up relatively sleep-deprived.

            Thirdly, with as much work as school was, it was surprisingly much easier than I expected it to be. I heard horror stories about many people failing out because they did not learn to read ECGs quickly enough and, therefore, could not pass their tests. I also heard they had to be tested on strips that had been photocopied a million times and were no longer legible, but this was not the case. I found school to be enjoyable and quite manageable. We all have different strengths and weaknesses so if you struggle in one area, you may shine in another. Do not let other horror stories keep you from pursuing paramedic school if it is something you really want to do. In fact, I wish I had completed the program much earlier. Many who consider themselves poor test-takers may also enter a paramedic program with a lot of fear. However, the great part about paramedic school is that it is largely hands-on, and you run a lot of scenarios. You have many different chances to synthesize the information you've learned and show that you know the material. Getting 100% on a test is okay, but if you cannot apply it to a real-world situation, then you may as well not even know it. I was worried about this because I had gone to college before paramedic school and did not do well. Mostly, I was not able to focus in class and did not have an interest in the material presented. Therefore, my encouragement would be - if you have tried school previously and did not perform well, but medicine is something you enjoy, you may find that paramedic school is much easier than other classes or programs in which you have been enrolled.

            Lastly, I want to share some tips for prospective and new paramedics. When you finish your program and are released to work in an ambulance by yourself, that is a scary time! After paramedic school, you think you are always prepared, will always know what to do, and will always know the right course of treatment. However, this is not true and you are going to make mistakes! In fact, when you begin your career, you may feel you do not know anything and cannot believe you're trusted to be alone with a patient. Would you believe me if I said that is completely normal?! Just know even new doctors are scared when they first start on their own. There is a reason why it’s called practicing medicine. These feelings will get better over time as you handle more patients on your own and can start drawing on your previous experiences. By starting to see patterns, recognizing things you have seen in the past, and remembering how you treated those patients and what the outcome was, you will be able to start trusting your gut. Sometimes a patient looks okay, but you will notice something does not feel right - you will eventually be able to recognize that feeling and trust it. I say this because I do not want people to go to paramedic school thinking they will know everything when they are done because that is never the case. The beauty of medicine is that it is always changing, and you will constantly have more things to learn, even long after you are out of school.

            In summary, paramedic school is challenging, time intensive, and will never prepare you for all the scenarios that you may encounter in your career. However, it is something well worth doing. You will build your reputation in the industry, learn several new procedures you can now perform on patients, and increase your knowledge of the human body and various disease pathology. Hopefully, you will remember to have some fun with it along the way. Paramedic school is going to be what you make of it and you are going to get out of it what you put into it.