EMTs (all levels) Then and Now....

bigdogems

bigdogems

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So this is something that I've noticed more and more over the years. When I started doing this I was 18. I started wanting to be a firefighter and ended up going down the EMS road though I was a FF/EMT for years. When started my attitude was to keep my mouth shut, learn as much as I could, and prove myself to the people I looked up to. Whenever I had to do ambulance clinicals, even if it wasn't at my FD I would jump in and do pt care. The preceptors were always ok with it and it was basically what was expected of a student. This was the attitude myself and everyone I knew had.

Now over the last few years it seems like there is a major increase of "kids" who dont know a damn thing that think the second they get their National Registry results they should be accepted automatically by the senior medics. At work we get students (all levels) on a regular basis. On their first day I will give a detailed tour of the ambulance and the equipment we use and answer any questions. I'll even tell them that they can ask the pt anything they want and provide treatment. I let them know if its wrong I'll stop them so they dont have to worry about doing the wrong thing. Yet almost every student lately when we get a call stands in the corner and doesn't talk at all. They wont do anything unless told. I can see basic students being scared but when your a paramedic student you shouldnt really have to be told to put the Diff Breathing pt on some O2. We've even had students that didn't want to intubate when given the chance. I would have been all over that when I was a student.

Anyone else notice this? What are your thoughts of the reason behind the change in the types of personalities that want to do this job?
 
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I'm noticing the same thing. I'm also wondering if I'm now "officially" old enough to :censored::censored::censored::censored::censored: about "kids these days."

It seems to me, at least, that many of the college-based EMS programs have lowered their standards as of late. Students whose behavior and attitudes I'd have never previously associated with particular programs seem to be more prevalent. Maybe "no child left behind" now applies to EMS education too?
 
Generally (excluding Ambulance) Brown has noticed an increase in the these young kids who are the "trophy" generation they want something for nothing and need to have their hand held for everything, cannot think for themselves and do not understand that their actions have consequences.

Brown blames a general breakdown in society and the education system in general.
 
"Back in my day we had to walk 15 miles through the snow just to pick our navels".

Your generation was perfect. There will never be another like it. The one before it was bigoted and narrow minded. The one after it was rude and careless. The world has gone to s**t everybody wants to hear you whine about it. No really...they do.
 
MrBrown said:
Generally (excluding Ambulance) Brown has noticed an increase in the these young kids who are the "trophy" generation they want something for nothing and need to have their hand held for everything, cannot think for themselves and do not understand that their actions have consequences.

Brown blames a general breakdown in society and the education system in general.
Click to expand...

Really? Did you not say in an earlier post that you are 24?
 
JPINFV said:
Being an outlier doesn't diminish the observation.

Perfect example of the current crop of EMS providers being indecisive and wanting their hands held:

http://emtlife.com/showthread.php?t=25797
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I can understand that JPINFV; and by no means was trying to take a shot at Brown. It gets on my nerves when someone 'younger' or of any age gets a year or two in, or not even done with school/training and feels they have the right to judge others performance.
 
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The problem is that not everything is a matter of experience. In fact, I'd argue that often having a different perspective and/or mindset is more important than experience.
 
JPINFV said:
The problem is that not everything is a matter of experience. In fact, I'd argue that often having a different perspective and/or mindset is more important than experience.
Click to expand...

I dont think you can replace experience. But you are correct in the mindset part. I rather take someone with only a couple years experience that actually cares about his job and goes out of his way to further his/her knowledge and constantly get better than someone that has been doing it longer all they do is the minimum amount of CE hours to recert.
 
bigdogems said:
I dont think you can replace experience. But you are correct in the mindset part. I rather take someone with only a couple years experience that actually cares about his job and goes out of his way to further his/her knowledge and constantly get better than someone that has been doing it longer all they do is the minimum amount of CE hours to recert.
Click to expand...

Agreed!

Look at me: I took ACLS and Cardiac Dysrythmias for fun and to expand my knowledge.. ive always had a intrest in EKG's and Cardiology..

and along with all my nursing pre-reqs: Anatomy, Micro (currently enrolled) Physio (next in line)... i also hope to take a Cadaver Pro-section class next semester (its not required) but i would like to expand my knowledge of the human body.

the best providers in any field are the ones looking to constantly learn more and improve themselves.
 
Some of the best advise I was given when I first started. "As soon as you think you've learned and know everything there is to know about EMS, QUIT! You just became dangerous."
 
There is only about 798,654 posts about the same subject. We know some people suck at their jobs and some people are really great. That's just how life goes.

As per why people are entering younger and younger I would think the schooling is much more appealing. I know at my community tech college I can get my EMT-I and Fire II in the same building, so...

*2 classes for the less than the price of one semester at my UW community college

*Hands on practical and sometimes downright fun training and classes versus 4 semesters of learning about the french revolution, English lit, and old wooden ships used in the civil war to have an associates degree.

*^^ I will already (in the ideal world) have a cool job that I derive satisfaction from before my UW counterpart has 2 semesters under his belt.

*Worst case scenario you hate it and only lost a couple grand and a few months while getting great experience and knowledge.

*Chicks Dig firefighters

*(in a perfect world again) there is plenty of room to grow in the EMS field or branch of into different field.

*Lights and Sirens make me feel awesome

Just a few things I can think of but PLLEEEAAASSSEEEE stop the general, "people are immature and can't do their jobs as well as I can posts". They are ruining this forum and there are thousands of others...:sad::sad::sad:
 
The topic wasnt about people sucking at their jobs. And seeing that I was 18 when I started doing this I'm pretty sure I wouldn't have a problem with young people getting into the field. The point was a change in attitude of students in general
 
I'll post from the opposite end, seeing as I am a paramedic student.

It all depends on the person. There are people in my class that hate running scenarios, people in my Intermediate class who made it all the way through without running a scenario. Doesn't make sense to me. You pay good money to be in these programs why not jump at every opportunity?

I've said it time and time again, please don't judge people by their age. I might not have as much experience as the next guy but I am more than willing to jump in on assessments and skills and know quite a few of my fellow students who are the same way.

That being said in the words of Michael Jackson (before he got weird) "One bad apple don't spoil the whole bunch girlllllll!"

I do agree, to an extent, with the 'trophy generation' as brown put it.
 
I'm going to throw my .02 cents in. Something that my post count should tell you I don't do very often. But I disagree with it being an age thing completely. Heck I even disagree with it being an experience thing. I'm one of the younger (19) EMT's, and I was a FR at 17. I'm also going to argue that the opposite side of the spectrum is just as bad.

As for me personally, I wasn't always the first person to jump on patient care. But I was always the first person to ask a question to gain more knowledge. This isn't because I don't like patient contact, or because I don't like the work because I do. I love it. It was more of a getting my "sea legs," and also making sure the medic was comfortable with me providing care. But that also doesn't mean I stood in the corner and didn't talk. I helped with whatever the medic had cleared me to do previously. At first it was vitals and other stuff, then as I got comfortable handling patients it was the A-Z patient care including IV's.

Now other people that I worked with either didn't want patient care at all, or didn't let the medic okay stuff and neither one worked out well.

As far as attitudes go, I think the best one, for anything, is an open minded attitude focused on becoming a better provider. Learn as much as you can even if it isn't in your scope of practice (with the firm understanding that it is knowledge you gain and not scope.) and always always focus on providing better care for the patient.

So the spectrum of attitudes that I personally have witnessed is the meek to the god. The meek stand in corners don't appear to want to learn anything. Bad for obvious reasons, but good medics figure out if its nerves or something else and get them to come out of their shell.

The second is the god, or they think they are. Students and providers alike. They think they know everything, refuse to take advice or criticism and try to take charge to a point thats not acceptable. The best example I have of this is a medic student that was riding the same time I was doing my basic clinicals. She refused to listen to the medic, didn't study or ask questions, and even though the medic told her to observe the first call and ask questions, she tried to jump in and take over control of the scene from the medic. Also she tried to argue with the medic about care in front of a patient. (all of this is first hand from a conversation with the crew.) Thats taking it too far.

Thats my .02.
 
I have to jump in here too. If anyone has read my other (few) posts, they'll know that i have 5 + years of experience in the behavioral/mental health field. I do not take that experience lightly; it was hard, difficult work with ppl who often do not want to change AT ALL, and made my life really hard. Granted, there were some clients who were just awesome. I miss those ones. I was laid off from my mental health job in Jan 2010, when the Feds & states decided to cut more funding (AGAIN) for the mentally ill. I tried a few other random jobs, always in search of something better and fulfilling. Last summer I decided to try EMT, as 1 of my sisters had done at CCRI and she loved it, and i figured, why not? I certianly have ppl and crisis experience!! So, I took the EMT-B class at Cape Cod Comm. College (4cs) and loved it. I've been looking around for jobs and applying, but it IS Cape Cod, full of nepitism and not a lot of work.

I'm 28, so not entirely a young doe, and I have a lot more respect and smarts than a lot of the ppl in my EMT class. I cannot tell you the morons I had to deal with. All I can hope is that some of them (the ditzy blondes who flirted w/ our instructor, played on FB & on their iphones the entire class pd, who are complete MORONS) NEVER make it to getting a job as an EMT. God help us. I am looking to help people, in a far different way than I used to, and find some satisfaction and a job that doesnt leave me feeling lame. I earnestly want a job in this field and I know I have to start from the bottom up (Cape cod ambulance for ex) but I am perfectly willing to do that. I want to learn ALL that I can, especially from my elders in the field (theres no one better really). I'm not certain I want to be a FF, so my options are limited on CC, but some day I'll go for Paramedic training.

There you have it. Back to work making reservations for rich people.

kate
 
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