Dustdevil

I hesitate to be the one to break this news to you, but you do realise that your employer sucks, right? :?

WE HAVE A WINNER!!

That throws an assumption into the equation that invalidates your analogy. Who said you are transporting only for the hospital to do the same thing you are doing? The reason you should be transporting is for the hospital to take over and institute definitive care on your resuscitated patient. That is the opposite of a trauma situation, so the analogy doesn't quite work.

If your question is do they utilise EMT-Bs, then the answer is yes. If your question is whether or not they care if you are already an EMT-B, then the answer is probably not. They train their own. Going in as an already certified EMT-B isn't likely to get you any special deal or interest. You'll start as a FNG just like every other enlistee, and you'll get retrained to their standards.

You need to clarify what you mean by "work." This is a very sticky area with lots of shades of grey. There is no yes-or-no answer. For instance, if you are employed by an ambulance company who contracts with the sports association/school district/whatever to provide coverage, then yes, there is no problem with you providing that service within the limitations put in place by your Medical Director. Although, I would argue that EMT-Bs haven't sufficient education or training to do so by themselves. Except for the training of physically packaging the patient and dragging him off the field, you simply are not educated to sufficiently evaluate these patients, or even to treat the majority of the injuries they sustain. That is why athletic training is a profession all of its own. If you are not employed, you have no business providing any service whatsoever to anybody, beyond very basic ABC, bystander first aid, and especially not for money. No Medical Director = No work, volunteer or otherwise.

Plus 5 for getting into school. Minus five for not using the search function. There must be at least twenty topics already here asking the very same question. If you're serious, it won't take you long to find them, and they will be of big help to you! Best of luck in school.

I agree. I suppose I misstated what I meant. I was basing my opinion on time, not distance. With the transport lasting "20-30 minutes," aeromed wouldn't have saved any time once you factor in response, evaluation time, loading and unloading, etc... Helicopter crews have an uncanny knack of dragging things way out. In my experience, most ground crews would have made the half hour trip long before the flight crew would have even taken off.

Meh... I don't see any automatic indication for aeromed in this situation. ALS? Definitely. But not flight. Not enough distance to be a time saver.

That is not the way I intended my statement, and I apologise if you took it that way. I'm just saying that if somebody of some consequence asks for ID and doesn't like what you present them, screw them. They can take your help or leave it. As for any officials who don't like it, they have no authority to deny you access anyhow so again, screw them. All you can do is your job. You can't really worry about what some idiot cop is going to think of your ID. And I have never had a patient ask for it in over thirty years. Again, it wasn't a personal judgement of you, as I have no idea how you personally function.

If it sets any precedent, neither the medical nor nursing boards issue photo ID's, nor do any other allied health licensing agency that I am aware of. But then again, most of them don't carry scanners in their cars so they can respond to off duty wrecks either. No. I can't think of any particularly good reason for them. Only a whacker would be flashing it to anybody anyhow, especially at a scene where you are nothing more than a Good Samaritan. In a professional situation, your ID will be matched against your DL anyhow, so positive ID isn't a problem. Don't tempt your state to do anything that they are likely to charge you more money for.

And boring too.

That is a good approach. To take it a step farther, you can market yourself as a "one call" service. Let the NH personnel know that you will get transportation to them in a timely manner, even if it means calling a competitor. Let them know that if they call you first, they will no longer have to call three or four providers to get an ambo when they need it. You will either have one of your units there ASAP, or you will arrange one from another company for them. Then, of course, you have to occasionally eat a call or swallow your pride and give a run to your competitors. But in the process, you will not only gain the trust of the nurses, you will foster goodwill with your competitors and they may in return do the same. It may not work in a particularly cut-throat market, but I have seen it work quite well in some, so it's worth a try. Plus five for an excellent idea! Even basics occasionally have a good idea! When I combine the above two ideas, I come up with this; Have you ever noticed how many ambulance services there are called "Doctors Ambulance" or "Physicians Ambulance"? That's a stupid idea! Like GA said, NURSES are the ones making the phone calls for ambulances! NURSES are the ones you need to make relate to you! Hell, I'd name my service "Nurses Ambulance Service!"

Word! Sometimes I genuinely wonder why we even bother to teach the "classic" presentation to our students anymore. It almost seems to be an extinct animal these days. I've had two AMI patients out here so far. One presented with a toothache. The other presented only with nausea and vomiting. And both were very young too. On the other hand, I have had two middle-aged patients here who presented with "classic" AMI signs and symptoms who turned out to be nothing but GERD. So much for the classics!

Well... I got into it as a kid because it was exciting, same as most people. But I stayed because I was good at it, which is the reason I come back. Once you realise what you are truly good at in life, you should stick with it. And conversely, of course, if you recognise you suck at something, you should quit. I can't speak for everybody, but I think that most people who stay in EMS long term also do so because they believe they are good at it. Of course, most people stay in EMS for less than 5 years too, even if they are good at it because, unfortunately, the negatives far outweigh the positives.

Ah, okay. Well, you were correct about that. That is indeed how it works in systems that suck enough to have a lower trained member on the crew. But, unfortunately for you, even those systems still require that lower trained member to at least be an EMT, which is a few months of training. Generally, we try not to entertain the fleeting fantasies of tourists who aren't serious about making this profession a career. It is a profession, not a part-time hobby until you decide what you want to do when you grow up. Please, either choose it or leave it. We don't need anymore tourists.

Ooooooooooooooh! CATFIGHT!! Are either of you hott?

I dunno, Rid. I figure more ex-cons have college degrees than do paramedics. They might actually help improve our reputation!

Wow! That's good to hear. That makes a grand total of... ONE professional EMS service in the state of New York. You don't call ambulances "buses" do you?

Uhhh... get his feet wet doing what? It appears you misread his original post. All he wants to do is drive the ambulance. He's not going to get a job doing that with an FR card.

There are many states with NO accredited schools, including Mass. Of course, as "Priority" astutely observes, accreditation is indeed voluntary, and it is not required in order to certify students. And there are some very good schools that aren't accredited for one reason or another. But at least when they are accredited, a lot of your work is done for you, as far as checking out their quality. The ones I would worry about are those that can't come up with good reasons why they are not accredited. For instance, to be accredited, a school must be associated with a college or university. There are hospital-based programs that are excellent, but cannot become accredited because of that. It is the ones that are college based, yet not accredited that I would worry about. Especially if you ask them why they aren't and all they do is bad-mouth the accreditation process and make excuses for why they don't need it. Just curious, why would you ask firemen about paramedic school? That's a bit like asking cosmetologists about rocket science. Anyhow, yes, you are most likely romanticising the job too much. It's not anything like on television. If you think the real world is even remotely like Turd Watch, then you're going to be seriously disappointed. Three quarters of the job is nothing more than being a taxi driver. Three quarters of the people who really are sick or injured, you can't even help because they require real medical care, not first aid. There simply isn't a whole lot of satisfaction in this job. It is very rare. Once you spend a little time figuring all that out, you'll be really happy that you already have a real profession to fall back upon. And that, my friends, is the reason I tell everybody to go to nursing school BEFORE EMS. :wink:

Sweet. Thanks. I am going to Camp Victory for an ACLS refresher sometime next month, and I was surprised about that even coming up. I'd like to get over to Anaconda just to check things out. Y'all are awful busy up there lately!

There are two nationally accrediting organisations for EMS progams, CAAHEP, as Rid listed, and: http://www.coaemsp.org/accreditatedprograms.htm I've probably listed both links in ten or twenty threads, so minus 5 for not using the search function. But plus 5 for seriously considering the quality of your education. :thumbleft:

Ooooooooooooooh! So close, but no cigar. You were on such a roll before that fell out of your pants.

Hmmm... I didn't know that EBR ran their own school. Obviously, you already have a degree, and you probably have the necessary prerequisites like A&P and Microbiology. If so, then school choice isn't as critical. For those who do not already possess a broad educational foundation including the above courses, I would advise against any school that does not include them and result in at least an associates degree. But if you have those courses, then you have a wider range of courses. Not knowing anything about the quality of the schools themselves, there are a few things to consider when choosing. Which school last longest (by HOURS, not by calendar length)? Simple math says that the more contact hours you have, the more eduation you receive, generally speaking. And more is always better. What clinical facilities do the schools utilise? A school that sends you to high-volume hospitals and EMS services for your experience will usually have an edge over those who utilise small community hospitals and EMS services. Check on the qualifications of the instruction staff. Good medics don't necessarily make good instructors. How long they have been medics is something to consider, but not an absolute sign that they know how to teach. A better indicator is their educational credentials. Those who have spent longer in the educational process themselves are usually better prepared to relate that process to students. If none of those instructors have any academic degrees beyond a paramedic certificate, be wary. Is the school nationally accredited? http://www.caahep.org/programs.aspx http://www.coaemsp.org/accreditatedprograms.htm If a school isn't on at least one of those two lists, I would probably skip it unless they can come up with a really, really, really compelling reason why. As for working part-time, I think the opportunities are very good in your area. LA has a huge shortage, statewide. And employers like part-timers because they don't have to pay your benefits. You shouldn't have a problem with that. If you are a good OT, then I am confident that you will make a good medic. Best of luck to you!