Introduction to Emergency
Medical Services (EMS)
In the state of Massachusetts there
are four levels of emergency care
providers:
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First Responder
Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) – Basic
EMT – Intermediate
EMT - Paramedic
First Responder
• CPR trained at the health care
professional level
• Required minimum training for all police
and firefighters in Massachusetts
• Usually the first on the scene in an
emergency
• Trained to treat life-threatening
emergencies with a minimum amount of
equipment
EMT - Basic
• All of the skills of the first responder plus:
– Trained in the use and operation of the
ambulance
– Certified to administer oxygen, glucose,
epinephrine and some other medications at
the on-line or off-line direction of the closest
emergency department’s lead physician
• Called the “medical control” physician
EMT - Intermediate
• All of the skills of the EMT-Basic plus:
– Capable of starting an intravenous line and
infusing volume-replacing normal saline
– Trained to place an endotracheal tube in a
patient’s windpipe to create a secure means
of ventilating the lungs
EMT - Paramedic
• All of the skills of the EMT-Intermediate
plus:
– Administration of intravenous medications for
cardiac, diabetic and other medical conditions
under either off-line or on-line direction
– Many other optional and advanced skills such
as chest decompression and needle
crichothyrotomy, etc.
Basic or Advanced?
• Basic life support called BLS describes the
care given by First Responders and EMTBasics
• Advanced life support, called ALS, is the
higher level of care performed by EMTIntermediates and Paramedics
– Permitted to perform invasive procedures
• Procedures that introduce foreign substances or
equipment into the patient’s body
Training
• The EMS provider is legally prohibited
from performing skills that are beyond his
or her level of training
• Each group of skills requires the proper
certification
• The length of time required for learning the
advanced skills is considerable
First Responder Training
• Prerequisite: Health Care Professional
level CPR
– 8 hours
• 24-hour class
• Three-year certification period
– Certification is maintained with a refresher
course
• 12 hours
EMT Basic Training
• Prerequisite: Health Care Professional level
CPR
– 8 hours
• 110-hour class plus
– Five patient contacts
• State certification application and fee
– $150.00
• Two-year certification period
– 24-hour refresher course
– 28 hours of continuing education
– $150.00 recertification fee
EMT Intermediate Training
• Prerequisite: Health Care Professional
level CPR
– 8 hours
• 180-hour class plus
– 100 hours of clinical observations and skills
• 30 i.v. starts
• 10 intubations
– 100 hours of field observations and skills
• 10 i.v. starts
• 1 intubation
EMT Intermediate Training
• State certification application and fee
– $150.00
• State administered exam
– Minimum passing grade: 70%
• Two-year certification period
– 24-hour refresher course
– 28 hours of continuing education
– $150.00 recertification fee
EMT Paramedic Training
• Prerequisite: Health Care Professional level
CPR & EMT-B certification
• X contact hours as an EMT-B
• 400-hour class plus
– 200 hours of clinical observations and skills
• 60 i.v. starts
• 10 intubations
– 200 hours of field observations and skills
• 30 i.v. starts
• 1 intubation
EMT Paramedic Training
• State certification application and fee
– $150.00
• State administered exam
– Minimum passing grade: 70%
• Two-year certification period
– 24-hour refresher course
– 28 hours of continuing education
– $150.00 recertification fee
How Far Do You Want to Go?
• HCP CPR
– Written and practical tests
• Minimum passing grade 84%
• Unlimited repeat attempts are allowed
• First Responder
– Written and practical tests
• Minimum passing grade 80%
• Unlimited repeat attempts are allowed
How Far Do You Want to Go?
• EMT Basic
– EMT-B is no longer part of the regular
curriculum
– Apply to take the summer course
• Classes held at Mohawk
• Evenings and alternate Saturdays from June –
Aug.
• Free to qualified Mohawk students
Mohawk Evening Class
• Do you want to become an EMT?
What is Involved?
• Lectures & written tests
– Called the didactic portion
– Subjects are similar to the first responder
curriculum but everything is covered in more
depth
What is Involved?
• Practical skills demonstrations
What do the participants say?
The choice is up to you
• Applications are available
• Ask me for more information