What a great presentation. It's so interesting hearing the nursing perspective as a paramedic. I have a lot of respect for nurses who choose to go pre-hospital. Most of us ground medics have part-time coworkers that fly full time. The lecture we get is much shorter. "Same thing you do here on the ground, but you're in the air and with even less space." Lol I'm studying for my FP-C now. I think the main difference, and something i'm really looking forward to, is having a partner at relatively the same level as me. The struggle as a ground medic right now is that I only have an EMT partner. They cant start IVs or push medications. Their airway management is very limited(SGAs only). Additionally, their knowledge is very limited so unless i want to wake up my medical director at 2am I have nobody to consult while i'm on scene. I will have to start an IV, push RSI medicatons, and intubate by myself. Then I have to set up and manage the ventilator, initate IV drips (which can include continued sedation, pain management, and medications to maintian/achieve hemodynamic stability), and also attempt to treat the initial pathology that caused the need for intubation. My EMT partner drives me to the hospital so i'm managing the patient by myself in the back of the ambulance. It's stressful, and often humbling. Having a nurse as a partner would be so nice. Honestly, the ideal ground ambulance dynamic would have two providers(nurse/paramedic or paramedic x2) + an EMT to assist on scene and drive, but the US doesnt have the manpower or money to acheive that. That's what makes HEMS so important - access to more critical care providers when you're 40+mins away from a decent hospital.
Critical Care Transport RN are very hard to find! I am a Recruiter for Sutter Health and we have a position available in San Francisco, CA offering a $15,000 sign on bonus! You need to have Pediatric Intensive Care Unit experience. If anyone is interested or know someone that might be please comment. THANK YOU!
