Dustdevil Posted February 22, 2006 Share Posted February 22, 2006 The other question is how much experience you can get as a basic. If you live in an area where basics are only used for interfacility transports, your exposure to medical problems and trauma will be dramatically reduced. The same might be true if you plan on volunteering for a local rescue squad that only does a couple hundred runs a year. Exactly. Even 911 experience generally only creates bad habits and attitudes. Who needs that? Age? By the time you finish two years of medic school (the very minimum you should even consider taking), you'll be old enough. Experience? Overrated. Doesn't matter how much time you spent as an ambulance driver. Once you get out of medic school, you'll still not be ready to work alone as a primary medic. Concentrate on education first and foremost. If you can get EMS work while in school, great. If not, no big deal. Best medics I have ever worked with were rookies right out of school with no prior experience. You can be one of them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
retired_medic61 Posted February 23, 2006 Share Posted February 23, 2006 Exactly. Even 911 experience generally only creates bad habits and attitudes. Who needs that? Age? By the time you finish two years of medic school (the very minimum you should even consider taking), you'll be old enough. Experience? Overrated. Doesn't matter how much time you spent as an ambulance driver. Once you get out of medic school, you'll still not be ready to work alone as a primary medic. Concentrate on education first and foremost. If you can get EMS work while in school, great. If not, no big deal. Best medics I have ever worked with were rookies right out of school with no prior experience. You can be one of them. I'm with Dust on this one. I have seen many EMT's that have developed bad attitudes and habits and carried them over to Paramedic. I have known a few that went to work fresh out of paramedic school and they turned out to be excellent medics. I do not believe that you can throw the keys at a new paramedic and say ok its all yours, you are the primary medic. Unfortunately, that has happened and the results were not good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xselerate Posted February 23, 2006 Share Posted February 23, 2006 I know medics with 20 years on the job that say you need a minimum of 3 years BLS experience first.... I now see medics here that say the opposite.... It would seem to me it don't matter one way or the other. If you want to go to medic school go, if you want to wait then wait.... with the broad spectrum of opinions on the subject theres no real answer.... only your own experience. Good night...... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spineboard06 Posted February 24, 2006 Author Share Posted February 24, 2006 Thanks for all the feedback. Lot's to think about...Heheh. As far as EMT-I's go i don't understand that and my girlfriend is an I. If you are going to go that far why not pay the extra money and go the whole nine yards and go to medic. I thought maybe it would help with transitioning? Or if it was best to wait and work a while, to work as an I rather than a B. -Heather Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
randyg Posted February 24, 2006 Share Posted February 24, 2006 Here in MA you can take and pass an EMT-B class as young as you want, but the state will not certify you until you are 18. I did that way. Then 9 years later got medic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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