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Paramedic Training Programs
Written by: No Doubt Marketing
How much paramedic training do you need
Paramedic training programs can help you become a licensed EMT, and then help you get through the other levels of EMT work to become a full-fledged paramedic. Though some people use the term EMT and paramedic interchangeably, there are different designations in this type of work. An EMT may have only an 18-month or 24-month certificate or associate's degree. Where a paramedic has that certification, as well as work experience, and hundreds of hours of further training that allows them to do things like start IV medications at emergency sites or in transit, as well as make other life and death medical decisions.
Students who get the initial 18-month to 2-year coursework out of the way and pass the exam to become a licensed EMT should really then work in the field before moving forward. Many programs, the best ones, will require this. The work experience will be better paramedic training than anything done in the classroom.
Any student enrolled in a good paramedic training course should have had experience in an ambulance and an emergency room during the initial 2 years or less of training required to sit for the certification exam. So someone with an EMT license won't be completely new to the world of hands-on emergency medicine in that first EMT job.
Further training is required to move up to a new EMT level. Anywhere from 50 hours to 350 hours of education and training are required to be able to make emergency medical decisions, start IVs and do other more advanced paramedic work. And then another one to two years of education are required before an EMT can sit for the exam that gives them the highest level designation and makes them a full-fledge paramedic.
Are you right for paramedic training
Of course, if you're considering paramedic training, you do need certain qualities. If you're a highly impatient person, paramedic work may not be right for you. You'll have to deal with a variety of people in a variety of predictable and possibly volatile situations. You may have to help people who are severe pain, grievously injured, incoherent, hysterical and belligerent toward you.
In emergency medicine, there's no predicting what kind of potentially dangerous situation you may be called into. Paramedic training attempts to prepare you for most common situations, but the nature of EMT work is unpredictable.
Naturally, an interest in medicine, health and helping people is also necessary in those who are interested in paramedic training. Physical fitness, too, is often overlooked. But because you may be dealing with unconscious patients in any variety of circumstances, perhaps even bringing someone down steps in buildings with no elevators and other unpredictable circumstances, you should be committed to keeping yourself healthy and strong so that you can more easily manage such situations.
Finally, make sure your paramedic training is approved by your state. It has to be approved for you to be allowed to sit for the exam that all EMTs must have to work in an ambulance or emergency room.
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