EMS Week Thoughts

Over the last week, which happened to be EMS Week, I tried to do a Facebook post each day with my thoughts on EMS for EMS Week. Here's that collection for y'all... Sunday, May 16 Happy EMS Week to my EMS friends and extended family.To those of … [Continue reading]

EMS – Starting From Scratch

Right now, there's some controversy in Texas EMS circles over a pilot program to combine EMT and paramedic education into a single program where an entry level student wouldn't need to be an EMT before entering paramedic education. I am cautiously … [Continue reading]

The Right EMS Degree

Because I haven't thrown out any EMS dynamite in a while, here we go... I oppose the idea of a mandated associates degree for paramedics. Much of what it will do is to guarantee a monopoly to community college programs. These programs are often … [Continue reading]

The Lawyer Says Enough

Many of you who know me, whether in person or via social media, know that I complain about people expecting free legal advice. Between you, me, and the fencepost, I've actually done quite a bit over the years for the EMS world, whether it's for … [Continue reading]

Where EMS and education collide

This morning, I read an article with great interest about our local EMS system using a physician assistant who's also a paramedic to provide enhanced EMS care -- both for acute patients and to divert non-acute patients from the emergency room. The … [Continue reading]

EMS Education — Some Easy Places To Start

Right now, EMS is being asked to step up its game and take on more of a role in healthcare.  Even before we knew about COVID-19, EMS was being asked to do more in terms of reducing repeat patients and finding alternatives to the "you call, we haul" … [Continue reading]

A Solution to EMS Stagnation?

As I look at EMS's stagnation in comparison to nursing, I have a thought. Nursing has made it where a Registered Nurse is the minimum level of entry to almost any acute care role -- and where an associate's degree is the minimum education level at … [Continue reading]

COVID 19, Free Money, and Excuses

This is a bit far afield from my usual blogging about the world of EMS, but if you think big picture above and beyond considering what clinical skills an EMT or paramedic should have, maybe this is exactly about EMS. A couple of things about … [Continue reading]

Early Lessons/Thoughts From COVID-19 for EMS.

Because the science is evolving on COVID-19, we know that the end lessons from this may be different.  But I'd like to throw of my early observations out early for consideration. First and foremost, all of the EMS grants, training, and attention … [Continue reading]

EBM. Do you know what it really means?

Right now, in this time of COVID-19, there's a lot of unknowns. There are known unknowns and unknown unknowns, to borrow a phrase from Donald Rumsfeld. Right now, many of those unknowns, both known and unknown, apply to the treatment and management … [Continue reading]