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Deva, my advice is to go ahead and go to EMT school. It's obvious you want to go and do more so why not bite the bullet and do it. If you aren't 18 yet which I read I think somewhere in this thread that you were not, there is nothing keeping you from taking the class unless the education entity says you cannot take the course. You may not be able to get a license or work as an EMT at your age yet but there are places out there who do let younger people work but with quite a bit of supervision. Plus you could do it for "FREE" and get the experience as a 3rd person and then when you turn 18 you can apply for EMT jobs. Just remember, at 18 you may not be insurable (drivers) for a vast majority of agencies out there so be cognizant of that. The class is just a summer long and you are heading into summer so what a story you would have to tell your friends in the "What I did this summer" vein. Good luck whatever you do. And if you are dying of a strange cardiac disease, I'll never talk to you again (EMTCity inside joke)

You may want to look at National Ambulance. I know they accept credentials from the United States and many of the common wealth countries to include Canada. http://www.nationalambulance.ae/ Also be advised that from what I understand if you get hired, this is an actual job that requires you to move and live in the United Arab Emirates. It it not like a contracting gig where you take leave every few months.

And whose fault is that? Privates here don't make more money because they have paramedics, yet it costs more for an ALS service. We have Fire based services and Government services too. Don't forget, the Canadian EMS system was modeled after the one in the USA. A paramedic fighting for advancement of the profession wouldn't have to fight quite so hard if the other tens of thousands of line paramedics would fight for it too. It wasn't management that decided to improve our situation, it was the front line medics who fought for it as a team. Keep throwing yourselves under the bus and you'll never be able to shake the stigma that becoming a fire fighter is actually a promotion above that of a paramedic.

Kat - Canada is a different cup of tea entirely from the US. The privates and fire that dominate EMS have absolutely NO interest in advancing EMS. Fire fighters are doing it as an adjunct to what they consider their primary goal - fighting fire. The large privates would replace medics with firefighter medics (paid for by taxpayers) and provide EMTs to drive as long as they can (and do) charge for the transport. A paramedic fighting for advancement of the profession is fought every step of the way.

Let's define this a little better. What are we talking about when we say a bridge program? Are we talking about something that provides credit for classes taken for EMS education and knocking those off of the required coursework for the new pursuit? Something that is shortened based on previous experiences? Or an online program similar to what Excelsior College does?

And it will continue to do so unless the group as a whole steps up and takes ownership of your profession...otherwise you'll continue to have TV commercials of nurses working in an ambulance like that one Johnson & Johnson put out. Chris, we're in a good place now because a few dedicated individuals sacrificed the blood, sweat, and tears for years to get us to the position we're in now rather than take the easy path out. If the overgrown path were traveled more, it would be easier to take.

It's a dichotomy for sure. Support for the overall advancement of a profession (big picture) or improving your personal situation. At the end of the day I would never fault somebody for choosing to improve their personal situation particularly if family, children and major life changes are involved. It's easy to preach big picture stuff when you are in a good place. I do it all the time as an educator and it certainly makes me a hypocrite. Also, nursing isn't the holy grail of job opportunities and higher educational standards that many people believe.

What if the person in the car next to you snaps? Are you going to argue taking cars away? How about knives on the table in a restaurant? That guy in the restaurant might snap and use the knife or fork on the table. Should we then take those away? I witnessed, and had to testify in court as a witness to, an assult involving a Bic pen. Should we then take away writing instruments "if" somebody snaps? I'm not trying to be flippant or mock your position. That you don't like and are not comfortable around firearms is respectable. I can respect where you're coming from. However, I think the discussions brought about by the events in Connecticut on Friday are slightly misguided. Everyone immediately jumps on the tools used but ignores the underlying factor at play. The shooter was out of his gourd. What person in his/her right mind would walk into a school and shoot children? Gun control will have to be a part of the discussion in the fallout from this event. It is folly, however, to make it the main point of the conversations. Mental illness is huge, widely misunderstood and even more widely ignored by the vast majority of non-health care providers out there. (Hell, it's even widely ignored and misunderstood by a lot of health care providers, too!) Until we figure out what causes people to do this and develop a means to deal with people while respecting their rights it will continue to happen again.