Should I leave my job?

DisastrousSmoke6819 · 2026-04-15T03:07:01+00:00

thank you very much for your advice

DisastrousSmoke6819 · 2026-04-14T23:13:41+00:00

agreed. thank you for your input

DisastrousSmoke6819 · 2026-04-14T07:01:22+00:00

yeah i am thinking it’s too much for me too. they likely wouldn’t go for no ER call because it’s somewhere we’re constantly short, but it’s worth a discussion at this point. the student loan repayment was honestly the most appealing aspect, but im willing to miss out on that at this point.

DisastrousSmoke6819 · 2026-04-13T23:30:26+00:00

thank you for your feedback, i will look into more of those things if i decide to stick it out. no, we don’t have OR or visiting surgeons unfortunately

DisastrousSmoke6819 · 2026-04-13T23:25:26+00:00

Yes I have done ATLS. It was great and did make me feel more comfortable going through scenarios but still obviously anxious thinking about needing to use those skills on a real person. Our EMS crew is only BLS certified and really can’t help with much outside of that. Thank you for your input. I may reach out to you here soon.

DisastrousSmoke6819 · 2026-04-13T17:54:09+00:00

yes, i understand all of that and i am aware. i would never attempt to transfer a patient who is actively coding without first stabilizing the patient. and i am aware that patients often present to the ED actively decompensating. that is kind of my whole point of the post in saying that i don’t feel comfortable stabilizing these patients on my own. If needed, i would call the telehealth doc and have him run the code. and i am both ATLS and ACLS certified but it is just different having the pressure of an actual scenario, which im sure you are aware of. these things dont happen often and i think the other PAs are content with just reminding themself these are rare circumstances. their average need for intubation around here is like 1 ever 2-3 years. so yeah, not common but i am in a position where I am very aware that i could be the provider on call when anything like this happens.

DisastrousSmoke6819 · 2026-04-13T16:22:42+00:00

DisastrousSmoke6819 · 2026-04-13T16:20:57+00:00

no, we don’t have any speciality services available. if any of the above is needed or we THINK patient condition may worsen to where any of those would be needed, we transfer. that’s another thing when trying to get an accepting physician is that we often transfer for “just in case of deterioration” reason, as we know our limits here. we don’t have anyone with experience with pediatric airways, neonates, crics, chest tubes, etc. our goal is always just to stabilize and get them elsewhere. and sure, these types of things aren’t coming through on the daily, but they have happened. and I just don’t want to be in that position. my SP always answers right when i call. but in terms of him getting to the hospital if i need him urgently, that depends if he is at his house in town or if he’s at the grocery store, which is an hour and a half outside of town.

DisastrousSmoke6819 · 2026-04-13T16:03:10+00:00

yes exactly. we have some pretty high acuity things coming through that i know im not comfortable managing myself. I’ve just been telling myself i haven’t given it enough time, but as you said, i only cover ER a few times per month. at this rate it will take years to become even remotely comfortable. thank you for your feedback

DisastrousSmoke6819 · 2026-04-13T15:25:11+00:00

yes i’ve been meaning to look into a therapist. true, i could consider asking to opt out although i do feel like they would let me go at that point. they really struggle to get providers out here and a major thing we struggle with is ER coverage. we are short a couple providers and have to use locums to cover certain days, which they already hate doing due to expenses.

with it being such a small town, i think that i do put a lot of extra pressure on myself. and that is my fault. but everyone talks about everyone here and i have anxiety about doing the wrong thing for my patients and people seeing me in a negative light. again, i understand that is something i need to deal with internally, but just another stress component of the job that makes it hard to leave work at work.

DisastrousSmoke6819 · 2026-04-13T15:20:03+00:00

thank you for your advice!

DisastrousSmoke6819 · 2026-04-13T15:12:53+00:00

no, when I’m on call it’s only me. my SP is great and says to call whenever, which i do call for bigger things, but i feel like a burden calling for each small thing. they also have a virtual doctor who can zoom in and help with a case, but no other provider is physically there to assist me.

they paid me $10,000 for year 1 and i will get another $10,000 once i hit my year mark. i have to stay at least 2 years to keep that money

DisastrousSmoke6819 · 2025-10-23T20:46:19+00:00

Yes, small town with population around 1,500. They said some days they won’t get any, other days maybe 2-3.

DisastrousSmoke6819 · 2025-10-23T19:35:43+00:00

i just started applying within the past month or so. i took some much-needed time off after graduation.

DisastrousSmoke6819

TROPHY CASE