Combat medics and EMTs: do they really have the same training? [View All]

[hedgehog]

I'm an Obama supporter, but I have to question his frequent suggestion that combat medics be allowed to return to civilian life and work as EMTs without having to go through further training.

Now - combat medics do an amazing job and are responsible for saving thousands of lives. My guess is they are trained to handle wounds from bullets and explosives, chiefly with young adults in good physical condition. My further guess is that EMTs see a much broader range of situations: the middle-aged man with a heart attack, the diabetic in coma, stroke victims, automobile accidents, drowning victims,etc. Without denigrating people in either field for the excellent work they do, are the job functions sufficiently different that medics would need additional training before being certified as an EMT?