ABOUT THE AUTHOR Fifteen years before becoming a nurse I started the road to health care as a volunteer fireman and assistant chief. Classes to become an EMT followed, and then 2 more years of training to be a volunteer paramedic. All of this was accomplished while operating a hardware business with my wife. She also had to put up with the hours of firefighting and ambulance runs, day and night. As a paramedic going to nursing school, the challenge to balance my career in the emergency department and my life with my family was a constant struggle. Encouragement from my family plus the help of