Paramedics have only been around since the 70's. When I started in EMS in the 70's many "ambulances" were ran by funeral homes. In Spokane Valley it was Thornhill Funeral Home and Ambulance Service. Makes me a little nervous today.... Things have changed..
When I went to KRMC emergency department last year they were very concerned about my privacy. It took quite a while to see the doc even after being taken back into the ER area, but every few minutes someone came around to ask if my privacy was being protected... It was pretty slow that day so I don't know if any EMT or paramedic students were working that day.
It was a long time ago when I took my paramedic training at Daniel Freeman Hospital in Inglewood California. I had worked a year for Mercy Ambulance in Spokane and wanted to be a paramedic, but didn't want to take a year or two at the community college. I wanted to train in a busy place and found one of the schools where paramedicine was born in LA, a busy place.
I found Daniel Freeman Hospital, the Wedworth-Townsend Paramedic Act was passed on July 15th 1970 and in August 1970 Paramedic Training in California is initiated at Daniel Freeman Memorial Hospital under the direction of Dr. Walter S. Graf. His old Heart Wagon an old bread van was still in the parking lot.
Several friends had gone through training at Daniel Freeman. It was 6 months of training 8-4 five days a week with tests every week. The first day they tell you to pay attention under 70% on any 3 tests and you're out, go home. We started with 30 students and after every test there were empty chairs on Monday, 20 graduated. I did what we'll say was not good in high school, I got 90% all the way through training at Daniel Freeman.
It was a different time heroin and crack cocaine were big LA in 1984 and the Olympics were town. Working at the emergency department at the USC Medical Center was exciting. Beds lined th outside walls with critical patients in the middle. Everyone there were doctors doing their ER rotation, physician assistant or paramedic students.
My first day they introduced me to the big guy in the ER and said listen to him. He gave me an IV tray, taught me little poke in Spanish, and said do what you're told you'll do fine and he left.... The doctors doing their ER rotation made a few mistakes, but it's a teaching hospital.
The physician assistants seemed to have a much better grasp on things, but like paramedic students they have 1 to 2 years of hands on experience in their field. They taught me a lot and would take time to explain things if you didn't get it. Training after working on an ALS ambulance made it easy. I had done or seen everything we were learning done many times, but now I knew why we did it.
EMT's are trained in advanced first aid and transporting patients. Paramedics are trained in a wide area of subjects and now with a little more training some places are starting paramedicine programs where paramedics do more home care follow up to keep from making those emergency runs
If you have been to an ER department lately watch Code Black Documentary a on the old USC Medical Center, AKA the LA County Hospital where many Daniel Freeman paramedics trained, let me know what you think...
If you have an interest in helping others take an EMR or EMT class... Volunteer 80% of calls today are medical calls.
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