Protocols

ADyingBreed

ADyingBreed

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So I'm a new EMT, just got my cert last month.

I had an interview with the local 911 company the other day, so today i was looking at their website.

I found a list of their protocols.. its 118 pages

My question is, how long are yours and more importantly, is it hard to remember all of it?

Thanks.
 
Most of the protocols are common sense and what you learned in EMT. Most of yourself will likely say something along the lines of get vitals, apply oxygen, assist breathing with BVM if needed, consider c-spine.

Your specifics that you'll really have to remember are ones that you would have to utilize some other intervention, like drugs. Ie chest pain protocol. Are you allowed to administer Nitro or assist? If so, how much? What criteria do they have to meet to be allowed to get nitro? What's your max dose? Stuff like that.

Read through it. Most of it you'll be nodding along like "Yeah, of course." The stuff that you need to commit to memory will stand out as any deviation from the monotony of the others.
 
ADyingBreed said:
So I'm a new EMT, just got my cert last month.

I had an interview with the local 911 company the other day, so today i was looking at their website.

I found a list of their protocols.. its 118 pages

My question is, how long are yours and more importantly, is it hard to remember all of it?

Thanks.
Click to expand...
I don't have a booklet for my protocols so not sure how many pages. We used to have booklets, but they were more summaries of the protocols rather than all of the protocols. I imagine it's a lot too.

Protocols may vary by different companies or location. It shouldn't be too hard to remember them because it should be similar to what you are taught in school. They might add more or less from what you are taught at school though. For example, you may have learned to do a FAST exam for stroke at school: Facial droop, Arm drift, Speech (slurred), and Time last seen normal / Transport. In one area, their protocol is to do a BEFAST exam doing FAST first and then BE, which is balance (finger to nose test) and eyes (diplopia / double vision). As a paramedic, you might be able to give versed in one area, and in another area, you might be able to give diazepam instead. You should be somewhat familiar with both as a paramedic and it's included in your training, but it's slightly different.
 
My RN standardized procedures book (for sick call, emergencies, and treating pt's without an immediate MD order) was originally two and a half inches thick, had about seventy situations with many steps. Over ten years it swelled to about three inches, then suddenly shrank when they took many situations away from us.
 
My protocol book at my current company is a completely filled 2" binder, don't know how many pages it actually is. I leafed through it when I first hired on to make sure that there weren't any gotchas in there, but haven't looked at it since...for that matter I don't even know where it is right now.

As other people have said, the protocols should all be what you learned in school. If you're hired on, I would suggest that you read through it completely, and that if they have paper copies or a digital copy you can keep on your phone you do so, and read through what ever you think you'll be dealing with based on the dispatch information (Which will be accurate only as often as it is.) on your way to the call (Provided you're not driving). Do that for a while and you'll have the whole thing down pat nice and quick.

Also, as a side note, that 118 pages is almost certainly covering the BLS, ILS and ALS protocols for each situation, you should know the ILS and ALS protocols, so you're able to anticipate your partner's needs (if you have a more advanced partner), but all you need to worry about memorizing right at first is the BLS protocols.
 
I use the Paramedic Protocol app for my iPhone. I find it handy to refresh on drug doses when I'm going to a call that's outside the norm. BLS protocols should be a no brainer though.
 
DEmedic said:
I use the Paramedic Protocol app for my iPhone. I find it handy to refresh on drug doses when I'm going to a call that's outside the norm. BLS protocols should be a no brainer though.
Click to expand...

This. Many people complain about the $10, but I've found it very useful.
 
214 pages, plus updated protocols.

NYS feels it's important enough to give every EMT-B student in the course I'm taking a copy of the protocols, but not the updates because that would be more money they don't have apparently, according to the coordinator for the course. :blink:

Coordinator advised us to go online and print out the most recently protocol updates and read them as we cover them in the course.
 
Our guidelines are 285 pages.

We have a mobile friendly website that we use instead of the actual paper version.
 
160 some odd pages. I printed my most important ones (scope, pt transport and destination decision, etc) and keep them in my clipboard. The others are available on my phone
 
You will use about ten percent of them, and of that ten percent, about 1/3 will be used frequently.
Like ℅ back pain, abdominal pain of unknown origin, alcohol intox, vomiting, diarrhea, ankle/knee/distal forearm complaints, and unconscious without hx.
 
Our ALS guidelines are exactly 40 pages long. It's basically things we need to do if certain criteria are met. Everything else (within reason) is up to our discretion. We are encouraged to contact medical control, who we have a good relationship with, if we are planning to do anything outside of those guidelines, but it is not required if the situation demands it.
 
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