Dear Chief … Should a paramedic certification be a prerequisite for promoting to company officer?

Dear Chief…

Should a paramedic certification be a prerequisite for promoting to company officer?
By Scott Cook

Editor’s Note: This letter isn’t directed at a specific chief; it’s written in this format to make a point.

Dear Chief,
It’s me again. It’s been sometime since we last spoke.

Here’s what I know about you. On a personal level, your troops love you. They really do. They tell me you’re a stand-up guy who has an open-door policy and abides by that policy. They feel they can come to you with any concern and you will give them a fair shake at changing your mind, and sometimes, following a debate of the issue, you do change your mind. I truly applaud you for that.

But … you recently had a promotion test. More than 60 percent of your firefighters took the test, and one guy passed. What’s more, you wouldn’t allow several of your better qualified and EXPERIENCED firefighters to test because they don’t sport a paramedic certificate. Rumor has it that at the department you came from, when you were riding backward in the engine and wearing a paramedic patch, your company officer was a lowly EMT, and for whatever reason that didn’t sit well with you.

I’m willing to bet that he was a bad company officer, and from that standpoint, I can sympathize. Now though, you’ve chosen to deplete the morale of your troops so that paramedics won’t have to be supervised by someone “beneath” them. Granted, you did promote the one guy who passed the test. He has the least experience of anyone on your department, but he’s evidently a good test-taker—the best one out of all of your paramedics (think about that for a minute).

And now, he’s your new officer because he’s the best test-taker out of all your paramedics. (Yes, I said it twice; it needs to sink in.)

He reflects you on the scene when you’re not there. He makes the life-and-death, go/no-go decisions for his company and your department—because he’s the best test-taker out of all your paramedics. Are you following me here?

After the test, you decided that you would let only the members who failed the test retake it. Then you gave the same damn test! And several of your EXPERIENCED firefighters were again not allowed to test, because they aren’t paramedics.

Following the second test, you added a weighting system that gives weight to experience and job performance in addition to test scores—which is a great concept and I applaud that as well. But again, by leaving out experienced firefighters who aren’t paramedics, you’re automatically eliminating a pool of qualified applicants.

Let me be honest here. A paramedic certification is nothing to sneeze at, but many EMTs are first-rate at their jobs, and they can make just as good company officers as paramedics. Second, you’re letting your bad experience working for an EMT officer get in the way. I appreciate where you’re coming from; we’ve all had poor company officers. But don’t take it out on the personnel you have now.

Instead of killing the morale and unity of your troops, why not write a simple SOP that says, “It shall be the policy of the department that the senior officer is in charge of the overall scene at all times. The senior paramedic is responsible for patient care.” Problem solved. You have a better chance of promoting a competent company officer, morale is improved, and all is well.

Yes, it’s just that simple. Don’t believe me? Is it any different than allowing EMTs to ride the seat when the company officer takes vacation or a sick day? The message that sends to the troops: “Hey, you’re only good enough to ride the seat when no one else is available.” I know that’s not the message you’re trying to send. But perception is reality to the perceiver.

Like I said, Chief, your troops love you on a personal level. Now it’s time to be fair to them. Don’t single out the paramedics you have for promotion just because they passed a non-fire related exam. And don’t rule out the possibility of EMTs making great company officers.

Scott Cook is the former chief of the Granbury (Texas) Volunteer Fire Department and a fire service instructor. He’s also a member of FireRescue’s editorial board.

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Comment by Captain Brooks Morrison on December 20, 2010 at 9:13am: Sweet Jesus! How is a company officer supposed to lead and manage his crew with a certifaication levels below his crew? Lets say I am a company officer and an EMT basic, lets just say. Im on an arrest, my paramedic gives a wrong drug, I wouldnt know that because I never learned what he was doing in the first place. How can I mentor a young paramedic if I am not one?

Experience only get one so far, I could have 25 years of firefighting experience, but with 36 hours of fire training. Am I automatically better than a 3 year firefighter with 400 hours of training?

Look at it this way if you dont believe me:
A lot of firefighters play golf right? Most have played for many, many years. A lot of experience right? How good do they really play? Take someone that has been playing for 5 years with a lot of training, ie golf lessons and a coach, plays 5 rounds a week. Who would you place your money on?

Thing is, as a company officer, you need to have the same certifications and training as your crew. You need to have the most training, you also need experience. Quality experience comes from the quality knowledge base you get from training.

Comment by Mica Calfee on November 21, 2010 at 8:03pm: Please allow me to suggest a few things and ask a few questions.
1. Why does the company officer EVER need to be a paramedic? As an officer are you ever primarily concerned with patient care? Don't you have many other responsibilities on the scene? As an officer you are in command, as such you are concerned with everything from safety to tactics and more. As someone myself, who was a paramedic and then promoted to captain, I one day found that I was still a paramedic on paper, but it had been 10 years since I had started an IV. I realized that I probably was not the best paramedic for just about any job. New skills, such as 12 leads or capnography were only done once every two years at best, during some CE exam. Let's face it. If you are a captain and you find yourself in a situation where you are doing patient care, hasn't someone goofed? Haven't you failed to get the resources you need, or whoever is in command is failing to use your supervisory skills correctly?

2. Rather than make paramedic certification a prerequisite for officer, perhaps it should be required for promotion to driver. Better yet, as so many departments in my area have done, make it simply a requirement for employment. Many departments I know will only hire you if you are a paramedic. Others require you to complete paramedic school within your first 18 to 24 months, or you are terminated. (Of course these departments usually pay for your training and salary during this time.

I might also point out that in my state ALL certified FFs are trained to the EMT level, and have been for decades. Everyone, even station officers, can help out on medical calls.

So to sum up my position: Should someone have to be a paramedic to take the test for company officer? No. Should we perhaps start working on the future by making it a requirement for driver? Absolutely. This will not impact negatively upon those existing people who are eligible for the officer's test, but will serve to level the field for future promotions. It also shows a commitment to EMS.

Comment by Dave Angelo on November 12, 2010 at 10:22pm: Because, like it or not, EMS is our day to day, bread and butter task. Take EMS out of your system and watch how quickly your numbers go down. Numbers=Funding. Imagine sitting across from the City managers and answering this question..."Chief, since we privatized EMS, your runs have gone down 60%. Why should we fully fund your department??" Fire only systems around the country are taking a beating and losing staffing at alarming rates.

EMT Basic skills are what the tax paying public expects of us. We don't get paid to just do the parts of the job we love to do.That's why they give you a paycheck.

Comment by Anthony on November 12, 2010 at 9:14pm: Hmmm. interesting concept..ok heres another concept.. y does a FireFighter have to be an EMT also?? some people do an awesome job at firefighting but suck as an emt. me personally I was top of my class in both but I would rather just fight fire and leave the medical stuff to the other emt's {not saying i wont do it when needed} Its just i dont wake up every day thinking bout emt stuff. however i do wake up every morning thinking bout fire related stuff. so again y does everyone have to b both?

Comment by Mike on November 12, 2010 at 5:50pm: Although very good points there is much more to the promotional process than just holding cards / certifications. There is the thought that the reason he chose paramedics is that they show the initiative to advance their education and knowledge. Just dont rely on the fact that "I've just fought alot of fire" to get you promoted. There needs to be a balance of knowledgable experience firefighters to fill the job.

Comment by Jason Russell Brannan on November 10, 2010 at 6:01pm: Most interesting. I do see it coming like a wild fire as having to be a Paramedic to be eligible for promotion. I have seen this with 20 yrs in the fire service. I have worked under a Captain who was a Paramedic, and worked under Captains who were just basics. I have seen nothing out of eithier that shows me being a basic or a paramedic makes a good leader or a good officer. We are at heart, firefighters who have been overcome by the need for EMS. A good leader has many things in his arsonal. I do not think being a firefighter or a EMT or just a firefighter makes a good or bad leader. Leader/Officers should come from experience, knowlegde of the fire service, a understanding of EMS and what it intells, and the ability to know you don't know everything, but you know who is the most quilified for special scenes. You must be willing to listen and know when and who to listen too. "In Leadership the best we can hope for is that it works more often than not." The fire service has always operated on the brass. A supervisor tells people what to do. A leader says come on boys we will get this done. I feel Officers should have the attitude, ability, and experience to be a officer. Its just like being a volunteer. It does not count at most paid departments. I can honestly say I learned as much as a VFF about what not to do, as I ever will as a full-time. Any way thanks for letting me comment. Stay safe.

Dear Chief … Should a paramedic certification be a prerequisite for promoting to company officer?

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