EMS certification requirements for flight nurses.
BACKGROUND
Emergency medical technician (EMT) or paramedic (EMTP) certification requirements for flight nurses (FNs) providing on-scene patient care vary. We surveyed those requirements and evaluated the relationships between flight team composition or program location and FN EMS certification.


METHODS
Telephone survey of all 184 rotor-wing programs responding with a nurse to scenes


RESULTS
The overall EMS training requirement for FNs was: none-57.6%, EMT-21.7%, EMTP-14.7%, local credential (not EMT or EMTP)-6.0%. Second team members were EMTP, RN, physician, or respiratory therapist (RRT). Overall, team configuration related significantly to FN EMS certification (P =.01). FN/EMTP and FN/RRT teams were individually significant (P <.01), with FN/EMTP teams tending not to require certification and all FN/RRT teams tending toward a certification requirement. Neither FN/FN nor FN/physician pairings related significantly with FN EMS certification requirements. Regional patterns emerged to both crew configuration and FN EMS certification requirements.


CONCLUSIONS
Most flight programs do not require FN EMT/EMTP certification. Team configuration and geography are related to those requirements.
Frakes
Michael A
MA
LIFE STAR/Hartford Hospital, 80 Seymour Street, Hartford, CT 06102-5037, USA. mfrakes@harthosp.org
Lord
Wendy R
WR
D017732:Air Ambulances / Q000592:standards*; D002568:Certification / Q000592:standards*; D004634:Emergency Medical Technicians / Q000193:education* / Q000592:standards; D016529:Emergency Nursing / Q000193:education* / Q000592:standards; D006801:Humans; D010348:Patient Care Team / Q000592:standards; D015397:Program Evaluation; D013044:Specialty Boards; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014481:United States