Hello! I'm going to be a freshman at a university this upcoming fall semester. I'm certified as an EMT-b, and I want to continue EMS for my university. I tried searching for this topic, but I couldn't really find anything. Has anyone else done EMS for their college? Would anyone recommend NOT doing it?
What is a College EMS like?
- Thread starter Chica
- Start date
Great question. The quality and type of college EMS varies greatly, based on what university you are going to. If you PM me the college, I can give you more specific information.
Over the past 10 years or so, more and more universities are hosting student managed and staffed emergency response or ambulance services to serve university community members. They vary from student groups that hold education (CPR, FA), to EMT classes, some services provide first responder services alongside a transporting ambulance service (municipal) to services that provide their own transportation, BLS, ILS or ALS.
The umbrella organization that provides resources for college EMS is the National Collegiate EMS Foundation (NCEMSF), and holds an annual conference for networking and education. (ncemsf.org)
Feel free to respond here or PM me if you have any additional questions.
Over the past 10 years or so, more and more universities are hosting student managed and staffed emergency response or ambulance services to serve university community members. They vary from student groups that hold education (CPR, FA), to EMT classes, some services provide first responder services alongside a transporting ambulance service (municipal) to services that provide their own transportation, BLS, ILS or ALS.
The umbrella organization that provides resources for college EMS is the National Collegiate EMS Foundation (NCEMSF), and holds an annual conference for networking and education. (ncemsf.org)
Feel free to respond here or PM me if you have any additional questions.
Unfortunately I cannot PM you because I have under 5 posts! While I don't want to give out my college's name here, I will be doing EMS at a university around Boston. I'm just not sure how the college EMS works compared to the ambulance squad I have been on in high school. I'm assuming most of the patients (with any college EMS) will definitely be intoxicated 
Not necessarily. I work for (and am a student at) a college in the Boston area. At least for our service, only between 18 and 20% of our patients have consumed ETOH or drugs, the rest of the cases are a fairly broad range, from muscle/bone/joint injuries to cardiacs, seizures, anxiety attacks, etc. When you reach 5 posts, please shoot me a PM.
I'm in the same boat with a different school in the Boston area. When you can, Chica, shoot me a PM with the name of the school. We see a good bit of EtOH (~25%), but see a whole host of other things as well.
Oh I see, that's very interesting! I would have thought there would be a much higher incidence of intoxicated students. How do the shifts work? Do you guys ever get called out of class or find it difficult to keep your grades up because the college EMS is a big commitment?
Again, it all depends on the school, and their model of care. Some provide only event coverage, others first responders, still others transport EMS-- that is going to effect the shifts, dispatch and commitment.
Please do a search on the forum for past discussions of Collegiate EMS.
Please do a search on the forum for past discussions of Collegiate EMS.
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The number of intoxicated students is going to vary depending on what University you attend.
I doubt you will get pulled out of class. Most university services run on a shift schedule. So when your on duty you aren't in class.
They can't force you to leave class either unless it is a paid service.
Bah dan beat me to it! Typed it out and forgot to hit send.
I doubt you will get pulled out of class. Most university services run on a shift schedule. So when your on duty you aren't in class.
They can't force you to leave class either unless it is a paid service.
Bah dan beat me to it! Typed it out and forgot to hit send.
Each service is different. My schools ems runs on 12 hour shifts (same as the city) and does have people on duty and in class. If you get toned out...you leave class. (im sure the scheduling works out so if you have a test that day you can switch shifts with someone).
DrParasite
The fire extinguisher is not just for show
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I might be in the minority here, but it depends on what your experience level is.
If you come from a semi-busy volunteer system to a slow college system, you might be incredibly bored. My home squad did 4000-5000 calls a year.... going to a school that did maybe 1500 calls a year (of which maybe 500 of them were requests for a taxi that were upgraded to ambulance runs) drove me INSANE.
In my experience, most volunteer college EMS systems don't want experienced people, they want newbies who they can train in their way of doing things. Plus (again only my experience) those who come in with experience tend not to last, especially if you were educated by non-college based people. they tend to gravitate towards the municipal systems.
Will you pick up drunks? absolutely. then again, many urban systems pick up drunks as well.
will you pick up only drunks? absolutely not.
you will get some serious calls, some ALS calls, and some downright BS calls. And when you do get those serious calls (I had an electrocution, hazmats, and ped strucks), just hope whomever is in charge is experienced enough to know what to do.
I was only able to handle college EMS for 2 years, after which I got a spot as a volunteer Firefighter in the next town over. I know others who left college EMS for local ambulance agencies. I know I was much happier. But I also know people who started there EMS careers in college EMS, became college supervisors, and after college went on to work for the local 911 service, eventually becoming paramedics
College EMS is fun to do, and it helps you make new friends at the new school. Do it. If you have a car, and really want to do EMS, try to join a busy local EMS agency, even if it means you have to drive to it.
If I could do it all over again, and I had a car with me freshman year, I would have applied for a perdiem 911 position, as well as volunteer at the local college squad. municipal EMS agencies tend to be busier, see more patients, and if you are perdiem, they work around your schedule. good luck
If you come from a semi-busy volunteer system to a slow college system, you might be incredibly bored. My home squad did 4000-5000 calls a year.... going to a school that did maybe 1500 calls a year (of which maybe 500 of them were requests for a taxi that were upgraded to ambulance runs) drove me INSANE.
In my experience, most volunteer college EMS systems don't want experienced people, they want newbies who they can train in their way of doing things. Plus (again only my experience) those who come in with experience tend not to last, especially if you were educated by non-college based people. they tend to gravitate towards the municipal systems.
Will you pick up drunks? absolutely. then again, many urban systems pick up drunks as well.
will you pick up only drunks? absolutely not.
you will get some serious calls, some ALS calls, and some downright BS calls. And when you do get those serious calls (I had an electrocution, hazmats, and ped strucks), just hope whomever is in charge is experienced enough to know what to do.
I was only able to handle college EMS for 2 years, after which I got a spot as a volunteer Firefighter in the next town over. I know others who left college EMS for local ambulance agencies. I know I was much happier. But I also know people who started there EMS careers in college EMS, became college supervisors, and after college went on to work for the local 911 service, eventually becoming paramedics
College EMS is fun to do, and it helps you make new friends at the new school. Do it. If you have a car, and really want to do EMS, try to join a busy local EMS agency, even if it means you have to drive to it.
If I could do it all over again, and I had a car with me freshman year, I would have applied for a perdiem 911 position, as well as volunteer at the local college squad. municipal EMS agencies tend to be busier, see more patients, and if you are perdiem, they work around your schedule. good luck
I just graduated from a college in the Boston area and spent the past 3 years really involved in our EMS service. It was probably the single thing that defined my college experience. I would highly recommend you at least start off getting involved, and if you don't like it no one will force you to continue. People who start off early (freshman, sophomores) are usually very valuable to the organization because they have the luxury of time to progress from probie to higher ranks, and by the time you become an upperclassman you have a lot of experience. If you are already an EMT you are well ahead of the game. I'm not sure what state you are from but if you are NREMT certified, just know that MA is one of the few states to not accept the NREMT so you will need to get reciprocity, which sometimes takes a while. Re: EtOH, if you work weekend night shifts (Friday nights, Saturday nights, sometimes Thursdays) you will see a lot of these types of calls. Sometimes you might see more interesting calls (head injuries etc.) that were the result of alcohol. However, you will definitely not only have alcohol calls. You will also have a lot of minor injuries, sprained ankles, syncopal episodes, abdominal pain, etc. And get used to seeing your patients around campus!