To advance the recommendations of the 2019 National EMS Scope of Practice Model and the 2021 National EMS Education Standards, the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP) plans to launch a voluntary programmatic accreditation at the Advanced Emergency Medical Technician (AEMT) level by January 1, 2025, and the Committee on Accreditation of Educational Programs for the Emergency Medical Services Professions (CoAEMSP) will provide the accreditation services. CAAHEP and CoAEMSP will work closely with stakeholders to gather perspectives and recommendations on how best to implement the new option.
The 2019 National EMS Scope of Practice Model, developed by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) in collaboration with numerous stakeholders, called for enhanced education standards for AEMT programs, including a proposed requirement that AEMTs successfully complete “a nationally accredited or CAAHEP-accredited AEMT program that meets all other State/territorial requirements” by January 1, 2025.
Subsequently, in 2021, NHTSA released the National EMS Education Standards, which reaffirmed its support for offering AEMT program accreditation by January 1, 2025. Key stakeholders in the 2019 and 2021 efforts turned to CoAEMSP to develop a strategy to implement the recommendation.
“When it comes to the education of health professionals, accreditation is recognized as an essential ingredient in an effective healthcare system. Accreditation establishes standards that ensure high quality education that results in a reliable, consistent, and competent workforce, which in turn can enhance healthcare outcomes,” said Donald Balasa, JD, MBA, President of CAAHEP. “Today’s announcement is an important contribution to efforts aimed at setting standards for quality assurance in health professions education.”
“Ensuring AEMT education programs have the professional resources to meet basic education standards is essential to the quality of AEMT education and the safety and well-being of communities nationwide,” said Lori Burns, MSN, RN, Chair of CoAEMSP. “Building on stakeholder feedback, beginning in 2025 the nation’s AEMT education programs will have the op/on to pursue accreditation, a voluntary activity that measures and assesses the quality of AEMT programs against agreed-upon standards. CoAEMSP is proud
to lead efforts to develop this op/on for AEMT education programs nationwide as part of our work to foster a unified national EMS system of exceptional quality through accreditation.”
There are several steps prior to January 1, 2025, to gather perspectives and recommendations from stakeholders, develop and implement a voluntary programmatic accreditation at the AEMT level. Key milestones in advance of the launch include:
- May – November 2023 – Robust stakeholder engagement and feedback
- December 4, 2023 – Open for public comment the policies and interpretations of the CAAHEP Standards for AEMT education programs.
- January 18, 2024 – Public comment period closes. (Feb 4, the CoAEMSP Board reviews the comments and approves the final draft).
- March 4, 2024 – Publish policies and interpretations of the CAAHEP Standards for AEMT education programs.
- June 1, 2024 – Make available all documents and forms for AEMT programs, including the Letter of Review (LoR) application, self-study report, site visit report, annual report, etc.
- January 1, 2025 – Accept LoR applications from AEMT programs.
CoAEMSP will hold a Virtual Town Hall on June 16, 2023 to provide more information on the rollout of the voluntary accreditation for AEMT education programs. Additional information is available on the CoAEMSP website.
