Emergency Medical Technician

Program Year: 2010-2011

Program Length: 10 months

Program Description:

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The Emergency Medical Technician program is a paced, part-time program delivered primarily through distance delivery, combining scheduled online lectures with flexible asynchronous class discussions. Instruction is balanced with regularly scheduled face-to-face onsite sessions, scheduled to minimize the disruption of the student’s personal and professional life while they progress through their program. The theory portion of the program is delivered over approximately 42 weeks, including a 1 week hospital practicum and up to 6 weeks working with an experienced EMT or Paramedic during the ambulance practicum. The program is designed to prepare students by providing education in the areas of patient assessment, anatomy and physiology, pathophysiology and pharmacology. Students develop critical thinking skills allowing them to come up with an appropriate differential diagnosis and treatment pathway. Communications, physical fitness and safety, and professionalism are stressed throughout the program.  In addition, the students will take an International Trauma Life Support (ITLS) course.  Students are responsible for expenses for travel to Labs and Practicum placements.

Program of Study:

Core Courses – All courses required (credits)
ANPY1000 Anatomy & Physiology: Essentials of Human Anatomy and Physiology (6)
EMTF1000 Emergency Medical Technician Foundations I (6)
PATH1000 Pathophysiology (3)
EMTF1002 Emergency Medical Technician Foundations II (6)
EMTP1000 Emergency Medical Technician Practice I (1)
EMTP1002 Emergency Medical Technician Practice II (4)

Program Delivery:

This program is delivered by using a mix of distributed delivery strategies.  These include: computer conferencing; self-directed study; instructor led face-to-face classes and labs; and clinical practicums.  The distributed delivery methods allows students to pursue their educational goals in selected communities; however, students in the program have to attend face-to-face instruction and labs for periods of time in order to complete the theory portion of the program.  Students are responsible for all expenses related to lab instruction, assignments, and clinical and ambulance practicums.

Admission Requirements:

 Academic Requirements:
Applicants must be 18 years of age and have credit in the following (official transcripts from previous post-secondary training/education are required at time of application):
  - Biology 30 (60%) or credit in ANPY 1000 or ANPY 0190
 - English 30-1 or English 30 (60%), or English 30-2 or English 33 (70%) or an assessed English equivalency;
 - Credit in Pure Math 20 (or Math 20), or 60% in Applied Math 20 (or Math 23 )or Math 0190.
AND have the following:
-  Emergency Medical Responder (EMR) Certificate;
 - Alberta College of Paramedics (ACP) Registration.

Non-Academic Requirements:
 - Current Criminal Record Check  (NOTE:  Students without a clear criminal record may not be able to complete the practicum requirements of the program in which case a "Criminal Record:  Declaration of Understanding" form is required to be filled and signed.  All students are required to submit an additional  CRC in March 2011.)
 - Up-to-date Immunization Record;
 - A Health Status form indicating good physical and emotional health;
-  Current CPR for Health Care Providers is required prior to starting clinical practicum;
 - Fluency in English

Students for whom English is a Second Language:  must complete a skills appraisal assessment (High School English equivalency assessment comprised of a vocabulary test and essay) and present one of the following completed within the last year:
- CLBA 8 with no score less than 7
- TOEFL Internet-based test score 84 (no section score below 21)
- TOEFL paper-based test score 560 and TSE 50
- TOEIC 730/790 and TSE 50
- IELTS 6.0 (no band scores below 6.0)
- CAEL 60 (no subtest below 60)
You may also be required to attend an interview with a Program Coordinator.

Application Process:

APPLICATION: Complete and submit the Northern Lakes College application form (available at all Northern Lakes College locations and on the College website at www.northernlakescollege.ca.

TRANSCRIPTS: Provide an official high school and/or post-secondary transcript. This must be forwarded directly to Northern Lakes College, Admissions Services, from the granting institution (there may be a charge for this). If the high school attended is in Alberta, the College may be able to obtain marks directly from Alberta Education. When transcripts are received at NLC, they are reviewed to determine if the academic requirements for admission to the program are met.

ACADEMIC SKILLS APPRAISAL: If transcripts are not available or do not show the academic requirements, applicants may complete the Academic Skills Appraisal for the English requirement. The College uses the Test of Adult Basic Education (TABE). If testing is required, the applicant will be informed and arrangements made for writing the test. Contact the campus nearest you to schedule an appointment for testing.

FORMS: Applicants who meet the academic requirements will be sent forms for the Health Status Form. This form is to be completed by a the student and returned to Admissions Services.

ACCEPTANCE: Applicants who meet the admission requirements will be accepted and offered a space in the next available offering of the program. In some cases, the spaces at a specific location may be full and accepted applicants will be placed on a waitlist. These applicants will be accepted in the order of first qualified, first served. It may also be possible to transfer to another location if there is space. Applicants will receive a letter informing them of their acceptance status.

FUNDING: Applicants are encouraged to check on funding options early and are responsible for forwarding any sponsorship letters to Admissions as soon as possible. Counselors can assist with identifying funding options and applying for sponsorship of fees and living costs.

REGISTRATION: Before the start date of the program, accepted applicants will receive information about registration dates, times, locations and other information to assist them.

Cost Estimates:

Supplies estimate:                           $   100.00 (not payable to NLC)

Students are responsible for expenses for travel to Labs and Practicum placements.

Students my be required to relocate for the practicum portion of the program (7 weeks in length).

Locations:

Slave Lake

Offering Dates:

Registration Date:  September 1, 2010
Term 1:  September 2 2010 - December 23, 2010
Term 2:  January 4, 2011 - April 22, 2011
Term 3:  April 25, 2011 - June 25, 2011

Transferability:
For those interested in pursuing a career as a Paramedic, EMT certification is a prerequisite for acceptance into Alberta Paramedic programs.

Employment Opportunities:
Graduates are eligible to write the registration exam with Alberta College of Paramedics and to work on ground or air ambulance services or in industrial first aide.  There are evolving opportunities for EMTs in acute care settings.

Contact Information: