My experience as an Emergency Medical Technician has been invaluable. As part of my training, I completed clinical shifts in the emergency room at Banner Desert. These clinical shifts introduced me to a medical environment and patient care. In the ER I assisted with taking vitals, placing EKG leads, ventilating patients, and other tasks. I also assisted with numerous rapid response calls. During one of the rapid response calls I witnessed my first code blue, and put my knowledge into action. Performing chest compressions for the first time was a defining life moment. While I had always known that I am capable of succeeding in the academic side of medicine, doing chest compressions made me realize that I have the drive and tenacity to also perform
