The Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Division is the regulatory oversight entity for all EMS certifications and activities in the District of Columbia. The District of Columbia EMS system is governed by Fire and Emergency Medical Services or FEMS. This organization is an affiliation of the DC Health Department.
FEMS Department does not offer EMT or paramedic training courses to the general public.
You will need to contact the individual training centers to obtain information about upcoming courses, entry requirements, costs, and length of EMS training for each level.
However, the Department of Health maintains a list of EMS educational institutions and it also certifies the educational institutions that provide EMT training in the District. The DC Fire/EMS Department does offer several Cardio-Pulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) and First Aid training course that are accredited under the American Heart Association guide lines.
To become a certified EMT or EMT paramedic in DC an individual:
- must be at least 18 years of age
- must pass a criminal background check
- must possess current CPR certification
- must have a high school diploma, GED or equivalent
- must pass a drug screening
- possess current immunization records
- must have a valid DC driver’s license
- must pass a physical
- must enroll in EMT-basic training and pass EMT certification (for paramedic licensure)
- must possess sponsorship and/or letters of support
Certification in DC
EMT training and EMT paramedic training, certification, and licensing vary state to state. Furthermore, not only are there specific training requirements for the levels of training, states also have specific requirements. These must be met in order to work within the state you are seeking employment in, regardless of your EMT training or certification. All District of Columbia training courses for EMT, AEMT, and Paramedic certification must be approved by the FEMS Regulatory Board.
Training programs in DC must meet minimum standards for coursework and clinical experience to be accredited. These DC EMS training programs vary in length and credit hours due to the variables in each program. In addition to the program course hours, clinical experience is required for each training program and certification level.
Once your training is complete, to receive certification, EMT candidates must pass the DHS exam and the NREMT (National Registry Exam) to be certified in DC. If you have yet to take the NREMT exam, be sure to consider the EMT prep/NREMT practice tests and paramedic practice exams that are offered. This state of the art testing system gives you access to thousands of EMS questions for the most common levels of pre hospital care givers (including EMT-Basic, EMT-Intermediate, and Paramedic). All questions where written by certified and licensed EMT’s, Paramedics and Instructors who have taken the NREMT exam multiple times. Each question follows the Department of Transportation EMT Curriculum and is current with the newest AHA CPR and AED guidelines. All answers were verified to exist in multiple EMT course books as well.
Recertification and Reciprocity
Current certified EMTs and paramedics only need to possess copies of their valid National Registry and current CPR certification, as well as an application. For the District of Columbia, in order to maintain your National Certification you will need to complete a 24-Hour refresher course. This accredited refresher course includes 10 hours of self-directed education and 14 hours of online training sessions that include a real instructor who is present to answer questions and discuss the coursework. This is only one of the few online refreshers that meet the requirements by the NREMT to be considered an official refresher. The cost of the refresher is currently about $250.
The District of Columbia does accept EMS reciprocity, (not all states do); however, you may be required to take additional training. If you have passed the NREMT exam and/or are certified from another state you will still need DC certification approval in order to become certified or licensed as an EMT or paramedic. In addition, the certification from another state must be CURRENT throughout all testing to be eligible to take the National Registry exam. Current CPR certification is also required. The DC Department of Health accepts a military-issued DD-214 en lieu of an out-of-state license.
Note: Although DC no longer recognizes the EMS level of the Intermediate-99 level, out-of-state EMT-Is are eligible for reciprocity.
Contact Information
Emergency Medical Services Division of the Department of Health
2000 14th Street, NW, 5th Floor, Washington, DC 20009
Phone: (202) 673-3320
Contact emails: info.fems@dc.gov and doh@dc.gov
Website: http://fems.dc.gov
The following are EMT training and paramedic schools in the District of Columbia that offer accredited EMT paramedic training programs:
Georgetown University Medical Center
4000 Reservoir Road, N.W. Suite 120 - Washington D.C. 20057
Phone: (202) 687-0100
George Washington School of Medicine and Health Sciences
Ross Hall 2300 Eye Street, NW, Washington, DC 20037
Office of classroom services: (202) 994-2856
Email: smhsnews@gwu.edu
WESTLINK CAREER INSTITUTE, INC.
1325 G ST NW, Suite 500 Washington Dc 20005
Phone: (202)552-7385