Why the Jump?

also titled...

Why didn't I become an EMT-I before going into Paramedic School?

Lets look at some education guidelines...


For an EMT-B the education requirements are as follows....

"In addition to the required 110 hours of instruction, this course requires that the student have patient interactions in a clinical setting."

that is per EMS.gov National Standards Cirricula
 
For an I-85(the intermediate level in New Hampshire)....



Okay...I searched and searched, and I can't get a straight answer out of anywhere about the hours of education and clinicals. The number of hours I typically saw was somewhere in the range of 200 or so for classroom time and clinicals, as well as a certain amount of IV sticks and intubations(where applicable). I guess in the range of 10 or so each. Please correct me if I'm wrong.

For my paramedic program...



So, let's visualize this...

Finally, I found an interesting passage on pages 18-19 the DOT national standard curriculum for Paramedics(pdf file!) in regards to being a basic as a pre-requisite for Paramedic Education:

EMT-Basic
It has been a long held tradition to use EMT-Basic certification as a prerequisite for more advanced EMS education, and this curriculum continues that tradition. It is important to note that some educators have questioned the practice of using EMT-Basic as a required certification prior to enrollment in Paramedic education. In fact, no studies have been able to verify EMT-Basic certification or experience as a predictor of success in paramedic education. Of course, paramedics are required to be competent in all of the skills and knowledge of and EMT-Basic, and this knowledge base and skills competence should be verified during paramedic education.

 Although this curriculum identifies EMT-Basic as a prerequisite, we have done so in the absence of empirical data suggesting that this is appropriate. We encourage flexibility in approaching the issue of EMT-Basic as a prerequisite to paramedic education. We also recognize that it may be possible to incorporate all of the material of an EMT-Basic class into a paramedic program, eliminating the need for it as a prerequisite. Clearly, more research is needed.

I guess I have confidence in my abilities and knowledge to complete the program and I thought going through with becoming an Intermediate first would just be a waste of my time and money. i feel like Paramedic Education goes so far above and beyond the intermediate level that any advantage would be overshadowed fairly quickly. Please comment if you agree or disagree.