I think what might be more important here the restricting a scope is changing a culture. Instead of limiting all emts to the lowest common denominator, l think companies and departments need to be more vigalant on dismissing those who are incompetent to do their job. In Denver d50, ivs, king...
Being that I work in the Denver metro area, I think every system should elevate up to where we are. As a Emt with an IV cert (additional 24 hours classroom and 12 hours clinical) I can start iv's, push narcan iv and in, d50 ( and all of its lower concentration equivelents), albuterol, bgl...
I did the NOLS WMI course, and while it was challenging in both living conditions and the course material to get done in 3 weeks (standard EMT and Wilderness EMT) myself and about 90% of the class were able to pass the NREMT. However, it was 3500 bucks, and did take me driving from Colorado to...
With the exception of blood draws for PD, we go straight off the cath before hooking up the drip set or extension. For PD blood draws we do either butterflies or straight needles on the vacutainer.
Being that I have a dual life of both being an Engineer and spend the rest of my time in EMS, I have seen this from both sides. My experience is that the level of "required" patriotism tends to be directly proportional to how close people feel to "the field" as in, are you actually out doing...
Denver Health is starting a new program testing the use of blood plasma in trauma cases pre-hopsital on their ALS rigs.
Info on the study can be found here.
http://denverhealth.org/ForProfessionals/ClinicalSpecialties/TraumaCenter/ResearchandPublications/COMBATTrial.aspx
I personally...
I bring my own pillow, the most annoying yet comfortable set of sheets you can find (that way no one else beds down on your rack), an extra t-shirt to wear instead of your uniform shirt to bed, an iPad with netflix installed on it (its a lifesaver when you can't sleep), a pack of gum, gallon of...
It never hurts to bring donuts to the station either, show up 15-20 minutes before the start of the shift, tuck your shirt in, pay attention, offer to pay for lunch if you can afford it, and ask questions. Most medics will be happy to hear from you.
Also, always keep a spare pair of gloves...
If you are interested in a job in a hospital, I would suggest telemetry/ECG class as well before you apply, they look for it. Also, everything moves a bit faster if you hand deliver it, when they put a face to a name, they seem to care more.
In the end though, Its your life dude, and you should do what makes you the happiest, and live it in a way which gives you no regrets. These decisions are ones that only you can make, and your an adult, so relish them. You get to drive your life in the direction you want it to go and you get...
For me the hardest thing about these tests is making sure you read the questions all the way though. I found these tests harder then any tests I have ever taken in engineering, and its because there is only one answer, and they will try to word the question so you pick the wrong one. Read the...
It might be worth taking one of the oilfield snow/ice driving classes as well, I know the ones I took really helped me out.
Also, if you get the chance, take the US oilfield OSHA courses, it makes you a bit more employable and gives you a chance to hit up alot more cool places. If you can get...