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Juniors and the Ambulance
should juniors be allowed to ride ambulance and have patient contact. a junior can see something bad on an MVA but should they help treat it. EMS had more physcological damage then fire, should juniors be allowed to do ems too. if yes, why and what good comes of it, if no why not?
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Andrew on
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This is not supported by any legal issues just an experience. I have been to a scene with three different departments (nontransporting) that use a private transporting agency, and each department let me ride in the back on way to the hospital. But just an experience. Its a great learning tool.
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Permalink Reply by Viktoriya Zamudio on
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NO. I do not think they should be allowed to ride on the ambulance or have patient contact. Reasons why... Well to even be in an EMT class you have to be 18 years old or older, and take a background check. Second..its a big responsibility working with patients. A HUGE responsibility. When I did my clinical I was terrified of hurting someone and getting sued. An average EMT class is over 225 hours of instruction and lab time. (at least mine was). Junior firefighters are just not trained to that level. If you want to learn some medical stuff take a CPR class and when you are old enough go apply to your local community college and take their EMS course.
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Permalink Reply by Brandon Brichetto on
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In the state I live in and the dept. I am a Jr on. You are not allowed to ride on the ambulance until you get at least EMT-B which you have to be 16.. You also have to be cleared by the JR-Adviser.
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Permalink Reply by Matthew Madairy on
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It says youre from MD in your profile. In MD, to render PT care, you must have at least First Responder, and EMT if you want to do any PT care on your own. To be either of these, you have to be 16. And MIEMMS will never allow a junior to assist in any of this. It also has to do with an individuals ability to handle a situation and help mitigate it. There are men who have been on the job who still have trouble dealing with some things they see. I doubt at 13 or 14 you have mastered your instict to shut down the emotions and let the training you've had kick in. You have probably had no formal training in this field. So until you have the training and the experiance to go with it, just sit back, go to your junior meetings and trainings, and don't jump the gun. your time will come.
Heed my advice and don't push it. you have plenty of time to ride from the time you turn 16 until you give it up. I know you're eager to get your career in the fire service started. Remember your time will come.
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Permalink Reply by Captain William Frazer on
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Hi,
I am not sure the age you consider Jr. But I know with many states insurance requirements do not allow anyone under 18 years of age to ride in fire or ambulance apparatus and have legal stipulations on how much contact or treatment you can actually have. On the flip side of things, if a state does allow it, I think if he/she has had first respnder training and thier supervisor thinks they can help, with out set backs, then by all means give it a try only if your departments guidelines permit. Its a great way to find out if this is right for you.
Working on paitents is a fine line. As stated in other posts, actual patient contact really has its issues legally. But if your state allows, doing ride alongs to see what really goes into EMS is a way to see if its something you would like to head for. You are really better to just watch and observe, you will learn a lot that way. Again, your time will come soon enough. Take your time, watch and learn, it will really help.
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Permalink Reply by Marty Hrinko on
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Our ambulance lets juniors ride IF they are CPR, AED, and First Aid certified. NO PT CONTATCT UNTILL EMT-B CERTIFIED!!! They must also prove to the officers that they are responsible enough to ride. They must also recieve EMT-B at the minimum when old enough.
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Permalink Reply by Ashley Renee Miller on
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Well this is the way I look at it...See in my home town the EMS and fire are split.....And thers a junior fire program (16-18) and a junior EMS program (14-18)....And the way I look at it is... if you're in the fire program you should be focusing on the firefighters jobs...and if your on the EMS program you should be focusing on the EMS jobs....If you're intrested in EMS then do a ride along with them this allows you to rn with them for thirty days...Thisgives you and optertunity to observe...But before doing this you really have to be emotionally and mentally mature....Sure you are going to see some gorey stuff on MVA's but what you see in the ambulance can do alot of physcological damage if you're not prepared for it....But I think juniors should pick one or the other because doing both can be overwhelming.
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A lot of places have "joint Fire/EMS" services. I like them both, and it really isn't all that much more to focus on. Especially as an Explorer.
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Permalink Reply by Chris Jackson on
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Where i am a cadet at; If the officer thinks that you are able to handle what is going on than they do allow you to ride on the Ambo. I often do go on ambo calls and have seen some pretty bad stuff. Thought i was ready for it - however the first time i saw what i did - i relized that it was pretty graphic. However i still go on Ambo calls - But i leave my emotions at the station.
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Permalink Reply by David Hubble on
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I am new to this forum, so please bare with me...
I am a Jr Firefighter is Western NY, I am 17 Y.O. and currently have a NYS Certified First Responders Certification (Pretty much EMT-B)
Our department is firm about not allowing youth members on an EMS scene REGARDLESS... However, 90% of our medics have said that they would rather have someone like me riding on a rig as an assistant than the firefighters that only carry a CPR card, and there have already been situations where I have been on a scene administering care prior to an ambulance arrival....
I would like nothing more than to ride on a rig, but because of my age it may not happen,,, Departments are only protecting the youth from some stuff you should not be seeing. Some of the stuff I have seen is hard to mentally recover from, but eventually you do and go on about your life.....
good luck in your future endeavors!
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We use the same BLS protocols, that is what I was referring to... In a way they are kinda close, same concepts.
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Permalink Reply by Angela Wyatt on
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Dave,
Yes the CFR protcols and NYS EMT-B protocols are pretty similar.
Fireman- in NYS a Certified First Responder is one step below an EMT-B. They are allowed to backboard/collar, insert NPA/oral airways, ventilate, administer oxygen etc... The term First Responder is different from state-to-state, so take that into consideration.
When it comes to Juniors riding on an ambulance there is always going to be mixed feelings. There is a fine line that the ranks have to take into consideration when it comes to allowing juniors/explorers to ride. Unfortunatly in EMS things are not always what they seem. Things can change in an instant. If a junior/explorer was to ride on an ambulance there would have to be guidelines that they need to take to ensure physical and mental safety.
I would much rather have someone who is certified with medical training to assist me in the ambulance. The expectations are clear when it is someone who has had training, compared to a helper who may only be CPR certified. Now on the flip side- juniors/explorers need to learn. The only way they can learn is to do things hands on.
I would feel more than comfortable with Dave being my assistant in the back of a rig because he is certified. If I were to feel uncomfortable with a patient situation and feel unsafe with him riding with me, I would ask him to ride up front or not go. I think that with strict rules and mentors that work directly with the youth that it could be a safe learning process for them if managed correctly.
The other concern is that some insurance companies will not allow juniors/explorers to ride without being of age.
I hope that within the near future within our department we can expose our leadership to this possibility. I also hope that we can provide a safe learning environment for the youth.
Angela
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