Paramedic

[2degrees]

Hello I apologize if this is a stupid question but I don't have a car and won't be able to afford one until after I become a Paramedic. My question is do I need a car for Paramedic school? I'll be taking the bus to get around. How does college work? Do you meet at class and then the next day meet at a hospital for ambulance time. I'm asking those who have attended college for Paramedic. Any info. would be much appreciated. Thank you in Advance.

 

[DesertMedic66]

Depending on your area you would likely need to go to EMT school first before paramedic school. As for how the schooling works it will really depend on the specific program. Most of the programs you will do at the same location, the school or satellite campus and then you will have a mandatory amount of time required on an ambulance or in the hospital.

For my EMT program it was 16 times meeting at the school, 1 day a week and then 4 shifts mixed between a hospital and ambulances. I’m in an area that does not have a great public transportation system so it would have been physically impossible for me to get to where I needed via a bus.

 

[ffemtrb]

I do not know what City or State you are in. I think a lot would depend on public transportation availability and if
you are in an urban or rural area since you do not have a vehicle.

That said, I am an EMT. My son is an EMT who is completing his paramedic program and Associates Degree
at a Community College. The Paramedic Program is run in conjunction with a large medical center. He takes some
classes at the college, and has to do some lab time and clinical rotations at the medical center. He also has to do
ALS ride time with preceptors at different Advanced Life Support EMS agencies. So these are some probable
transportation needs you will have to consider.

So, to get back to your question, it depends on what transportation systems are available in your area.
You would need a method to get to class, lab, clinical time and ride times. I hope this is not clear as mud.
If you are in an urban, metropolitan area you probably have options like the bus, trolley, ferry,
commuter train, car pool, etc. In a rural area you might have more challenges.
We need more Emergency Medical Responders, EMTs and Paramedics. Improvise, Adapt, Overcome
and most important persevere. Good luck in your endeavor!

 

[2degrees]

Depending on your area you would likely need to go to EMT school first before paramedic school. As for how the schooling works it will really depend on the specific program. Most of the programs you will do at the same location, the school or satellite campus and then you will have a mandatory amount of time required on an ambulance or in the hospital.

For my EMT program it was 16 times meeting at the school, 1 day a week and then 4 shifts mixed between a hospital and ambulances. I’m in an area that does not have a great public transportation system so it would have been physically impossible for me to get to where I needed via a bus.

Thank you for your reply. I take a special bus for disabled people that takes you to and from your destination so it's not public transportation. I will be taking the EMT course but it's through an ambulance company. So I just report to the ambulance company that's it.

 

[ffemtrb]

My advice would be to focus on completing the EMT program. After you do that and
get some street time as an EMT, think about Paramedic training. Good luck with your EMT class !

 

[Akulahawk]

Hello I apologize if this is a stupid question but I don't have a car and won't be able to afford one until after I become a Paramedic. My question is do I need a car for Paramedic school? I'll be taking the bus to get around. How does college work? Do you meet at class and then the next day meet at a hospital for ambulance time. I'm asking those who have attended college for Paramedic. Any info. would be much appreciated. Thank you in Advance.

I have a couple of degrees and a couple of licenses...

First off, I don't know where you're attending, nor your situation beyond what's presented here. So, I'll provide some very generic information.

I'll address "college" first. For most of your general education and some of your other degree-specific coursework, most of your time will be spent on campus. So, attending by bus/public transit isn't likely going to be difficult unless you have classes that have hours outside what public transit can provide. You'll likely need to earn an EMT certificate before entering a Paramedic program, that is unless your local area has labeled all (or nearly all) prehospital providers "Paramedic" and have different levels of that (would not be a US program in that instance).

Once you begin your Paramedic program, you will likely spend a few weeks to a couple months doing classroom (didactic) education. After that, you'll likely begin spending a day or two in classroom and a day or two in-hospital learning psychomotor stuff and learning to do patient assessments with real patients. After you have completed this, you'll likely then begin doing a field internship where you put it all together and (hopefully) learn to be a safe beginner Paramedic. Whether or not you'll need a car during this process will depend greatly upon your clinical and field internship sites and where they are relative to you and if there's public transit that will be readily available to get you to where you need to go and when you'll need to be there. Expect this program to last at least a year... and in some cases/programs, could last 2-3 years.

In my particular instance, I needed a vehicle to get me to clinical sites as they were too far from the classroom site or my house for me to be able to take public transit and arrive at the site in a timely manner. For my Bachelor's Degree, about 90% of the time, I didn't need a vehicle - I used a bicycle. For my Paramedic program, the classroom site was in a different County from where I lived as were my internship sites. For my Associates Degree (Nursing) I also needed a vehicle (or someone to take me from place to place) as the clinical sites were quite a number of miles away from the classroom site or my house. I also usually had to get to work immediately after clinicals so even a bicycle wasn't an option for me for that particular program.

You just have to know your particular program and college and your clinical/internship sites and how they physically relate to where you live (and work and everything else) to determine if you need a vehicle or if you might need someone to ride with to get your classroom/clinical/field internship needs met.

 

[RocketMedic]

Thank you for your reply. I take a special bus for disabled people that takes you to and from your destination so it's not public transportation. I will be taking the EMT course but it's through an ambulance company. So I just report to the ambulance company that's it.

Brother, I hate to shatter your dreams, but if you’re already needing a special bus for disabled people and it’s not a financial thing, your dream of prehospital emergency medicine may not be realistic. If it’s some sort of physical, mental or cognitive disability, you literally may not be able to perform.