Perceptions and Expectations of Academic Knowledge in Swiss Paramedicine (SWISS PEAK) A National Cross-Sectional Survey of EMS Professionals
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Abstract
Objectives: Paramedic education in Switzerland remains vocational despite ongoing academic development internationally. This study examined Swiss emergency medical services (EMS) professionals’ attitudes toward opportunity- and threat-related items concerning academic development and whether these attitudes varied by academic degree status and the perceived applicability of prior academic training to current practice.
Methods: A national cross-sectional online survey was conducted among Swiss EMS professionals. A de novo questionnaire assessed questionnaire-defined opportunity and threat dimensions related to academic development, covering selected perceived benefits and concerns. After psychometric refinement, Opportunity and Threat scale scores (0–100) were used to derive a Dominance Index (D = Opportunity - Threat) and four attitudinal profiles (High/Low Opportunity × High/Low Threat). Group differences and associations with academic degree status and perceived applicability of prior academic training were examined using t-tests, χ²-tests, correlations, and logistic regression.
Results: Among 590 respondents, mean Opportunity and Threat scores were 75.5 and 29.9, respectively, yielding a mean Dominance Index of +45.6. Overall, 79.3% were Opportunity-leaning, 10.0% Neutral, and 10.7% Threat-leaning; 74.1% fell into the High-Opportunity/Low-Threat profile. Respondents with an academic degree (16.6%) showed higher Opportunity and lower Threat scores than respondents without an academic degree, resulting in a higher Dominance Index (mean difference +12.7). Among respondents with an academic degree, 69.6% reported that their studies were applicable to current practice, but perceived applicability showed no clear association with attitudinal orientation (r = -0.16, 99% CI [-0.41, 0.12]).
Conclusion: In this national convenience sample, respondents endorsed the opportunity-related items captured by the questionnaire more strongly than the threat-related items. Differences by academic degree status were modest, and the perceived applicability of prior academic training showed no clear association with attitudinal orientation. These findings inform ongoing discussion of how academic development, paramedic education, and professional roles may evolve within Swiss EMS.
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