Hello! Thank you for even taking the time to stop and read this draft of my narrative. I have been struggling with the writing of this after reading many examples of other narratives out there. Every person's I read seemed to have some unique, extraordinary experience that all of a sudden made them want to be a PA. I have not had a ton of patient care experience, and I didn't have a specific close friend/family member with an illness that made me want to get into medicine. I though long and hard about why I want to do this, and this is what I've come up with.
When we complete high school we are free to pick, from a seemingly endless list of choices, a subject that we are interested in and want to incorporate into our professional lives. For some, this is a quick decision; they have known their entire lives what they were going to be "when they grow up". For others, like me, this task is a near impossible thing to do. I have finally come to realize that choosing one thing to study and learn seems limited. I don't want to just complete my education and be done with it; I love to learn and change and adapt to my environment, and want to be able to continue to do so for my entire life.
My love of learning lead me to the medical field at the very beginning of my career search; I knew that I was interested in science and the workings of the body, and this field would challenge me intellectually. But this doesn't really narrow down the choices. I have given thought to different career choices: radiologic technician, radiologist, chiropractor, and exercise physiologist were all considered. The problem with all of these choices is the same: I was choosing to focus and learn one specific area of medicine for the rest of my life. These fields are constantly growing and changing, but in them I would get to help people with similar types of problems. Thanks to some guidance from a friends' father (and physician), I finally found the solution to my search. Becoming a physician's assistant is where my search was leading me all along.
I had no idea what a physician's assistant was or did; as I learned about it through my research, I was immediately drawn to each aspect of what it entails. I grew up in a smaller, Midwestern city, surrounded by rural farm-towns; physician's assistants are used primarily in these areas. In my healthcare experience, I loved being able to watch physicians go into rooms and speak with patients to help treat them; PAs do this too. PAs are needed primarily in general medicine practices; choosing a specific specialty is something that deterred me from picking other fields of medicine. In general medicine, I believe that my love of learning will be fulfilled, as every day and every patient could bring a new challenge and chance for learning. While treating patients on my own in a general medicine environment, I will get to be around many types of patients, conversing and learning about them as people - their cultures, family lives, careers, hobbies. In almost every position I have held, I have gotten to be around people and I have grown quite fond of being able to make a different connection with each and every person I come in contact with. I love making people smile and feel cared about, a characteristic much needed in any healthcare provider.
As I've moved from one career choice to the next, they all have one thing in common - helping people feel better. Applying to PA school had crossed my mind, but I hadn't fully convinced myself it was for me. One Sunday when I was really in the middle of trying to figure out what to do with my life, I sat in church listening to the sermon and it finally struck me. The pastor was speaking about taking what talents and gifts you have been given and going out into the world to help people. I thought about it and realized that I have been gifted with the ability to show compassion and love, I am extraordinarily tenacious, and God has also blessed me with a strong mind and love of learning. All the careers I had considered would maybe use one or two of my talents to help people, but not all. I believe that all of these gifts were given to me in order to make a pretty darn good physician's assistant.
The job of a physician's assistant is exactly as the name states - assisting the doctor with the treatment of patients. Often times, physicians have more on their plate than they can handle and they need someone they can trust to help out. I believe that I could fulfill this role. Although my experience in the professional world is limited, I have had chances to work with people on my own. I have had to trust my own judgment in situations. As an intern at a cardiac rehabilitation clinic, I worked with cardiac patients while they exercised. Making quick judgments based on their symptoms is important, and trusting my own judgment proved difficult at first; as I grew more comfortable in the position, I was able to rely on the knowledge I had gained in school and trust myself to make safe, quick, correct decisions for the patients.
Thanks again for reading!
Career Choice - PHYSICIAN'S ASSISTANT NARRATIVE
When we complete high school we are free to pick, from a seemingly endless list of choices, a subject that we are interested in and want to incorporate into our professional lives. For some, this is a quick decision; they have known their entire lives what they were going to be "when they grow up". For others, like me, this task is a near impossible thing to do. I have finally come to realize that choosing one thing to study and learn seems limited. I don't want to just complete my education and be done with it; I love to learn and change and adapt to my environment, and want to be able to continue to do so for my entire life.
My love of learning lead me to the medical field at the very beginning of my career search; I knew that I was interested in science and the workings of the body, and this field would challenge me intellectually. But this doesn't really narrow down the choices. I have given thought to different career choices: radiologic technician, radiologist, chiropractor, and exercise physiologist were all considered. The problem with all of these choices is the same: I was choosing to focus and learn one specific area of medicine for the rest of my life. These fields are constantly growing and changing, but in them I would get to help people with similar types of problems. Thanks to some guidance from a friends' father (and physician), I finally found the solution to my search. Becoming a physician's assistant is where my search was leading me all along.
I had no idea what a physician's assistant was or did; as I learned about it through my research, I was immediately drawn to each aspect of what it entails. I grew up in a smaller, Midwestern city, surrounded by rural farm-towns; physician's assistants are used primarily in these areas. In my healthcare experience, I loved being able to watch physicians go into rooms and speak with patients to help treat them; PAs do this too. PAs are needed primarily in general medicine practices; choosing a specific specialty is something that deterred me from picking other fields of medicine. In general medicine, I believe that my love of learning will be fulfilled, as every day and every patient could bring a new challenge and chance for learning. While treating patients on my own in a general medicine environment, I will get to be around many types of patients, conversing and learning about them as people - their cultures, family lives, careers, hobbies. In almost every position I have held, I have gotten to be around people and I have grown quite fond of being able to make a different connection with each and every person I come in contact with. I love making people smile and feel cared about, a characteristic much needed in any healthcare provider.
As I've moved from one career choice to the next, they all have one thing in common - helping people feel better. Applying to PA school had crossed my mind, but I hadn't fully convinced myself it was for me. One Sunday when I was really in the middle of trying to figure out what to do with my life, I sat in church listening to the sermon and it finally struck me. The pastor was speaking about taking what talents and gifts you have been given and going out into the world to help people. I thought about it and realized that I have been gifted with the ability to show compassion and love, I am extraordinarily tenacious, and God has also blessed me with a strong mind and love of learning. All the careers I had considered would maybe use one or two of my talents to help people, but not all. I believe that all of these gifts were given to me in order to make a pretty darn good physician's assistant.
The job of a physician's assistant is exactly as the name states - assisting the doctor with the treatment of patients. Often times, physicians have more on their plate than they can handle and they need someone they can trust to help out. I believe that I could fulfill this role. Although my experience in the professional world is limited, I have had chances to work with people on my own. I have had to trust my own judgment in situations. As an intern at a cardiac rehabilitation clinic, I worked with cardiac patients while they exercised. Making quick judgments based on their symptoms is important, and trusting my own judgment proved difficult at first; as I grew more comfortable in the position, I was able to rely on the knowledge I had gained in school and trust myself to make safe, quick, correct decisions for the patients.
Thanks again for reading!
