EMT-B calling himself a 'Medic' in Indiana

[NYCEMS9115]

I guess when in Indiana; do what Indianians do... Others call you what they think is right.

I am an Ambulance Driver, when I drive. I am an Ambulance Attendant, when I'm in the passenger seat. I am an Ambulance Writer, when I'm writing the PCR. I am an Ambulance Re-stocker, when I'm re-stocking the Ambulance. I am an Ambulance Provider, when I'm providing Care. Just don't call me an Ambulance (the Ambulance is here!), I left it on the street...

You as the Provider should introduce yourself appropriately. Hello, my name is --------. I am an EMT, Advanced EMT, or Paramedic...

[Richard B the EMT]

Call yourself whatever the heck you want. If you do it enough times, others might even believe you.

Flaw here. Were I to tell enough people I was a Star Fleet Captain, in command of the United Star Ship Excelsior, under the jurisdiction of the United Federation of Planets, I would be "Beamed" to a room and bed at the nearest State Mental Hospital, wearing an "I Love Myself" coat.

Sometimes it just isn't worth gnawing through the restraints.

(Side note: As a "Star Trek" fan, I know Captain Sulu commands the Excelsior, but his second in command is someone of the same last name as mine)

[celticcare]

Here in NZ, with one of the services I was with, anyone EMT-B upwards was refered to as Paramedic and then there was Intensive Care Paramedic above that. So hence was refered to as medic, but luckily there is a strong community push here where people are educated in that there are different levels of ambulance staff. Most first aid courses here have at least a slide talking about the different ambulance provider levels and so people understood the tiered response system and there are tv shows here following the ambulance crews around and explain the scope and skill levels.

If people asked what I did, I would say I'm an Ambo as it let people know that I worked on the trucks but then often a converstion would ensue about what the work entails and would be up front saying that there are levels and that some skills are reserved for certain levels and that I could do such and such for my work.

I currently work full time as an RN within a busy metropolitan Emergency Department. We have different scopes of Nurse there, I am happily a run of the mill RN, we don't have LPN's or CNA's here. There are Enrolled nurses coming back, but our uniforms all say nurse, the only difference being that we have some more advanced scopes than the EN's. I do get pissy at some of the Clinical Nurse Specialists that flaunt their title around, at the end of the day, they are still RN's just with some extra skills under their belt but get shitty if you refer to them as "nurse". And CHBARE, I had a nursing lecturer who had her PhD and it was all about nursing education and how we had come along, no actual clinical focus in it, and she would tear you a new one if you didn't refer to her as Dr. I'm sorry but if you want to be called Dr, do something actually clinical and get an MD or a focus on something other than how touchy feely we have become in our Nursing journeys. Used to make me mad as it seemed a throw in the face of what the true paths of nursing had become.

Titles, yes at the end of the day, are just titles, how we portray ourselves with honesty and intergrity are different things and it takes a stronger individual to actually correct someone and educate those who otherwise wouldn't know.

Dwayne thanks for the input and perhaps putting a leg out there for the rest of us in this field/profession.

[Dustdevil]

Titles, yes at the end of the day, are just titles...

That was a lot funnier before I realised you weren't saying titties.

[LP549]

I guess when in Indiana; do what Indianians do... Others call you what they think is right.

I am an Ambulance Driver, when I drive. I am an Ambulance Attendant, when I'm in the passenger seat. I am an Ambulance Writer, when I'm writing the PCR. I am an Ambulance Re-stocker, when I'm re-stocking the Ambulance. I am an Ambulance Provider, when I'm providing Care. Just don't call me an Ambulance (the Ambulance is here!), I left it on the street...

You as the Provider should introduce yourself appropriately. Hello, my name is --------. I am an EMT, Advanced EMT, or Paramedic...

NO! NO ! NO! Whatever your certification--you ARE an EMT FIRST! NO ONE is just an "AMBULANCE DRIVER" "ATTENDANT" or "WRITER" or "RESTOCKER" - We are all "PROVIDERS"-----The unit requires at least two personnel to operate(three would be nice, but that will probably never be the norm)- so, even if you're not the "lead medic"--you are still providing care in one form or another to your patient. NO ONE went to school "just to learn" how to drive an ambulance, write a report, or restock an ambulance. I've been doing this for thirty two years, and it bugs the "H--- outta me when someone with a higher level looks at an EMT as "just an EMT." WE ARE ALL EMTs, FIRST! I consider EMTs medics. This is just my opinion. EVERYONE STAY SAFE THIS FOURTH OF JULY-----------------------

[paramedicmike]

NO ONE went to school "just to learn" how to drive an ambulance, write a report, or restock an ambulance.

I don't know where you're from but you've obviously not met most of the people I used to work with.

[DwayneEMTP]

NO! NO ! NO! Whatever your certification--you ARE an EMT FIRST! NO ONE is just an "AMBULANCE DRIVER" "ATTENDANT" or "WRITER" or "RESTOCKER" - We are all "PROVIDERS"-----The unit requires at least two personnel to operate(three would be nice, but that will probably never be the norm)- so, even if you're not the "lead medic"--you are still providing care in one form or another to your patient. NO ONE went to school "just to learn" how to drive an ambulance, write a report, or restock an ambulance. I've been doing this for thirty two years, and it bugs the "H--- outta me when someone with a higher level looks at an EMT as "just an EMT." WE ARE ALL EMTs, FIRST! I consider EMTs medics. This is just my opinion. EVERYONE STAY SAFE THIS FOURTH OF JULY-----------------------

I too consider all medics EMTs, just not EMTs medics. Your argument makes sense if you and others continue the bullshit argument that the public has no mental image of a 'medic' such as they get from TV, movies, war shows, etc. And to those that make the argument why then not just call themselves EMTs? I've never seen a basic make the argument that we should all just call ourselves EMTs so that things would be simpler, right?

There is no doubt, whatsoever, that they are using the nomenclature to appear to be something that they are not.

But again, make the EMT cert terminate permanently after 2 years without an irrevocable financial commitment to Para'medic' and this whole issue will go away, as well as raise the educational standard of all future EMS providers.

But until then, I continue, at least for now, to disbelieve that a title is just a title. So far I've failed to be convinced that supporting Ricky Rescue's habit of telling all that he meets that he is a "Medic", particularly when anyone with half a brain can see that he is a wanker within 5 minutes, is ill advised...at the very least.

Dwayne

[Dustdevil]

NO ONE went to school "just to learn" how to drive an ambulance, write a report, or restock an ambulance.

The really unfortunate thing is that you are right. The profession would be a lot better off if schools did in fact competently teach those things though. As it is, most new grads suck at all three.

[usiems]

I've never met anyone else in the hospital (pharmacists, PT/OT, PA, etc) who wanted to be called doctor. I'm not sure what it is with the DNPs.

might have something to do with fact that DNPs earned a doctorate, and thus earned the honorific "Dr" ( and PAs, Pharms for the most part dont have a doctorate).

funny how doc's feel the NP/DNP heat lol.

[ERDoc]

might have something to do with fact that DNPs earned a doctorate, and thus earned the honorific "Dr" ( and PAs, Pharms for the most part dont have a doctorate).

funny how doc's feel the NP/DNP heat lol.

Most of the pharms I work with are PharmDs but none of them want to misrepresent themselves to pts. Just because you have a doctorate degree (we won't even go into the quality of these programs, or lack thereof) does not mean you should represent yourself as a physician in a healthcare setting. By that reasoning the hospital CEO who has a doctorate level degree should call himself a doctor. In general, physicians do not hold a monopoly on the term doctor but in the hospital, absolutely they should. It's pretty much the same as EMTs calling themselves paramedics.