Associate Ambulance Practitioner - Level 4
Emergency Care
The Associate Ambulance Practitioner (AAP) works as part of the wider Emergency & Urgent Care setting, having direct contact with service users or others, providing high quality and compassionate care. Day to day duties and tasks for an AAP would involve working as part of an ambulance crew responding to emergency (999) and urgent calls providing emergency and urgent assistance, driving safely and progressively at high speed. The AAP will assess, treat and manage service users at the scene (reducing the need for hospital admission), either referring service users to alternative care provisions or safely discharging them on scene. Other tasks involve working closely with other emergency services and the wider NHS.
Skills and knowledge
To become an Associate Ambulance Practitioner you will need:
- knowledge of healthcare and medicine
- sensitivity and understanding
- customer service skills
- patience and the ability to remain calm in stressful situations
- excellent verbal communication skills
- knowledge of public safety and security
- to be flexible and open to change
- the ability to work well with others
- to be able to use a computer and the main software packages competently
Qualifications
To apply for a student paramedic training programme or degree apprenticeship you must have the following qualifications:
- 4 or 5 GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C) and A levels, or equivalent
You must also have the following:
- Full driving licence (must not exceed 3 points)
- Provisional Category C on your driving licence or have submitted the application form and medical forms in order to apply for your provisional
Routes into this job
You can get into this role through a paramedic degree apprenticeship or training programme.
ENTRY REQUIREMENTS
There are no set entry requirements but it may help you to get in if you have:
- 4 or 5 GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C) and A levels, or equivalent, for a degree apprenticeship
You could start as an ambulance care assistant or an emergency medical technician. With experience you could apply for a place on a paramedic training scheme. You would need to check the entry procedures and requirements with individual ambulance service trusts.
Entry to paramedic courses is very competitive and it may help you if you have some relevant experience or training. You could:
- volunteer as a first responder with a charity or social enterprise, like St John Ambulance
- volunteer with an NHS ambulance trust
- work at a residential care home or day care centre
- get a first aid certificate
- work in an office-based job for an ambulance service
Career progression
Paramedic - Level 6
A career in paramedicine is a dynamic and exciting career with opportunities to work in a range of different roles as a Registered Paramedic. You will be a first-contact Allied Health Professional who works within the wider Urgent & Emergency Care setting. You will provide high quality and compassionate care, responding to the needs of service users and carers across the lifespan. You will work in a wide variety of settings, which may include a front-line ambulance, a GP surgery, a minor injury/illness centre, in remote medicine or a varied range of other environments. Responsibilities and duty of the role: At the point of registration, a paramedic is an autonomous practitioner who has the knowledge, skills and clinical expertise to assess, treat, diagnose, supply and administer medicines, manage, discharge and refer patients in a range of urgent, emergency, critical or out of hospital settings.
Enhanced Clinical Practitioner - Level 6
This occupation is found in the health and care sector. Enhanced Clinical Practitioners are qualified health and social care professionals who are working at an enhanced level of practice with specific knowledge and skills in a field of expertise. They manage a discrete aspect of a patient’s care within their current level of practice, which will be particular to a specific context, be it a client group, a skill set or an organisational context. This is in contrast to Advanced Clinical Practitioners who have developed their knowledge and skills to an advanced level of practice and would manage the whole episode of a patient’s clinical care, from the time they first present, through to the end of the episode.
Advanced Clinical Practitioner - Level 7
Advanced Clinical Practitioners are experienced clinicians who demonstrate expertise in their scope of practice. Advanced Clinical Practitioners manage defined episodes of clinical care independently, from beginning to end, providing care and treatment from the time an individual first presents through to the end of the episode, which may include admission, referral or discharge or care at home. They carry out their full range of duties in relation to individuals’ physical and mental healthcare and in acute, primary, urgent and emergency settings (including hospitals, general practice, individuals’ homes, schools and prisons, and in the public, independent, private and charity sectors). They combine expert clinical skills with research, education and clinical leadership within their scope of practice. Advanced Clinical Practitioners work innovatively on a one to one basis with individuals as well as part of a wider team. They work as part of the wider health and social care team and across traditional professional boundaries in health and social care.