I write this post following a recent conversation with an EMS service, who questioned what our paramedic program does to instill our graduates with a healthy physical fitness outlook. "Sure you prepare them for their fitness evaluations to get hired, but what do you do, if anything, to ensure they continue with their fitness once they graduate?"
The Background: Our students take three semesters of fitness courses, the last being an online and self directed course. The ultimate goal is to help the students train to pass the physical evaluations that must be passed to obtain employment. This consists of a beep test, an obstacle course, and two strenuous patient extrication/lifting tests. After discussing how our students progress to the self-directed class, I then posed what I think are bigger questions. If services value this attitude, and require such testing prior to hiring, then why do they not do annual tests to ensure medics are still able to this? Cognitive abilities are tested yearly, why not fitness? We've all seen the large proportion of out of shape medics out there, what incentive do they have when other life pressures start to take their time? Having a staff of physically fit paramedics certainly reduces injury time, and is well established as one of the most effective coping mechanisms for stress, yet services offer very little if any incentive here. Would the savings in decreased injury and stress leave not be enough to offer greatly reduced or even free gym memberships? Paramedics are encouraged to enter various athletic events, however there is no support from the employer, even at events where medics are entering under their service name. At the extreme, those medics who actively pursue great athletic achievements on a national and international scale are only seen as those with limited availability to work, and have that time held against them. I have been happy to hear these same questions from some of my students. I applauded their critical thought and scrutiny, for their questions are legitimate. "Why do we have to do all this, when it's obvious from looking at working paramedics that fitness isn't as big a deal once you're hired?" There is certainly validity in ensuring a base-line level of fitness to enter the workforce, you do need to be able to lift people, work around difficult terrain and accident scenes, but employers need to do more to continue this. They provide continuing medical education, why not continuing fitness opportunities? All I can do is keep pursuing the development of a fitness curriculum that inspires students to continue physical activity for life, they don't need to be "athletes", I just want them to have the skills to be healthy and well. And who knows, maybe once enough get out there with these attitude, and these questions, employer attitudes may change.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorI teach Paramedicine at Cambrian College, in Sudbury, Ontario. I also continue to work as a paramedic, and ride bikes. This is my third semester in the PME program, and I look forward to learning with everyone! Archives
March 2017
Categories |