IDEAL Training Period

[CGMedic16]

I would like to hear some thoughts/discussions out there on what your service does in terms of - upon hiring a new Paramedic - what happens next? as far as training. How long from start to finish before he or she is "cut loose".
For my fellow CA Paramedics out there - you all know all too well - the AMR way - do they have a pulse? 5 call - and cut them loose - sink or swim atmosphere.
Personally I do not feel like 7 shifts, and a one week academy is sufficient to truly train someone to do ALS in a huge county with different zones, hospitals, ect...you cannot possibly run enough calls, or see all of the things you need to.
What if you have a person who has none or not a lot of 911 rig experience? I have seen some new medics show up , that went zero to hero. Or the ones that worked IFT - then Paramedic school - now they are on a 911 rig. Absolutely I realize also that the FTO has a responsibility to train these folks, and if they need more time then they should speak up. But it never seems to happen! pressure from management I imagine is the issue. These same faces come/ and go....disappear , or I see them down the road downgraded to EMT...some never upgrade again.
Although I do not think there is anything wrong with spending time in the EMT role exclusively as part of FTO time being its a partnership with you and your EMT partner - both parties equally responsible for operations of the rig, ect…..
So I would love to hear some good discussion/thoughts/ideas on breaking someone out the RIGHT way....

We all cant be like Medic One.....where you go back to school at UW for a year with an internship at Harborview....LOL! (much love for the Medic One peeps out there! ya all are amazing!) But there has to be some middle ground.

 

[DesertMedic66]

Ground medic job: if you were an EMT in the system to reclassify to medic required a written test, skills test, county training classes/testing, then FTO for a minimum of 5 shifts. If you were new to the system it was a written test, skills test, 2 week company orientation, county training classes/testing, then a minimum of 15 shifts training time.

Flight job: written test, scenario interview, 2 weeks of company orientation/critical care intro classes, followed by 3rd rider time which can vary greatly in length typical is 1-3 months, followed by a test out process to become 2nd rider. There is a decent amount of additional training that goes along with the 3rd rider time.

 

[PotatoMedic]

My former private gig was 48 hours and you are on your own. My county 911 gig you are in training for a long time. I think I spent 7 months in the fto program which is quick from what I hear. It's long and drawn out. But they make sure you are comfortable and more importantly they are comfortable with you.

 

[Ensihoitaja]

We don't have a set training period. Everyone does a 3-week academy after hire. Then you go to the medical phase of training, riding one up with a field trainer and running all the calls. Once you complete that, you move to driving phase 1, where you drive on every call. Then you move to driving phase 2, where you alternate driving and attending. Once you hit driving phase 2, you meet with the medical director. People don't spend long in driving phase 2 before being cleared.

There's no set time for each phase, some people complete the whole program in 4 months, some spend 1 year plus. It depends on the person.