EMS Courses & CEU Offerings

 NAEMT's Prehospital Trauma Life Support (PHTLS) is 16- hour course that is recognized around the world as the leading continuing education program for prehospital emergency trauma care. The mission of PHTLS is to promote excellence in trauma patient management by all providers involved in the delivery of prehospital care. PHTLS is developed by NAEMT in cooperation with the American College of Surgeons' Committee on Trauma. The Committee provides the medical direction and content oversight for the PHTLS program. The course utilizes the internationally recognized PHTLS textbook

 PHTLS for First Responders (PHTLS-FR)is an 8-hour classroom course that takes the world-class trauma care content from the latest edition of PHTLS and delivers it in a style that is relevant to and accessible by first responders, including emergency medical responders (EMR), firefighters, rescue personnel and law enforcement officers. Covering life-saving interventions such as hemorrhage control and airway management, this course teaches critical trauma concepts, demonstrates skills, and walks students through potential patient scenarios. 

 Advanced Medical Life Support (AMLS) is a 16-hour course that remains the gold standard of education for emergency medical assessment and treatment. Endorsed by the National Association of EMS Physicians, AMLS emphasizes the use of the AMLS Assessment Pathway, a systematic tool for assessing and managing common medical conditions with urgent accuracy. The course utilizes the AMLS textbook and course manual

The All Hazards Disaster Response (AHDR) is a  8-hour classroom course for EMS practitioners at all levels. The course teaches students how to respond to the many types of disaster scenarios they may encounter, including natural disasters and infrastructure failings, fires and radiological events, pandemics, active shooter incidents, and other mass casualty events. AHDR educates participants on how to analyze potential threats in their area, assess available resources, and create a response plan that will save lives.

 NAEMT’s EMS Safety course in an 8-hour course teaches students how to protect themselves and their patients while on the job. It promotes a culture of safety and helps reduce the number of on-the-job fatalities and injuries. EMS Safety is the only national, comprehensive safety course for EMS practitioners. Its interactive format features real-life case studies and compelling discussions on current safety issues, and provides students with a forum to share their own experiences. Course activities allow students to apply critical thinking and best safety practices to EMS scenarios. 

 The Emergency Pediatric Care (EPC) course is a 16-hour course that focuses on critical pediatric physiology, illnesses, injuries and interventions to help EMS practitioners provide the best treatment for sick and injured children in the field.  The course stresses critical thinking skills to help practitioners make the best decisions for their young patients. 

 NAEMT's EMS Vehicle Operator Safety (EVOS) course addresses the knowledge gap that leads to injuries and deaths, and focuses on the specific behaviors that need to be changed to create a culture of safe driving.

Drawing on the most current research about the behaviors and other hazards that lead to crashes, EVOS features case studies and analyses of both common and catastrophic collisions. EVOS challenges EMS practitioners to reconsider their preconceptions about safe vehicle operations. Instructors can easily incorporate local laws, rules and policies into the curriculum.

 First on the Scene (FOTS), developed by NAEMT and the International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC), provides instructors with a toolkit to teach the general public basic emergency response to life-threatening emergencies until EMS arrives on the scene. Through lesson presentations and hands-on skill stations, participants will learn how to access help in the event of a life-threatening emergency and what to do until EMS arrives.  

NAEMT’s Geriatric Education for EMS is an 8-hour course that prepares prehospital practitioners to respond to, assess, and care for this fast-growing patient population. This third edition of the course strengthens and enhances practitioners’ ability to provide the best care for older adults in every community.

The GEMS course helps EMS practitioners learn to conduct a comprehensive assessment of geriatric patients. Be­cause the aging process affects all body systems, NAEMT’s course provides an overview of changes that occur as people age and describes how those changes can impact patient pre­sentation.  Incorporation of the GEMS Diamond (Geriatric, Environmental, Medical, and Social assessments) can help practitioners formulate a holistic diagnostic and treatment approach.

Due to the difficult environments EMS personnel encounter every day, and the impact of both direct and vicarious trauma, our EMS workforce has long faced a disproportionate challenge in maintaining their mental health resilience.

NAEMT, with support from FirstNet®, Built with AT&T, has developed a course to assist EMS agencies in building and supporting the mental health resilience of their personnel.

The Mental Health Resilience Officer (MHRO) course is 8-hours in length and prepares EMS personnel to serve as their agency’s Mental Health Resilience Officer. In this role, the MHRO will engage with peers to develop an understanding of mental health issues and resilience; identify peers who are experiencing mental health stressors and crises; navigate peers in need to the right services for help; and support the development of a culture of mental health resilience and emotional wellness within the agency.

 NAEMT's Psychological Trauma in EMS Patients (PTEP) is an 8-hour course that gives EMS practitioners the resources they need to help alleviate patients’ hidden wounds – intense fear, stress and pain – during a medical emergency.

PTEP educates EMS practitioners about the biological underpinnings of psychological trauma, the short and long-term impact on the brain and body, and warning signs that a patient is experiencing extreme psychological distress. EMS practitioners are also taught strategies and techniques to alleviate patients’ distress and help patients cope with what they’re experiencing to ward off lingering effects.

 The Austere Airway Course is a one day comprehensive, hands-on training program designed for medical professionals who encounter challenges in airway management. This course provides advanced techniques and strategies for managing difficult and complex airway situations, as well as discusses reflex task training and techniques to increase 1st time tube pass rates for paramedics and intensive care professionals. This course also explores crash airway and difficult airway decision making from a algorithmic standpoint.

Key Topics:

Anatomy and Physiology of the Airway: Detailed review of airway anatomy and its implications in difficult airway management.

Recognition of the Difficult Airway: Techniques for early identification of difficult airway cases, including assessment tools and predictive markers.

Advanced Airway Devices and Techniques: Hands-on training with a variety of airway devices, including video laryngoscopes, fiberoptic scopes, and supraglottic devices.

Emergency Airway Management: Protocols and techniques for managing emergency situations where airway compromise is a critical factor.

Simulation and Scenario-Based Training: Realistic simulation exercises to practice managing difficult airways in a controlled, supervised environment.

Team Communication and Dynamics: Emphasis on effective communication and teamwork in managing difficult airway situations.