2011 Mississippi Curriculum Framework: Postsecondary Paramedic. (Program CIP: 51.0904 - Emergency Medical Technology/Technician)
Author: Briscoe, Lisa
Date: 2011-00-00
Type: Reports - Descriptive
Subjects: Emergency Medical Technicians,First Aid,Vocational Education,Curriculum Design,Course Descriptions,Program Descriptions,Standards,Job Skills,Postsecondary Education,Certification,Licensing Examinations (Professions),Minimum Competencies,Equipment,Student Evaluation,Community Colleges,Medical Services,Allied Health Occupations,Allied Health Occupations Education,Qualifications,Clinical Experience,Training

As the world economy continues to evolve, businesses and industries must adopt new practices and processes in order to survive. Quality and cost control, work teams and participatory management, and an infusion of technology are transforming the way people work and do business. Employees are now expected to read, write, and communicate effectively; think creatively, solve problems, and make decisions; and interact with each other and the technologies in the workplace. Vocational-technical programs must also adopt these practices in order to provide graduates who can enter and advance in the changing work world. The curriculum framework in this document reflects these changes in the workplace and a number of other factors that impact local career-technical programs. The paramedic is an allied health professional whose primary focus is to provide advanced emergency medical care for critical and emergent patients who access the emergency medical system. This individual possesses the complex knowledge and skills necessary to provide patient care and transportation. Paramedics function as part of a comprehensive EMS response, under medical oversight. Paramedics perform interventions with the basic and advanced equipment typically found on an ambulance. The paramedic is a link from the scene into the health-care system. The paramedic training program is a postsecondary program drawing its students from individuals already possessing a valid EMT state certification and having Anatomy and Physiology I with a grade of C or better. Students must complete Anatomy and Physiology II with a grade of C or better to be eligible to complete the program. Each student must be 18 years or older and possess a high school diploma or GED certificate. Classroom instruction is comprehensive including a working knowledge of all anatomy, physiology, and pathophysiological processes as well as competency-based instruction in assessment and management skills required for treatment of life-threatening problems in the adult, pediatric, and geriatric patient. Clinical internship requires participation in care of patients in a hospital emergency department that provides medical control to ALS providers in the field and, according to availability, CCU, ICU, labor and delivery suite, operating room, psychiatric ward, pediatric ward, and geriatric ward. Field internship is done with an ambulance service and/or rescue service providing advanced life support services to the community. This training program is sanctioned by the Mississippi State Board of Health. The course meets or exceeds those standards established by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration/U.S. Department of Transportation. Appended are: (1) National EMS Educational Standards; (2) Related Academic Standards; and (3) 21st Century Skills. A list of suggested references is provided for each unit. (Contains 2 footnotes.)