Volunteering

DillR

DillR

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Hello all,
I have recently started volunteering at the local fire department because i wanted to gain some rescue experience before starting my emt-b classes next spring. The thing is, I am only 16, and whenever someone finds out that I am volunteering they are always shocked they let me start at such a young age (most the volunteers are 18 - 25ish) I know some of you work at a fire house and just wanted to know if there are age restrictions where you live and if you got intrested in emergency medicine at a young age, or if it was later in life, do you think it is good for me to start thinking about going into ems this early?

Thanks for all your help,
Doc
 
DillR said:
Hello all,
I have recently started volunteering at the local fire department because i wanted to gain some rescue experience before starting my emt-b classes next spring. The thing is, I am only 16, and whenever someone finds out that I am volunteering they are always shocked they let me start at such a young age (most the volunteers are 18 - 25ish) I know some of you work at a fire house and just wanted to know if there are age restrictions where you live and if you got intrested in emergency medicine at a young age, or if it was later in life, do you think it is good for me to start thinking about going into ems this early?

Thanks for all your help,
Doc
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Damn near every station I was in was a professional station. Minimum age to apply to join was 18 and reqiured EMT-B and HS diploma. And NM didn't allow anyone under 18 to become an EMT
 
Thats what i thought, i live in a sorta-kinda rural town and I figured there was a age limit but they let me on, I have a jacket and everything to prove it :P but I think it helped a little that I was already certified in cpr, first aid, and AED. but i am the youngest guy in the station.
 
State of Texas will not certify anyone under the age of 18 at any level of EMS provider, including ECA (MFR)
 
My EMT-b program doesn't allow anyone under the age of the 18 to sign up. I assume is true through out California. *shrugs*
 
the state of NJ will let people become EMTs at 16. the state of NY will let CFR's be certified at 16, and 18 to become EMTs. Maryland lets 16 year olds become certified as interior firefighters, and I think EMTs as well.
 
I believe you can get your state EMT at the age of 16 in North Dakota... I was 17 when I got mine. Had to wait until I was 18 to put in the papers to get my NREMT. I volunteered for a year before going on to medic school. I was the youngest person volunteering there at the time. People were shocked that I was so young, but at the same time didn't really care... they were just happy that someone was there to help them.
 
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In Maine, you can take a class at 16 and even the state practicals but you cannot sit for the NREMT, so therefor you cannot get a Maine license.

Also, we have a junior volunteer program but the juniors are not allowed to go on rescue calls, just fire calls and only in a limited, safe capacity.
 
I took my EMT class as a senior in high school. I was 17 when class started... had to be 18 by the time we started clinicals. I've heard of other programs requiring 18 to start, or 18 by end.

I also started volunteering with a search and rescue team a year prior to that, right around my 17th birthday with the only youth-based SAR team in the country. Not an explorers program or anything like that... a legitimate team that responds in the same capacity as every other team in the state.

It was one of the first teams in the state formed back in the 1950's. There was a need for organized, trained SAR volunteers and attempts to form one in my area with adults failed apparently due to their family/work commitments. Our founder was a creative high school counselor who thought that teenagers could fill the need... and it worked.

As far as EMS stuff goes, we train our members to a level between First Responder and EMT. Not everyone chooses to complete that training, and several who do fail out because we hold them to a standard and don't make exceptions for failure. Everyone completes BLS for Healthcare Providers, basic first aid, and patient packaging training, though.

I can tell you from the perspective of someone who was once a young person trained as an "Advanced First Responder", and now someone who helps teach it to youngins, that I do NOT think teenagers should be EMTs. The big difference between what we are teaching them and expecting them to do and that of what an EMT on the street does is that we focus strongly on basic triage, rescue, packaging, evacuation and most importantly, handing patients off to a higher level of care ASAP.

Critical patients are rare - I'd venture to say even rarer than in regular street EMS - because 99% of the time they're either basically fine or dead. I'm happy with our members who are really good at searching, starting the rescue/evacuation process, summoning the necessary resources, packaging the patient, and not harming them. The ability to get a BP or apply a traction splint is often more a luxury at that point because that stuff is not the priority in this segment of the continuum of the incident.

It's cool that you're getting some exposure, because I can say that I wouldn't be where I am today without my early SAR background, but I'm not so keen on the idea of young teenagers being firefighters or street EMTs. Yes, I learned how to assess a pt, backboard them, splint an extremity, etc before I reached the age of majority, but I spent most of my time trudging around in the woods looking for people. I was not driving emergent, being one of a two-person crew that is solely responsible for getting a sick person to the hospital, going in to burning buildings, performing heavy extrication...
 
In your shoes

Also a minor, volunteering with a local FD as an EMT. The only advice I can give, is to be respectful (address everyone as Sir or Ma'am until asked not to), and to work hard at whatever they give you. Even though we are minors, we're doing whats typically considered an adult's job- so we have to act like one.
Best of luck!
 
My station has a few minors who are EMTs. They're only allowed on medic units with at least two other crew members. They can't be crew leaders, either. It usually works out fine.

On the other hand, I know a few who are doing it solely because a firemedic parent is pushing them to follow in their footsteps, and they need community service to graduate from high school anyways. I feel pretty bad for them. EMS is tough and disturbing enough, even for those of us who want to be there.
 
Thanks for all your help!

but I'm not so keen on the idea of young teenagers being firefighters or street EMTs
-Lucidresq
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Also a minor, volunteering with a local FD as an EMT
-Trayos
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I am not volunteering as an EMT, though I would love it, i am not trained for it. (I start emt-b classes in the spring. 5 days a week for 4 weeks) I am just volunteering by firefighting and performing basic CPR, rescue, C-collar, etc. under supervision. I was mostly wondering if anyone here started quite as early as I am and alot of you started as soon as you could at 18 or 17, and Trayos is a emt volunteer as a minor as well. which makes me feel alot better about my decision. I hope to do this, ride along with my local emt guys (I know them really well and they let me hang out alot.) until 18 and take my NREMT, and eventually paramedic and get a job as a FF/EMT.
 
Don't worry, I've been "volunteering" in Fire/EMS since I was 6 months old.....

Seriously though, if your department is fine with you helping out, then no it's not too young to start. better to try it early and decide you don't (or do) like it than get 2-3 years in with hundreds of hours in.
 
DillR said:
Hello all,
I have recently started volunteering at the local fire department because i wanted to gain some rescue experience before starting my emt-b classes next spring. The thing is, I am only 16, and whenever someone finds out that I am volunteering they are always shocked they let me start at such a young age (most the volunteers are 18 - 25ish) I know some of you work at a fire house and just wanted to know if there are age restrictions where you live and if you got intrested in emergency medicine at a young age, or if it was later in life, do you think it is good for me to start thinking about going into ems this early?

Thanks for all your help,
Doc
Click to expand...

In WA State Volunteer Firefighters can be 16 y/o and are called 'Junior Firefighters'. You cannot become an EMT-B until your 18. Junior Firefighters are also not 'suppose' to enter burning buildings too. I believe 18 years in age is required for First Responder in WA State too, though I'm not 100% positive on that.
 
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There are some states that will allow 16 y/o EMT's to run EMS calls due to the volunteering numbers or lack of. However these are becoming less and less common due to liability and insurance coverage!

(I know that WA State in the early 90's they had a couple teams of 16-17 y/o EMT's running volunteer ambulances)

In Seattle WA they have what's called a Fire Cadet 511 or senior cadet programs in which people from the age of 16-21 are allowed with an advisor to run on EMS and Fire calls in the Seattle Fire Dept (an all professional force) and Senior Cadets who must be 19 yrs old are allowed to run on calls for EMS/Fires as well. Both are none paid positions and all cadets must buy their own uniforms, shoes, belts, name tags, etc... The program does provide them with bunker gear. And they must pay I believe a $10 DUES fee to the program, and are NOT allowed to enter any burning structures, however are permitted to assist with BLS crews, basic firefighting exterior assistance, hose laying, crowd management, and ladder positioning, etc. They do allow them to run on calls with EMS/Fire provided with an Advisor.

In City of New York, I read of one EMS group on a private ambulance that allows 16-17 y/o EMT's to run calls (maybe it was 14-17?)... It just depends on your State, County, Agency, and Insurance policies.
 
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