As a former Army medic myself, I would suggest going for the State certification. The military offers many opportunities to gain certifications and licensing chances (qualified by military training). I think it’s a great chance to get any certification or skills that you can take to the civilian world and use in case the military doesn’t work out.
And of course, keep all documentation of the training and certifications for future records. Army training can become quite useful down the road. Job opportunities, college credits, and what not.
Ugh. I did that once, just as an experiment. It was uncomfortable, but not terribly painful. (The nasal tube, not the trach.)
Most people use words like “EMT” and “Paramedic” interchangeably, and don’t realize that being a Paramedic means you are a higher-level practitioner than, say, an EMT-B. Army medics are technically below the skill level of a Paramedic, but they exist in this weird gray area in which they are allowed to do certain procedures that the civilian hospitals reserve for Paramedics. By necessity, they are willing to accept a higher level of risk than civilian hospitals would.
But as long as she’s having fun with it, good for her. My AIT was not fun AT ALL. And there will be lots of opportunities for the Army to pay for more advanced schooling in the future.
She’s also eligible to be promoted to Private, First Class. She’s enjoying her freedom after passing the EMT test…last Saturday she and her friends went to Sea World.
I had a student who followed a similar path to dentistry I would have loved to see the looks in his very-bohemian parents’ faces any time they had a conversation with their firstborn gone soldier.
And now she’s on crutches because she aggravated a sprained ankle into Achilles tendonitis. She’s still in Whiskey phase, but may be recycled to a company that’s a little further behind.
Update…she’s graduated from Fort Sam Houston today and is on her way to her new post, Fort Eustis in Virginia! She’s attached to a transportation brigade.
Guess who woke me up this morning with a cup of coffee? Little stinker got ten days leave and didn’t tell me, and arranged for her brother to pick her up at the airport last night after I was asleep.
ivydaughter is so much more than just an EMT. She is a soldier, first and foremost. Military people learn how to be part of a team, and that is a trait valued in the civilian world for when she transitions out of the Army.
Does any of the Hollywood depiction of gory medical stuff affect you? I watched an episode yesterday where a character got shot in the eyeball and I had my hand up covering the screen the whole time. (Musket ball, didn’t travel far enough into the brain to kill the person, but he is minus an eye now.)
Hey congrats and all (haven’t been around a lot lately so don’t know what I missed).
Erm, the videos, well, after the videos they showed us for the first aid class in BCT, yeah, I’d say pimple popping videos would be cathartic, relaxing, and what-have-you.
I’m going to bump this…Ivygirl has done her first few real world medicy stuff!
She’s been assigned to a boat that goes out for a few days at a time for training. She doesn’t do anything…she’s just there in case someone needs medical attention. On her second trip (oops, I guess you call it a mission) they’re getting ready to leave when there’s a scream, “MEDIC!” from the boat docked next to theirs.
Turns out a civilian contractor cut his leg pretty badly. She whipped on a tourniquet and got him stable for the paramedics to take him to the hospital. (She thought the wound was pretty cool. I guess that’s a good sign for a medic.)
The boat she left on hit some rough seas and she’s had to deal with seasick trainees. One guy had been vomiting for a few hours and was in danger of dehydration, so she’s putting the word out that if you puke twice, come see her…she’s got something to help with that.
I would have loved to see the looks in his very-bohemian parents’ faces any time they had a conversation with their firstborn gone soldier.