Dobi

flightbridgeed.com also offers a test prep as well as online practice tests for a fee.

We do have a coordinator for education who also works as an educator at the local community college so he is able to provide the site codes and satisfy the requirements for AACN/BCEN credit approval. The expectation is that everyone participate however only require 60% attendance for in seat education and 75% attendance meetings if you are a full time employee, less for part timers. I have worked for companies that did not like to spend the money for education and can be a hurtle to overcome with management especially if the service is primarily ALS/BLS transports with a small crew designated for critical care. Best bed is to contact the EMS office through your Primary system and talk to them about becoming adjunct educator which would alleviate a lot of your woes. Be warned your company will probably not be willing to pay you for your time.

I think it depends on the state. Some require a curriculum approval to be signed off by the State and endorsed through your EMS system for continuing education approval, verification of site code and contacting the accrediting body. I know the system requires the instructor to be a lead instructor for CE hours. We have a monthly staff meeting with the medical director. During the meeting we do call review, you are able to get CE for chart review. We have a monthly medical/flight education. Per our policy we are required to be physical attendance for 9 of the 12 meetings. We also attend regular system CE as well as Hospital grand rounds. Not sure what your state will allow you to get away with if your looking for category 1 CME for re-licensure. Also need to check with the board certifying bodies to ensure people maintain CFRN/CCRN/CEN and paramedic certs.

The EMT-Basic is a requirement to become a Paramedic. I am unaware of any state that will allow you to obtain a Paramedic License/Certification without the foundational knowledge put forth in EMT school. EMT school will give you the education your resume is lacking (Ambulance operations, Scene management and safety, HAZMAT). The helicopter is licensed as an air "Ambulance", so it'd behoove you to gain an entry level knowledge of operations. Learning to communicate on multiple bands with multiple agencies. Your opinion of EMT's is much the same that EMT's have of nurses predicated on a lack of knowledge of what the others job entails. While you may be a fantastic ER nurse with the hospital amenities and all the backup at your disposal; it is a different animal at 2AM, with only 1 other person on the side of the road to help. I do not think obtaining your paramedic certification would be a benefit to you. The medical education you received in nursing school vastly outweighs that of paramedic school. Any decent flight program will prepare you for airway management and live intubations prior to you becoming a fully qualified crew member. A few states have a PHRN (pre hospital RN) licensure. Obtaining this would allow you to function at the ALS level without paramedic school. Look into ground critical care providers in your area. This is another option to break into the field and gain some experience doing transport. These are only my opinions and so many options exist. Hope this helps, good luck to you.

Your resume looks good to me. If you wish to work for a program that responds to scene calls than take an EMT course and gain some pre hospital experience. You would be surprised at all the knowledge you'd gain regarding scene management and pre hospital operations. Depending on the state the nurse must have TNCC and/or PHTLS. Do some volunteer work. Learn the fire department structure. But this advice only applies if you are looking into a program that does scene response. Rotor wing positions are competitive, you need to sell yourself. Why should they hire you and not a 120 lb nurse which will increase the service the helicopter can provide? A heavier crew will limit the service provided by decreasing allowable patient weight as well as balancing the aircraft. It may sound callous but you need to drop the weight. The majority of rotor programs have the weight standard for a reason. I have made exceptions in the past for weight limits but for experienced flight members interviewing. It is too competitive with too many qualified applicants to overlook someone else and hire someone who doesn't meet the requirements. This is only my opinion and my experience. Good luck to you.

It is hard to say what you need to "Brush up" on without knowing the transport population of the service. Will you be doing 911 call? Is it mostly interfacility? Will you be working out of a hospital or a private ambulance service? What is the crew configuration? Will you be transporting specialty teams? You may find an ED background is not adequate preparation for the transport environment especially when called to transport IABP, invasive lines and ventilator management. If it is a reputable program they will put you through some clinical time and training. For starters I would read Retrieval Medicine, Patient Transport (ASTNA) and the ICU book.

My program does have a maximum crew member weight of 225lb's. All crew members must be able to load and unload a weighted gurney of 90 lbs in and out of our EC 145 and load and unload the stretcher into a boxed ambulance. Provided that you can accomplish those things I do not see a problem.

I would also read the 30 +previous posts asking this exact same question.

I took the Wilderness EMT upgrade. The course was lots of fun and informative, however it applied very little to my role as a Nurse. I would recommend attending the course if you were interested in volunteering as a member of ski patrol or mountaineering team. In my experience the vast majority of these roles are unpaid and thus I find it hard to justify spending the money on a course. Depending on the area you live I would contact the park service for information on a need for volunteers. They will put you through a class if you agree to give them your time.

I have not attended the Mountain Medicine course however I have been certified in Wilderness Medicine. Additional education will never hurt a resume when applying in a competitive market. I do not think it will help you unless the program you are applying for performs those skills. The majority of flight programs do not perform winch operations or SAR. SAR and para-rescue type evacuations are performed by the military or specialized rescue personnel. I would concentrate on ICU training and Paramedic education.

Since no one has replied I will. I have recently taken the CFRN and passed. I also hold the FP-C. I used the Anthony Baca videos and the flightbridgeed.com study/practice questions. I believe the 4th edition of the ASTNA is the latest in print with the 5th not due out until next year. The test still uses the 4th edition. I would also download the latest CAMTS recommendations as you are bound to get 4 or 5 questions from them. I would also get the latest Emergency Airway Management by Walls. They use those algorithms. I did not receive any basic ACLS type questions or current practice guidelines on stroke care. Hope this helps and good luck.

I would suggest using the search button or reading the stickies. Seems like this has been asked and answered several times.

No. Most duel credentialed crew members were paramedics first and later obtained nursing certification.

Try this website out. Wing field books are the best prep but he is also adequate https://www.flightbridgeed.com/home/index.php?option=com_rseventspro&view=rseventspro&Itemid=632,

Good for you. Joining the Air Force and serving is something that you won't regret. However nurses are officers and not enlisted. You will have to go to college and graduate from an accredited Nursing program with your BSN and get a commission. I was enlisted medic prior to nursing school and I utilized the GI bill. The majority of Air Force flight nurses are reservists and not active duty. Please google CCAT for further reading. Hope this helps and best of luck.