Personal Narrative: My Experience From Student To EMT

Clipboard and stethoscope in hand, I walked toward the double doors that flashed emergency in bright red letters above. It was my first clinical shift as an EMT student, and first day jitters flittered around in my stomach, I had no idea what to expect. However, I was not expecting to witness the fragility of life. About a half an hour into my shift the rapid response alarm blared through the emergency room. I turned to my preceptor and quizzically asked what this meant. “A rapid response is a patient who is in need of immediate medical care and intervention. As an EMT who is part of the rapid response team you will be expected to assist with vitals and chest compressions. Let’s head toward the recess room, and I’ll explain more there.” Eventually, we reached the recess room, and the rapid response team was already there preparing for the arrival of the patient. A nurse was on the phone with the firefighters that were bringing the patient in. Seconds later she announced “It’s a STEMI”. Then fright ran through my veins. A STEMI is medical jargon for a segment elevation on an EKG. In other words the patient’s coronary artery is completely occluded. The patient is suffering from a heart attack. Prior to this, I had never seen someone who was having a heart attack. However, the thing that terrified me the most was that I knew I would be expected to perform chest compressions. I had only ever performed chest compressions on a dummy.

Later as an adolescent, I was an active member of my high school’s Girls Football team and Volleyball. I attend a post-secondary institution right after high school; I received my Medical Assistance Certification from Star Technical Institute in Whitehall, PA. I pursue my dreams of obtaining the education I had always desired and found a great job in the medical assistance field. Another event, which shifted my life forever, was accepting a marriage proposal at a young age and marrying in 1991. I made it clear from the beginning that my education was very important to me and marriage would not stand in the way of my pursuing post-secondary studies or even completing high school. When I announced my engagement due to my pregnancy I was, determine to complete all my studies to make a better life for my son. I became a mother in February 1991 and continued to work as a Manager for a retail store until my husband, who had been unemployed since our marriage, found work. When he secured employment, it gave me the financial flexibility to pursue my dream of attaining higher education, In July 1992. Working in the medical field, you gain so much knowledge and then transferring into the mortgage career, I gained lots of experience. My last job I went back to the medical field as that was the quickest job I can find in my area that was hiring. I was so nervous due to not knowing anyone and having to relearn everything all over

Roy and Joanne began to notice some changes as the next few days went by, causing both of them to become more excited and optimistic. For some reason, even though neither talked too much about what they discussed about before, Johnny seemed to trust Roy and Joanne. He seemed to trust Roy more than Jo, but considering how close the two had been before, it wasn’t too surprising. It also gave Jo the chance to spend more time with Chris and Jenny. John also finally started to be awake more than he was asleep, although he took frequent naps throughout the day and could fall asleep without warning. One thing that didn’t surprise anyone was how fast Johnny’s appetite came back. It seemed after his first meal, despite being unable to eat much at once,

Many of the people I come across take note of my demeanor, describing me as one with an old soul, an aspect of myself resulting from the tribulations of my life. Sadly, I have seen many more of the world’s wonders than most of my age, but I cannot say that I am not the person I am today without those experiences. My ability to empathize, think, and potential to lead are my greatest strengths, I have also been characterized by my tranquil and introspective nature.

Clipboard and stethoscope in hand, I walked toward the double doors that flashed emergency in bright red letters above. It was my first clinical shift as an EMT student, and first day jitters fluttered around in my stomach. I had no idea what lay ahead of me. However, I was not expecting to witness the fragility of life. About a half an hour into my shift the rapid response alarm blared through the emergency room. I turned to my preceptor and quizzically asked what this meant. “A rapid response is a patient who is in need of immediate medical care and intervention. As an EMT who is part of the rapid response team you will be expected to assist with vitals and chest compressions. Let’s head toward the recess room, and I’ll explain more there.”

Six... seven... eight. “You’re going to have to push harder than that! What’s her oxygen reading? Alright, let’s give her another dose of Epi.” Sweat was dripping down my face and adrenaline was rushing through my system. I was out of breath, but I pressed harder like the doctor asked. Twenty-eight... twenty-nine... thirty. “Okay, she’s tired, have someone switch off with her. Let’s keep going. I’ll go update the husband.” It had been forty minutes since the patient coded. Everyone had been exhausted from taking turns doing CPR. The patient’s face was pale and hands were ice cold. I wiped my sweat off and took a quick look at the patient’s face as I stepped down for the next person to do CPR. She looked like every other person that I probably could have met on the street, at the mall, or at a random restaurant. She was young. I watched silently as the EMT performed the compressions. The patient’s arms were hanging off the gurney, bobbing up and down

I saw how the paramedics worked quickly and efficiently to take care of my unconscious and bleeding dad, shocked mom, and my aunt who was ejected even while wearing a seatbelt to the hospital. Even though that sounds gruesome it was because of this that I have always wanted to pursue a career in the medical field and specifically a paramedic. It shaped me into who I am today because it makes me want to be able to help people when tragedy strikes or whenever they are in need just like those paramedics helped my family. I want to be able to repay all that was done for my family and I by pursuing this job. Knowing that I can make a difference in people’s life is what drives me through this tough career. Those paramedics acted quickly and very sufficiently by knowing what to do without hesitation and that dedication is what motivates me to continue on reading that extra chapter to be ahead, and to study 10 plus hours a

My main engineering courses at the time were underway and being focused on them was a must but, with the passing of a relative of whom I looked up to so greatly was still heavy on my mind, my studies then suffered in the process. In the event of such a close relative passing it became a distraction from my classes of which I then could not overcome therefore my grades had begun to suffer. Over the course of the next couple of years that preceded my graduation in 2013, I encountered many minor roadblocks and obstacles that I continually learned and built upon to become the person I am today. There were many lessons I learned from the “ups” and “downs” of my undergraduate career with the main one being, if you stay fixated on the goal you set out to achieve, you will eventually achieve it. My undergraduate degree became a humbling

While having the role of a being a firefighter and first responder there are times you have to deal with drastic moments. Some moments can consist of death or serious injuries, when I heard about this I asked how you remain calm and react effectively his response was, “I slow myself down to a tempo in which I listen to the call and think of the basics I need to perform on arrival. While en route I get updates and I calculate my plan. Rushing into something usually results in bad tactics and injuries. Remaining calm is a priority. If my crew is amped up I’ll stall for a few seconds and allow them to become calmer.” Lastly, I was curious about what a typical daily routine at the fire department consisted of. Isaac responded, “As an Officer, my downtime is spent preplanning and checking on various details. From my crew’s safety and well being first and foremost to making sure our equipment is ready to go. I spend a lot of time investigating minor issues on Call in the interest of preventing them from occurring again.” From Isaac’s responses I was enlightened by what it takes to be a firefighter/first

Today was my first day in the Paramedics department. I shadow EMTs tech today, his name was tom. Everyone in the Department was very welcoming and they were glad to have PFE student over in their department. Tom, showed me the truck and the different kinds of bags they have in the truck for different kinds of patients, he told me that they get 30 calls each day, and about 1400 calls a year. He asked me about what I want to be and we talked a little about the career I want to be pursued in. He told me when they are free, they go to wawa to get coffee, they took to me to the wawa and they were nice enough to ask me if I want anything but I simply said Thanks. We came back to the unit and then waited for call but we did not get any call.While

In all of my previous experiences in the healthcare field, I have not had a single moment or challenge that I disliked about the profession. Even working as a scribe, I absolutely loved the change of pace in working a late night shift at one hospital and then getting up several hours later to work another shift at a different hospital’s ED. With this in mind, the question of naming one single aspect of being a physician I think I would like best is a difficult one to answer. As so many other premedical students, medical students, and current physicians, I love the satisfaction of solving a problem to help someone. This is truly what I expect to like most as a physician, particularly when working with a patient who suffers from several chronic

Growing up in a country where educational preferences were given to boys, my father went against the society norms and encouraged me to get higher education. Along with his guidance and my thirst for knowledge I was accepted in engineering program. I was happily pursuing my degree, when suddenly all this came to halt; my father was seriously ill. He wanted me to get married before he leaves this world. Few weeks later, I met my husband, who at the time was visiting Pakistan for his cousin’s wedding and within months I was married. I came to United States with a hope of better future and dreams of finishing my education, but was unable to do so as I was expecting our first child and had no one to help us with the baby. I dedicated myself to raise our daughter, but deep down that feeling of emptiness lingered. Life kept moving forward, we moved a few times, gradually I started to adapt to being a stay home mother of two beautiful girls. Numerous times I brought home admission forms from CCBC but started to doubt myself if I was going to be able to do restart after such a big gap? I started volunteering at my daughter’s school and was soon hired as a teacher’s helper to assist with children with special needs. While working at school, I was again in an environment that reminded and encouraged me to fulfill my lost dreams. In 2012, I enrolled at CCBC with no career path in mind: I just wanted start again! Once I started I never looked back and I will continue to thrive.

Countless scenarios thrust dispatchers in the middle of extremely stressful and chaotic situations while never knowing the end result once first responders arrive. More often than not, I ended my shift with a feeling of emptiness and found myself searching for an explanation. After doing some soul searching, I finally discovered the feeling was due to not knowing the resolution to the situation. Although I enjoyed being part of something that was life changing for those involved; I wanted more. Wanting to be a part of the resolution during crisis situations solidified my desire of becoming a police officer. During my tenor in the dispatch center I was given the opportunity to ride-along with police officers in the field which I took full

“Adams Cowley, a leader in trauma and critical care estimated that a quality EMS system would cut the accident death rate by 50% according to Shah (2006)” (p. 417).” Fast forward twenty years and governments are supporting the budgets to run EMS across the country. Emergency medical technicians (EMT) are providing basic life support or CPR, first aid, and transporting patients in emergency health situations. Physicians who have not been properly trained are able to consult other physicians to help treat all problems in the ED. Having resources leads to quicker visits and less waiting.

On May 13, 2010, a very dear friend of mine was in a fatal car accident on his way to school. His name was Andrew; He was 17 years old, a junior in high school that also played a lineman position for the football team. His death was tragic; not just to me, but to our entire community. As well as the other communities that surrounded ours. After his death my state of mind was different. I started not to care and eventually I didn’t care. Because of my not caring I started failing, and not long after I quit high school. I worked at a fast food place for a while after quitting school and then I realized, I was a failure I did not want to work at a fast food place the rest of my life. But I had no high school diploma. Therefore fast food places were the only places that would hire me. I decided then that I was not going to settle for this type of life for myself anymore. I signed up for GED classes in October, and at the end of November took the GED test. On December 20 2013 I found out I passed the GED test. After passing the test I signed up for college and I currently attend college today. I also have a different job today as well. I work for a gas station as a cashier. I left the fast food place as soon as I got the opportunity. With this being said it shows that failure functions as temporary detour in life it is not permanent unless you choose to let be, failure is also stepping stones that are necessary in life to achieve things, as well as how you learn experience