16yo WANNA BE ;)

[lifeguardwannabe]

Hey everyone!

I'm currently a high-school student with what you may call a severe interest in the emergency medical field.
I'm enrolled in a lifeguarding course at my local YMCA so I am being certified in CPR/AED & First-aid for the Professional Rescuer and I love the class. I want to know what other options are available to get my feet wet in south Florida.

I'd love to know of any camps, groups, tests, certifications, etc I can take at my age and in my area.

I also plan on joining my local explorer's post but I'm anxious still to do all I can as soon as I can.

Thanks! ^_^

 

[StickySideDown]

Not sure of the laws in FL, but in NJ you are able to take an EMT-B course at the age of 16, and then you can be a certified EMT-B, just your cert will be Provisional. You can try joining your local volunteer squad if you have one in your area, most places you can join at 16.

Then you can run on an ambulance, even before you take your EMT-B course as an extra, basically a grunt. But some squads will teach you how to take vital signs and get PT information. Stop by your local squad and ask about joining.

 

[frdude1000]

Florida does not allow anyone under for 18 to become an EMT. Check to see if a local fire department has an explorer program of some sorts. Also see if your local red cross offers the Emergency Response course, which will train you to the Medical First Responder level. I started at the beginning of high school and am loving it! Don't listen to those on the forum who tell you to quit or wait.

 

[medichopeful]

If you're interested in doing EMS as a career, I'd suggest holding off on the EMT class and enrolling in some classes at your local community college (or other type of college for that matter). I'd suggest taking:
-Anatomy & Physiology I+II
-Cellular biology
-Health related chemistry
Take those (and possibly others) while you finish high school, and do lifeguarding at the same time. Then, take the EMT-Basic course after graduating, possibly at your college if that's where you're headed. Make sure you take an semester-long EMT-B course, as opposed to a 2 week one.

Nothing wrong with getting involved with the explorers too in my opinion!

I'll give you fair warning, a lot of people are going to give you a hard time due to your age. I'm going to keep my views on your age to myself, but keep this in mind: if you're working as an EMT or other responder, you're going to be seeing a lot of things a 16-year old or even someone a few years older may not be ready to see.

That being said, the choice is yours. Just don't rush into it too fast: get the education you need to take care of your patients.

Good luck!

 

[Chimpie]

Please keep this thread on topic and productive.

 

[lifeguardwannabe]

Wow! Thanks for all the suggestions.

How would I go about contacting a squad? What is a squad? Sorry for being such a newbie, haha. Trying my best!

I'd like to take as many of the American Red Cross classes as I can, regardless if they certify me or not. Just for the knowledge, ya'know?

 

[frdude1000]

You have to be 16 to be certified for First Responder. The other red cross classes you can take are lifeguarding, pet first aid, administering emergency O2, and check for more.

 

[mycrofft]

Go be a lifeguard while you get your schooling out of the way.

It will serve you in good stead learning about how people act and think, or don't think, something no class will teach you. Bear in mind that field EMS workers generally are standing on the first rung of a career ladder, if they stay with it the majority will go on to teaching, admin, or go back to school to get into nursing, or other branches of medicine.

 

[Handsome Robb]

Communications, and sciences in High School, and apply yourself to them. A good knowledge base in science will help you loads.

Lifeguarding is an awesome way to get your foot in the door as a 'professional rescuer' and helps you learn how to interact and deal with people in lots of different situations. It also teaches you very basic assessment skills and basic first aid. Take your ARC waterfront lifeguard as well. Its a 4 hour add on class to the standard lifeguard. Working at a beach is much more interesting than a pool, although ocean rescue in Florida is going to be much more intense than any Red Cross class will prepare you for but taking the class shows dedication.

Your on the right track, don't let people discourage you due to your age.

 

[Lifeguards For Life]

Communications, and sciences in High School, and apply yourself to them. A good knowledge base in science will help you loads.

Lifeguarding is an awesome way to get your foot in the door as a 'professional rescuer' and helps you learn how to interact and deal with people in lots of different situations. It also teaches you very basic assessment skills and basic first aid. Take your ARC waterfront lifeguard as well. Its a 4 hour add on class to the standard lifeguard. Working at a beach is much more interesting than a pool, although ocean rescue in Florida is going to be much more intense than any Red Cross class will prepare you for but taking the class shows dedication.

Your on the right track, don't let people discourage you due to your age.

I don't think any ocean rescue in fl, or anywhere really, will honor a red cross life guard course. I would actually stay far away from anything tue red cross does. Even red cross CPR classes

 

[Handsome Robb]

I don't think any ocean rescue in fl, or anywhere really, will honor a red cross life guard course. I would actually stay far away from anything tue red cross does. Even red cross CPR classes

I agree with you. You need something more along the lines of USLA. Seeing as we don't have ocean rescue only lake rescue we use ARC . I agree, Inland reservoirs not ocean rescue would be the place to look into working with an ARC waterfront cert. I doubt any ocean rescue would hire someone under the age of 18 either way.

Everyone I work with is ARC CPR except for myself.

ARC is one of the few agencies will certify <16 year olds.

All I was trying to say is that the dedication shown by the OP by taking the classes is what will really help him with jobs.

 

[crazycajun]

If you really enjoy the water rescue idea why not get in touch with a Coast Guard recruiter. You can get the rescue and medical training you desire and have a pretty awesome career.

 

[Sandog]

I think the explorer program is great and will open many doors for you. Just show desire and you will reap a wonderful career.

 

[Nerd13]

Lifeguarding will be great for you while you're in school. You can almost always find somewhere that will work with your school schedule and it's fun. You'll learn a lot about 'rescue' situations and learn to deal with people in a lot of different situations. You'll also get really good at babysitting because that's the biggest part of being a lifeguard. I did it for 6 years and had lots of fun with it. You'll have plenty of time to get into EMS soon enough. Enjoy being a lifeguard and have fun with it in the mean time!

 

[jonesy0924]

good luck in your search...the explorers are great i did them for many years...I am a firefighter and paramedic with alot of time under me now...just find classes and take as much as you can....you also go online and take classes through FEMA that you will need when you are looking for a job...

 

[Nyricanff2b]

whatever you decide to do, good luck. I do agree with some of the previously posted threads in regards to getting a good understanding of how the human body functions ex. anatomy, biology, chem, etc. The better you understand the human body, the easier running calls and pt. assessments will be. It's def. a overlooked part of first responders in my opinion.

 

[squrt29batt12]

In Florida, you can take a First Responder course and EMT course under 18 years of age, but it is through a Dual-Enrollment program only. You must be 18 years old at the time of certification for EMT.

I'm probably the twentieth person to say it, but look for a local fire department with an explorer program. I was an explorer with Miami-Dade Fire Rescue since age 14 and got my AHA BLS card and my First Responder certificate, along with hundreds of hours of hands on experience through ride times and working events with the program. If you stay with the program, you can help teach the youth staff as an adult member and continue your learning experience, if that's your thing.

 

[medicdan]

If you really like Lifeguarding and the oceans, I recommend you get involved in diving. As you get experience (and credentials), I highly recommend the Rescue Diver program (NAUI/SSI, but PADI is also a decent program), and DAN's suite of classes, including O2 provider. They can be taken as young as 15, and provide a good foundation for assessment and skills.

 

[Dougy]

Not sure of the laws in FL, but in NJ you are able to take an EMT-B course at the age of 16, and then you can be a certified EMT-B, just your cert will be Provisional. You can try joining your local volunteer squad if you have one in your area, most places you can join at 16.

Then you can run on an ambulance, even before you take your EMT-B course as an extra, basically a grunt. But some squads will teach you how to take vital signs and get PT information. Stop by your local squad and ask about joining.

NJ baby! Our squad has a dozen or two 16 and 17 year old. Cadets!