basic emt training. a good intro to health care

[EMEDPA]

I have been asked for this info a few times so will add it here as a permanent "sticky". emt training is a quick way to learn many important medical skills needed as a pa. it can provide reasonable emplyment as an er tech or ambulance emt( $9-12/hr or so to start) while applying to pa school. it certainly meets experience/clinical prereqs for pa school.

the 120 hr emt class is for emt basic. to do things like starting iv's and giving meds one needs additional training at the level of emt-intermediate or emt paramedic. check with local fire departments and community colleges for emt courses. also check with the national association of emt's:

http://www.naemt.org/ if in the los angeles area check with daniel freeman hospital/ucla prehospital training(link below), they offer all levels of emt training in concentrated form(3 weeks for emt, 7-8 months for paramedic).they also have weekend only training options for those who can't leave a full time job.

http://www.cpc.mednet.ucla.edu/

in northern california(santa cruz) here is another great option for emt training:

http://www.etsclassroom.com/MainSite/Default.htm

 

online emt course: classwork online, skills done at intensive workshop in texas

http://www.trainingdivision.com/EMT.asp

if anyone else has links to emt training programs feel free to list them here. thanks-e

[JenGintheED]

If you are looking for EMT training in NC, here is a link to NC Office of EMS training calendar. The calendar includes training and refresher courses for all aspects of EMS, but if you scroll through the list you will find postings like this one:

 

"March 28-July 21 and other dates plus clinical: EMT-BASIC COURSE. Wake Tech, Raleigh. Prerequisites: current CPR certification, English proficiency, e-mail/internet access, and clinical attire. For information, call (919) 662-3534. 164 hours plus 16 hours clinical. Cost is $65. Schedule 1 is MWTh, 6:30p-9:30p."

[amanquee]

An EMT course for $65 is a bargain! Where I live it is several hundred.........

[EMEDPA]

mine was free...of course that was before color film :)

[PApilot]

Check with your local systems... Some organizations like volunteer ambulance, fire depts, etc... will provide you with everything, ie CPR, EMT, etc... Plus, its a great place to get some experience. Just know some programs might not count volunteer hours (see an earlier thread on this).

 

Emedpa... When I worked for NYC*EMS, I worked with some guys who were the original dinosaurs of EMS, and I'm talking before white vans with lollypop lights; these guys were white jacket, cadillac hearse guys. They were/are the best on the street - keep you and your patient alive. Go Old School!!!

[EMEDPA]

"Just know some programs might not count volunteer hours (see an earlier thread on this)."

 

many programs (such as medex/u. wa.) will take volunteer hrs if you volunteer in a professional capacity(emt, rn, etc) as opposed to a non-credentialed volunteer( helping fold sheets in the er or pushing pts around the hospital on a gurney).

[Teasip]

EMEDPA, mine was before cameras. Honestly, I took mine back in the days when it was primarily reserved for municipalities getting into EMS. I think mine back then cost about $150. I'm not sure how I qualified other than calling UT-Southwestern and taking it during the spring semester of my second year of Jr. College.

[MedicinePower]

Couldn't agree more.

 

I'm not biased in any way. :) (look at my sig)

[JXRODRIG]

Hi, does that mean that it would help in the long run to take an EMTclass or classes and learn some skills that would serve me before entering a PA program? I am currently working on my core basics but should I sidetrack this and get this training first? Do you know if Houston has weekend or short term classes for EMT? The community college has a two yr program but that would mean two years more from getting a bachelors degree. I am not comfortable with that delay. What would be the best route?

[kargiver]

EMT courses are something that can be easily (usually) integrated into current schedules. For example, most schools around here (Massachusetts) meet two nights a week for 4 hours and the occasional saturday. The training is flexible so I wouldn't imagine it difficult to find a program. No EMT-basic program is two years (the DOT curriculum is ~110 hours at most) so I would guess you are looking at paramedic school curriculums. Those vary.

 

If you can work it in, do it. It'll be worth it.

 

G

[JXRODRIG]

Thanks kargiver, I will look into the EMT programs in my area.

[Monica]

Do you know if Houston has weekend or short term classes for EMT?

 

Not sure about weekend courses but I received my EMT-B at a community college in the Metro Houston area over one summer. If memory serves it lasted about 2-2.5 months. It was awesome training before PA school!

[Guest hudsonhawk77]

I was courious if anyone has heard of a bridge class for PA's to street medics??? I have heard of classes for nurses.

[EMEDPA]

http://ems.creighton.edu/rnp.htm

 

 

this is an rn to medic 11 day class(which is !@#$% ridiculous if you ask me- you can't teach a floor nurse to be a medic in 11 days....trust me, I was one).

 

I don't know if a pa could challenge the rn requirement by showing similar aptitude on some entry exam or something.....a few states I am told allow md/pa/np folks to challenge the medic exam, don't know which states this applies to.

 

there is a 4 day paramedic refresher course at the daniel freeman/ucla paramedic program for former medics to get tuned up to sit for the national exam if they have let their cert lapse. this seems more reasonable because it is a refresher, not all new info

http://www.cpc.mednet.ucla.edu/SRRS/Programs/ProgramDetailUser.aspx

[EMEDPA]

emt-b in 14 days...if you have 3 k to burn and need the cert RIGHT AWAY!

http://www.unitekcollege.com/emt/fasttrack2.php

[VentJock]

emt-b in 14 days...if you have 3 k to burn and need the cert RIGHT AWAY!

http://www.unitekcollege.com/emt/fasttrack2.php

 

EXPENSIVE and crazy!!!!

[Guest EMT2PA]

EMEDPA, I noticed on the unitek website not only the price, but that this college is not accredited. To your knowledge, does that have an effect on the license and do ER's look unfavorably at that?

 

Also, you do take the national emt test at this college. Does that mean if I completed the bootcamp here in CA that I could work as an ER Tech in Iowa?

 

Thanks for the help!

[EMEDPA]

sent you a pm-e

[Guest GD09335]

The US Army's Academy of Health Sciences offers the 91W Combat Medic Course in only 12 weeks for free- room and board provided! Graduates eligible to take the NREMT exam. Only one weekend a month and two weeks a year through the National Guard. Yeah right.

[Guest Jens927]

I am highly considering training as an EMT and working part time but have been dissuaded by a current PA who beleives that there are better options (ie MA, CNA) to gaining patient care. I wanted to get a second opinion on this. Do the hours that I'm being paid for (or spent volunteering) count as patient hours? Does the majority of a shift consist of waiting to go out on a call or doing something like support/transfering because I would be considered junior in the field despite my training? Thanks for your comments!

[IcuPAC]

I am not sure why your PA friend would recommend being a CNA/MA over an EMT, unless perhaps they were thinking you might only work in the field, and not as an ER Tech in a hospital. I don't know about counting hours, but it seems to me that if you only transport 3-4 patients in a 12 hour ambulance shift, then you didn't get much patient care experience.

 

I strongly recommend being an ER Tech in an emergency room. 4 years ago I got my EMT and was hired by a local ED/Trauma center. They trained me in phlebotomy, splints, wound care, and ekgs. We saw an average of 100-120 patients a day, so it is nonstop patient contact.

 

Along with the mundane parts of the job (ie. housekeeping style chores), I have been able to participate in some pretty amazing patient care experiences. I work fast-track with PAs, but I also assist in traumas and cardiopulmonary resuscitations, wrestle psych patients, etc. etc. Especially if you have any interest in critical care, there is no other route better for you (other than RN or Paramedic) that will give you the VITAL pre-PA experience.

 

P.S. I was one of the first accepted students to OHSU this year, and I know that my experience in the ED helped.

 

Best of luck.

[JenGintheED]

Did this PA say why she thought that? Do you think her reasons are valid?? As an EMT/ED tech/medic, I can't say anything bad about the EMT experience. It's been a tremendous help to me, both in the didactic & clinical year. But what is best for YOU will depend on what opportunities there are in you area, and what you want to go into.

• Does the EMS agency in your area hire EMT-Bs, and what do they get to do? You might not get much from your experience if basics only drive, or if you are required to become a firefighter to get on the ambulance.
  
• Do the EDs in your area hire EMTs as ED techs? That's how I got my ED tech job, but I've worked & rotated in hospitals that only hire CNAs... most likely hospital politics, not a reflection of the preparation.
  
• Who do the hospitals hire to work in high-acuity areas like the NICU, PICU, MICU, telemetry, etc? If there is an academic medical center in your area, I'd look into it - those people are used to teaching and you could get some really good OTJ lessons.
  
• What do you want to do with your PA-C? Surgery? Peds? Family med? Ob/Gyn? See if there is a doc or midlevel in your area who will hire you to work in their office but will also teach you about their field and practice OTJ. What qualifications do they want?

There's nothing wrong with being a CNA or MA, in my opinion. What will make a difference is what you do with whatever cert you have, and how much you learn in your pre-PA work experience. I met a CNA in the MICU at the local trauma center on my first rotation - he was getting a lesson from a resident on how to comfirm PICC line placement by looking at chest x-rays (and based on his questions, I mistook him for a med student or first-year resident)!! He's interested in becoming a PA, and he'll get a great preparation in his current CNA job.

 

{But if all other things are equal, I'd go EMT... working the ED and in EMS was really cool :D }

[Guest Edivocke]

Re: Job opportunities with EMT-B? http://www.firetimes.com/banners/splash/LifeStar.htm

 

http://www.transcare.com/

 

http://www.amr.net/

 

http://www.ruralmetro.com/

 

www.medic911.com

[Contrarian]

Quick and relatively inexpensive EMT-B thru EMT-P training... ;)

[prePAmom]

Dallas, TX area EMT programs

 

www.EMTS911.com They've been around fifteen years or so and have a great reputation. All ambulance shifts are through Dallas Fire Dept. I'm currently taking EMT-B through them.

 

I also know that Richland Community College and UT Southwestern have programs. There may be more.