frequently asked questions about EMS

An EMT is an Emergency Medical Technician. In general, there are three levels of EMT. EMT-Basic or EMT-B, EMT-Intermediate or EMT-I, and EMT-Paramedic or EMT-P. EMTs are physician extenders which means they act under protocols and direct orders from physicians. Most EMTs work on ambulances either for public or private ambulance companies, fire departments or hospitals. Depending on the level of EMT, they assess patients, administer oxygen, start IV lines, defibrillate, intubate, give medications, perform CPR as well as many other procedures.

2. What are the different levels of EMT in Ohio and what do they do?

The state of Ohio recognizes the three levels of EMTs. EMT-Bs can assess patients, provide oxygen, splint broken bones, control bleeding, intubate the airway, assist with patients taking some of their own medications, and take cervical spine precautions. EMT-Is can perform all of the above and can also start IVs, IOs, and give subcutaneous injections of Epinephrine. EMT-Ps can do all of the above and administer many other medications, monitor patients' heart rhythms, defibrillate and pace patients' hearts, decompress a collapsed lung, and in an emergency cut into a patient's neck to provide an airway.

3. What are the job prospects and pay ranges for an EMT of each level in the Columbus area?

In the Columbus area, most of the EMTs are employed by fire departments and are also required to be firefighters. Delaware County EMS and the several private companies are the exception. Medflight also hires paramedics for ground and flight jobs. Most of the hospitals will hire EMTs and paramedics to work as ED technicians. Mt. Carmel also operates Mt. Carmel Connection, a critical care and non-critical care transport service.

4. What if I want to move to another state?

To move from one state to another, one must apply to the new state for reciprocity. Each state has its own requirements that vary from simply granting a certification, to allowing an applicant to take the state's own written and/or practical exam, to requiring more training. Each state's requirements are listed on the EMS magazine website, but to be certain, you should contact the State EMS office directly.

5. Are EMTs required to be firefighters?

In central Ohio, the vast majority of EMS agencies are fire departments and all EMTs are required to be firefighters. In other parts of the country this varies. In Cincinnati the fire department in also the EMS agency and in Cleveland the EMS agency is another arm of the city, separate and independent from the fire department.

6. Are firefighters required to be EMTs?

In Columbus, all firefighters are required to be at least EMT-Bs and can be required to become paramedics if needed. All the other local departments require the firefighters to be at least EMT-B and most require paramedic to become full time. This is because most of the runs a modern fire department goes on are EMS runs.

7. How long will EMT training take?

EMT-Basic is a one quarter course that meets at Columbus State three days per week, four hours each day for 11 weeks. EMT-Intermediate is not currently offered. EMT-Paramedic is a four quarter course at Columbus State which means one year of training. Classes meet twice per week four hours per meeting for 4 - 11 week quarters. There is also significant hospital and field time required.

8. Do I have to get the Associates degree?

Having an Associates degree can only improve the care you provide for the patient by improving your background in the sciences and improve your job prospects by giving you an edge over non-degreed candidates. Most of the local fire departments have either begun to require or are considering requiring at least an Associates degree for promotion to an officer. The degree program at Columbus State is not required, but is recommended and can be completed in just two years which is only six months longer than EMT-Basic followed by Paramedic school.

9. What should I do to prepare for EMT or paramedic training?

There are no prerequisites to EMT-Basic training, though any volunteer time with an ambulance squad or other health care experience will help.

For paramedic training, we require students to hold current Ohio EMT-B or EMT-I certification. You must also have completed EMS 201-Paramedic Preparation prior to the first quarter of paramedic school. EMS 201 is offered three sections each quarter.

It is also very helpful for student success if they have worked or volunteered as an EMT-Basic or Intermediate for at least some time, preferably a year before starting paramedic school. This is not a requirement, but students who do not have this experience often have more trouble with the beginning of the program as they are just learning how to work on an ambulance and be a competent EMT-Basic and must now also take more responsibility for advanced care of the patient.

10. What do I do if I don't get into paramedic school the first time?

The best advice we can give is to get experience as an EMT and take more classes at Columbus State. Both of these add points or partial points to your score for admission to school and the experience is likely to improve your score on the written test.

11. Does becoming a paramedic help me to become a nurse?

Yes, in the sense that any medical knowledge will make nursing school or any other allied health school easier. In Ohio, most schools will probably not give any advanced placement in nursing school. There are a few nursing programs in Ohio that do, you should do a search on the internet for more information.

12. How do I become a flight paramedic?

Most of the flight services around including Medflight of Ohio require five years of ALS (paramedic) experience preferably in a busy, urban setting. They also want to see many of what are affectionately known as the alphabet soup courses, ACLS, BTLS, ATLS, PALS, PEPP, NRP, ABLS, CCEMT-P, FP-C, and preferably instructor certifications in some. Critical care experience either in hospital or on a transport team is also preferred.

There are a few exceptions to the five year rule mostly in the western states. Some require only 2-3 years experience.

13. Does Columbus State offer a RN to paramedic course?

There is no state-required nurse to medic program and schools are permitted to develop a plan of training on an individual basis. We will evaluate a candidate's experience and knowledge level and design a program for the individual. At minimum it will involve at least six months of classroom and field time. The basic requirements for entry are that the RN has at least 2 years recent experience in an emergency or critical care setting (ED, ICU, CCU) and ACLS certification and competence. Contact Chris or Carolyn for more information.

14. If I am a RN, does EMT training help me become a flight nurse?

Many flight programs require or at least encourage their potential hires to have prehospital experience. EMT or paramedic certification will probably help, but the more important issue is the experience in out-of-hospital care.

15. How much does paramedic school cost?

The paramedic program is 36 credit hours over one year. The current CSCC tuition is $79 per credit hour for a total of $2,844. This does not include lab fees which are $295 each quarter, books which average $60 per quarter, uniforms which cost approximately $150, less if you already have uniform pants and boots. The college also charges an application fee of $10, a matriculation fee of $50 during the first quarter at Columbus State, and the National Registry test at the end of the program costs $110. The total then is approximately $4584 spread over the course of the year.

16. Where else can I work with my EMT certification besides on an ambulance?

EMTs and paramedics work as technicians in most of the emergency departments in Columbus, as well as some other units (ICU, CCU, OB). Some companies hire EMTs to perform insurance exams. Once you have experience as an EMT or medic, you could become an instructor or manager.

17. Should I become a nurse or a paramedic?

In my opinion, (possibly worth what you paid for it) this is a question that depends entirely on you. To generalize, EMTs and paramedics work on an ambulance in all kinds of weather and conditions to take care of patients for about an hour each. They, for the most part, do not develop long relationships with patients, nor monitor their progress over weeks or months. Depending on where they work, they can sit around waiting for calls for hours or run back to back calls for hours.

Again, to generalize, nurses work in a hospital or other healthcare facility and take care of patients for longer periods of time. They may see a patient for several hours like in the ED or for weeks, months, or even years with home health, nursing care homes or doctors office settings. There is not usually a lack of patients.

There are many other differences of course, including pay, hours of work, promotion and advancement opportunities. There are also exceptions to the above rules, like medics who work in the ED and nurses that work on the helicopter. I think that if you are considering a career in nursing or paramedicine, it is all about taking care of patients. It depends on you and your personality which of these situations would work better for you. Some people want to develop long term relationships and might feel unfulfilled if they only spent 30 minutes with a patient, some thrive on making a connection in the first minute of an encounter and performing whatever is necessary to limit life and limb threatening injuries or illnesses and would become bored with longer term care. My advice would be that someone considering this should go and ride a few shifts with a medic crew and spend a few shifts in the hospital with nurses to see what they really do.

18. Who do I talk to about problems or questions with my certification?

Your certification card comes from the State of Ohio and that is who makes all decisions on these matters. There office number is (614)466-9447 or 1-800-233-0785. There website address is ems.ohio.gov .

19. What about questions regarding my National Registry card?

You should contact the National Registry at (614)888-4484 or see their website at www.nremt.org .

20. What do I have to do to recertify my EMT certification?

It depends on if you have a Registry card and Ohio card or just Ohio. You should check with whichever agency is responsible.

21. Does Columbus State need EMS instructors?

It depends, we are always looking for EMTs, EMT-Is, and paramedics to help in the lab or precept in the hospitals. As for teaching an entire class (EMT-Basic or Intermediate), we do utilize some adjunct instructors. We mostly take these people from our own experienced preceptors who do a great deal of individual work to get ready for a class and many student/monitored teaching sessions with our full time faculty. If you are interested in this, contact Carolyn to discuss it.

22. Does Columbus State need preceptors?

We are always looking to add to our preceptor list experienced EMTs, EMT-Is, and paramedics. Most of our preceptors begin precepting basic students in the hospitals, then progress to helping in lab days and precepting the higher levels. Contact Carolyn for more information.

23. What is the CCEMT-P program?

The CCEMT-P is the Critical Care Paramedic course developed by the University of Maryland - Baltimore County (UMBC). Most flight programs list the CCEMT-P certification as one of the required or preferred certifications for flight paramedics. The course introduces the experienced paramedic to many of the techniques, electronics, assessments, and treatments for patients in the ICU. We offered our first CCEMT-P course at Columbus State in the Autumn of 2002 and offer it each Autumn on campus.

We also conduct several CCEMT-P courses off-campus each year for different agencies in Ohio and other states. Contact Chris Bell for more information at (614) 287-5054 or cbell@cscc.edu