EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES

KCC’s Associate in Applied Science degree in EMS allows the students to complete their education at the associate-degree level by adding some general education courses to their Basic EMT and Paramedic certificate programs. Students can use their EMS degree to continue their education in a bachelor’s degree program at a four-year college or university.

KCC’s Associate in Applied Science in EMS Program totals 67 to 69 credit hours. The recommended sequence of courses for full-time students seeking the degree follows.

*Courses indicated fulfill requirements for the Michigan Transfer Agreement (MTA), which provides for the transferability of up to 30 credit hours to meet General Education Requirements at participating Michigan colleges and universities.

KCC’s entry-level Medical First Responder Academy is designed to provide the foundational education that will lead toward licensure with the MDHHS as a medical first responder. Students who successfully complete this course are certified as medical first responders, the first step toward licensure.

This course is designed for anyone who may be required to provide care for a sick or injured individual prior to the arrival of an ambulance. This includes, but is not limited to, firefighters, police officers and first response team members. The course includes training in CPR; bleeding control; airway management; splinting; extrication; oxygen therapy; and medical, environmental and other emergencies. The MFR Certificate Program consists of a single course, EMT 140.

KCC’s entry-level Basic EMT Certificate provides a foundational group of courses in EMS education leading toward licensure with the MDHHS as a basic emergency medical technician. While topics covered are similar to the MFR Certificate, this level provides a greater depth of education and training.

Students who hold a valid Medical First Responder license with the MDHHS will be granted admission directly into the MFR-EMT Matriculation Academy upon administrative approval.

While both are entry-level credentials, Basic EMTs are allowed to work on an ambulance and continue their career ladder toward licensure as a paramedic. The Basic EMT level also provides added education over MFR in ambulance operations, defensive driving and clinical experiences. Individuals who take this level usually wish to provide EMS care as a career option.

The Basic EMT Certificate Program totals 16 credit hours (one semester) including the required courses listed below. Prerequisites include an Accuplacer reading score of 60, or at least a grade of C in TSRE-55, or a Next Generation Accuplacer reading score of 244 or higher or a final high school grade-point average of 3.0 or higher.

KCC’s Paramedic Certificate builds on the Basic EMT license to substantially advance the care that can be provided by an EMS professional. Upon successfully completing the required coursework, students are certified as paramedics, completing the first step toward Michigan licensure and/or national certification. This level provides in-depth education in cardiology, pharmacology, pediatrics, obstetrics, advanced practice, leadership and more. Skills mastered include advanced assessment, defibrillation, pacing, starting IVs, medication administration, chest decompression, emergency cricoidthyrotomy, intubation, EKG interpretation (including 12+ leads) and more.

The Paramedic Certificate Program totals 44 credit hours (three semesters) including the required courses listed below. Prerequisites include a Basic EMT license and current BLS CPR certification.

*Courses indicated fulfill requirements for the Michigan Transfer Agreement (MTA), which provides for the transferability of up to 30 credit hours to meet General Education Requirements at participating Michigan colleges and universities.

Paramedic Program Outcome Data

KCC’s EMS I/C Certificate is designed for practicing EMTs and paramedics to obtain the educational training necessary to coordinate and teach EMS classes. Successful completion of this Michigan Department of Health and Human Services approved program allows students to challenge the licensing test for the EMS I/C level. Students choosing this certification level wish to provide EMS education to others as a career option.

The EMS I/C Certificate Program totals 10 credit hours (one semester) including the required courses listed below. Prerequisites include a Basic EMT license (or higher) and three years full-time field experience.

Graduates of KCC’s EMS Program work as police officers, firefighters, ambulance workers, factory and business emergency responders, emergency room technicians and more. The program is taught on the medical model of education. Related professions on this model include physicians and physician assistants, and EMS Program graduates often use their KCC credentials to build upon their skills in other professions. Often, medical and physician assistant schools require previous experience in health careers. EMS programs, because their similar teaching model, are highly valued in this capacity.

Possible job areas / titles for graduates with an education in EMS include:

• Firefighter
• Public Safety Officer
• Medical First Responder (MFR)
• Emergency Medical Technician (EMT)
• Paramedic (EMT-P)
• Critical Care Paramedic (CCP)
• Community Integrated Paramedic (CIP)
• Helicopter Paramedic

Projected Job Outlook & Salary Information

For the latest employment and wage estimates for EMS careers in Michigan, visit the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics website at bls.gov/oes/current/oes_mi.htm.

KCC’s EMS Program is one of the best places to start a career in emergency medical services. KCC offers excellence at all levels of EMS programming.

EMS Credentials

Whether students are interested in a short, one-semester Medical First Responder course to know what to do in an emergency or are looking for a full associate degree experience in EMS, KCC has it. KCC offers all levels of licensing courses in EMS, from certificate programs for entry-level care providers to programs for experienced providers continuing their education. KCC’s programs are designed to provide students with a wide variety of opportunities so they can choose what they need when they need it.

Expert Instruction

KCC’s EMS Program is staffed by experts in their field. All instructors have worked the prehospital field and beyond to provide students with lessons learned from experience. Academically, all full-time instructors/administrators have degrees ranging from bachelor’s degrees to PhDs. All are licensed in Michigan to practice at the paramedic level. KCC’s adjunct pool of EMS I/Cs have degrees from associate through master’s degrees. KCC’s EMS students learn from the highest quality group of educators.

National Accreditation & State Approval

KCC’s EMS Program is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP). This means that the paramedic education of KCC graduates can be transferred across the country (nationally). KCC’s EMS Program is also Michigan-approved by the MDHHS for all levels of EMS programming. The program also has approvals from the American Heart Association, University of Maryland-Baltimore Campus, and International Trauma Life Support, meaning KCC’s EMS Program graduates have the certificates and credentials they need to start working when they graduate without having to complete additional coursework. 

Equipment & Facilities

KCC’s EMS Program features state-of-the-art equipment and facilities renovated in 2021 and including electronic classrooms, a high-fidelity simulation lab, a computer lab and more, all designed to provide students with a comfortable learning environment for their EMS studies. In addition, all equipment used in the hands-on portion of the EMS education is state-of-the-art and used within the “real world” EMS community. Students are trained on multiple versions of different equipment so they know how to use it, regardless of which brand their employers carry.

High-Fidelity Simulation Lab

KCC has a unique, $1.6 million high-fidelity simulation lab designed to let EMS students replicate actual emergency calls using patient and environmental simulators. We haven’t seen any other program with a simulation lab like this one. Here, students can practice responding to a call without risking harm to anyone, can learn from their mistakes and reinforce what they’ve learned. This is a methodology and technology that is unique to the EMS Program at KCC.

Clinical Experience

KCC offers clinical experiences at ambulance services, hospitals, skilled care facilities and other locations to help students get real-world experience in their fields. KCC’s wide variety of experiences within various settings means students get the best mix of clinical experiences to improve their learning through actual “on the job” training.

The KCC EMS Program is an accredited and approved program through a number of organizations. The following lists our current accreditation and approvals with various organizations.

Accreditation through CAAHEP/CoAEMSP

KCC is fully accredited through the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP). This accreditation occurred as a result of the peer review process at Committee on Accreditation of Educational Programs for the Emergency Medical Services Professionals (CoAEMSP). Verification of accreditation can be obtained at caahep.org/Students/Find-a-Program.aspx.

Paramedic Program Goal

To prepare competent entry-level paramedics in the cognitive (knowledge), psychomotor (skills) and affective (behavior) learning domains with or without exit points at the Advanced Emergency Medical Technician and/or Emergency Medical Technician and/or Emergency Medical Responder levels.

The Kellogg Community College Paramedic Program is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP) upon the recommendation of the Committee on Accreditation of Educational Programs for the Emergency Medical Services Professions (CoAEMSP).

Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs
25400 U.S. Highway 19 North, Suite 15B
Clearwater, FL 33763
727-210-2350
caahep.org

Committee on Accreditation of Educational Programs for the Emergency Medical Services Professions
8301 Lake View Parkway, Suite 111-312
Rowlett, TX 75088
Phone: 214-703-8445
Fax: 214-703-8992
coaemsp.org

National Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians
Rocco V. Morando Building
6610 Busch Blvd.
Columbus, OH 43229
Phone: 614-888-4484
Fax: 614-888-8920
nremt.org

This program is also approved by the State of Michigan Bureau of Emergency Medical Services and Trauma (michigan.gov/ems).

Graduates of a CAAHEP accredited paramedic program:

1) Are more mobile with nationwide reciprocity with their NREMT certification. NREMT certification is used for licensure in many states, including Michigan.

2) Receive an education that is at least on par with other Allied Health programs. Accreditation standards require that you receive a quality education. The consistency and quality is peer-reviewed, which means that multiple individuals from outside the program have performed an in-depth assessment of the program and determined it meets the accreditation standards. The accreditation standards have been developed by member organizations to ensure that program standards achieve entry requirements for graduates to enter the profession.

3) Are ready, upon graduation, to meet the minimum competencies required to practice as a Paramedic.

Advanced Placement & Experiential Learning

The KCC EMS Program does not participate in advanced placement or experiential learning.

Approval Through the Michigan Department of Health & Human Services

KCC is state-approved to offer programming through the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) Emergency Medical Services (EMS) section. All KCC EMS classes are compliant with the state requirements for EMS initial and continuing education programs. Verification of this can be found in the latest version of KCC’s Academic Catalog.

American Heart Association Training Center

The KCC EMS Program is an approved American Heart Association (AHA) training center for all disciplines of training. This includes Basic Cardiac Life Support (BCLS), Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS) and Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS). KCC offers AHA continuing education programs for the general public, health care workers and students.

Educational Site with University of Maryland-Baltimore Campus Critical Care Transport Programs

The KCC EMS Program has an established site license offering both adult and pediatric critical care training in cooperation with the University of Maryland Baltimore Campus (UMBC) Emergency Health Services.

Positive Drug Screen Statement

Applicants who earn admission into a KCC Health Sciences program must complete a drug screening test. This test checks for the presence of 10 substances, which are as follows:

• Marijuana
• Amphetamines
• Barbiturates
• Benzodiazepines
• Cocaine
• Methadone
• Methaqualone
• Opiates
• Phencyclidine
• Propoxyphene

Students with a positive drug screen will be deemed ineligible to participate in clinical education. Furthermore, as clinical education is a critical requirement of Nursing, Allied Health and Emergency Medical Services programs, the student will be dismissed from their current program of study. Students who would like to be considered for readmission should refer to their program’s policy of readmission and direct questions to the program director.