This article speaks about paramedic program and paramedic training offered a Centennial college. Job responsibilities are also described. Students are empowered with hands on training and skills.

1. Paramedic Program and Paramedic Training at Centennial College
If your elderly neighbour falls and breaks his hip or if there’s a car accident at the intersection
near your home, the first people on the scene are paramedics. These all-important medical care
professionals are the ones who initially help you at the time of the emergency or accident. Upon
arriving at the scene, paramedics assess the patient’s condition, start the necessary treatment and
are essential in making life-saving decisions.
The job of a paramedic is challenging but extremely rewarding. The person who takes on this
career must be compassionate yet assertive, physically in good health and levelheaded. Using his
or her paramedic training, the personnel decides whether the patient needs to be transferred to a
hospital or be taken care of with the ambulance’s high-tech equipment and necessary drugs. The
medic must also deal with family members or the public, some of whom may be hysterical or
aggressive. If a patient is transferred to a hospital, it is the paramedic’s job to communicate with
the doctor on staff to ensure that he or she is well aware of the patient’s condition and what
medical procedures have been applied. Paramedics also often work alongside the police and fire
department.
Paramedics are based at ground and air ambulance stations, large hospitals, and private
ambulance companies. Depending on the location, they work in shifts that include evenings and
weekends and range from 12 to 24 hours. In Canada, these long hours were rewarded in 2005
when paramedics were granted status, federally, as a “public safety occupation”, which means
that they are now eligible for early retirement.
Centennial College offers Paramedic Training that prepares students to handle the stresses and
challenges of the field. Hands-on training is taught by certified advanced care paramedics who
are actively involved in the medical arena. The training is provided at state-of-the-art facilities
and includes emergency cases such as medical, trauma and psychological situations. Paramedic
program students also learn to use relevant theory, communication techniques, preventative and
therapeutic patient management strategies, as well as ensuring the operational safety of an
ambulance and its equipment. Students who have chosen the paramedic program have had a high
rate of job absorption in the market.
Due to the challenging nature of this field, there are perquisites students must consider when
applying for admission. Centennial College expects students to hold at minimum an Ontario
Secondary School Diploma (OSSD) or equivalent or be 19 years of age or older. Academically,
the applicant must also possess, compulsory English 12C or U or equivalent, math 11M or U, or
12C or U or equivalent, Biology 11C or U, or 12 U or equivalent; and one of the following
sciences: chemistry 11U, or 12C or U or physics 11U or 12C or U. There are also medical
requirements such as a medical doctor’s statement, certifying a standard of health that is
acceptable to Centennial College, clinical and affiliated EMS agencies. The applicant to the
Paramedic Program must also meet the following:

2. 1.Not have been convicted of a crime involving moral turpitude (clear vulnerable persons police
background record searches are completed throughout the program).
2.Hold a Class “F” license, which is required for employment in Ontario (but not for program
admission).
3.Complete a CPR Level HCP course (Health Care Provider) and standard first aid certification.
Before taking the paramedic program, applicants should also be aware that under the provisions
of the ambulance act, employment as a paramedic is prohibited to anyone who in the past year
has: received six or more demerit points on his or her diving record, has his or her diver’s license
suspended in the previous two years; has been prohibited from driving under the Criminal Code
of Canada within the part three years or has been convicted of any crime involving moral
turpitude for which he or she has not been pardoned.
For complete details on the requirements of this rewarding program, visit Centennial’s
Paramedic Program Admission page.