Personal Narrative: My First Day In The Paramedics Department

May 30, 2015 it was a stormy night with thunder and lightning flashing all over my town. I had been a volunteer firefighter for the the past 4 year and had just completed my firefighter one course and I had a strange feeling that my fire department was going to get a call soon. At around 10:00 P.M. the call went out for Pawlet, West Pawlet, Rupert, Grandville and Dorset, (which was my department) for a working structure fire at Mach’s General Store caused by a lightning strike. My father was also on the departemt however he was captain and I was just a firefighter. I would always ride down to the station with him becuase it was easier for me. This was my first fire with my Firefighter one so I was pretty excited to go and I

I was raised on the South Side of Chicago. I pretty much raised myself due to the fact my father is an alcoholic and gang banger. My mother was always working trying to support my four siblings and I. My mother could not always keep up with bills so we would get evicted a couple times a year. This was the norm for me. Lucky, for me I was accept to a boarding school where I begged my mother to let me attend. I honestly believe that school saved my life especially when I would lose a friend to gun violence. Not only that, there is where I found Jesus. My family did not raise me to be a man of God, but I met a man who taught how to become one. He would go out his way to take me to church driving an extra hour for I can receive the word of God.

Through my experience with the healthcare field, I have seen that low socioeconomic status, culture, and access are the major contributors to the health disparities today. Whether it is not being able to afford health insurance/medical costs, a culture that’s attitude and beliefs does not put much value on preventative care, or simply not having appropriate transportation to the doctor, all these factors work together against the patient. Medical professions can best tackle these issues by first knowing and understanding the needs of the population in which they practice. Theoretically, if one is aware of specific needs then those needs can be better addressed, whether they are financial or cultural needs. Also, medical professionals can work

No sound strikes more fear and excitement in a firefighters heart, than when the screeching of an alarm echoes through the fire station. Those emotions intensify as we race to the ambulance as vague details of the call crackle over the radio. In those moments it is vital to compose yourself and harness those emotions and channel them into -------. As I sat at the station one night studying for an exam I had the next morning, the alarm began to ring out. In an instant I went from student to EMT and began on one of my most memorable calls. As dispatch relayed the details of single vehicle rollover with multiple passengers, we began to develop a plan.

My second clinical day at Mercy Defiance Hospital, progressive care unit, was overwhelming but rewarding and very educational. Through the 8 hours I was there, I learned a lot. I engaged myself in many self-directing learning practices to futher promote my professional growth. My first time interaccting with my patient,I was joined with my clinical instructor. While in the room, I got to listen to to my patients heart, lungs, and bowel sounds. I was able to see and examine the patients ostomy bag, as well as help them to the bathroom. There were ways that I can improve my professional growth, suchas,having the confidence to not second guess my self about things to do in assessments. For example, I know how to assess the lungs, I should not second guess where to listen for the sounds. One of my goals for next week dealing with professional growth would be to have the confidence to know what I have learned and use it. My second one being to go into the room with a confident attitude and believe in myself.

The career I became interested in is a Physician’s Assistant, or a few people call them PAs. I became interested in this job in my sophomore year of high school. It all started when I attended the STEM fair after school one day. STEM fair is only offered to students who are in either the biomedical Stem academy or the engineer academy. At this fair, students tour around to different classrooms to acquire information on different careers. I attended the Physician’s Assistant one, where there was an actual PA to give information on what PAs achieve. For example, PAs examine patients for diseases, injuries and illnesses.

Choosing my career was not an easy choice but becoming a Medical Assistant would be my “foot in the door” to becoming a nurse. I started Alaska Career College in fall 2014 to become a Phlebotomist. I thought that with my experience as a medical receptionist, I can further my career as a medical assistant rather than a phlebotomist. I love to draw blood but because of my personality, I thought that maybe it would be more beneficial to become a medical assistant instead. As a young Hmong child, I loved helping people especially the older folks who did not speak English well. It is my goal to help others who are in need of help and because of that, I chose to become a Medical Assistant. I do hope that one day

I am currently enrolled as a full-time student in the medical assisting program at Peninsula College. At the end of fall quarter 2015, I will complete the program and earn my certification as a medical assistant. To achieve my goal, I have concentrated solely on my academic career. This has left little time in my life to resume a full-time position in the workforce. As a mother of three, I know how challenging it can be to go back to school, much less try to live on one income. I hope to use this scholarship to help ease my family's financial burden. A scholarship could help me buy extra supplies, such as scrubs, closed toe leather shoes, a stethoscope and other items that are not covered by financial aid, but are all vital materials needed

This year started with many changes to my and the other paraprofessionals schedules. For the first month or so I didn’t know where I would be assigned for the day. I started out with Ms. Ireland and her crew of sixth graders. I was comfortable with this assignment because I was familiar with the students. Then we had the turnover of several paraprofessional positions. One left to pursue a different career, another didn’t come back after summer break and another just left. So we were down to a crew of five paraprofessionals when we started with eight. It took some adjustment and some new hires but we finally got to a “normal” schedule and we each knew where we were expected to be daily. (Most of the time)

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,

The person who I choose to interview was a close friend of mine named Ashely who is both a homecare aid and medical office assistant. She has been a homecare aid for around two years and just completed the program for becoming a medical office assistant.

I was born on June 26, 2002 in Albany, NY. I lived there until I was about 5, then we moved to Edinboro. For about three years of my childhood I maintained to average an emergency room trip a year. First when I was in Kindergarten my brother accidentally shut a door on my face. The edge of the door knob hit my lip and cut it in half. I started gushing blood. I was crying because that bad boy hurt and then my mom asks, “do you want some Tang”. I didn't want the Tang because my lip was gushing blood. So we went to the emergency room and I got eight stitches. My next injury happened the summer of me going into first grade. We had this croquet set, and me and my brother were pitching an exercise to each other and hitting it with the croquet mallet.

When I was four paramedics saved my life. When I was six my mommy was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis. Hospitals were not out of the norm to our family. By that time, I understood how vitally important medical practice is to our lives.

Once I complete my training as a Physician Assistant, I want to use my clinical skills to improve healthcare delivery to underserved populations. My passion and commitment to this endeavor stems from my own experience as an African American male growing up in a underserved population. I knew from an early age that the environment that I was growing up in was not a healthy one and I fully understood when my father moved our family to a more suburban environment. Although we were moving to a better environment, I felt a deep sense of sadness that I was losing my friends and abandoning my home. My core motivation toward helping underserved populations stems from my belief that there is hope for those communities and the people who live in them.

I am most familiar with the Urgent Medical Center. In my opinion, it is very well-structured place with a diverse staffing. It was always a pleasant environment when I had to visit the center for an illness. The center has at least two physicians and nurses on-site at all time. Also, there are several medical assistants to help provide quality of care as patient wait to be seen by a physician. This organization promotes health and wellness services to all patients. Theirs mission is to provide an affordable, quality healthcare with respect and compassion to all patients. The urgent medical center mainly focuses on treating common illness and non-life-threatening injuries. One thing that they do not have on-site is an equipment for diagnostic,