What is EMT?

In 1965, accidental injuries permanently impaired 400,000 Americans, disabled more than 10 million individuals, and killed 107,000. In the same year, reports revealed that vehicular accidents murdered more Americans than the Korean War.

A year after, in Pittsburgh, David L. Lawrence – the city mayor, collapsed at a campaign rally. He was rushed to the local hospital in a police car, but by the time he arrived at the emergency room, he had gone too long without oxygen.

The city mayor died… but his death was then subsequently ascribed to the awareness of the neglected epidemic of accidental injury and the lack of resuscitation equipment/services. It also catalyzed the improvement and foundation of Pittsburgh’s emergency-resuscitation services, and those of other American cities.

Since then, the creation and implementation of Emergency Medical Services (EMS) expanded, and several organizations around the world begun training personnel in medical rescue and administration – giving birth to EMT’s.

EMT is short for Emergency Medical Technician, a term used to describe a healthcare provider of resuscitative or emergency medical services. EMTs are trained to respond quickly to conditions such as traumatic injuries, emergency medical issues, and vehicular accidents.

EMT education programs may cover concepts such as Basic medical terminology, Bleeding control, CPR, Anatomy, Physiology, Patient assessment, First aid, Childbirth, Infection control, and Hazardous materials. Hands-on training may also be required for trauma assessment, performing physical exams, oxygen administration, basic life support, performing semi-automatic defibrilation, and driving of an emergency vehicle.

Careers in EMT

Since EMT students come from a diverse educational and professional backgrounds, many options were made available to suit their differing needs and various career goals. For instance, a student with a high school diploma may prefer to pursue an associate degree. Working professionals, on the other hand, can pursue continuing education or get additional certifications. Besides, many doctors, nurses, paramedics, and firefighters have used their EMT education and experience as a stepping stone to their new career.

Jobs related to an EMT program include Firefighters, Emergency Medical Technicians, Medical Assistants, Emergency management directors, Physician assistants, Police or detectives, and Registered Nurses among others.

Learning EMT

In the field of EMS, there are different levels of certifications. Emergency Medical Technicians (EMTs) are the most common type of workers in all of EMS. They are the entry-level healthcare providers followed by Intermediate EMTs (in some states) and then paramedics.

Still, do not be fooled by the word "entry-level." EMTs need to learn the fundamental skills

in handling life-threatening situations. One EMS instructor from UCLA recently said, "You can't learn and have advanced skills without having a solid foundation of the basic skills."

It means that students aiming for an EMT certificate needs rudimentary knowledge, skills, and confidence to be able to handle patients and perform life-saving actions.

One of the most beneficial techniques in studying for EMT certification is memorization. Just like other medical-related subjects, EMT students need to memorize lots of facts, theories, and procedures in order to be successful in the field.

As you are trying to learn those important facts and information on how to save someone’s life, you can use tools such as flashcards (especially for visual learners), audiobooks (for auditory learners), and EMT videos about resuscitation procedures. These tools can help move content from your short-term memory into your long-term memory.

Brainscape is one of the most useful study tools to achieve this goal.

EMT in Brainscape

Here at Brainscape, you will find various classes, decks, and review cards for EMT –beginning with the most common classes below. These classes are made by different users around the globe including teachers, experts, students (perhaps someone like you), and individuals who want to pass NREMT exams,

Also, if you’re a competitive-type of individual, you can check the "leaderboard" sort of feature in each class. This feature lets you see how many EMT flashcards each member has viewed from the decks, which you can use to determine success.

Of course, you can also create a personalized set of study cards, decks, and classes in Brainscape! Doing so gives you the power to customize them and make them better.

Learn Faster in Brainscape

Brainscape is an educational platform for “adaptive digital flashcards”. It is a web and mobile app that allows you to review EMT content in the form of flashcards but with some incredible innovations and additional features.

Brainscape gives you the ability to carry as many flashcards as you can. And compared to traditional flashcards, Brainscape’s flashcards have the additional advantages of being available whenever you need it (with the app on your smartphone).

With Brainscape, you can review while waiting for the bus, while traveling on a train, or while lulling yourself to sleep in your bed!

Brainscape is also known for utilizing Confidence-Based Repetition plus two other cognitive science techniques, consolidated into a single educational platform.

Confidence-based repetition (CBR) refers to a rating system within the app: As cards come up, the users rate them based on how well they think they know the answer. Example, if you rate a card with one, you are bound to see it again and again. If you rank it with a five, the card mostly goes out of rotation, reappearing once in awhile.

The other two cognitive science techniques – Active Recall (AR) and Metacognition, occurs when you make a mental effort to recall the answer (AR); or regularly ask yourself how close you were to the correct answer (metacognition).

These techniques: Confidence-Based Repetition (CBR), Active Recall, and Metacognition, can help you keep the things you learned stay deeply embedded in your memory.

Indeed, Brainscape is the right mix of learning that is “fun” and “effective”.

How to Get Started

Have a look at the EMT classes listed on this page. Once you’ve selected a class, browse the page and analyze how the decks are organized. Open any deck and check if it is the most suitable flashcard set that will benefit you most. Save all the classes you want and enjoy reviewing!