New member here. Help!

[Erik]

My name is Erik and I am an EMT-B in Monterey, CA. I work for a non-emergency gurney transport ambulance company.

This company only gets BLS calls in Monterey county when AMR does not want them and contracts them to us. I have had 1 BLS call so far in 6 weeks. Does anyone else here work for a company like this? Anyone had experiences they can share about non-emergency ambulance runs?

The reason I ask is that I feel like, in some cases, that I only prolong agony and pain for most of my PT's. I feel like I am not really doing much at all here. I have been lurking around these forums for a while now, and a lot of you guys/gals have opinions worth hearing, and most everyone has more experience. I listen to everything with intent to incorporate the positive towards my job. I want to learn. Any help is much appreciated. Thanks.

 

[EMTinNEPA]

Go to paramedic school.

 

[Erik]

Go to paramedic school.

I was planning on it. Obviously I need more experience before I start that. Thanks for your help.

 

[EMTinNEPA]

No you don't. Experience is a myth. Some of the worst EMTs I know have been in EMS for over fifteen years, and some of the best paramedics I know have been in EMS for less than six. One of my favorite paramedics to work with was an EMT for a year before she became a paramedic. Doing BLS inter-facilities almost exclusively will familiarize you with the names of medications, medical conditions, and show you what certain degenerative diseases do to people, and what kind of limitations that will put on your treatment. For example, if you're transporting a dialysis patient with a shunt in the left arm, which arm are you going to use to take their blood pressure? It will also allow you to get plenty of experience taking vital signs. But other than that it will do little to prepare you for paramedic school. If you somehow got a position on a 911 rig, all that would teach you is how to put a monitor on somebody, how to spike a bag of normal saline, and how to play Taxi Boy for the medic. Don't waste time being an EMT-B. Go to paramedic school as soon as possible.

 

[lakersmedic]

As a Basic take as much as you can out of the experience. Get good at the things you can perform, such as: patient assessment, vitals, using various equipment, driving an ambulance, and radio reports. You will not be able to "save" a lot of lives, but you can make a patient comfortable and make your skills better. I worked as a Basic for 6 years, and sometimes you dont feel like you do anything. But you do, it's not the saving lives thing, but it's making a patient comfortable and taking good care of them. Good luck man, and hang in there.

 

[UsualSuspect147]

Though that does sound pretty boring, in my experience with life you learn from whatever you're given. If you're not happy I'm sure you can find work with a private company.

 

[CAOX3]

The reason I ask is that I feel like, in some cases, that I only prolong agony and pain for most of my PT's. I feel like I am not really doing much at all here.

Welcome to EMS, medicine in general.

Contrary to popular belief I would say spend some time in EMS as an EMT, preferably on a BLS 911 truck if possible, spend some time as a lead, not just equipment hauler for your medic, make some decisions, see if you like the work enviorment, the hours, the day to day operations and the people. rather then drop 15 or so grand on a medic school to find out you hate it and that the training you just got is about as useful as an umbrella in a hurricane and it isnt even paid for yet. If you do choose to go this route I would say go the college route at least its education and the credits are transferable.

Which ever way its your decision.

The experience, well that depends on who you ask, and there is no studies that have been done to prove that spending any time as an EMT will be detrimental to you in the future if you choose to move on to medic school. nursing or medical school You will be succesfull as you choose to be.

By the way that dialysis patient your transporting is probably one of the sickest patients you will ever come in contact with transfer or 911.

Good luck and welcome aboard.

 

[Maya]

This is just my opinion. I just passed my EMT and I'm looking for my first job, so that's my disclaimer. This is just what I've gathered from talking to people and reading posts.

Anyway, I wouldn't get too complacent in a job you feel you aren't learning from. Obviously, jobs are hard to come by in CA right now, so I wouldn't quit your job, just start shopping around.

Try to get into AMR or any other 911-service. Would help if you're willing to move within CA. Volunteer at your local ER. Look into ER Tech jobs in future. They're harder to come by and nurses and med-students may get first pick, but if you prove invaluable as a volunteer, you never know. You'll need phlebotomy cert and EKG training if you want to become an ER Tech.

That's the route I'm headed right now. Phlebotomy (aka venipuncture) cert takes a semester, so I'm hoping to get that done before I go to Paramedic School in a year's time. Seems a good way to continue your education, while still being able to work as an EMT, without plunging head-on into Paramedic school.

You may also be able to find OR Tech or Anesthesia Tech jobs without experience, I've been told. Another way to become ER Tech is to start out as Patient Transporter or Lift Assistant in the hospital, but that (I'm guessing) may be less use of your skills than what you're doing now.

Good luck!

 

[vquintessence]

Erik, Welcome. When you say you've done one BLS call in six weeks, are you referring to doing only one IFT? If that's the case, keep applying where ever you can, because an average of less than 0.2 transports a shift (made up figure people..) is atrocious for any professional, especially a green EMT/medic.

Also, complete agreement with NEPA; go to paramedic school. Your concern about experience is incorrect, as well as another members assertions about a "15K medic program".

Assuming you apply to an adequate paramedic program (preferably a college over a private organization), you will get a hell of a lot of experience working your clinicals, from ER - OR - OB/GYN - ICU - geri psych - etc. During your clinical experience, I assure you, you will get MORE experience than working as a basic ALMOST ANYWHERE in this country.

Back to the college subject, a college is preferable over a private "training" organization because you will likely get transferable college credits, which will be great should you decide to further your education to other arena's in medicine or another humanity.

If cost is your biggest excuse, go to community college. I can't say enough good things about many of them. I got my AD from one, it cost me significantly less than anywhere else, and I can count on one hand the number of "crappy teachers" I had. Look up a recent posting by another member named "Ventmedic". She literally stated the cost per credit of a community college in CA.

 

[Erik]

Thanks for the responses guys. I had been selected out of 31 people for an interview at the Community Hospital of Monterey Peninsula (CHOMP), which went well, for an ER Tech position. 4 people got an interview, then CHOMP decided to have their current employees fill the shifts. I was more than bummed. Interview didn't go well enough I guess.

AMR is not hiring right now, but that won't stop me from turning in an application, which I will do tomorrow.

The local community college, Monterey Peninsula College (MPC), only has an EMT-B program, which is a terrible class in my opinion. The nearest Paramedic school is in Santa Cruz, which is about a 45 minute commute twice a day. The program is called ETS.

I am going to be stuck with this gurney transport for a while. The patient care is what I like about it, but I want to do more. I want to work with a Medic for a while and see how I like it and what I can learn.

Anyways, thanks for the responses again, I appreciate it. -Erik

 

[Maya]

I really wouldn't take it personally about the ER Tech job. I've been told that it is pretty competitive, which is why they usually either go to nurses, med-students or someone who's already working there. Try volunteering or apply for patient transporter/ lift assistant.

It has absolutely nothing to do with you and everything to do with the economy. It sucks! Just keep applying everywhere you can. Worst case, you might not get the job, but you do get to practice your interview skills for the one great job you will eventually get!

 

[smurfe]

I have kind of changed my stance on the experience thing as a Basic. I used to be a firm believer in this. I had to be an EMT-A for 2 years before I could take the Intermediate class and then had to go two years to go Paramedic. It wouldn't of made much of a difference as there were only BLS services in my area when I took my initial EMT class. Then ILS and when ALS came I got in on the first class.

What has changed my mind is the amount of quality clinical time that is associated with a quality Paramedic program. I had to do 40 hours on an ALS unit and get 15 calls and do 60 hours in an ER. Today you do hundreds of hours of clinical time and get multi-fold the exposure I received. My entire paramedic program was 5 months going two nights a week for 3-4 hours a night. Today it is two years going all day most every day. Paramedics are now educated and trained as opposed to being just trained.

EMT's really put too much emphasis on the skills to advance to the paramedic level. The absolute most important skill/procedure a paramedic does is the basic BLS assessment. It all revolves around that. It doesn't matter how good you are at reading an EKG or starting an IV or passing an ET tube. If you can't do a competent BLS assessment and figure out what is wrong with the patient you are never going to be able to competently use those skills.

Take every advantage you can to preform a competent assessment on a BLS patient no matter how trivial the call may seem. It will pay off ten fold when you do go to paramedic school. This is what I tell the students I precept. They come to me as a paramedic student but I make them a solid Basic then we move to paramedic stuff. Has worked every time so far. I have never had one fail Registry practicals.

 

[Harwetopa]

Erik, I've been a paramedic for almost 29 years now, much of that career being spent in the private service. Something I keep in mind is that I am helping to provide a necessary service: these patients are too sick/disabled to be able to travel by w/c van, bus, taxi or drive themselves. Although they may not seem so at quick glance, they really are sick! Someone already said it: those dialysis patients are sicker than you think. One big advantage you have in this situation is that you transport the same patients on a daily basis; and as a result, you get to know them better than the average person: what's normal, what's not. And when you get around to it, there really is no such thing as a stable BLS transport:

-Dialysis patient ODs on her meds before treatment; I wind up with an unresponsive critical run instead of a routine return home.

-Dialysis patient transfers self out of bed to my cot...leaving his R. flank dialysis access catheter in the bed. Emergent transport with bleeding control and A LOT of reassurance for the patient.

-Cardiac patient being transported home after discharge from the hospital goes into cardiac arrest.

-Patient has CVA in doctor's office while waiting for MD to arrive.

-Patient complains of chest pains on the way out of MD's office, taken to ED where he is admitted for MI.

Sure, these are extreme examples but I hope they also illustrate that :excl:Anything can happen, Anywhere, at Anytime. :excl:

You say you want to get more experience. Good! The potential is there each and every transport you do; so be alert at all times.

You also say you want to go on to paramedic school: Good! But keep in mind two things I tell each and every student I work with:

-The EMT always comes before the P...if you don't have good, solid basic skills, all the toys and drugs you play with as a paramedic won't do any good;

-Paramedics save lives...EMTs save paramedics! Any questions as to how that can be, look at the above again. It's not really as much a joke as it sounds.

Good luck with your career, Erik; it is frustrating, it is exciting, it is messy, but it is never boring.

 

[Erik]

Thanks Harwetopa. Thanks everyone. I need the advice as I am the noobie. I appreciate it.

 

[judoka5446]

At the very least you'll get practice moving immobile old ladies down a precarious set of stairs. In complete darkness. On a flat stretcher. In the middle of the biggest storm of the year. With the rig parked on the steepest,most slippery driveway in the county. Oh, and getting there you'll have to avoid fallen trees and smashed trucks. Just a day in the life...

 

[Level1pedstech]

The ER Tech position is very competitive, most people use the position as a stepping stone to bigger and better things. We posted a peds ER tech position a few months ago and cut off applications that went for review at 200,we still received applications after that and this was for an on call position.

It took me almost a year and four interviews with three different ER managers before I got hired and that was for a position on the adult side. I had a ton of field experience and it was still nothing compared to some of the people who were applying. Just keep trying and learn how to give a good interview,in this day and age you may only get one chance to sell the package and you will want to be prepared. Next time you get an interview PM me and I will be more than happy to give you some "nuggets" to help with your presentation. Good luck!