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EMT/Paramedic Course Suggestions?
- Thread starter Biggles77
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- Apr 24, 2005
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Mass Bay offers a class. I participated in the final exam but did not get certified since my role was patient, not EMT. Every applicant for certification had to bring a patient for the practical part of the test.
lancecolonel
NES Member
Emt classes can be completed in a few months vs paramedic school taking multiple years. The emt class will give you some useful medical/first aid knowledge but the point of the class is to train you to work on an ambulance. You will have to learn a lot of things that will never be truly useful if you don’t actually work as an emt (writing reports, calculating remaining O2 in a tank etc).
Disclaimer: i took an accelerated emt class about 10 years ago and got tuition reimbursed by my employer at the time. In my case it was free and worth it, not sure I’d feel the same if i had footed the bill myself.
Disclaimer: i took an accelerated emt class about 10 years ago and got tuition reimbursed by my employer at the time. In my case it was free and worth it, not sure I’d feel the same if i had footed the bill myself.
That's great to know (I have no interest in being an ambulance EMT).
Basically looking for some sort of class instruction that would eventually lead to some hard skills and proficiency in first-aid/triage care/etc. - Not for a job, but just to learn for SHTF scenarios.
Figure I could forego a few hours a week of Netflix to learn something useful.
Mesatchornug
NES Member
In that case, you probably want to look at classes like:
- first aid/cpr
- Stop the Bleed
- wilderness and remote first aid
- TCCC or other trauma medicine class
Flat out, these are perishable skills. Knowing the basics are one thing, but to be able to do them efficiently and effectively under pressure are another. If you jay want the basics. Take a WFR (Wilderness First Aid) and a stop the bleed class. Anything beyond that is a waste of money. TCCC is great, but are you really going to hammer in all the algorithms and retain them? Not trying to discourage you, just being realistic. A stop the bleed class covers a lot.
Yeah, forget paramedic. That’s a career. You Have to be committed.
I don’t know if Mass has an EMR or not. (Emergency medical responder). If so that’s an option.
I can tell you not all schools go over any paperwork training. Here you learn how to do a chart on the job.
I wanted to start for the same reasons as you I guess, to be prepared. The thought of not knowing what to do bothered me. I didint want to be that guy that freezes when someone goes into cardiac arrest. I needed to know what to do.
So I started with a CPR class.
Then I went for EMR. EMR is a step below EMT. You can drive an ambulance and do some patient care but cannot be in the back with a patient by yourself. Some EMRs I work with are really really good. Better than some EMTs I know.
Then, at 55 YO, I got my EMT.
then I became a stop the bleed instructor.
I do it on a volunteer basis so I can go in when I want. It’s not my main gig.
You learn a lot for sure. Being prepared is a lot more than stopping bleeding from a gunshot wound.
What‘s more likely is other medical and trauma conditions so also knowing what to do when someone goes into diabetic shock, (hypoglycemia- hyperglycemia. Epistaxis (bleeding nose) or has a seizure, or fracture’s their humorous (upper arm). Or, someone’s gonna have a baby, or somebody’s having a mental breakdown, etc…
Even knowing to ask a pt. their medical history can help you know how to treat someone in a Austere, grid down, no help available setting. If someone tells you they have a pain in their left abdomen and has had Diverticulitis before, you know they likely need antibiotic if it persists.
Boddistavva is right, these are perishable skills. But, don’t let that stop you. if you take a EMT course you will still be able to practice taking family blood pressures, 02 saturation, pulse, RR. You can still watch medical videos on YouTube. This will help you remember.
you get out of it what you put into it.
Even when doing it part time, it is still easy to forget things and say “oh crap” when your the first person there to treat a guy that just got run over by a car. But then you remember, when that happens you always go back to your ABCs.
Stop bleeding, then airway, breathing and circulation.
I’d suggest two things. One, start with a CPR class.
two, Get the Altons book, Survival medicine.
if I could have only one medical reference, that would be it. It’s written more for the layperson in Austere settings. But they know their stuff and everything you need to know is in that book.
It’s never a bad idea to have some medical training. Even in “normal times” people have no idea around here how many times calls go to adjoining towns for mutual aid. Most towns around here run 1-2 ambulances. And some are lucky to get a crew for the first one.
Grid down? Forget it, No one’s coming for you medical emergency.
I don’t know if Mass has an EMR or not. (Emergency medical responder). If so that’s an option.
I can tell you not all schools go over any paperwork training. Here you learn how to do a chart on the job.
I wanted to start for the same reasons as you I guess, to be prepared. The thought of not knowing what to do bothered me. I didint want to be that guy that freezes when someone goes into cardiac arrest. I needed to know what to do.
So I started with a CPR class.
Then I went for EMR. EMR is a step below EMT. You can drive an ambulance and do some patient care but cannot be in the back with a patient by yourself. Some EMRs I work with are really really good. Better than some EMTs I know.
Then, at 55 YO, I got my EMT.
then I became a stop the bleed instructor.
I do it on a volunteer basis so I can go in when I want. It’s not my main gig.
You learn a lot for sure. Being prepared is a lot more than stopping bleeding from a gunshot wound.
What‘s more likely is other medical and trauma conditions so also knowing what to do when someone goes into diabetic shock, (hypoglycemia- hyperglycemia. Epistaxis (bleeding nose) or has a seizure, or fracture’s their humorous (upper arm). Or, someone’s gonna have a baby, or somebody’s having a mental breakdown, etc…
Even knowing to ask a pt. their medical history can help you know how to treat someone in a Austere, grid down, no help available setting. If someone tells you they have a pain in their left abdomen and has had Diverticulitis before, you know they likely need antibiotic if it persists.
Boddistavva is right, these are perishable skills. But, don’t let that stop you. if you take a EMT course you will still be able to practice taking family blood pressures, 02 saturation, pulse, RR. You can still watch medical videos on YouTube. This will help you remember.
you get out of it what you put into it.
Even when doing it part time, it is still easy to forget things and say “oh crap” when your the first person there to treat a guy that just got run over by a car. But then you remember, when that happens you always go back to your ABCs.
Stop bleeding, then airway, breathing and circulation.
I’d suggest two things. One, start with a CPR class.
two, Get the Altons book, Survival medicine.
if I could have only one medical reference, that would be it. It’s written more for the layperson in Austere settings. But they know their stuff and everything you need to know is in that book.
It’s never a bad idea to have some medical training. Even in “normal times” people have no idea around here how many times calls go to adjoining towns for mutual aid. Most towns around here run 1-2 ambulances. And some are lucky to get a crew for the first one.
Grid down? Forget it, No one’s coming for you medical emergency.
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Knob Creek
NES Member
Anyone know of Stop the Bleed Class or instructor in Mass?
