Learner/Student/Junior: What's the Difference?

Maine EMS Rules require EMS agencies to create a plan to supervise anyone under 18 who will be responding with them on an EMS call. This document covers the three separate roles these individuals may have, and the differences between them. 

* Maine EMS and Department of Labor Rules prohibit minors from responding to any call that may be psychologically or physically traumatic. These calls include, but are not limited to:

• Cardiac arrest or CPR in progress
• Sexual assault or abuse 
• Suicidal threats or attempts 
• Violence or the threat of violence
• Major trauma
• Mass casualties
• Domestic violence or abuse
• Pediatrics 
• Friends or family of the minor 
• Calls located on a highway when the highway has not been 100% shut down

Frequently Asked Questions:

Can someone be a Learner and a Student at the same time?

• Yes. A person can be enrolled in an EMR or EMT class and still participate as a Learner in EMS ConnectME. However, you must keep their role very clear at all times, especially when they go on calls. They can ONLY perform patient care when on a clinical shift coordinated by their Training Center. 
  
  

Can someone be a Student and a Junior at the same time?

• By definition, once a person has finished their course and obtained their EMS license, they are no longer a Student. If they are under 18, they become a Junior. 
• However, if that Junior then enrolls in another class for a higher level of licensure, they are then both a Junior and a Student. The same rules listed above apply to this scenario. 
  
  • For example, a Junior EMT who is also a Student enrolled in an AEMT course can perform skills in the EMT scope of practice when they are supervised as described above. They can ONLY perform AEMT skills that they have learned in class when on a clinical shift coordinated by their Training Center. 
    
    

Can someone be a Learner and a Junior at the same time?

• Maybe. Your local EMS ConnectME program may allow Juniors to participate in program activities if it has capacity. However, because they now have an EMS license, any time they are on a call they must act in accordance with that license. 
  
  

If my service has trained our Student in a skill that they haven’t learned yet in their EMT class, can they perform that skill on calls with us? 

• No. Students can only perform skills that they learned with their Maine EMS-licensed Training Center. They may not perform any other skills on EMS patients. 

Additional Resources:

For more information, please use the following links. 

• Maine EMS Rules, Chapters 3 and 5: https://www.maine.gov/ems/protocols-resources/statutes 
• The EMS ConnectME website: https://www.maine.gov/ems/ConnectME