Paramedic

The Future

Gone are the days, at least in the urban setting, of untrained ambulance drivers. Those in need of emergency medical care have come to expect highly trained medical professionals within four to six minutes of the onset of their emergency. Rapid treatment and transport to a qualified medical facility follow the care given by paramedics in the field.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Paramedics may arrive by fire truck or ambulance and may be involved in initial care and/or transportation, depending on local response strategies and funding levels. In some areas, fire departments and law enforcement agencies provide a "first response" capability, that includes use of automatic external defibrillators, or AED's.

Related Topics:
Fire truck - Ambulance

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

In the future, we will see fire agencies provide increasing levels of emergency medical services. Granted, even now, due to the success of fire prevention activities, 80% of the services provided by most fire departments were medical responses. Nontraditional agencies such as the Highway Patrol may also increase their involvement in providing paramedic-level emergency medical services.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~