EMT-I class

Second

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about how long does it take to "weed out" the ones who wont make it in EMT-I class?

I don't have anything against these guys there just not picking up the terminology, procedures, the skeletal system or the circulatory system or anything and were in our 8th week of class.
 

Ridryder911

EMS Guru
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Sometimes never. It depends upon what you describe "weeding out". I am finding that many institutions are allowing anyone to stay if they pay. Shameful because some students disrupts others that want to learn, increases size for lab, practice and causes the numbers to be skewed for pass rates.

Then again just as a fellow student you might be surprised who will make it and the one that will not. I have seen students grasp it much more than those fellow classmates assumed.

R/r 911
 

Robby1974

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Interesting

OK well I just finished my Intermediate class and was surprised to see who was "weeded out" as you put it. In the course I took, each student was required to have a 75% at mid term and an 80% (overall) at the final. If a student's grade was not at that level then they were not allowed to take the mid term or final and were dismissed from the program. We started with 26 people in the class. Some of those students had yet to take the written portion of the NREMT-B which was a prerequisite to get in to the course. The course instructor gave a 2 week grace period to get your NREMT-B. I already had mine as did most of the class but several did not. We lost 3 students who failed their NREMT. At midterm we lost a few as well. By the final everyone that was still in the class passed and had the GPA to take NREMT practical portion which was included in our class fee. Everyone passed that as well but a few people had to retest some stations at the end of the day. All in all we had a graduating class of 18. Here's my take on this. I did pretty well in basic class. It was a struggle to learn the information quickly as it was only an 8 week course. The Intermediate course was actually easier for me because I had recently had EMTB and understood and retained the information because the material was still fresh in my mind. I passed the course with a little over a 90% (not sure the exact # because I wasn't told at the end...it's pass/fail) Even doing so well in class I'm still nervous about IV's and some other things as well. I want to be the best EMT I can be for my pts. Those that didn't work hard in the class and had to drop out were mostly 18-19 year old teens that all wanted to go to fire. Most of them were already enrolled in fire sciences program at the local college. Prolly had too much on their plate.
 
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VentMedic

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Those that didn't work hard in the class and had to drop out were mostly 18-19 year old teens that all wanted to go to fire. Most of them were already enrolled in fire sciences program at the local college. Prolly had too much on their plate.

Some just have no interest in medicine and that is why Fire and EMS are very different. When you do just the minimum in a class that is totally out of your interest just to get a job and don't realize how important it is to patient care, there becomes a problem within the system(s) itself for allowing this to continue as it has throughout the years.

No other medical PROFESSION would allow students to be in their program if there was no interest shown in medicine or the promotion of medicine as a profession.
 
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Ridryder911

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No other medical PROFESSION would allow students to be in their program if there was no interest shown in medicine or the promotion of medicine as a profession.


AMEN!

This is why my class is now about less than half that enrolled. Sorry, don't want to be there.. then be somewhere else!

Here is something to add...

I just received an e-mail from our state EMS instructors. The turmoil is that EMS Instructors will have to have a Associate Degree to be able to be meet the accreditation process. I wished I could display some of the answers .. it is amazing on the responses of how many feel threatened of a little education.

Here is the questions to EMS instructors:

1.So what does everyone think about this new proposal?

2. How will it affect your program?

3. Will this improve our programs and pass rates?

4. Does it help increase our professionalism in the healthcare industry?

5. Should we be more educated than our students?

6. Will it help with co-enrollment agreements with the colleges?

Shameful that EMS Instructors should even have to be asked such questions.

R/r 911
 
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VentMedic

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Here is the questions to EMS instructors:

1.So what does everyone think about this new proposal?

Somebody's just out to make some money off this.

2. How will it affect your program?

We better not have to lay off Bubba. The students like him a lots cause he has great stories to tell.

3. Will this improve our programs and pass rates?

We've always taught how to just pass the test and didn't have to worry about none of that other stuff cluttering it up.

4. Does it help increase our professionalism in the healthcare industry?

What?! You think we're nurses or something? We're EMS, not healthcare.

5. Should we be more educated than our students?

Again, Bubba is real liked by his students cos he's on their level. He don't speak over their heads.

6. Will it help with co-enrollment agreements with the colleges?

We've done alright the past 30 years in that little classroom at the firehouse. We can take care of our own.


Shameful that EMS Instructors should even have to be asked such questions.

CNAs are trained by degreed RNs.

Phlebotomists are trained by degreed lab technologists.

These are entry level certificate programs and yet, these professions take seriously the education and training of people providing care to the patients to see that a qualified person is doing the job.
 
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jochi1543

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Our school has multiple exit points - altogether, I think we have 9 exams where you could get kicked out if you don't make a 75%, and there are other graded items where averaging below 75% would result in a failure. However, they let us do 1 retake for these 9 exams. We have a few people in my class who got kicked out of the previous class. I've only interacted with one, and I really hope that person doesn't get through this class, either, because the amount of misinformation they are providing to other people is simply incredible, especially for someone who had already taken like 3/4 of the class.

Our school also has some questionable expulsion policies, but I think they do it to make sure their provincial exam pass rate is as high as possible - and it appears to be working, considering that only 1 person out of 150 or so most recent graduates failed at the licensing exam. At least I know that if I make it through the program, I'm pretty much guaranteed to pass the provincial licensing exam, which is comforting.
 

John E

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Don't keep us hangin...

Rid, what were some of the responses from your colleagues?

If an Associates Degree is too much, maybe they can catch a job at the local fire academy?

John E.

Just kidding, some of my best friends are firefighters...they just don't pretend to be something they're not...
 
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