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Important advice needed for aspies working medical field!!

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Kelspook
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12 Apr 2013, 5:56 am

Well I'm a 38 year old Aspie paramedic, so might be able to help you here.

If it's a busy urban station, probably not. A quieter rural station might suit you though. The station I work out of has what I'd call a steady workload. You tend to get a little time to decompress between calls, not always, but most of the time.

The major thing is that if you're on a 12 hour shift, you will be with your working partner most of that time. This is fine if you get on well with them, but not so good if you don't.

I love my job and can mostly cope with it, but there have been occasions when I'd like to hit my partner with a shovel. (Not that I would, but it's a fun internal visual lol)

If you do change your mind again, why not contact your local EMS department and see if you can ridealong with a crew to observe? I'm in the UK, but I know Canada allows this as I did a shift in Vancouver when I was on a fact finding holiday. I was considering emigrating. I didn't, but that was due to finaces in the finish.

Good luck with whatever you go for!



skahthic
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13 Apr 2013, 8:56 am

It depends on what kind of nursing you do. I have difficulty working with other nurses, i always end up in trouble because i misunderstand alot of social cues expected in a busy nursing station. But I do on-call visits after hours. I get to be alone alot except for the patients, who are much more forgiving than other nurses are. My schedule is the same every week. Though i go to different homes, I generally do the same things every day. I am fine with blood and other body odors--- my only no no is patients who smoke cigars/pipes--- those make me nauseous. And i am fascinated by medical conditions and visit diseases. I had to do my "time" at the hospital--- the stress gave me panic attacks, diarrhea and more nail biting. I left as soon as i could. Nursing is vast, and my job now is nothing like that of the hospital nurse. It's usually just me and i prefer that.

redrobin62 wrote:
I'm a nurse and I would say that nursing is not appropriate for an aspie. To wit:
1. Do you like being alone? Not with nursing. The patients will be ringing their call bells, the nursing supervisor will be breathing down your neck, your CNA's sometimes like to slack off and give you a hard time.
2. Do you like not being in charge? Not with nursing. You have to crack the whip on your aides who sometimes don't speak a lick of English.
3. Do you hate bright lights? Get used to them as those fluorescent fixtures are everywhere.
4. Allergic to loud sounds? Get used to that because of the constant noise from bells, doors opening and closing, people talking in the halls, intermittent fire drills, code red or code blue pages, etc.
5. Love the sight of blood? You'll see lots of that, plus urine, poop, vomit, phlegm, sputum, wound drainage and pea green trach mucus.
6. Prefer to sit and work? Not with nursing. You're constantly on your feet, pushing a med cart or seeing to some issue.
7. Go to the bathroom during your shift? Nope. Wear a catheter attached to a leg bag. Bathroom privileges are forbidden! (Well, not really, but you know what I mean).
8. Eat fast? Good. Lunch is over. Get back to the floor!
9. Problem with authority? Well, every other person you'll meet is your boss telling you what to do. From time to time you will get conflicting signals. Always go with who holds the highest rank.
10. Flexible? Good, because your schedule is subject to change at the last minute, whether you like it or not. Yes, you're expected to plan your life around your job otherwise you're always free to apply at your local Animal Shelter, Wendy's or Merry Maids house cleaning service.

Just a side note: I went to nursing school against my wishes (the choices was that or being homeless). It's been years of torture, misery and pain since. When you enter these facilities you leave your pride, dignity and what's left of your humanity at the door. What's the difference between nursing and prostituting for money? Prostitution is illegal.
:o



skahthic
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13 Apr 2013, 9:09 am

It depends on what kind of nursing you do. I have difficulty working with other nurses, i always end up in trouble because i misunderstand alot of social cues expected in a busy nursing station. But I do on-call visits after hours. I get to be alone alot except for the patients, who are much more forgiving than other nurses are. My schedule is the same every week. Though i go to different homes, I generally do the same things every day. I am fine with blood and other body odors--- my only no no is patients who smoke cigars/pipes--- those make me nauseous. And i am fascinated by medical conditions and visit diseases. I had to do my "time" at the hospital--- the stress gave me panic attacks, diarrhea and more nail biting. I left as soon as i could. Nursing is vast, and my job now is nothing like that of the hospital nurse. It's usually just me and i prefer that.

redrobin62 wrote:
I'm a nurse and I would say that nursing is not appropriate for an aspie. To wit:
1. Do you like being alone? Not with nursing. The patients will be ringing their call bells, the nursing supervisor will be breathing down your neck, your CNA's sometimes like to slack off and give you a hard time.
2. Do you like not being in charge? Not with nursing. You have to crack the whip on your aides who sometimes don't speak a lick of English.
3. Do you hate bright lights? Get used to them as those fluorescent fixtures are everywhere.
4. Allergic to loud sounds? Get used to that because of the constant noise from bells, doors opening and closing, people talking in the halls, intermittent fire drills, code red or code blue pages, etc.
5. Love the sight of blood? You'll see lots of that, plus urine, poop, vomit, phlegm, sputum, wound drainage and pea green trach mucus.
6. Prefer to sit and work? Not with nursing. You're constantly on your feet, pushing a med cart or seeing to some issue.
7. Go to the bathroom during your shift? Nope. Wear a catheter attached to a leg bag. Bathroom privileges are forbidden! (Well, not really, but you know what I mean).
8. Eat fast? Good. Lunch is over. Get back to the floor!
9. Problem with authority? Well, every other person you'll meet is your boss telling you what to do. From time to time you will get conflicting signals. Always go with who holds the highest rank.
10. Flexible? Good, because your schedule is subject to change at the last minute, whether you like it or not. Yes, you're expected to plan your life around your job otherwise you're always free to apply at your local Animal Shelter, Wendy's or Merry Maids house cleaning service.

Just a side note: I went to nursing school against my wishes (the choices was that or being homeless). It's been years of torture, misery and pain since. When you enter these facilities you leave your pride, dignity and what's left of your humanity at the door. What's the difference between nursing and prostituting for money? Prostitution is illegal.
:o



XFilesGeek
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13 Apr 2013, 9:10 am

Well, I start school for being a paramedic this August.

My father, who is very much like me, has been an EMT for many years, and he loves it.


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SociallyChallenged
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13 Apr 2013, 6:45 pm

goldfish21 wrote:
It depends on your traits.

Some AS people are very very calm under pressure & chaotic hectic environments, which is why they can make great paramedics, firefighters, combat medics, soldiers.. etc. It depends on you whether this would be a fit or not.


Seconded. If you function well under high pressure, being somewhat out of adjustment with emotional needs can perceivably be an asset in fields where you have to deal with a problem and follow procedures right now. On the other hand, in areas of medicine not driven as much by urgency, bedside manner consistently seems to trump expertise as a predictor of both success and avoiding trouble. For example, doctors who are competent but don't appear caring enough are more likely to get sued for malpractice than doctors who appear caring but are incompetent. So I'd stay away from anything where "I feel your pain," as opposed to making the right decision from an subject-matter perspective, is what counts. Oncology would be, I think, a prime example of what *not* to pursue. Of course, there's always anesthesiology...