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Hi guys.

This post is a tangent from the other thread talking about EMS Unions. I mentioned paramedics bringing medical books to work to study, and it made me want to discuss the issue further. And so I'm not hijacking the other thread, I went ahead and created a new one.

We talk a lot about continuing education, but we don't really get into a lot of detail. Of course there's always more alphabet courses to take, and other educational opportunities to take advantage of while off duty, but I want to talk about work. Specifically, what are you doing while you're at work? As most of you know, I'm a strong believer in advancing EMS education, and I have some great news for you guys: we're all alive in the information age!

My dad always talks about how the greatest change he's seen in his life is the shift to the information age. When he went to college, if he wanted to read about something, he had to go to the library. And I'm sure many of you had to do the same. Thankfully, the idea of necessarily making a trip to the local library has gone out the window, and we've entered an era where you can literally find out anything about anything with a few clicks of the button.

So what are you guys doing while you're at work? I hope you're not just frittering time away playing Solitaire on the computer or talking about that great fishing trip you had, because if you are, I'm afraid I must DEMAND (see, not ask) that you change that. Fortunately, I suspect that many of you, who have already taken that first step to become more than "just" paramedics by spending your free time on this forum are not like that. But if you are, or even if you aren't but just don't know where to start, this thread is going to help change that.

The point is this, guys. We have an awesome job. We literally get to sit around watching TV or playing on the computer for a good amount of our days. We are poised to act, but when there's no action to be done, I think we can all admit that at times we get a little lazy. I'll be the first to admit that I take naps at work, or dick around on the computer, but I also like to study as well. And really, it's a great time to do so. There's no other time of the day when I'm going to get paid for studying, and furthermore, it makes me a better provider.

So what about the rest of you? Are you taking advantage of paid study time? If not, why not? And if so, I want to know what you're reading! There's a lot of medical information out there, and it can be hard to figure out what the quality textbooks are and what aren't. So again, what are you reading? What are the pros and the cons of the book? Is it available through Amazon and how much does it cost?

Currently, I'm in the middle of medEssentials for the USMLE Step 1 Third Edition by Kaplan Medical. The pros? It's an awesome book full of AMAZING amounts of information, the cons are it's more of an abbreviated guide, so additional references can definitely make it an easier read; but a little googling won't hurt. It also requires a stronger foundation of the sciences than what we're traditionally exposed to, but if you're willing to do a little extra reading to update you on some of the subjects you may not have covered in paramedic school, it'll be well worth your while. You can pick it up on Amazon for about thirty bucks. http://www.amazon.co...04577625&sr=1-1

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Hi guys.

This post is a tangent from the other thread talking about EMS Unions. I mentioned paramedics bringing medical books to work to study, and it made me want to discuss the issue further. And so I'm not hijacking the other thread, I went ahead and created a new one.

We talk a lot about continuing education, but we don't really get into a lot of detail. Of course there's always more alphabet courses to take, and other educational opportunities to take advantage of while off duty, but I want to talk about work. Specifically, what are you doing while you're at work? As most of you know, I'm a strong believer in advancing EMS education, and I have some great news for you guys: we're all alive in the information age!

My dad always talks about how the greatest change he's seen in his life is the shift to the information age. When he went to college, if he wanted to read about something, he had to go to the library. And I'm sure many of you had to do the same. Thankfully, the idea of necessarily making a trip to the local library has gone out the window, and we've entered an era where you can literally find out anything about anything with a few clicks of the button.

So what are you guys doing while you're at work? I hope you're not just frittering time away playing Solitaire on the computer or talking about that great fishing trip you had, because if you are, I'm afraid I must DEMAND (see, not ask) that you change that. Fortunately, I suspect that many of you, who have already taken that first step to become more than "just" paramedics by spending your free time on this forum are not like that. But if you are, or even if you aren't but just don't know where to start, this thread is going to help change that.

The point is this, guys. We have an awesome job. We literally get to sit around watching TV or playing on the computer for a good amount of our days. We are poised to act, but when there's no action to be done, I think we can all admit that at times we get a little lazy. I'll be the first to admit that I take naps at work, or dick around on the computer, but I also like to study as well. And really, it's a great time to do so. There's no other time of the day when I'm going to get paid for studying, and furthermore, it makes me a better provider.

So what about the rest of you? Are you taking advantage of paid study time? If not, why not? And if so, I want to know what you're reading! There's a lot of medical information out there, and it can be hard to figure out what the quality textbooks are and what aren't. So again, what are you reading? What are the pros and the cons of the book? Is it available through Amazon and how much does it cost?

Currently, I'm in the middle of medEssentials for the USMLE Step 1 Third Edition by Kaplan Medical. The pros? It's an awesome book full of AMAZING amounts of information, the cons are it's more of an abbreviated guide, so additional references can definitely make it an easier read; but a little googling won't hurt. It also requires a stronger foundation of the sciences than what we're traditionally exposed to, but if you're willing to do a little extra reading to update you on some of the subjects you may not have covered in paramedic school, it'll be well worth your while. You can pick it up on Amazon for about thirty bucks. http://www.amazon.co...04577625&sr=1-1

Bieber - making providers look lazy every day.

I would always do at least 30 minutes of continuing education every shift. Not much but it's what I could usually squeeze in. Sometimes more and sometimes less. I utilize a lot of the internet resources out there and there is usually something that I learn each time I work. Now that I'm doing less and less EMS work I find myself not doing the 30 minutes each shift I work.

I have 4 years left on my medic license and I'm probably done after that but I won't stop learnig.. (or learning to spell)

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Absolutely. Currently I'm focusing on expanding my anatomy knowledge and cardiac interpretation skills, as well as airway. I'm accumulating a small medical library and also working on my diagnostic abilities as well. I've found focused goals with concrete results (better 12/15 lead interpretation, shorter scene times, etc.) tend to motivate me more than simply reading through a book.

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It's funny, I'm coming up on a mere two years on the road and my study habits have started to slide.

It's not a lack of intent. I carry a new journal or text in my bag all the time. But I'm finding I'm spending less and less time studying. Part of this is work related; I've recently moved from spending about half my time at slower stations to being full time out of one of the busiest stations in the region. Down time is now few and far between and with it my opportunities for truly effective review. I've recognized this and have tried to study more at home but here in lies my problem. I have awful work-life balance. I have student debt and have bought a home; as a result I'm working as much over time as I can while not having work be my entire life. I have been actively trying since I left school to focus more of my time on non-Paramedicine pursuits. I've actively tried to spend less time on the forums, to keep my mind off work while at home and to pursue other interests and as a result my studying is now haphazard and without focus. These aren't really excuses but I am understanding how quickly these habits can become permanent and why so many of our colleagues don't study unless it's time for CME. Thankfully that still means four full classroom days and two self-study packages a year, but it's not enough.

For those of you who still study regularly, what approach do you use to organize yourself? I can read journals all night and get some great info on the cutting edge science of our profession, but at the cost of reviewing basic information I've started to loose. I can go back and review the core material but don't really know where to begin and fall prey to the "I know this" mindset that leads to skimming and poor reading comprehension. Anyone found something that works well?

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So what are you guys doing while you're at work?

So what about the rest of you? Are you taking advantage of paid study time? If not, why not? And if so, I want to know what you're reading! There's a lot of medical information out there, and it can be hard to figure out what the quality textbooks are and what aren't. So again, what are you reading? What are the pros and the cons of the book? Is it available through Amazon and how much does it cost?

Giggle, I would love to say that EVERY shift I spend time studying, but that would be a bit of a stretch. But, what I can say is this. We have several opportunities each month for continuing education credits as we are given CE classes in addition to a county paid online CE bank. I take full advantage of those items.

The one thing I can say I do is research when I come across a patient or a drug or a situation that I didn't fully understand. (Picked up a patient the other day who presented with general weakness / looked like crap / but vital signs were stable with the exception of her blood sugar. Known diabetic who is compliant with her meds but also admits to not have eaten well for the previous 5 days. I would have expected her BGL to be tanked when, oddly, it was high. In researching her meds, at least 3 of them had an interaction which would increase the BGL. Never would have expected it.)

I also will run the shifts calls by the incoming crew to get their insight on how they might have handled the call. My own call review if you will.

I think by researching after each call helps to solidify my knowledge just a bit better. Just randomly studying info gets lost...for me.

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Ruff - Haha, well, I don't know about that, but thanks. And every little bit helps. What are you gonna do after you retire from being a paramedic?

Prmedic - That's awesome! Tell me what book you're reading right now. Is it available on Amazon?

Herbie - Thanks so much. I do my best.

Docharris - I understand it's sometimes hard to find the time to work on those "extra" things that don't really seem essential, but I want to encourage you to redouble your efforts. If there's anything we can do to help keep you motivated, let us know. Maybe we need to start a book club on the forums? Haha!

For those of you who still study regularly, what approach do you use to organize yourself? I can read journals all night and get some great info on the cutting edge science of our profession, but at the cost of reviewing basic information I've started to loose. I can go back and review the core material but don't really know where to begin and fall prey to the "I know this" mindset that leads to skimming and poor reading comprehension. Anyone found something that works well?

I get what you're saying, and I have the same problem. It really just comes down to forcing myself to sit down, put away any distractions that might be there, and really throw myself into the reading. A lot of times, especially now that the weather's getting nice, if I'm at work I'll just open the bay doors and go sit in the garage with a book. No partner distractions, no TV or computer. Just you, your book, and the beautiful weather. As far as avoiding falling into the "I know this" mindset, why don't you put yourself to the challenge and look up some quizzes or buy a book with practice tests for the NREMT? You might be surprised at how much you've forgotten (I know I am), and that might help motivate you to go back and brush up on the basics.

Tcripp - That right there is a great way to learn! It seems like I myself have far too often accepted that "I didn't know" and didn't bother to look up something related to a call, and I'm working on putting a stop to that. If you work in a busy service, sometimes even just jotting down the stuff to look up on a pad and googling it after your shift works.

BEorP - Awesome! What do you have your master's in? Are you going to be going back to school to become an ACP?

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Awsome thread, we need more discussions like this. Its the little things that change the culture of our profession, one dysfunctional neuron at a time.

Anyway, I have two comments.

Simple one first: My FT department easily does half of its training on duty training through centra-learn and other on line rescources. This usually involved it being done in the station.

More complex thought second:

The law enforcement community has discussed this for YEARS (decades even). Gordon Graham has a simple thought: EVERY DAY A TRAINING DAY. If the Watch SGT (or what ever the title was....) did 10 minutes of review (and documented it) of important "just in time" training with every roll call, for 4 day a week, times 52 weeks a year, that would equal 34.6 hours of training a year before the first officer stepped onto a range or into a classroom!

Now the math would obviously work different for EMS and our different scheduals, but at my part time gig they do 30 minutes of web based telephonic conference call training EVERY DAY at the beginning of their shift as a shift on top of the normal training required. This equals about 52 hours of training a year for full times just through this medium.

Brian Willis (another Law Enforcement training speaker) also discusses this concept, and EMS is no where as busy as LEO's typically are in major cities.

My point is this: We as field providers need to do more to help ourselves, and for those of us field providers who are moving up, we can and do need to do more for our co-workers. Not every bit of training is a merit badge course (i.e. ACLS, PALS) or a refresher course or a conference. REAL training is in small groups and "just in time" and led by our PEERS and OURSELVES.

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so I'm wondering, what would it take to get a weekly nationally approved thru CECBems or whatever group that sanctions continuing ed. I think in missouri we recognize cecbems or something like that.

What would it take to get a weekly CEU offering set up through EMT City?

What kind of discount could the national providers of CEU's give us if we as a collective group were to go to them and say we can get you 200 or 500 ems providers across the country to sign up to your service? What kind of discount could you offer for this particular group?

Power in numbers people.

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