Are you an EMT or "Medic"

[MMiz]

Lots of peopole ask where I work, and I started off saying that I was an EMT. Half the people didn't know what an EMT was or what they did. I now say that I'm a medic, and everyone knows what I'm taking about. My county considers a "Medic" an EMT-Paramedic, but the American Ambualance Association (http://www.the-aaa.org/) has a new public program to push for everyone being "Medics".

What do you say you are? How do you feel about everyone being called "Medics". Personally I like the idea of everyone being called a medic. It's less confusing, and gives the media and public a term they can use.

That's just me though.

[SafetyPro]

There was just a big discussion on this on the Firehouse forums. The interesting thing is that most EMTs (Basic or Intermediate) think they should be called Medics and most Paramedics think only they should be called Medics.

I tend to agree that Medic is a good generic term, but I can understand where the Paramedics are coming from since in many areas, Medic and Paramedic have been synonymous for a long time. Of course, technically, they're EMTs too.

Since we're the only BLS fire department in the area, everyone (including the ER nurses) assume that we're Paramedics. We're constantly having to correct the ER staff when we come in and they ask us why we didn't do a certain ALS therapy, or make base hospital contact. They just get used to assuming anyone who shows up in a red ambulance is ALS.

[lastcode]

I think for the general public, I like them just calling us all medics. But internally I like the emt designations.

[ffemt8978]

I would say that it depends on the situation for me. Sometimes, especially in a large group of people, I announce myself as a medic (as if the fact that I'm getting out of the ambulance isn't enough). In a one-on-one situation, I announce myself as an EMT.

Interesting sidebar here. I responded to a two vehicle, head-on MVA with multiple ejections. I prefer to wear my bunker gear instead of my EMS coveralls on accident calls for the increased protection it provides. As I'm getting out of the front passenger seat of the ambulance (with my bunker gear on), a bystander walks up to me and asks, "Are you a medic?"

[SafetyPro]

Well, if I had my way, it'd be EMT-Basic, EMT-Intermediate, and EMT-Advanced. Think about it. We already have the BLS and ALS designations, and the Basic/Intermediate seems to naturally suggest Advanced as the third level.

Also, the prefix "para" means "similar to", so technically, Paramedic means "similar to a medic". You'd think that'd be seen as demeaning.

Of course, California has to be different anyway. I'm not an EMT-Basic here, I'm an EMT-1. And they technically use the Roman numeral, so it's EMT-I, which looks like an Intermediate anywhere else (which is why I always substitute the "1"). And in the areas in CA that have Intermediates, they call them EMT-II's.

[Alpha752]

As far as I know

EMT- is EMT-B, and EMT-I

Medic, or Paramedic- is EMT-P

I dont think the general public knows the diffrence. I call myself an EMT, and people look at me like they are trying to figure out what Im talking about with out emberrasing themselves. I mention that my next step is Paramedic school, then you see the lightbulb over their head.

Russ