If you have ever thought about becoming a paramedic, then this article is for you! You'll learn everything you ever wondered about. How you can become a paramedic, where paramedics work, how much money they get paid, what kind of additional in-service training they need, some of the dangers involved in the job, when you can expect to retire and how you can make a difference in the lives of the people you serve. Sounds interesting? Keep reading!
When you are a paramedic, there are a lot of challenges. Indeed, everyone has something different going on, and you need to worry about the dangers of a violent person, a busy road or a chaotic environment while you are treating the patient. Plus, people with identical symptoms can have completely different problems. Being a paramedic can also be very rewarding, for example when you save a life. However, it can be hard to cope with the lost of a patient. You need to try to keep a distance and not bring work at home.
Paramedics are often the first medical people to intervene with a patient. They give immediate care to sudden illness victims, accident victims, car crash victims, heart attack victims, gunshot victims, poisoning victims, etc. Paramedics can, among others, administrate certain drugs, take vitals, bandage wounds, perform CPR, monitor hearts and immobilize bodies or body parts.
There is no such thing as a "typical day" for a paramedic. Indeed, each day brings different patients, settings, and situations. Usually, the day begins with the verification of all the equipment in the vehicle and the verification of the vehicle itself. One paramedic of the team needs to make sure they have all the equipment and the right amounts they need for the interventions they will do during their shift. They also need to check if some of the technical equipment works. For example, does the defibrillator chocs? While one checking the equipment, the other one checks the vehicle. For example, he needs to check the tires, the suspension, the braking system, the power steering, the rear-view mirrors, the flashing lights, the sirens, the horn, the liquid levels, etc. After all that, the team can make itself "available" to take calls. Sometimes, you can get a call right away or you are assigned to a standby point. Also, during your shift, you can either respond to a call alone or you can assist a team with multiple patients. Depending on the day, the paramedics may get call after call with little downtime or just a few calls during their shift. The city the paramedics work in also determines how busy they are during a shift. At the end of the shift, the paramedics go back to their garage and wash all the equipment and the vehicle.
Paramedics work in a variety of places. When they are waiting for a call, they can either be at the station or at a waiting point in their territory. Depending on the call, paramedics can intervene in homes, parks, stores, offices, etc. Anywhere there is a person in danger, a paramedic can intervene!
In the province of Quebec, in Canada, you need to complete the Prehospital Emergency Care three-year program offered at CEGEP (college) to become a Primary Care Paramedic. You can also, after 2 years of working as a paramedic, become an Advance Care Paramedic by attending a program at the University of Montreal.
The average paramedic salary in Canada is $66 281 per year. The entry level positions start at $35 440 per year and the most experienced workers make up to $87 263 per year.
Throughout their career, paramedics need to do additional training to stay up-to-date. For example, when there is a new protocol of intervention or a change in a protocol there are training courses.
There is always a risk of getting hurt when you have a call on a road or with a violent person. It is important to say that there are resources to assist the paramedics on a call such as police officers and firemen.
Paramedics can not be replaced by robots. To have a good relationship with a patient you need a human connection. However, robots could help paramedics to do their work; such as an automatic compression robot that could do the chest compression in a situation where there's a cardiac arrest.
On average, paramedics retire at 65 years old, but it can go as early as 50 years old.
In this career trajectory, I am in my second year of training out of 3. A couple of years after my graduation I would like to become a supervisor or become a teacher in that field.
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Authority: edited reporting
Date: still relevant
Accuracy: probably true
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Rationale: to inform or educate
Authority: edited reporting
Date: still relevant
Accuracy: probably true
Relevance: relevant for this document
Sources: cites sources