Top Five mistakes made by rookie EMTs

Being a new EMT is a fun and exciting time. But keep in mind the older more senior EMTs and Paramedics you work with need to respect you. Here are some issues we identified that we would like to see the next generation of EMTs do better at…

EMS training could be cut if bill passes

As the rookie you get tasked to do the rig check before we start shift. This does not mean you need to spend the next hour checking every trinket and counting every gauze pad. Granted the senior members of your crew like getting time to bull shit and eat doughnuts, but at some point we need to get out of the barn.

Seriously check the important stuff… do the lights & siren work? Do we have O2 in the tanks? Does the Defib turn on? Is there a cot and does it have sheets? Do we have some kind of gauze in a cabinet? This is what we need everything else is just toys.

You check the stuff we need and that rig check can be done in less than 5 minutes…

Writing out run reports with way too much detail

Paperwork is for cops, not EMTs. The run report is for billing. Check the boxes so the admin staff can bill for the services we used. Write a simple narrative “Person had BooBoo. Treated BooBoo with above items on check boxes per our policy. Transported to ER”. That is all the report needs.

If some administrator tells you the reports protect you if you get sued by a patient, call BS. You follow policy and protocols, that stuff is written out. Why re write it on every run report. If you goto court just bring a policy book and read that to the jury, it is better than a report ever could be.

Rushing to the scene of every call

Why are you in a hurry? 90% of the calls are for taxi service. Let the first responders get there first. They are called first responders for a reason. If the local PD or an Engine Crew rolls out for First Responder duty all the better. Let them get on scene and do all the patient care. If all we are is a nationally registered taxi… then we don’t need to be on scene till it is time for the taxi ride.

Jumping right into a Paramedic program

You are a newly minted EMT, why be in a rush to go back to school? Almost every EMS call can be handled by an EMT. We only need paramedics for like 2% of all calls in any given city. Do you need more student loan debt for skills that will never get used?

Plus working as an EMT and also being a student is way too much stress. You are young, go out have fun. Go on some dates, start a family, later if you find you truly need the paramedic skills then seek out that extra education.

Getting overly upset by the term Ambulance Driver

Do you drive? Is the thing you are driving an Ambulance? Guess what… you are an ambulance driver. Deal with it.

Now later in life when you are a crew chief or seek out paramedic skills then you can get butthurt. But for as long as you are driving the rig that is a description of what you do.

This constant correcting of Cops and ER nurses about the job title makes you look childish and makes our crew look like a bunch of idiots. So stop that, like right now!

This is a list we here at CallTheCops put together… feel free to add your own in the comments below…