16 y/o EMT Alone in Rig

[hoss42141]

That is bacause they are not allowed to in many states, but there is a select few that allow you to be 16 and be an EMT. My instructor was 16 when he became an EMT, and 18 when he became a medic. Does that make him less qualified.

 

[CheifBud]

That is bacause they are not allowed to in many states, but there is a select few that allow you to be 16 and be an EMT. My instructor was 16 when he became an EMT, and 18 when he became a medic. Does that make him less qualified.

And I bet that guy who got his medic at 18 knows the the carp outta EMS when he's 25 or so when others are just getting into it...

 

[hoss42141]

Actually he just turned 27 or 28 and is the training officer at his station. He knows his stuff, but he is more about statistics than anything. He doesn't work the truck often because his ft job is a flight medic for air-evac.

 

[CheifBud]

I just find so many people finding something they like and wishing they would have done so earlier. If I knew then what I did now I would have been all over the chance to get a head start on my life...

 

[hoss42141]

Well I'm 30 and just getting started. I did the military thing, then the college thing. Wanted to become a cop but they aren't doing any hiring around here, so I am doing this. Did ride time and now I wanna go into medic school, but don't have the fundings to do so at the moment.

 

[jgmedic]

Did he just trash someone on English and then use the word 'and' instead of 'an'? Then went on to spell the word 'providing' incorrectly within one sentence?

That just jumped out at me is all.

Says the guy who misspells Chief in his user name

 

[nwhitney]

But again even brain development at certain ages is a bell curve with some ahead of it and some behind. Since it would be prohibitively expensive to give everyone yearly brain scans to determine when one is sufficiently developed for whatever activity (driving driking riding an ambulance etc) not to mention the practical implications regarding checking I'd the government picks an arbitrary, even if supported on some level by science, age to say "ok at 18 or 21 or whatever people can do XYZ"

Where do the majority of people fall in regard to the bell curve? Right inside. You're right even if the science was available to determine the maturity level of people it just isn't feasible. So again it comes down to what typically leads to maturity and how it can be measured. Like I said earlier people tend to mature as they age and gain life experience and a great way to measure this is with age. A 16 year old no matter how mature doesn't have the life experience of a 40 year old adult. Because of this I don't believe a 16 year old should be providing patient care certainly not alone with a patient. Plus as someone else mentioned a 16 year old should be off being a kid. Hell when I was 16 I was trying to hump anything I could and I failed every time but that's a different story.

 

[Sasha]

I didnt realize this was english class

Sent from LuLu using Tapatalk

 

[njemtbvol]

We didn't

Having come of youth squad and now being 18+, you are 100% right in NJ you cannot. I did know of neighboring squads who would let a guy younger if the pt. was a broken ankle or something minor though. As for the rule, I think it's bogus. The day I turned 18 I was in the back alone, what really changed that one day.

 

[Cup of Joe]

Having come of youth squad and now being 18+, you are 100% right in NJ you cannot. I did know of neighboring squads who would let a guy younger if the pt. was a broken ankle or something minor though. As for the rule, I think it's bogus. The day I turned 18 I was in the back alone, what really changed that one day.

Like all of us when we turn 18, we automatically become smart enough, logical enough, and all that other good stuff, to be considered "adults".

 

[EMTswag]

Legally speaking, can an EMT in NJ who is under 18 be alone with the patient in the back of the rig? I know that I will not be receiving actual legal advice, but has anyone done it/known of it?

no. In NJ if you are under 18 with an EMT cert you have a probationary cert which means you can only act as a BLS provider in the presence of another EMT over 18. you would actually have a different card that says probationary on it.

 

[yankeefan213]

no. In NJ if you are under 18 with an EMT cert you have a probationary cert which means you can only act as a BLS provider in the presence of another EMT over 18. you would actually have a different card that says probationary on it.

It says "provisional." That's what I believed.

 

[volleyball11]

I'm 16 years old and just finished my course, which was mixed with both teens and adults. In my opinion, all of the younger people took the class more seriously than the older people and I know for a fact that we all had the highest gpas. I know this sounds horrible and is of course not true for everyone, but I wouldn't want most of the people who took it to be working on me because most of them just wanted an easy job that would require little schooling, as opposed us who are serious about it and have hopes of med school. As far as maturity goes, I think any sixteen year old who is willing to sit through a 100 hour class along with all of the studying and work that goes along with it shows a high level of it.

 

[EMTBP]

Technically no

In NJ since under 16, you'd be a provisional emt-basic, so need to be under the direct supervision of and emt-b (non provisional). A provisional can't be used to fill a rig either. There has to be 2 emt-b's in a rig + a provisional if there were to be a provisional. You wouldn't be allowed to do anything with the patient without an emt-b watching you. Once you're 18, you are upgraded to a basic emt and can do any of that (following protocol) on your own.

 

[mycrofft]

(s)he may be around eighteen by now.

 

[PaddyWagon]

Legal or not, it's going to pooch the fight to legitimize EMT/EMS as a profession to have 16 yr old high school kids responding.

 

[NJEMT95]

As others have said, NJ state law mandates that a 'provisional' EMT cannot fill a crew and must be under the supervision of another EMT at all times. However, due to loose ambulance licensing & regulation - specifically through the NJ First Aid Council as opposed to the state DOH - volley squads have been known to ignore the age requirement. I've also heard of a squad getting some type of clearance from FEMA during states of emergency to waive the restriction.

 

[ZombieEMT]

Yes and No

As previously stated, being a provisional EMT means that you can not complete a crew of two. That does not mean you can not be in the back alone, as there are two seats in the front of an ambulance. Being provisional does not mean that you can not treat a patient or make your own medical decisions, just as a provisional license does not mean that you can not drive alone.

Also, looking at the legal aspects of the situation, a person under the age of 18 in the state of NJ can not sign a legal document I.E patient care report. Meaning you still need two EMTs to sign. Again though, that does not mean that two EMTS can not ride up front.

 

[Handsome Robb]

As previously stated, being a provisional EMT means that you can not complete a crew of two. That does not mean you can not be in the back alone, as there are two seats in the front of an ambulance. Being provisional does not mean that you can not treat a patient or make your own medical decisions, just as a provisional license does not mean that you can not drive alone.

Also, looking at the legal aspects of the situation, a person under the age of 18 in the state of NJ can not sign a legal document I.E patient care report. Meaning you still need two EMTs to sign. Again though, that does not mean that two EMTS can not ride up front.

Not going to lie, I wouldn't be super stoked to find out the two crew members allowed my family member to ride in the back with a 16 year old attendant. Just my opinion, don't get all riled up over it.

 

[ZombieEMT]

I am not saying I agree with it or would allow it but from a legal stand point it might happen.