Perils and Scope of Practice in Emergency Medicine

However, what some don’t know is that assaults on first responders are happening across the nation and many go unreported. Violence against EMS experts takes many forms. Most acts of brutality are not less than deadly. Statistics shows that the risk of non-fatal assault resulting in lost work time among EMS workers is 0.6 cases per 100 workers a year; the national average is about 1.8 per 10,000 workers. The National Association of Emergency Medical Technicians (NAEMT) found 4/5 medics have experienced some form of injury as a result of the job. The U.S. Department of Labor reported that about 52 percent of EMTs operating in the field have been assaulted.

Emergency Medical Technicians are the ones that respond to emergency calls, perform medical services, and transport patients to medical facilities. (“Summary.”) The idea of transporting an injured individual in a hurry has been

Before doing research, I was unaware that there are a few types of EMTs. I thought that there were only EMTs and Paramedics. The names can differ by state, but the three types of EMTs are an EMT-Basic or an EMT, an EMT-Intermediate or Advanced EMT, and a Paramedic. All three levels are trained to handle respiratory, cardiac, and trauma emergencies. An EMT-Basic is the simplest of the three. The skills of an EMT-Basic include evaluating the patient’s condition and caring for the patient while on the scene of an emergency and while transporting them to a hospital. An EMT-Intermediate has all of the training of an EMT-Basic, with the addition of higher skills, like giving the patient some medicines or using IVs. Paramedics are able to offer more advanced treatment than both lower EMT levels. They have the qualifications to give the patient IV’s, medicines, and use complex machines to monitor the patient (Summary).

This application paper provides a summary of Professional Liability for a Paramedic and EMS personnel in general. We forget (omissions) to perform a needed task or skill and we make mistakes or professional errors for whatever reason when performing our duty in the name of doing no harm. The incident (the liable act) may be minor and reversible; on the other hand it might just be hell’s payday with lawsuits and court dates. A professional liability can cause severe injury to a patient, both patient and care provider and might also include a civilian or two in the mix. Professional Liability can lead to

You are a bystander to an accident on the road. You notice a person pleading for help as they are screaming in pain, what do you do? Well, it honestly depends on which profession you have chosen: Medic or EMT? When I compare being a Medic in the United States Military to being a civilian EMT; I think that being a Medic is better. Upon comparing the credentials and future availability to attain additional credentials, individual capabilities, and impact on health of those treated, I believe that you too will agree with the idea that being a Medic is more beneficial.

In many cities emergency service personnel had their pay cut, overtime eliminated, and benefits slashed. This not only affects the moral of said workers but may drive away future applicants to find better pay elsewhere. This can cause many problems in the future as they will have a difficult time to hire new employees. It could also cause current employees to leave their departments for better pay causing more man power issues. “The national average wage was $34,370 in 2012, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (Mercer 2).” One of the major problems is that there is no federal funding for emergency medicine. The lack of funding for these emergency medicine personnel is a major concern leading to a haphazard development of this service. “Even the number of EMTs and paramedics is uncertain (Mercer 11).” Many believe that if you stabilize the budget issues then the profession would possibly become one of the fastest growing in the

Prior to the 1970’s, ambulances were staffed as basic life support (BLS) type units. They would transfer people on a basic level of transport performing “non invasive” interventions. The people who staffed this units were not called EMT’s at this time however were called Ambulance Attendants. They were severed with little medical training and only performed routine interventions. In 1966 there was an article called “The Accidental Death and Disability Report” also called “White Paper”. In this report The National Academy of Sciences Did studies on trauma and shock. This project was a federally funded report of their research which came to the conclusion that both the public and government were "insensitive to the magnitude

Without a doubt, the “White Paper” is still relevant in the world of EMS, playing a huge role with the modernization in EMS systems today. Accident Death in Disability outlined the need to decrease the morbidity and mortality of trauma patient through discussing key points that need change to be built a successful EMS system. Since then, EMS systems have not only become proficient in assessing and treating trauma patients, but also have become proficient in the assessment and treatment of acute and chronic illnesses, mental health, and social issues in all populations.

Tactical medicine is an important part of the EMS system because of the many violent scenes ems personnel respond on. Tactical EMS members would be used in more of and active shooter situation where there is still a definite hot zone and a threat to first responders and civilians. There is a statistic from the FBI that states that 1 out of 10 officers are assaulted in their career.

Not only can a Paramedic be fired if they arrive on a scene and failed to act because they were under prepared and unable to adapt to change, but this can also frighten the patient and make them feel more nervous in an already scary situation. If they Paramedic had worked their way up from an EMT they would have a better understanding of real-world scene operations and not have a high expectation that everything will happen in a certain order.

Paramedics in term are classified as street doctors (Legal ones). They have a great understanding of situations that occur traumatically and diagnostically. Without doctors treating injuries on the go there would be an incredibly high death rate. Even though schooling for medics isn’t that long, the information that is learned is enough to treat the patient in a pre-hospital care environment. Training for medical scenarios is a daily routine that medics run against to prepare for real events, such as triaging (Order of who needs treatment right away) patients when there is a mass causality. A medic’s most important tool to treat injured patients is their equipment. There is variety of

This continuing education course is a response to the January 9, 2015 report in the Journal of Emergency Medical Services (JEMS) about risks for emergency medical technicians (EMTs). Bryan Fass, ATC, LAT, CSCS, EMT-P (ret.) asked readers to remember all the brand-new EMTs they have observed firsthand. Most of those freshman EMTs were fit, healthy, and happy…for the first 14-16 months on the job. Despite thousands of dollars in training, they were put on the street with NO education about ergonomics, nutrition, fatigue management, or self-care. Within months they were burned out, stressed out, nutritionally compromised, overweight, and sleep-deprived. The report concludes that with good nutrition and fitness as a priority, “the negative effects

Many questions and challenges are facing the Boston Emergency Medical Services in terms of the employees and services provided. It has of greater concern over the number of employees in the organization and majorly concerning the drivers. Complaints have aroused that the drivers are overworked and spend a longer time in the shifts thus bring to low and poor services. The drivers and other medical attendants are fatigued because of the long working hours and thus bring the question of the corporate responsibility of the department. Several workers in other departments have raised complain over their welfare and the organization’s concern over the matter. Scholars need to focus on this issue and make recommendations on the remedies so that the department can continue to give enhanced services to the public (Ginde, Clark & Camargo,

Paramedics have a larger number of work related injuries and illness from being exposed to all sorts of dangerous situations. The bending and lifting of patients takes a toll on the body, so paramedics must keep themselves in prime fitness. Staying calm and collected but working efficiently is critical to success, and it’s often the ride to emergency care where most problems occur. Any steps must be taken to ensure care of the patient; paramedics are responsible for their

For many years, since the time of the Triumviri Nocturne and the Vigils, many lives have been saved by some form of an emergency medical service, and since then it has evolved into what it is now a complex life-saving system that has saved many more lives. From the origin of medical responders to the creation of paramedics, people have risked their lives for others, and in between is what is known as an Emergency Medical Technician or EMT.