Statewide approach to emergency medical training

In Kansas, an instructor/coordinator approach is used to train emergency medical technicians (EMTs) through two ten-day sessions at the University of Kansas. The students are trained in various aspects of the Department of Transportation (DOT) Dunlop course, in the use of audiovisual aids and in basic teaching and testing theory. Then, they return to their communities and offer EMT training programs as the need arises. There are 82 instructor/coordinators throughout the state. Law enforcement officers, frequently the first on the scene in rural Kansas, receive training in crash injury management through a 70-hour plus course developed through the Kansas Highway Patrol. Also, 110 advanced paramedics, or emergency mobile intensive care technicians, have been trained through 600 to 1500 hour courses at the Kansas University Medical Center.