St. Vincent EMS Education

WHAT MAKES US DIFFERENT?

• Our EMS programs provide a wide range of didactic classroom information supplemented by intensive ambulance field shifts and clinical rotations to provide a comprehensive learning experience.
• Through the St. Vincent Health network, we offer a comprehensive clinical experience. Clinicals are scheduled to coincide with the didactic information covered in the classroom.
• Although the majority of clinical time is in the Emergency Department, various other clinical experiences are required; examples include, St. Vincent Level I Trauma Center, St. Vincent Heart Centers, Peyton Manning Children’s Hospital and Pediatric Emergency Center, Maternal-Fetal critical care transport, Bariatrics, and Perinatal Care (Level IV NICU at Women’s Hospital).
• The educational faculty and preceptors are experienced paramedics who bring their first-hand knowledge of true-life emergencies directly into the classroom along with field and clinical settings.
• You may visit the National Registry website to view the first attempt pass rate for paramedic graduates at www.nremt.org

Accreditation Agencies

The Paramedic program is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs www.caahep.org upon the recommendation of the Committee on Accreditation of Educational Programs for the Emergency Medical Services Professionals & Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs www.coaemsp.org.

St. Vincent EMS Education provides equal opportunity to all applicants. The programs are selective. We evaluate applicants based on merit without discrimination on the basis of age, race, religion, creed, color, national origin, marital status, gender, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, or any other legally protected status.

Each EMS program level in the EMS Education Department has individual requirements for admission to the program. Class size is limited in each of the classes. To be considered for the program, applicants must be at least 18 years old AND possess a high school diploma. All students must read, write, comprehend and speak the English language fluently. Students must be currently certified in CPR (Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation) at the American Heart Association Healthcare Provider level upon the course start date and maintain this certification throughout the program. Additionally, specific immunizations are required by St. Vincent EMS Education and the clinical affiliates such as TB skin testing, Influenza vaccine and others as recommended for the specific program. These immunizations protect both the student and the patients with which they come into contact. The student may be able to opt out of certain immunizations, due to health or religious reasons, if approved by the occupational health office at St. Vincent Hospital. Documentation must be provided prior to the start of the program in order to be considered.

Listed below are the admission requirements for each level. These are program specific and in addition to the St. Vincent EMS Education admission requirements.

Individuals interested in any of our EMS programs must submit an application to be considered for acceptance into the respective program. Our class size is limited to ensure a strong student to faculty ratio.

All applicants receiving a contingent acceptance into a program must pass a physical exam, background check, and drug screening provided by St. Vincent Hospital.

Paramedic applicants must meet all prerequisites before beginning the application testing process. The testing process is very competitive and not every applicant who applies to the program will be selected. To learn more about the selection process, see “Emergency Paramedic Program” in this section.

Vocational Outlook

An Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) is a public servant profession within all communities across the United States. They are typically the first one to respond when a community member needs help. EMT’s care for the sick and injured in the field and people’s lives often depend on the quick reaction and competent care provided by these individuals. EMT’s respond to emergency calls, performing medical services, and transporting patients to medical facilities. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median salary of an EMT is $33,380.00/$16.05 an hour. The job market has a demand for EMT’s and this profession will continue to grow in the future. The St. Vincent EMS Education is dedicated to training EMT’s in Central Indiana and to maintain our high standard of education, St. Vincent EMS Education requires all students to attempt the cognitive exam administered through National Registry.

COURSE PRE-REQUISITES

• Current CPR Certification at the American Heart Association Healthcare Provider. NO other level of CPR certification is acceptable!
• Possess a high school diploma or G.E.D. Must bring a copy of the diploma.
• Minimum age requirement is 18 years old.
• Each student is responsible for completing an Infectious Diseases and Immunization Summary form and the EMT program application.
• Students must be able to read, write, and speak the English language fluently.

Emergency Paramedic Program: Goals and Objectives

The goal of the St. Vincent paramedic program is "to prepare competent entry-level Paramedics in the cognitive (knowledge), psychomotor (skills), and affective (behavior) learning domains with or without exit points at the Advanced Emergency Medical Technician, and/or Emergency Medial Responder levels."

Overview of Training Curriculum

A paramedic is the highest trained pre-hospital health care professional. Emergency paramedic training is the logical next step for those who aim to learn how to apply advanced life support (ALS), especially in cardiovascular and pharmacology medical emergencies. This program includes certifications in ACLS, PALS, PHTLS, and AMLS.

Course content includes, but is not limited to, modules in the following areas:

• Roles and responsibilities of the EMT-P
• Anatomy and physiology
• Medical terminology
• Cardiovascular pathophysiology
• Cardiac arrhythmias
• Pharmacology
• Central nervous system
• Pathophysiology
• Trauma management
• OB/GYN
• Pediatrics
• Medical emergencies
• Psychiatric emergencies

Hospital clinical experiences include, but are not limited to, the following areas:

• Emergency department
• Labor and delivery
• Newborn intensive care
• Respiratory therapy and intensive care
• Ambulance internship is provided on hospital-sponsored medic units
• Admission

Course Prerequisites

To be eligible for the St. Vincent Paramedic Program you must meet the following minimum requirements:

• Applicant must be greater than 18 years of age.
• Hold a current American Heart Association BLS Health Care Provider CPR Card.
• Nationally Registered or Indiana State Certified EMT.

Applying to the Paramedic Program

Enrollment for the Paramedic Program has been paused. While we refine the best ways to serve our EMS community please know we will always be available to assist your needs for continuing education. Please reach out to Jill.Perry@ascension.org for any educational requests.

Year	National Registry Cognitive Pass Rate	National Registry Psychomotor Pass Rate	Program Retention	Positive Placement Rate
2015	100%	100%	71%	100%
2016	100%	100%	73%	100%
2017	100%	100%	62%	100%
2018	100%	100%	73%	100%
2019	100%	100%	71%	100%

St. Vincent EMT Program attracts a wide variety of students with different motives for attending the EMT course.  Many of our graduates from the EMT program enroll immediately into other allied health or medical degree programs rather than working in the field as EMT's.

St. Vincent Paramedic Program has a high success rate. Based upon the National Registry of EMT's published statistics, St. Vincent paramedic students continue to have a higher average passing rate on the paramedic credentialing examination on the first attempt at 75% than compared to the State of Indiana’s average of 57%. Currently, the program has 100% placement of its graduates.