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Careers at St. John Health
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Career Profiles: Emergency Medical Technician
What do they do?
- Work
in hospitals, police and/or fire departments,
or for private ambulance services.
- Assess
the nature and extent of the patient’s
condition and provide immediate life-
or limb-saving medical treatment at
the scenes of accidents and injuries.
- Respond
to automobile accidents, heart attacks,
gunshot wounds, unscheduled childbirth,
drownings and other serious medical
emergencies.
- Transport
casualties to hospital Emergency rooms
for further care.
- Specific
responsibilities depend on level of
training as determined by the National
Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians
(NREMT).
There are four levels of emergency
medical service (EMS) providers:
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1.
First Responders are trained to provide basic
emergency medical care because
they tend to be
the first on the scene of an
incident.
Many
firefighters and police officers
have this level of
training.
2.
EMT-Basic, or EMT-1, is trained to care for
patients on the scene of an
accident, and to transport
to the hospital under medical
direction; has the
emergency skills to assess the
patient’s condition
and to manage respiratory, cardiac
and trauma
emergencies.
3.
EMT-Intermediate (EMT-2 and EMT-3) has more
advanced training that allows
administration of
intravenous fluids, use of manual
defibrillators to
shock a stopped heart, use of
advanced airway
techniques and equipment for
patients with
respiratory emergencies.
4.
EMT-Paramedics (EMT-4) provide the most
extensive pre-hospital care,
including all the
procedures described above plus
oral and IV
administration of drugs, interpretation
of EKGs,
endotracheal intubations, and
use of monitors and
other complex equipment. |
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Education/Training
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- High
school diploma, with driver’s training,
health and science courses strongly
recommended or required.
- Progressive
training is offered for the four levels
of EMT. At the Basic level, formal courses emphasizing emergency
skills are often combined with time
in an emergency room or ambulance.
- EMT-Intermediate
training commonly includes an additional
35 to 55 hours of training beyond EMT-Basic.
- EMT-Paramedic
is the most advanced, with the Paramedic
technology course lasting up to two
years and resulting in an associate
degree in applied science.
- All
50 states require certification for
EMT personnel, and have continuing education
requirements.
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Salary
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Earnings
vary depending on employment setting,
geographic location and level of training,
ranging from $14,660 to $37,760.
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Want to learn more about
working in healthcare? How about starting as a volunteer?
Volunteering can be a challenging and rewarding
experience. Learn more about our Volunteer
Services Program - click here!
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