Looking for some EMS training ideas, I am on a small dept 15 FF,12 Fisrt Responders, 3 EMT's. I am trying to keep everyone involved and as excited about EMS as I am. 80% of our calls are EMS. 

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What is the level of involvement already? Do most people actually respond to such calls or just a handful? What does the dept operate as? My guess is at a First Responder level only, regardless of the EMT qualified people. What are the typical calls?

 

The challenge is that while EMS may be a majority part of the calls, the interest you may have in EMS may not really reflect to others, and can turn people away from doing it. If you tend to see more people showing up for the MVAs, traumas, etc and few, or the same, showing up for the sick and cruddy calls, that should be a starting point. Why don't people respond on those calls as opposed to the more "fire service" type of calls? Ask them.

 

While you may be excited about EMS, such enthusiasm can be a turnoff to others. Instead of looking for training ideas here, what have you done already and what is the reception from the membership? What does your membership feel as topics to go over? Have you trained with the EMS transport affilaites and talked with them?

 

While looking for "fun" training ideas can be a focus, if truly looking for ideas it helps to understand more of what you respond to and the level of interest from the membership. Somethimes it helps to talk with them first to garner ideas and perhaps throw those ideas out here so people could give a better insight. I means really, does it matter on doing a mass casualty training involving a railroad if your district doesn't have one? Besides what one may find as good and enjoyable, may not be the same for your dept. However, the basics are always good to go back on. Sometimes training to be "fun" can start to focus on ways to engage people, but when the basics start to fall away, people start to get hurt.

A good starting point would be to ask some of the E.M.T.  instructors in your area for suggestions. I'm sure there is a local community college or vo-tech school that offers E.M.S. related classes that you could visit and talk to the instructors about some training ideas.

We only have a handful of people that respond to medicals, our dept operates with first responders. We only do training once a week and EMS training is on the first thursday of every month. We mainly have the typical calls of difficulty breathing and chest pains. I feel that the guys get bored with what the chiefs have been doing for EMS training in the past with the basics of vitals. I have been put in charge of the EMS portion of the dept now and I just want a way to change things up a bit. Vitals are essential considering its the majority of what we do on a call. I also want to get those people who dont respond very often to keep thier skills fresh for when they do.. THank you for your input. 

What are the aspects that you believe has lead to the boredom? Have you been doing essentially the same scenarios and switch up crew positions? Have you had outside trainers? What do you want to change up? Do you do chart reviews or train with the transporting EMS agency at all?

EMS can be fun?

Nah.....only in those places where they may seen a call once a week or so.

haha... that's what I thought.  Riding around the hood in an ambulance, picking up people who have been sick for weeks, eating every meal cold(or not at all) and getting no breaks or sleep isn't my idea of fun.

Not to mention the people faking illness or injury just to go to the hospital for a meal or worse, the drug seekers playing the differing hospital game. Had a nice scam for awhile around here with some people from another country. They would call for mundane "emergencies" like a baby with difficulty breathing, which only burped up some food. They would go to the hospital and have an interpreter called in and the interpreter would give a kick back to the callers.Then with the medical-legal aspect of things, as EMS, our hands are tied and we can't call out the bluffs.

I would think the things to practice on are the least used skills on calls and keep working on those. There maybe splinting skills that are over looked that when you go to recertfication that the instructor is going to make you do to pass a part of the class. Splint  two arms for a double break we were asked to do at the class I was just at using splint boards, triangles, and kling as a example. There is no true way to do it but it has to hold together and prevent movement but allow for pulse checking.

Consider other possible things that could come up. Also packaging patients and problems that could happen or added to get a patient into a ambulance or a helicopter. Some helicopters run by emergency services are sometimes tight for space and if something is not placed right it could make a few minute trip a delayed flight because the patient won't fit. 

What I found out really keeps me interested is scenarios. Crazy off the scenarios where things are thrown at you causing you to think on your feet. I like book work and i can tolerate lectures. But, there's something to be said about putting someone in a "real" life situation that can really test their fortitude and make them realize that their size is a 6 sided approach. But that's only my opinion and that's how I learn best. I hope this helps.

Try using moulage for simulations and give them some challenging situations.  Do an on line search for home made moulage and you will get several site.  This is what I do for work for our Medical Emergency Response Team drills at the nuclear plant.  Here is just one link I found.  http://www.jems.com/articles/print/volume-40/issue-7/features/makin...  or there are good videos on youtube.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tsU90V2Fmmc

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