Academic Writing for Paramedics

With the increasing move to higher education, being able to write an academic manuscript such as an essay or article has become a key skill required of paramedics and students world-wide. This guide aims to provide you with a brief explanation of one approach to academic writing

Bodybuilding: an anatolical model project in a paramedic education program.

Previous research conducted mainly on medical students supports the principle of model building exercises to improve anatomy knowledge retention. First year PCP (primary care paramedic) students were assigned to groups to construct an anatomical model

Paramedicine Use of Realistic Simulation in Education

Currently, there is very little research into how simulation education is used in Canadian paramedic programs.https://first.fanshawec.ca/cri_ridposters/1000/thumbnail.jp

Zika Virus: What Paramedics Need to Know

Zika Virus Disease (ZVD) is a viral illness spread primarily through the bite of infected Aedes mosquitos. This review will provide a brief overview of the history of ZVD, epidemiology, prevention, clinical presentation, management and complications to help better prepare the paramedic for potential encounters with patients with ZVD

#FOAMems: Engaging paramedics with free, online open-access education

Background and aim: Twitter use among paramedics and other prehospital care clinicians is on the rise and is increasingly being used as a platform for continuing education and international collaboration. In 2014, the hashtag #FOAMems was registered. It is used for the sharing of emergency medical services, paramedicine, and prehospital care-related content. It is a component of the \u27free open-access meducation\u27 (FOAM) movement. The aim of this study was to characterize and evaluate the content of #FOAMems tweets since registration. Materials and methods: An analytical report for #FOAMems was generated on symplur.com from February 4, 2014, to April 30, 2017. A transcript of all #FOAMems tweets for a randomly selected 1 month period (October 2015) was generated, and quantitative content analysis was performed by two reviewers. Tweets were categorized according to source (original tweet/retweet) and whether referenced. The top 92 tweeters were analyzed for professional identity. Results: During the study period, there were over 99,000 tweets containing #FOAMems, by over 9,200 participants. These resulted in almost 144 million impressions. Of the top 92 tweeters, 50 were paramedics (54%). Tweets were mainly related to cardiac (23%), leadership (19%), and trauma (14%). The 1-month period resulted in 649 original tweets, with 2110 retweets, 1070 of these were referenced. Conclusion: Paramedics are engaging with both clinical and nonclinical content on Twitter using #FOAMems. Social media resources are widely shared, which is in line with the FOAM movement\u27s philosophy. However, opportunities exist for paramedics to share further diverse resources supported by referenced material

Student Paramedic Research at Fanshawe College

Abstracts from several student-led research studies currently ongoing in the Primary Care Paramedic Program at Fanshawe College are detailed below. These projects are presented at the annual Paramedic Programs Research Day, and several of these projects were also presented at the Fanshawe College Research and Innovation Day held in April

Navigating Pre-Hospital End of Life Care: A Paramedic Perspective

End of life care (EoLC) issues in the Canadian healthcare system are now commonplace. Palliative care and medical assistance in dying (MAID) programs are giving patients more options than ever before. Consequently, pre-hospital and community paramedicine programs now interact with more patients who require EoLC

When Ambulances Crash

Transporting patients to hospitals in a safe manner is a core aspect of paramedic practice within Canada. The majority of these transports are within a ground ambulance on city streets and provincial roadways. There is however an inherent danger associated with the operation of emergency vehicles

Eat, Sleep and be Healthy A Paramedic\u27s Guide to Healthier Shift Work

Shift work can cause adverse health effects, and the nature of paramedic work places paramedics at a higher risk of unhealthy eating and poor physical fitness. Healthier lifestyle choices, including increased physical activity and healthy eating can help to reduce the risk of adverse health effects on paramedics

Canadian Paramedic program Use of Realistic Simulation in Education (PURSE): a descriptive study.

Background: Literature suggests that simulation-based learning is an important modality in medical education. Although there is a large body of evidence in other medical fields, there has been little reported evidence of simulation use in paramedic education. This study aimed to report patterns of simulation use in paramedic programs across Canada. Methods: This was a cross-sectional survey of Primary Care and Advanced Care paramedic programs across Canada. An online questionnaire was distribution to all identified paramedic program coordinators in Canada. Results: Of the 44 invitations sent, 20 complete responses (45%) were received and analyzed. Paramedic programs reported they own or have access to a wide range of simulation resources. The majority of programs (85%) agreed that simulation directly impacted patient care but only 60% trained faculty on how to design and facilitate simulation. Only 3 programs (15%) reported using simulation as a supplement or to augment training, typically skill-based clinical hours. Standardized patients are underused in simulation. Typical barriers reported to simulation implementation were cost, time, and availability of resources. Conclusion: Simulation based learning has become an important aspect of multiple health care professions. As the paramedic profession continues to develop, it is important that initial paramedic education incorporates simulation effectively. Faculty education surrounding inexpensive and effective ways to incorporate simulation will likely increase use of simulation in paramedic programs. Future research should investigate how simulation in paramedic education impacts patient outcomes