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Current EMT Workforce Issues

EMT professionals play an important role within the medical community, providing emergency care and support for individuals within rural and urban communities. While there is a continued need for EMT workers, there are several trends within the industry that present challenges to current professionals. Filling shortages within the industry, maintaining and implementing important job safety protocol and working well in teams are all important issues facing EMT professionals and the industry.

 
Shortage of EMT Workers
 
The field of EMT workers continues to focus on improving the quality of patient care, despite the large shortage of EMT workers throughout many parts of the nation. Recruitment of new EMT workers is one of the largest challenges currently facing the industry. While many urban areas have access to enough EMT workers, many rural areas are shorthanded. Many rural areas offer opportunities for employment and even tuition reimbursement options for individual looking to serve in rural areas.
 
Safety on Job Scenes
 
While many efforts are made to ensure the safety of an EMT while on the job, due to the nature of emergency situations, there is still a risk of exposure to blood, fluids and germs from patients that they are serving. Not only is it important to focus on following safety protocol at all times, but it is important for EMT professional to use their best judgement when performing CPR or other medical functions on the scene to prevent exposure or injury.
 
Teamwork
 
On an emergency scene, paramedics and EMT professionals must work well together in order to provide the best quality medical care possible. Each medical professionals fulfills important roles, causing the need for strong communication between individuals in order to ensure that patient care is satisfied and addressed. Team work exercises can enable EMT workers to practice these important job skills so that when they are managing live emergencies, they will be able to effectively communicate.
By Michelle Simmons
Get EMT Jobs, Contributing Editor

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