How to Succeed in Paramedic Class

A paramedic program is a challenging course that requires students to have specific abilities to excel in class. If you want to succeed in a paramedic program, sharpen your study skills, learn how to prioritize your time, review your BLS knowledge, and pick a paramedic program that fits your schedule and personal and financial needs. This article is intended to help you succeed by preparing for the academic challenges of the paramedic program.

Preparing for the Challenge

How does one get on the inside track of a paramedic course? Reading this article shows you are already moving to the head of the class by reading a professional EMS journal and expressing an interest in succeeding in medic school. A common mistake many students make is jumping into medic school unprepared. If you have been in EMS a while, you know a high percentage of students fail out of paramedic class. The conventional thinking that “I passed EMT class and have experience, so I will do well in medic class” is not always accurate. Experience is important, but being successful in a paramedic program requires academic ability, dedication and commitment to excellence. Let’s look at specific areas you can sharpen to excel in your paramedic education.

Developing the Learning Habit

Lifelong learning should be a goal of all EMS providers. Continued learning coupled with a balanced lifestyle is a great strategy for handling stress and preventing burnout in EMS. Patient care can be the foundation for motivating you to succeed in your paramedic education. Following up on patients is especially important when their medical problem is not immediately obvious to you. Patient follow-up with a physician provides information about the disease process, assessment and treatment, as well as a chance to learn from actual cases. This type of learning is the basis of physician-based CME and helps develop the paramedic/physician relationship that is a hallmark of excellent EMS systems.

To develop your knowledge base for paramedic training, attend medical rounds in the emergency department or continuing medical education for paramedics. Reading emergency medicine journals is also a great way to learn about new developments in prehospital care. Developing a passion for learning in the field will help you learn medical problems, presenting symptoms and treatment. The mentor-to-student relationship you develop with physicians and nurses while learning is invaluable to your career. Follow-up of a patient with multiple medical problems provides you an opportunity to learn the process of formulating possible causes and developing a differential diagnosis.

Emergency medicine is repetitive in nature. Looking up medications and medical problems that are unfamiliar to you will pay a dividend when you see the drug or a similar case again in the future. There are several books and online electronic references for purchase. You should have resources available with you on the ambulance or back in the station to look up medications, medical problems, treatment modalities and local protocols. The online version of the Merck Manual at https://www.merck.com/mmhe/index.htm is a very good free resource for looking up medical problems. Resource books that list medications by class are helpful in learning similar medications. References are often available in the emergency department in electronic form or traditional references. By building relations with your local hospital, you can access the hospital library, which offers a huge knowledge base of medical information.

Lifelong learning is the key to maintaining a long career in EMS and improving your abilities in life. I find that continual study about our work and interests helps us maintain a positive outlook and constantly improve our knowledge and ability to care for patients. I also found that attending college courses kept me occupied and made the repetition of work less stressful. The bottom line is that learning of any type makes for a rewarding life and a path to personal excellence.

Sharpening Your Study Skills

Do you know your best place and time to study? Do you prefer to listen to podcasts or read a textbook and complete workbook exercises? Do you prefer online learning tools? Have you used index cards, written notes from the textbook or recorded lectures in the past? Before starting medic school you should have a firm understanding of how you will study and learn the material. Success in a paramedic program requires that you find the time and a quiet place to study and know your best method for memorizing material. You can make index cards or use a computer application to help you print review cards, or make a PowerPoint application to provide you with quizzes. Load portable Adobe document format files (PDFs) into your phone for easy review while waiting in line or waiting for a call. Software is readily available to help you make MP3s and podcasts to listen to, and audio files can be found online by Googling paramedic and MP3 or by searching ITunes.

Read each chapter in the textbook, highlighting terms you don't know, and create index cards or computer files with the information you need to learn. Use these memory aids to quiz yourself and review the material. Lastly, supplement what you have learned with reputable online resources, searching medical school videos, Google or Yahoo! for specific diseases. Make index cards with fill-in-the-blank questions and create cases to apply and integrate what you have learned. Be sure to use the resources provided with our textbook to supplement learning.

Priority Triage: Finding Time for Medic Class

Many students have trouble balancing the requirements of a medic program with their daily life. Our time is filled with activities and tasks, and we are responsible for establishing priorities and using our time as well as we can to meet our goals. The two best ways to take control of your time are to analyze time-stealing activities and learn to say no to activities that interfere with your goals. It may be hard to say no to family and friends in order to study or attend class, but being in control of your time is essential to succeed. 

Identifying wasted time is an important part of preparing for paramedic class. Paramedic training is unlike conventional college programs, in that it requires completion of clinical, classroom, skill and field rotations according to program requirements. By analyzing your time you can identify time-wasting behavior. For a week, record how you spend your days, listing each activity and the time spent doing it. For example, on Monday you spend 1 hour preparing for work, 1 hour commuting to and from work, 8 hours at work, 1 hour commuting to and from school, 4 hours at school and then 2 hours watching late-night TV. Tuesday is your day off and you spend 1 hour eating breakfast and sending the kids off to school, then spend 3 hours watching ESPN, checking your Facebook account and playing online games. On the way to school you stop by the mall for lunch with friends. Each day you monitor and record your time and how you spend it.

You can improve your time management by eliminating or significantly reducing the low-priority items in your life, but only you can determine your major priorities and values. Most people decide health, family, religion and personal success are important. For more on priority management, see “Time Management for Paramedic Students” at www.youtube.com/medicmentor.

Succeeding in paramedic class requires you to gain control of your time to study and attend class and clinical rotations. Prioritize tasks and stick to your goal of finishing medic school. It may be necessary to tell your friends and family, “No, I can’t do that today. I have to study for school,” but it is also important to protect opportunities to spend time with family on important holidays, spend time with kids, and schedule time to rest and manage stress to lead a balanced life. Paramedic class is of no use if you reach certification but have ruined your personal life! Establish your values and goals, and align your tasks to meet those goals.

Leveraging Medic Class Success with BLS Knowledge

Now that we have looked at developing study habits, priority management and sharpened study skills, let’s look at how to get off to a running start in paramedic class.

EMT knowledge is the basis of prehospital care. You can get higher test scores by reviewing EMT core topics and mastering your BLS knowledge. If you have been on the streets for more than a few years, make sure you have a current edition of the EMT text, American Heart Association (AHA) texts and local protocols.

Master the following topics to leverage your BLS knowledge: cardiac anatomy and emergencies; AHA CPR standards/AED operations; medical emergencies; history and physical exam techniques; OB emergencies; and trauma.

By mastering these key areas before medic class begins, you will build a solid foundation on which to learn ALS skills.

How to Select A Paramedic Program

When selecting a paramedic program, take into consideration the type of course, accreditation, clinical rotations, reputation and how the program fits your schedule. There are two options: a college credit-bearing course or a non-credit continuing education program. If you are looking to develop your college education and become a paramedic before going into the fire department or becoming a nurse or doctor, select a college credit-bearing program. If you are interested in paramedic training but not the college credits, a continuing education program may be better for you. You can often apply your training to a college degree program for college credit after you reach certification. Accreditation is also a consideration when selecting a paramedic program. An accredited paramedic program means it has met standards set forth by the Committee on Accreditation of Educational Programs for the EMS Professions (CoAEMSP). Accreditation ensures programs meet established standards for sponsorship, program goals, resources and student evaluation (www.coaemsp.org/Documents/Standards.pdf).

Another consideration is whether you want to attend a national or local program. If you want to seek an EMS management or leadership job at the federal level, you may consider a nationally renowned program with a reputation for excellence that can provide you with a degree to further your career in EMS management or education. When researching a paramedic program, consider its reputation, clinical rotation factors, traveling distance commitment, cost and results.

Classroom vs. Distance Learning or Hybrid Class

If your time is limited or you have long distances to travel, you may want to consider a hybrid paramedic program, which combines distance learning technologies and classroom sessions. The structure of hybrid courses varies according to the program. A learning management system (LMS) includes software packages used to post information, quizzes and lessons for students and has the ability to deliver and grade tests or exams. Hybrid programs may also use video technology via the Internet to deliver or share lectures to remote classrooms or to the student’s computer.

If you desire a job at a hospital that has a paramedic program, consider seeking endorsement from the staff. If you are planning to become a paramedic and move to another state, find out the reciprocity requirements of the state you are moving to. How many classroom and field hours does it require? Does it accept National Registry of EMTs certification, or does it give reciprocity for paramedic certification? Paramedics who want to specialize in critical care transport should try to attend an intensive program that includes critical care lectures and affiliation with a tertiary medical center that does critical care transports.

The bottom line in deciding which program to attend often comes down to time, money and the type of education you seek. Invest the time to do research on different programs and develop the learning skills you will need to successfully complete paramedic training. We often have an interest in continuing our education but fail to see the rewards of hard study and learning. Attend paramedic training and do your best. You will gain an education and lifesaving skills and cross the threshold to a rewarding career. Following the suggestions in this article will give you a head start toward success.

Develop the Learning Habit: Street-Side Education

You respond to a call for a 75-year-old woman who is feeling dizzy. Upon your arrival, the patient is alert and oriented x3 and complains of dizziness when she stands.

The patient tells you this problem started 2 days ago and is now worse. She denies chest pain, nausea, bleeding or injury. Physical exam reveals lungs clear bilaterally, no pedal edema, no JVD and no signs of trauma. The patient has a positive postural BP change of 16 mmHg, a pulse rate of 46, respirations 22, and her skin is pale, normally moist and slightly cool.

The patient takes Calan 300 mg T.I.D., metformin 500 mg B.I.D., verapamil 300 B.I.D., Altace 20 mg and a statin for cholesterol.

What do you think is wrong? What is your presumptive diagnosis?

You refer to your medication reference and learn that verapamil (Calan) is a calcium channel blocker and the total dose seems high. You also see that another name for this drug is Isoptin.

Five Study Tips for Medic School

1) Know your peak time for studying

2) Understand the global picture for each topic

3) Use down-time and travel time to listen to tapes and review flash cards

4) Make your own notes and PowerPoints to download on your phone for easy studying

5) Study the material, review and self-quiz to make the information part of your long-term memory.

Scenario Follow-Up

Upon arrival at the hospital, you transfer your patient to the ED staff's care. Follow-up conversation with the ED physician reveals the patient is in fact on two of the same medications. The doctor explains that incorrect use or use of multiple medications prescribed by physicians is called polypharmacy and is a common problem in elderly patients.

She further explains that these calcium channel blockers slow conduction and lessen the force of the heart's contractions. They will give the patient 1 gram of calcium chloride to reverse the effect. The doctor compliments you and says, “You should go to medic school. I would be happy to recommend you to work in our MICU.”

Steven E. Kanarian, MPH, EMT-P, is a retired FDNY EMS lieutenant with 25 years in EMS, and is the lead instructor coordinator with the LaGuardia Community College in New York City. Learn more about preparing for paramedic training at: https://stevenkanarian.wordpress.com