Paramedic training is rigorous and challenging. With such a high-stress job that demands an outstanding level of technical proficiency and performance under pressure, you wouldn’t expect anything less. Paramedics are highly regarded in their communities, and entrusted with saving lives. This responsibility necessitates stringent demands upon student paramedics.
Paramedic training is designed to give student EMT’s the capacity to deal with the pressures of real-world paramedicine. Those basic skills are then honed over careers of constant professional development. Any paramedic worth their pay will also spend a great deal of time developing their skills and monitoring new techniques and processes.
Universities, schools and vocational trainers run courses that complement any range of skills, from the complete apprentice to people who have a background in first aid or nursing. The less one knows going into training, the more intense the experience. That’s not to say that committed and intelligent students will struggle with even the most full-on paramedic training: no school is deliberately going to create an un-passable course.
What we would like to highlight is the overall difficulty of paramedic training, particularly advanced or specialised paramedicine. It requires much the same aptitude as that demanded of general medical or legal students: the ability to absorb and retain large amounts of information, pick up new concepts rapidly, and deal with a variety of practical problems through the application of common sense and learned procedures.
Becoming trained as a paramedic through a University is perhaps the best way of approaching paramedicine. This is because you can take advantage of the excellent non-teaching support offered by the entire organisation, which tends to be more limited with vocational training or private colleges. Universities are set up as centres for learning, and with dedicated administrative staff, well-equipped libraries and lounges, internet access, email, and support networks, as well as generally more flexibility with online and remote learning, Universities are our recommendation.
Unfortunately, competent paramedicine is far more demanding and requires a much broader range of knowledge than just the basics of First Aid. A thorough knowledge of physiology, anatomy, paramedical theory, policy, and administrative issues are the absolute minimums before you can become a proper paramedic. Learning all that can be a little overwhelming, understandably enough!
Luckily, teachers at paramedic schools are well aware of the demands they place on their students. There is a fine line between stretching students and breaking them entirely. Obviously, paramedic schoils want to produce the best possible paramedics at the end of their courses. At the same time, a high failure or drop-out rate indicates that the trainers are not looking after their students well enough.
It’s for this reason that constant self-assessment and awareness is vital as you work through paramedicine training. If you start to lag or fall behind, address it sooner rather than later. If you can’t keep up with one particular area or are struggling in class, speak up and let your teachers know.
If they’re aware of your having difficulties, they can assist you or refer you to the many support programs that help out in adult learning. If you remain silent, you’re just one more student amongst dozens, and teachers aren’t infallibly psychic.
At worst, if you fall too far behind, two issues will arise. The first will be that your coursework will suffer. Studying to become a paramedic is like any other course of study – complex ideas will be built out of simple foundations. There’s no point attending a course on calculus if long division still sends you into a cold sweat.
Secondly, struggling with study dramatically undermines your confidence in your own abilities. There’s nothing more debilitating than the feeling of being left behind or struggling to keep up.
If you’re being overwhelmed, unless there are things you can do that will have an immediate and notable effect on your studying – like giving up alcohol, recreational drugs, partying, or reducing your workload so you can study more efficiently – then start talking to your school’s support network and see what advice they can give you.
Delaying your graduation or reducing your study load may seem like something you want to avoid, but it’s better to complete a course of study a year later than you’d originally planned rather than dropping out due to burn-out entirely.
Having to re-sit courses also means you wil fall behind the peers you started with. One of the best things about paramedic training is the people you will meet and work with on the way through your time in school; they will be your peers when you enter the work-force, and unless you’re in a huge population center, you’ll probably be working closely with many of them through your career.
Remember that a lot can change in the years that it will take you to complete your studies. For a start, you’ll get into the habit of regular study. At first, your brain will probably feel a little stretched, especially if you haven’t been doing formalised learning for a while.
Don’t stress, and if the thought of studying full-time or near to full-time concerns you, contact a vocational education school about doing some back-to-study preparation work.
We hope you enjoy and excel in any paramedic training that you undertake. Good luck!
Paramedic training is designed to give student EMT’s the capacity to deal with the pressures of real-world paramedicine. Those basic skills are then honed over careers of constant professional development. Any paramedic worth their pay will also spend a great deal of time developing their skills and monitoring new techniques and processes.
Universities, schools and vocational trainers run courses that complement any range of skills, from the complete apprentice to people who have a background in first aid or nursing. The less one knows going into training, the more intense the experience. That’s not to say that committed and intelligent students will struggle with even the most full-on paramedic training: no school is deliberately going to create an un-passable course.
What we would like to highlight is the overall difficulty of paramedic training, particularly advanced or specialised paramedicine. It requires much the same aptitude as that demanded of general medical or legal students: the ability to absorb and retain large amounts of information, pick up new concepts rapidly, and deal with a variety of practical problems through the application of common sense and learned procedures.Becoming trained as a paramedic through a University is perhaps the best way of approaching paramedicine. This is because you can take advantage of the excellent non-teaching support offered by the entire organisation, which tends to be more limited with vocational training or private colleges. Universities are set up as centres for learning, and with dedicated administrative staff, well-equipped libraries and lounges, internet access, email, and support networks, as well as generally more flexibility with online and remote learning, Universities are our recommendation.
The Challenge Of Paramedic Training
It would be lovely if paramedic training focused only on emergency First Aid. The principles behind initial response paramedicine are relatively simple to grasp, and can be practised on dummies and models to a basic level of proficiency.Unfortunately, competent paramedicine is far more demanding and requires a much broader range of knowledge than just the basics of First Aid. A thorough knowledge of physiology, anatomy, paramedical theory, policy, and administrative issues are the absolute minimums before you can become a proper paramedic. Learning all that can be a little overwhelming, understandably enough!
Luckily, teachers at paramedic schools are well aware of the demands they place on their students. There is a fine line between stretching students and breaking them entirely. Obviously, paramedic schoils want to produce the best possible paramedics at the end of their courses. At the same time, a high failure or drop-out rate indicates that the trainers are not looking after their students well enough.
It’s for this reason that constant self-assessment and awareness is vital as you work through paramedicine training. If you start to lag or fall behind, address it sooner rather than later. If you can’t keep up with one particular area or are struggling in class, speak up and let your teachers know.
If they’re aware of your having difficulties, they can assist you or refer you to the many support programs that help out in adult learning. If you remain silent, you’re just one more student amongst dozens, and teachers aren’t infallibly psychic.
At worst, if you fall too far behind, two issues will arise. The first will be that your coursework will suffer. Studying to become a paramedic is like any other course of study – complex ideas will be built out of simple foundations. There’s no point attending a course on calculus if long division still sends you into a cold sweat.
Secondly, struggling with study dramatically undermines your confidence in your own abilities. There’s nothing more debilitating than the feeling of being left behind or struggling to keep up.
If you’re being overwhelmed, unless there are things you can do that will have an immediate and notable effect on your studying – like giving up alcohol, recreational drugs, partying, or reducing your workload so you can study more efficiently – then start talking to your school’s support network and see what advice they can give you.
Delaying your graduation or reducing your study load may seem like something you want to avoid, but it’s better to complete a course of study a year later than you’d originally planned rather than dropping out due to burn-out entirely.
Having to re-sit courses also means you wil fall behind the peers you started with. One of the best things about paramedic training is the people you will meet and work with on the way through your time in school; they will be your peers when you enter the work-force, and unless you’re in a huge population center, you’ll probably be working closely with many of them through your career.
Remember that a lot can change in the years that it will take you to complete your studies. For a start, you’ll get into the habit of regular study. At first, your brain will probably feel a little stretched, especially if you haven’t been doing formalised learning for a while.
Don’t stress, and if the thought of studying full-time or near to full-time concerns you, contact a vocational education school about doing some back-to-study preparation work.
We hope you enjoy and excel in any paramedic training that you undertake. Good luck!