To support program directors in navigating accreditation as an everyday activity, the CoAEMSP staff is introducing “Virtual Office Hours,” an open time when program directors, deans, medical directors, and lead instructors can drop into a Zoom call with staff without scheduling a meeting.

To do so, simply click the Zoom link below. You can ask questions or seek guidance about accreditation or any other challenges--we are here to support you!

Nuanced or confidential questions should be addressed with the appropriate staff person outside "Virtual Office Hours."

"Virtual Office Hours" are limited to the first 100 to join, which will allow two-way communication.

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88440358727

Staff contact: Lynn Caruthers, lynn@coaemsp.org

CAAHEP accredited programs may develop non-main campus locations to deliver components of the course or, at times, the entire program to meet students' and stakeholders' needs. The distinctions and delivery modes can be confusing but are essential in program operation and assessment. CAAHEP has revised the definition of a satellite which must offer all the professional didactic and laboratory content of the program. This may include any distance education delivery modality. The CoAEMSP has defined an alternate location for those sites where a portion of the education is delivered, but not the entire didactic and lab components.

Staff Contact: Jennifer Anderson Warwick, jennifer@coaemsp.org

The Letter of Review, Initial or Continuing Self-Study Report has been submitted, and the site visit is scheduled. You are eagerly anticipating the visit from your site visitors. This could include either a Paramedic educator and a physician involved in EMS education or two Paramedic educators. Periodically, additional site visitors may be on the team as well. You want to be well prepared, so where do you start?

Effective preparation and having all potential documents available for the site visit can benefit you in the following ways:

Whether this is your first site visit or you are a seasoned veteran, the checklist found here will assist you with your preparations. This includes a

list of documents your program needs to make available for the site visit, all organized by the Standard Reference.

New! There is now just one approved way of organizing documents for your site visit, instead of the three options originally available.

Staff Contact: Jennifer Anderson Warwick, jennifer@coaemsp.org

We are pleased to report that the move to virtual site visits has been successful! To date eleven virtual site visits have been conducted, and the CoAEMSP is moving forward with virtual site visits for 2021.

Programs will be contacted by Jennifer Anderson Warwick about scheduling these visits. In preparation for the virtual visits, program directors are asked to attend an interactive webinar to learn more about the planning for and hosting of the virtual site visit. Program directors will be provided information about attending this webinar once their virtual site visit is scheduled.

Please keep the following additional information in mind about the virtual site visit:

Questions should be directed to Jennifer Anderson Warwick at jennifer@coaemsp.org.

Staff Contact: Dr. George W Hatch, Jr, george@coaemsp.org

The Committee on Accreditation of Educational Programs for the EMS Professions (CoAEMSP) has a vacancy for one public member position on its Board of Directors. The CoAEMSP is a Texas 501(c)(3) not-for-profit corporation and Committee on Accreditation member of the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP),

Public members of the CoAEMSP serve three-year terms, with eligibility for a maximum of three consecutive terms of service. Public members will begin serving September 6, 2021. There is no honorarium for this Board position, although all customary travel expenses associated with the position are reimbursed.

The public member cannot be: 1) An employee, member of the governing board, owner, or shareholder of, or consultant to the sponsor of a Paramedic program that holds a CoAEMSP Letter of Review (LoR) or is accredited by CAAHEP or one that is in any stage of the LoR/accreditation process for Paramedic; 2) A member of any trade association or membership organization related to, affiliated with, or associated with the CoAEMSP or Paramedic; or 3) A spouse, parent, child, or sibling of an individual identified in (1) or (2) above; or 4) an individual who would be qualified in any other named EMS community of interest (i.e. students, graduates, faculty, sponsor administration, hospital/clinic representatives, physicians, employers, police and fire services, or key governmental officials).

Interested parties should complete and return the application found here, along with a current CV, to Dr. George W. Hatch, Jr., Executive Director, at george@coaemsp.org. Nominations must be received no later than May 1, 2021.

Applications are now being accepted for Assistant Director of Accreditation Services for the Committee on Accreditation of Educational Programs for the EMS Professions (CoAEMSP), the professional organization that provides services for national accreditation of Paramedic educational programs under the auspices of the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP).

Qualifications for the position include a highly motivated, organized individual dedicated to the mission of the CoAEMSP; a Master’s degree (or higher) from an accredited post-secondary academic institution; current state or national Paramedic certification; strong working knowledge of the accreditation process; experience in leadership roles, management, and the site visit process; and extensive work in Paramedic education.

To be considered for the position, please send a letter of intent and a résumé or curriculum vitae to ADsearch@coaemsp.org by February 15, 2021.

The review of candidates will begin February 15, 2021 and will continue until the position is filled on or after July 1, 2021.

CAAHEP has a new mailing address, and the CoAEMSP policy requires that your program post it in publications advertising the CAAHEP accredited program. Be sure to update the address in your publications. Inform your accounting department as well.

CoAEMSP Policy IV.A.3., Maintaining Accreditation – Publishing Program Accreditation Status states:

3. If a program has CAAHEP accreditation, the sponsor must use the following language when referring to that accreditation:

a.   In at least one (1) of its comprehensive publications customarily used to officially convey institutional information, it must state:

“The [name of program] is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (www.caahep.org) 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

9355 - 113th St. N, #7709

Seminole, FL 33775

727-210-2350

To contact the CoAEMSP:

8301 Lakeview Parkway, Suite 111-312

Rowlett, TX 75088

214-703-8445

Fax: 214-703-8992

www.coaemsp.org"

10:00am-2:30pm Central Time each day

These virtual workshops are held via Zoom and are designed to educate participants on the 2015 CAAHEP Standards and the accreditation process, enhancing the accreditation knowledge of Paramedic program faculty. Through the use of expert presentations and interactive group learning activities, the workshop will provide best practices to avoid common stumbling blocks.

Your site visitors inquire how you document the progression of student learning. What are they asking for and how can you demonstrate that your program is not just focused on checking the boxes, but on communication among faculty, including the Medical Director, and monitoring student progression in attaining competencies in the cognitive, psychomotor, and affective domains?

Join Pat and Megan to learn how to track/document when regression occurs or progress stalls, understand considerations of ways to answer the question: ‘How do you monitor and document progression of student learning’?

Each webinar session is limited to the first 500 registrations. There is no fee associated with the webinar, and each webinar will be recorded and made available on the CoAEMSP website.

Access the reference article here.

All programs (CAAHEP-accredited and CoAEMSP-LoR) must annually publish their outcome results (e.g. National Registry or State Written Exam, Retention, and Positive Job Placement) from the calendar year two years prior verifiable by the latest annual report required.

This webinar will review the format and discuss the current approach to reporting and reviewing outcomes. Annual reports were emailed on January 14 to the program director’s email from AnnualReports@coaemsp.org.

Each webinar session is limited to the first 500 registrations. There is no fee associated with the webinar, and each webinar will be recorded and made available on the CoAEMSP website.

For a current list of LoR and accredited programs, visit www.caahep.org.