Guidance Possibly Needed

[AyeSpy]

First off, I'm new to the site so I guess I should say hello. My name is Mike. I admire what you guys do out there which leads me to my post...

I'm curious about the work of EMS. As of right now, I'm in the Navy as a Master at Arms (Military Police) and I will be for awhile (until I'm 22). When I get out I'll have my G.I. bill to use and a whole world in front of me. I'm still deciding whether or not I want to become a police officer or EMT/Paramedic. I've narrowed it down to those two, though.

I was hoping you guys could help me out here. What could I do while I'm enlisted to help me out with being an EMT? I'm going to take some general online college courses to work towards a degree. Is there anything in particular I should be looking at? Also, how long does it usually take to go from EMT-B to EMT-I (ALS)? I'm not too knowledgeable right now on EMT stuff so please help me out.

I heard you can do EMT-B in about a semester. What kind of calls do you do if you are just EMT-B certified? Nursing home runs? What if you want to work for a big city department and do more higher profile runs? Do you go straight to paramedic schooling? I'm totally lost when it comes to this kind of thing...

One more question, I'll be 22 when starting school for EMT. Is that about the right age? I hear a lot of people here are starting when they are 18-19...it sounds stupid but with the amount of training you need to become paramedic could I be starting too late?

Thank you for your help!

 

[emt_angel25]

either is great. im currently and EMT but want a little somthing more. so after medic school im gonna go into the police acadamy and become an officer. some places in the states hire ff/emt/emt-p/cops and they rotate their schedule.
age is nothing but a number. its not to late to start into EMS.

wish you the best of luck

 

[KEVD18]

this ones actually pretty easy.

emt b: 2 weeks to 3/4 months. 800-1000 bucks. different places will have basics doing different jobs. in boston, a basic emt is the primary medical responder. for the whole city, there are a dozen to sixteen bls truck on at a time v. 6 medics. other places, your a dialysis transport tech and nothing more. still other places, you might work a 911 truck, but your a ddriver. it all depends

emt-i: 2-4 months. 2 grand. arguable still a relevant rank. actually used more in the rural setting, tough to find a I job in the urban setting. considered by some to be a pointless waste fo time. do a search and you hear the argument(and i do mean arguments) on each side. lets not relive that one again. not required by mass to advance to medic.

medic: 12-24 months. price is crazy variable. just in ma, you can get your medic for 8 grand to 22k.

do a search for how much time in the field before medic school related threads. we've been all through this one a thousand times and it always ends in a fight, so lets skip that one this time too.

some people dont get into this business until late into their life and do just fine. i think you might be confusing the amount of time it takes to be a medic and the time to be a doctor. if you did it end to end full time, you could be a medic from the word go in less than 18 months.

 

[AyeSpy]

So you would go to EMT-B and then go to medic or do you go straight to medic?

Also, a lot of the certifications vary state to state don't they? So I should make sure to get my schooling done in a place where I want to work/settle down correct?

 

[tydek07]

So you would go to EMT-B and then go to medic or do you go straight to medic?

Also, a lot of the certifications vary state to state don't they? So I should make sure to get my schooling done in a place where I want to work/settle down correct?

Hello,

First off welcome to EMTlife.

You must be an EMT-Basic before you can apply for medic school. Now, there is not a certain amount of time you have to an EMT, so you can technically get your EMT and then go straight to medic school without working as an EMT. But, I recommend you work as an EMT, not only to get experience, but to also to see if this is really for you... no sense spending 10grand or more to get your EMT and Medic, then find out that this isnt for you.

Get your National Registry (NR) certification, it is widely excepted and gives you free roam of most states... But if you want, you can also just get your state certification (skipping the NR) but then you will be stuck in that specific state... so just get the national registry (which should be no problem as almost all classes go the NR route now-a-days anyway).

But you must know that: "National certification is not a license to practice. You should contact your state EMS office for information on licensing requirements." So, you need to sent your NR card in to whatever state you want to work in and get licensed in that state. Once that is done, you can pick and chose a service to work for.

Take Care,

 

[KEVD18]

sorry, i wasnt clear but tydek polished it up for me.

you have to be a basic to test for medic, but you dont have to have one single day on the road as a basic to get your medic, just the card in your wallet.

again, for just about member heres view on this situation, please use the search function. we've had this discussion(argument) no less then a dozen times this year alone. thanks.

 

[AyeSpy]

So what kind of work does an EMT-B do? I know you touched on it earlier in the thread and it varies from department to department. I was under the impression EMT-B's simply did nursing home runs and stuff of that nature. Not so much the 911 emergency calls (traffic accidents, gun shot/stab wounds, falls, etc). Are there certain departments (I heard Boston is hard to get into) that do more of that stuff?

What's the major difference in working for a city vs. private company? I assume money would be better in the private company but that's just a guess.

 

[NJN]

It all depends on where you would work on what kind of calls a B would do. Nursing home transfers, dialysis runs, all those basic non emergent transports are covered by EMT-Bs. In NJ EMT-Bs respond to all 911 calls and medics only if its an ALS call. I have gone to Major MVAs, stabbings, gunshots, codes, all while on a truck staffed by EMT-Bs.

 

[KEVD18]

the basic emt can do anything from basic non emergent medical transportation(dialysis, dr appts, etc) to being the only emergency medical providers for miles around(meaning they do everything. wrecks, shootings, overdoses, everything). for specifics, you'll have to research individula areas and services. your impression isnt accurate, at least industry wide. dont get me wrong, a basic on a private truck in some places is nothing more than a taxi driver. in other places, they are it. theres no right or wrong answer. it depends on where you want to work.

in ma, municipal positions pay much more than privates. they also come with a much better benefits package.

 

[AyeSpy]

Alright, thank you guys for your help. In the mean time, I'll just take some basic college courses online and fulfill my contract to the Navy.

Stay safe out there

 

[traumateam1]

So what kind of work does an EMT-B do? I know you touched on it earlier in the thread and it varies from department to department. I was under the impression EMT-B's simply did nursing home runs and stuff of that nature. Not so much the 911 emergency calls (traffic accidents, gun shot/stab wounds, falls, etc).

Now not being an American, I'm not the resident expert here, but I'll let you know, what I know.

Being an EMT-B differers from city to city, state to state. Some cities/states allow two EMT-Bs to have an ambo and run all calls. From 911 calls to inter-facility transports. It really all depends on the company. However, some cities/states only allow EMT-Bs to work with a medic, and they may only get to drive. There really isn't any one answer to your question. It varies greatly.

If you are an EMT-B that gets to do 911 calls, expect everything and anything you can think of. You will get tough calls (Would you have ALS'd this patient?) to simple easy calls. You'll get trauma alert calls (GSWs, nasty MVAs, etc). You'll get Code Brown calls. You will get it all.

However, if you get the opposite.. you wont be doing too much (now I don't know the specifics but...) you'll probably spend your days driving, and helping the medic on the scene.

Check out all the threads more. Check out the Scenarios threads, check out BLS threads. This will probably help you answer questions that you have. There is a lot of information on this site.. you just need to find it!

Good luck with your decisions, and stay safe!