You've ever wanted to save lives. You've ever wanted to feel useful after every shift? You've ever wanted to yell numbers at doctors when entering an emergency room. This article is for you... it won't be exactly that... but you will learn more!
Being a paramedic means above all feeling close to the community and people in situations of vulnerability. It’s also about feeling like you’re making a real change in the world. We sometimes save lives, but in most cases we are just a hand to hold for someone who is going through one of the worst times of their lives. We have the opportunity to see and experience moments that are often exceptional and unknown to the public. I transport everyone from the homeless' person to the Prime Minister. So, how to be a paramedic... is to feel useful on a daily basis.
Paramedics are trained, equipped and trained to respond quickly and efficiently to the needs of the population by providing different levels of care, regardless of the location of the intervention or the physical condition of the patients. We also ensure that patients are transported safely to a facility. We provide them with the necessary care according to established techniques and protocols. We evaluate and stabilize our patients with the goal of preventing their condition from deteriorating before they receive medical care from the hospital.
We arrive in the morning and take our vehicle for the day. We make sure all equipment is present and ensure that our vehicle is in good condition. Then, we go into service at our dispatch center. We will then head to a waiting point to wait for calls. When we receive a call, we read the calling card, priority and Clawson code. We head to the call. Upon arrival, we will take into account any information the first responder may have for us. We assess the patient and treat according to the clinical presentations that we can treat. Then, we prepare for evacuation and transport the patient to the hospital and transfer care to the nurse. We disinfect the equipment and complete the intervention report. We then make ourselves available at our dispatch center to receive other calls.
A paramedic works in a private, cooperative or public ambulance services. The Ministry of Health awards ambulance contracts to companies depending on the territory. Paramedics therefore choose their ambulance company based on the territory and the social benefits of all ambulance companies.
To pursue this career, we must attend an educational establishment in Quebec, recognized by the Ministry of Education, Recreation and Sports, in order to obtain a college diploma in this field. On the island of Montreal, two establishments offer training for becoming a paramedic: Ahuntsic College and John Abbott College. After having completed 5 fairly demanding CEGEP sessions, we must complete 300 hours of internship which ends with the PNIC which is our final evaluation with 10 calls and 3 scenarios in addition to a theoretical exam on protocols and ethical principles. Then, we have to officially paramedic.
We start with a salary of around $26 per hour. A big problem is the lack of hours in some companies. However, large businesses like Urgence-Santé allow us to have 40 hours per week from the start. Subsequently, with the years of experience, we end up around $70,000 per year.
When we start, we always have training specific to our organization and the region in which we work. Not all regions have the same protocols and not all companies have the same types of ambulances, medications, etc. Some companies also have special teams that new paramedics must learn to work with. Next, an active paramedic must complete continuing education each year when certain protocols change or when certain concepts are widely misunderstood by all paramedics in a region or company. A paramedic must also always keep up to date with clinical bulletins published by the Ministry of Health. These clinical bulletins update our knowledge based on changes in medicine.
We are exposed to many dangers such as extreme outdoor temperatures during the summer or winter. We are exposed to different climatic conditions. We ask people not to go out during a snowstorm, but we need to be on the ground to ensure their safety anyway. We also work with tools and patients that can hurt us. We may also be exposed to contaminate biological agents such as vomit, blood, and droplets. Finally, in rare situations, we may be exposed to violence from a certain patient.
No chance, fortunately we are still in the middle between very manual work which can be replaced by machines and intellectual work which can also now be replaced by a machine. We have a job that is physically demanding enough that a robot can't really go down stairs at the same time as providing care that requires good thinking. So, in the near future, The population will continue to receive humans into their homes to take care of them if necessary. However, I am very happy that our profession is improving thanks to the robot, with dispatch models for calls and work tools that are much easier to use.
This is a very unfortunate answer, but most people who become paramedics don't stay paramedics for long. Many leaves the profession after 5 years to do another job. We have a very demanding job that requires a lot of energy and which often cannot be done for several years. Some change jobs completely, others become a supervisor, instructor or teacher at CEGEP. Only a small portion of paramedics continue to do the same job for more than 10 years.
Despite the many flaws of this work... it remains work for people who have prided in helping relationships and the community at heart. In my opinion, it is still the most beautiful job in the world... in a Quebec Prehospital emergency system which does not allow it to be highlighted.
Rationale: to inform or educate
Authority: government
Date: still relevant
Accuracy: probably true
Relevance: relevant for this document
Sources: cites sources
Rationale: to inform or educate
Authority: government
Date: still relevant
Accuracy: probably true
Relevance: relevant for this document
Sources: cites sources
Rationale: to inform or educate
Authority: government
Date: still relevant
Accuracy: probably true
Relevance: relevant for this document
Sources: cites sources