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Wed, 26 Jun 2002 14:50:04 +1000

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Don't really understand what the AA is (I'm Australian too), but if that's what
will get you into what you want to do now, then go for it.
Personally, my advice would be to stick with the EMT side of things, You get to
see hands-on trauma in a less clinical setting & have to rely much more on your
skills as opposed to what resources the hospital has available. You also get to
see a wide variety of patients without necessarily being tied to them for a
whole shift (or more!)
Emergency / trauma nursing is not as glamorous & exciting as it appears on ER,
& in fact probably the majority of the time is spent with minor traumas &
medical problems as opposed to major traumas (& this is from a point of view of
a major trauma / teaching referral hospital in Sydney) Although, the major
traumas do make up for the crud you have to wade through to get to them.
I may be a bit burnt out & jaded, but I wouldn't recommend nursing as a career
if that's what you want it to be. Again, I can't compare Australia & the U.S,
but there is no career path in clinical nursing past a certain point & once you
get to that point, you don't really want it any more.
Sheree (a cynical ex Emergency nurse)

Russ Pasley wrote:

> Greetings,
>
> I have a quick question to shoot out at any trauma/emergency room nurses
> that would be kind enough to take a moment to offer me some advice or
> insight.
>
> I am about to pursue a career in nursing, more specifically working in
> trauma.  I have had experience in the past as an EMT with the National Park
> Service as a ranger.  Working on certain incidents in Yellowstone made me
> realize that I wanted to follow a career path in trauma nursing.  I worked
> well with my fellow colleagues (rangers, nurses, and doctor) , was
> respected by them, and encouraged to pursue a career in emergency medicine.
>
> My question is how does one work their way into trauma?  I do not want to
> get into nursing to be a floor nurse in a hospital, work in a retirement
> home, or in a doctor's office.  Is there a danger of being "pigeon-holed"
> early in your career?  Right now I am starting to volunteer in the ER at
> San Francisco General.  This is the main trauma center for this side of the
> bay.  My plan is to reinstate my EMT and to then work my way into a tech
> position in the ER if possible. This way while I am in school the ER staff
> will get to know me, my character, and my abilities.  Does this sound like
> a good plan?
>
> The only other question is that of an Associate's degree vs a Bachelor's
> degree.  Both qualify you to sit for the state exam for an RN.  For the AA
> I have my prerequisite classes done, can get into a program now, and be
> done in 4 semesters.  Pursuing the BS will take quite a bit longer.  I'm 40
> and want to start things happening right now!  I guess what I am asking is
> will the AA hinder my goals as opposed to getting the BS?
>
> Again, I would be very appreciative to any of you out there who could take
> a bit of time out of your busy lives to offer me some advice.
>
> Thanks much and peace to you,
>
> Russ Pasley
>
> --
> trauma-list : TRAUMA.ORG
> To change your settings or unsubscribe visit:
> http://www.trauma.org/traumalist.html

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Don't really understand what the AA is (I'm Australian too), but if that's
what will get you into what you want to do now, then go for it.
 Personally, my advice would be to stick with the EMT side of things,
You get to see hands-on trauma in a less clinical setting &amp; have to
rely much more on your skills as opposed to what resources the hospital
has available. You also get to see a wide variety of patients without necessarily
being tied to them for a whole shift (or more!)
 Emergency / trauma nursing is not as glamorous &amp; exciting as it
appears on ER, &amp; in fact probably the majority of the time is spent
with minor traumas &amp; medical problems as opposed to major traumas (&amp;
this is from a point of view of a major trauma / teaching referral hospital
in Sydney) Although, the major traumas do make up for the crud you have
to wade through to get to them.
 I may be a bit burnt out &amp; jaded, but I wouldn't recommend nursing
as a career if that's what you want it to be. Again, I can't compare Australia
&amp; the U.S, but there is no career path in clinical nursing past a certain
point &amp; once you get to that point, you don't really want it any more.
 Sheree (a cynical ex Emergency nurse)
Russ Pasley wrote:
<blockquote TYPE=CITE>Greetings,
I have a quick question to shoot out at any trauma/emergency room nurses
 that would be kind enough to take a moment to offer me some advice
or
 insight.
I am about to pursue a career in nursing, more specifically working
in
 trauma.&nbsp; I have had experience in the past as an EMT with the
National Park
 Service as a ranger.&nbsp; Working on certain incidents in Yellowstone
made me
 realize that I wanted to follow a career path in trauma nursing.&nbsp;
I worked
 well with my fellow colleagues (rangers, nurses, and doctor) , was
 respected by them, and encouraged to pursue a career in emergency medicine.
My question is how does one work their way into trauma?&nbsp; I do not
want to
 get into nursing to be a floor nurse in a hospital, work in a retirement
 home, or in a doctor's office.&nbsp; Is there a danger of being "pigeon-holed"
 early in your career?&nbsp; Right now I am starting to volunteer in
the ER at
 San Francisco General.&nbsp; This is the main trauma center for this
side of the
 bay.&nbsp; My plan is to reinstate my EMT and to then work my way into
a tech
 position in the ER if possible. This way while I am in school the ER
staff
 will get to know me, my character, and my abilities.&nbsp; Does this
sound like
 a good plan?
The only other question is that of an Associate's degree vs a Bachelor's
 degree.&nbsp; Both qualify you to sit for the state exam for an RN.&nbsp;
For the AA
 I have my prerequisite classes done, can get into a program now, and
be
 done in 4 semesters.&nbsp; Pursuing the BS will take quite a bit longer.&nbsp;
I'm 40
 and want to start things happening right now!&nbsp; I guess what I
am asking is
 will the AA hinder my goals as opposed to getting the BS?
Again, I would be very appreciative to any of you out there who could
take
 a bit of time out of your busy lives to offer me some advice.
Thanks much and peace to you,
Russ Pasley
--
 trauma-list : TRAUMA.ORG
 To change your settings or unsubscribe visit:
 <a href=http://www.trauma.org/index.php/community/list/url/http:list.ftech.net/pipermail/trauma-list/2002-June/"http://www.trauma.org/traumalist.html">http://www.trauma.org/traumalist.html</a></blockquote>
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