Contemporary UK Paramedical Training and Education - Essay Example

"Contemporary UK Paramedical Training and Education" is a wonderful example of a paper on the health system. Stirling, CM, et al. (2007) empirically identified how rural communities get engaged in healthcare by expanded scope paramedics (ESP) and how it could contribute to the community healthcare needs in rural areas. In this research, a qualitative approach was adopted by means of carrying out studies of ESP roles in four Australian rural areas – i.e. Tasmania, New South Wales, South Australia, and Victoria. Besides this, information/data was gathered by semi-structured interviews with all concerned and from organizations’ records. Community engagement, being a core of this study, its various aspects in the context of ESP were discussed and looked into, which include volunteers’ responsibilities, their training & development, managerial support, overlapping volunteers’ responsibilities, communications gap between the top management and paramedic staff with respect to initiating community engagement and ESP role in attending emergencies in absence of local practitioner. The study concluded with a note that the transfer of knowledge & skills to community members worked for more than paramedic services itself, which facilitated full use of ambulance services and enhanced local healthcare capabilities for rural communities. They recommended that focusing more on this sphere can certainly result in augmenting healthcare efficiency and gaining positive results.

Cooper, S. (2005) initially tried to develop an understanding of the current system and consequently, based on the experiences, beliefs, and stakeholders’ views, explored needs for future education and training & development within a large UK ambulance trust. He applied a qualitative approach by conducting 44 interviews with ambulance staff; analyzing & comparing stakeholders’ viewpoints on training & education using the constant comparison method. Factors considered include Curriculum issues (basic training), Programme issues (content and time), Assessment and competency, Moving to a graduate profession? Work-based learning (mentorship and autonomous practice), and Continuous professional development. The researcher came up with the key findings, as follows: (1) Entry Level – Recognition & benefit of prior learning; Valid & reliable entry tests (2) Desire for a higher education curriculum – An equity between theory and practical; Job-based placements (3) Review of the assessment process (4) Developing mentorship program (5) Focusing on self-professional development, and (6) an emphasis on Inter-professional collaborative links. The study concluded with a suggestion that since this (ambulance service) is an emerging profession having lots of organizational, professional, and cultural challenges ahead, there is a need to critically analyze the educational agenda and address the issues thereof.

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