Reply With Quotesome of your RN classes might count for things you'll need in med school. Nurses and doctors have different scopes of practice. Being a nurse might make you a better doctor you'll see who really does the work but doesn't get the credit.
Hello everyone, my name is Thomas Pietrantonio. I am 20 years old and I live in Florida. In about a year I will be starting RN training, but my main goal is to become a surgeon or an anesthesiologist. I was wondering if you have an RN degree can you go to med school from that? I'm kind of hazy in this area. Anyone with info or suggestions please help. Thank-you for your time and comments. Have a great day/night.
some of your RN classes might count for things you'll need in med school. Nurses and doctors have different scopes of practice. Being a nurse might make you a better doctor you'll see who really does the work but doesn't get the credit.
pietrantonio and I have the same sentiments. I'm having doubts about nursing as premed. but docs have told me RNs can always proceed to medicine. we just have to take up some more prerequisites, though.
to cassioo: um..i don't quite understand what you said about "Being a nurse might make you a better doctor you'll see who really does the work but doesn't get the credit." mind if i ask for some enlightenment? thanks much!
ok I'm a L&D nurse. Patient comes in (they might have called the doc and said they think they are in labor or came to ER or seldom come from doc's office) I assess them: history, physical exam, get lab work/results. Then call the doc and tell them what's going on. I then get an order which usually consists of "use routine labor orders" do whatever that is: start IV, induce/augment. Doc will show up within 4 hours walk in say hi if the water isn't broken and it's time he'll break the water..dictate then go back to the office...I assess the patients status at minium every 30 minutes. When it's time to have a baby I'm there the whole time (sometimes minutes sometimes a couple of hours) I call the doc when the baby is crowning he comes, puts on gown and gloves catches baby, cuts cord, sews up mom if needed says congratulations and leaves. I then clean up mom, clean up baby work on getting baby to breastfeed, keep assessing mom for bleeding, vitals etc. Get them up teach peri and breast care, baby care. Oh did I mention when mom wanted pain medication I got her ready called usually a CRNA who came and put in an epidural, monitored vitals every 3-5 minutes. It could go on and on. The thing is the nurse is with the patient 24/7 and they are usually the ones to catch any problems and notify the docs what is going on. Sometimes when I call I say, " this patient looks like they have a UTI here's the lab do you want to give XYZ?" Maybe the doc wouldn't track around bloody shoe covers all over the delivery/OR if they ever had to be the one cleaning it up...maybe they would still do it. Yes the doc went to more school but they couldn't do it without the nurses. Why does a doc have an office nurse? Why are the nurses in the hospital? Making the home health visits?
Yes there are docs that take lots of time with their patients but they aren't there usually in the middle of the night unless a nurse has called them.
Kind of get the idea now? Anyone else agree? disagree?
Having an RN can get you in to med school but you must go the BSN route. In order to get accepted to med school you must first have your BSN and meet the pre-reqs of the courses (usually science classes that are not included in an RN program). Some med schools look for a well rounded student... meaning that the student has experience in other life situations besides just the medical field. They look for students that are active outside of work/school as well. Having your BSN is really no different when you go to apply to school than if you have your BS in something else.
I know of a few nurses that have gone RN to Med school... most had there ADN and then went on to persue there BS in a totally different field.
Make sure that you are going into nursing for the right reasons. It is not the easiest stepping stone into a med school program. I dont know if you were planning on applying for med school right after you finish the program, take the pre-reqs, and MCATS or if you were planning on working in the nursing field for a while. If you are not planning on working in nursing it would make more sense to persue a different major that would be geared more toward your personal lifestyle and interests and make up the classes that are not included in that program.
<<From someone who has thought hard about going RN to med school down the line... but thinks that the actual hands on patient care is handled more by the RN so is sticking to that route>>
Years ago when I first went to college, I thought I wanted to be a doctor so I took all the pre-reqs for medical school. Now bear in mind, I had been working as a nurse's aide since age 16. After about three years of college, it dawned on me that I did not want to be a doctor because my heart was in being close to the patients = nursing. Not that all physicians lack compassion and true contact with their patients, but nurses are the people that know more about the patient than any physician. Nurses have a special piece in their heart that just isn't there in a physician. I would much rather have a nurse taking care of me when I am ill than a physician. Nurses simply have that special touch.
So give consideration to staying in nursing and if you are interested in anesthesia, consider being a nurse anesthetist.
As to your question of classes tranferring for medical school, there will still be many classes such as microbiology, advanced chemistry classes and others that are required for medical school that you will not get in nursing. All other basics apply toward your undergraduate degree.
I vote for staying in nursing. Once there, you're hooked for life.
Hi Guys,
I am 20 years old and a single mom and I will start my pre-req's in may for ADN program and I won't be done until spring of 07'. RN is not want I to do for the rest of my life I want to go to medical school but right now being on a fix-income is not possiable but when my son reaches 10 or 11 years old I will be going back to school again. I been wanting to be a doctor since the 8th grade. In high school a had a 3.8GPA but i got pregnant at the age of 17 years old and I moved so many times that I went to get my GED but that didn't stop me from returning to school and when my son is older I will be going back to school to do the thing that I feel is for me.
Young and Ambitious
If you have a dream or goal, you will find your way to be there! Especially in USA, there are chances everywhere! i am 24 years old from Hong Kong with two children and a husband! I am a CNA now but i am finding my way up to become a RN!
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cassioo said:
ok I'm a L&D nurse. Patient comes in (they might have called the doc and said they think they are in labor or came to ER or seldom come from doc's office) I assess them: history, physical exam, get lab work/results.
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I've been an LDRP RN for 25 yrs and what you describe sounds like the job description for a labor nurse not an obstetrician. Why would you expect them to do these things? That would be as incomprehensible as expecting the housekeeper to teach breastfeeding or evaluate the FM strip. We do different things and have different responsibilities and I, for one, don't want the physician's. I also will not accept responsibility beyond my scope of practice and if you feel that is what is required of you, you should speak up. But what you described sounds pretty typical of Labor Nurse scope.
If you are thinking of becoming a doctor, why are you thinking about RN school? Go straight into a pre-med program and start prepping for the MCATs.
Nursing and Medicine are two entirely different animals as far as education/cost/training goes.
One you can be done and practicing in 2-4 years, the other you're talking about an 8-12 year time committment.
Going into medicine is not something a lot of people decide to do and succeed at later in life or as a second career.
If you make up your mind that Med School is what you want, don't distract yourself with nursing.
Personally, I couldn't see spending that much time in school. Nursing was a quick entry point into healthcare.
Andrew Lopez, RN
http://www.4nursing.com
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