# Priority One Medical Transport?



## eypeon (Jun 5, 2011)

Hey everyone, 

I recently got the job at P1 and started my CEs' before starting my Field Training. Anyways I was just wondering, what's the company like? I know they only run IFTs in Los Angeles, Orange, And northern Cali but I was wondering what everyones opinion on the company is. I live in Ridgecrest and I'm planning on applying for Liberty Ambulance after getting some experience in the field. I worked at West Coast Ambulance for about a year before this but they only did Dialysis calls so I literally have no experience with EMS, although I am really good at using a gurney  hahaha Anyway thanks for the inquire.


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## Rsion4191 (Jun 9, 2011)

Don't apply to Liberty . I've worked there . & I know you won't trust someone over the internet , but you'll thank me later .


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## eypeon (Jun 9, 2011)

Rsion4191 said:


> Don't apply to Liberty . I've worked there . & I know you won't trust someone over the internet , but you'll thank me later .



why's that? I'm talking of the Liberty in Ridgecrest that runs 911.


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## Akulahawk (Jun 9, 2011)

eypeon said:


> Hey everyone,
> 
> I recently got the job at P1 and started my CEs' before starting my Field Training. Anyways I was just wondering, what's the company like? I know they only run IFTs in Los Angeles, Orange, And northern Cali but I was wondering what everyones opinion on the company is. I live in Ridgecrest and I'm planning on applying for Liberty Ambulance after getting some experience in the field. I worked at West Coast Ambulance for about a year before this but they only did Dialysis calls so I literally have no experience with EMS, although I am really good at using a gurney  hahaha Anyway thanks for the inquire.


They run primarily BLS IFT. They can do some ALS IFT in a couple counties and they run 911 via a contract with Stockton Fire. They wanted the San Joaquin County 911 contract and lost to both Stockton Fire and AMR. 

There are some threads on this forum about P1... Here's one member that didn't like P1 at all...

http://www.emtlife.com/showpost.php?p=143727&postcount=9


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## Handsome Rob (Jun 13, 2011)

Proirity One also operates in Texas. I have heard nothing but bad from the Teaxs side and not much in the way of good here in LA County...:sad:


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## mike1390 (Jun 16, 2011)

P1 in LA is just like any armanian Medicare/medi cal fraud. Have fun.


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## looker (Jun 16, 2011)

mike1390 said:


> P1 in LA is just like any armanian Medicare/medi cal fraud. Have fun.



Can you please elaborate? Is it your opinion that any private ambulance is fraud because they are for profit?


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## mike1390 (Jun 17, 2011)

No cause I work for a private ambulance a legit one not one that takes part in Medicare fraud. IFT companies in LA are notorious for being fraud companies everyone knows it but they don't regulate it. And when they do they will all be shut down. In the very rare chance that they do get shut down they just rename the company slap a new paint scheme on the rig and call it good.


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## looker (Jun 17, 2011)

mike1390 said:


> No cause I work for a private ambulance a legit one not one that takes part in Medicare fraud. IFT companies in LA are notorious for being fraud companies everyone knows it but they don't regulate it. And when they do they will all be shut down. In the very rare chance that they do get shut down they just rename the company slap a new paint scheme on the rig and call it good.



I have a feeling what you think is fraud is totally legal. Being that you're saying this company is part of fraud, can you mention couple of thing that most la company do that you feel are fraud?


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## Joe (Jun 17, 2011)

liberty in ridgecrest was on my list of prospective employers. i decided not to because of the lengthy drive for me. like over 1.5 hrs one way. the application process seemed really odd. i called down to ask if they were hiring or accepting applications and if they had a website. Asked for the HR dept and they gave me the "are you stupid" tone of voice while laughing and telling me they were way too small. i was told they were not hiring and they didnt have apps. "Just bring in a resume". the best part of working there would be the the trauma you get from the motorcycle accidents in the desert! Good luck in what ever you decide


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## 292adam (Jul 1, 2011)

I just left P1. It's a good place to start out and apparently it's the 2nd largest Ambulance company in CA, in terms of area coverage. We got NorCal, SoCal and San Diego. I worked ALS, CCT and BLS. I have also ran calls with RTs. I worked out of Station 18 and Station 21. To be honest, the people there are cool but I could care less about the management. Just like every other IFT company in SoCal they're pretty shady. The good thing is we're unionized now and they aren't firing and writing people up like they used to when I first started but the bad thing is our hours are cut BIG TIME. They've been trying to get 911 contracts in Riverside and San Bernardino counties but they've been saying that for like 3 years now. We used to run 911 in Stockton, CA and Texas but have since lost both and withdrawn from Texas altogether. Basically just try not to stay there for more than a year? Watch your back some of the supervisors are back stabbers and will act cool with you but turn around and write you up for stupid things. Hope this helps if anything you can PM me for more information.


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## adamjh3 (Jul 1, 2011)

One thing I can say I like about P1, is I've never heard anything from billing, they don't expect us to justify unjustifiable transports. 

PM me if you want some more info, but, I'm in San Diego, we're pretty far removed from the apparent politics up in LA


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## eypeon (Jul 1, 2011)

Joe said:


> liberty in ridgecrest was on my list of prospective employers. i decided not to because of the lengthy drive for me. like over 1.5 hrs one way. the application process seemed really odd. i called down to ask if they were hiring or accepting applications and if they had a website. Asked for the HR dept and they gave me the "are you stupid" tone of voice while laughing and telling me they were way too small. i was told they were not hiring and they didnt have apps. "Just bring in a resume". the best part of working there would be the the trauma you get from the motorcycle accidents in the desert! Good luck in what ever you decide



When did you apply?


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## eypeon (Jul 1, 2011)

292adam said:


> I just left P1. It's a good place to start out and apparently it's the 2nd largest Ambulance company in CA, in terms of area coverage. We got NorCal, SoCal and San Diego. I worked ALS, CCT and BLS. I have also ran calls with RTs. I worked out of Station 18 and Station 21. To be honest, the people there are cool but I could care less about the management. Just like every other IFT company in SoCal they're pretty shady. The good thing is we're unionized now and they aren't firing and writing people up like they used to when I first started but the bad thing is our hours are cut BIG TIME. They've been trying to get 911 contracts in Riverside and San Bernardino counties but they've been saying that for like 3 years now. We used to run 911 in Stockton, CA and Texas but have since lost both and withdrawn from Texas altogether. Basically just try not to stay there for more than a year? Watch your back some of the supervisors are back stabbers and will act cool with you but turn around and write you up for stupid things. Hope this helps if anything you can PM me for more information.



How come they lost all the contracts? Did you ever work the 911 shifts?


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## 292adam (Jul 8, 2011)

AMR got Stockton and they just pulled out of Texas for reasons unknown to me. Nope I've never worked 911 at P1 but I have gone code for the ALS and CCT. You will never upgrade on BLS, unless you BS it haha.


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## Akulahawk (Jul 10, 2011)

P1 used to be an authorized ALS IFT provider in Santa Clara County. Now they're not authorized to provide local ambulance service in Santa Clara County. To me it sounds like they were either kicked out or they pulled out. Santa Clara has quite a few ambulance providers, so there had to have been ample business there...

I imagine that they still have some operations in Alameda County and maybe some in Sacramento, though according to the Sacramento EMS website, they appear to be based in Modesto. That means they've got about a 2 hour drive just to reach Sacramento... 

I also remember when P1 opened a station in San Joaquin County. This was back in the day, before they went to an Exclusive Operating Area, when all you needed to run 911 was an ambulance, crew, and a station. They'd just carve out a response district for you... I do remember that San Joaquin County 911 contract bidders were basically AMR, Stockton Fire, and P1. I heard that P1 was providing 911 by contract with Stockton Fire, and I do remember Stockton Fire also going rounds with the EMS agency about doing transports on their own...

I did see that their website claims that they're still doing 911 via contract with Stockton FD though... That's the only place I've heard of P1 doing 911 in California, so if they've lost Stockton entirely, they're not advertising their current services truthfully.


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## hyperlyeman1 (Aug 18, 2011)

I worked there back in 2007. I would not recommend them. Management was less than stellar, you are on your shift for 24 hours, but only paid for 14 unless you run a call during your down time. The only good thing I can say about p1 is that the shifts are flexible, so schooling can be done easily. If you don't mind a slightly longer drive, AMR runs a better/tighter ship and is not too much further. The 911 calls are a bonus too. The pay is substantially better with AMR as well. McCormick isn't a bad way to go either.


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## looker (Aug 18, 2011)

hyperlyeman1 said:


> I worked there back in 2007. I would not recommend them. Management was less than stellar, you are on your shift for 24 hours, but only paid for 14 unless you run a call during your down time. The only good thing I can say about p1 is that the shifts are flexible, so schooling can be done easily. If you don't mind a slightly longer drive, AMR runs a better/tighter ship and is not too much further. The 911 calls are a bonus too. The pay is substantially better with AMR as well. McCormick isn't a bad way to go either.



Often times that is industry S.O.P.


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## JPINFV (Aug 18, 2011)

looker said:


> Often times that is industry S.O.P.




More importantly, it's apparently acceptable (people take the jobs don't they?) and legal. 

/Sick of the victim card being played in regards to wages/work conditions.


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## EMT29 (May 17, 2012)

*Priority One Medical Transport*

Please anyone who is considering applying for Priority One, do not work there it is one of the worst ambulance companies in Los Angeles.Priority one is a terrible ambulance company to work for. i have worked for them for a couple years and it has been getting worse and worse everyday.They are very shady, they will try to make you run calls illegally where they know you cant, and if you argue you get a write up.Dispatch are all Fools, they give these unreasonable ETAs and blame you for being late.No matter how hard you work, how much of a great employee you are, there is no chance of getting promoted, they always hire from outside (also btw they hire very inept,inexperienced EMTs and tell them to lie to us about there experience). Corporate is incredibly stupid, and unreasonable, the owners are a Daddy and Daughter team a few  things they share are GREED, EGO and an incredible disrespect to everyone who works for them. They have a hard time holding on to people so if you stay with them they will try to "mandate" you to come in on youre days off to work, if you cant come in you get a write up. I urge you to stay away we need to let this company collapse due to its own ineptitude.


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## Medic Tim (May 17, 2012)

EMT29 said:


> Please anyone who is considering applying for Priority One, do not work there it is one of the worst ambulance companies in Los Angeles.Priority one is a terrible ambulance company to work for. i have worked for them for a couple years and it has been getting worse and worse everyday.They are very shady, they will try to make you run calls illegally where they know you cant, and if you argue you get a write up.Dispatch are all Fools, they give these unreasonable ETAs and blame you for being late.No matter how hard you work, how much of a great employee you are, there is no chance of getting promoted, they always hire from outside (also btw they hire very inept,inexperienced EMTs and tell them to lie to us about there experience). Corporate is incredibly stupid, and unreasonable, the owners are a Daddy and Daughter team a few  things they share are GREED, EGO and an incredible disrespect to everyone who works for them. They have a hard time holding on to people so if you stay with them they will try to "mandate" you to come in on youre days off to work, if you cant come in you get a write up. I urge you to stay away we need to let this company collapse due to its own ineptitude.


If its so bad why are you working there?

Instead of posting here how bad it is where you work, why not put that effort into finding a new job. No one is going to take you seriously if this is the only kind of thing you are going to post.

What you describe is sadly a norm in private ems. So find a place you can tolerate, suck it up, move or upgrade your education.


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## EMT29 (May 17, 2012)

*Priority One Medical transport is terrible*

This company is one of the worse ambulance companies there is. The owners and corporate treat there employees like crap and keep them in line by making them fear that they will lose there job any minute. constantly harass employee they placed 10 CAmeras!! just to make people afraid to do anything even joke around (we later found out these cameras were fake but i think thats worse). I Don't know a single employee there who is happy, everyone hates working there if it weren't for this lousy economy nobody would work there. Anyone Considering applying here i recommend you look anywhere else, the company is always loosing contracts that should tell you something. The Owner and his Daughter are Egomaniacal greedy monsters that exploit EMTs to make a buck, there will be no promotions,low pay,bad attitudes (mostly from management). i hope enough people read this and choose not to take the job, if you dont believe me go to the interview and see what a  joke the interview process is, theyll hire anyone because they have a hard time holding on to people.


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## adamjh3 (May 17, 2012)

Oh boy. Where to start? 

Well, they're about par for the course as far as privates in SoCal go. 

As far as Dispatch, the only ones i have issues with are Jennifer and Crystal. Jen because she's... Jen, and Crystal because she's not really a dispatcher, just someone to fill a seat. The rest of them are just like us, doing what they're told and trying to keep their job. 

I'll agree with you about the supervisors. There's only one right now that I respect, the rest are useless. 

As far as the Daddy/Daughter duo, Dad is pretty hands off with the ambulance side of things, daughter isn't a bad person, she just doesn't have the business experience to run the place. 

I am interested in hearing about these calls they make you run illegally, and how people are getting write ups for turning them down. These issues should be brought to the union and grieved. If you need to get in touch with a Steward or a Rep I can help you out.


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## EMT29 (May 17, 2012)

*Priority One Medical Transport*

Please anyone who is considering applying for Priority One, do not work there it is one of the worst ambulance companies in Los Angeles.Priority one is a terrible ambulance company to work for. i have worked for them for a couple years and it has been getting worse and worse everyday.They are very shady, they will try to make you run calls illegally where they know you cant, and if you argue you get a write up.Dispatch are all Fools, they give these unreasonable ETAs and blame you for being late.No matter how hard you work, how much of a great employee you are, there is no chance of getting promoted, they always hire from outside (also btw they hire very inept,inexperienced EMTs and tell them to lie to us about there experience). Corporate is incredibly stupid, and unreasonable, the owners are a Daddy and Daughter team a few things they share are GREED, EGO and an incredible disrespect to everyone who works for them. They have a hard time holding on to people so if you stay with them they will try to "mandate" you to come in on youre days off to work, if you cant come in you get a write up. I urge you to stay away we need to let this company collapse due to its own ineptitude. If you don't believe me go to the interview and see what a joke that process is like, they will hire anyone because EMTs are always quitting on them. good luck.


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## EMT29 (May 17, 2012)

only reason im still there is im finishing up school and a resume looks much better if you hold one job longer. oh and you obviously haven't worked a shift with Mike Parker when he jumps on as a Medic, and when Pam gets on to dispatch and has us all running with some impossible ETAs or trying to upgrade a call to ALS,when there constantly asking us for ETAs its because Pam is near by *****ing. and Jen yeah i Agree total :censored::censored::censored::censored::censored:. oh and as far as illegal calls. they have tried 2 times to get me to pick up a in San Diego County where im not certified, i had to argue with them but i know for a fact some EMTs have been sent to San Diego to run calls in the past.


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## ffemt8978 (May 17, 2012)

Triplicate threads merged.


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## Joe (May 17, 2012)

Heres what i will add an then im out... it looksgood if you stay for a long time but it looks worse when you trash your employer online where everyone can find it. Also you can pick up anywhere. You have a state card so your good. As long as la dot isnt involved. I have a different county card from where i work. No biggie


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## eypeon (May 23, 2012)

EMT29 said:


> This company is one of the worse ambulance companies there is. The owners and corporate treat there employees like crap and keep them in line by making them fear that they will lose there job any minute. constantly harass employee they placed 10 CAmeras!! just to make people afraid to do anything even joke around (we later found out these cameras were fake but i think thats worse). I Don't know a single employee there who is happy, everyone hates working there if it weren't for this lousy economy nobody would work there. Anyone Considering applying here i recommend you look anywhere else, the company is always loosing contracts that should tell you something. The Owner and his Daughter are Egomaniacal greedy monsters that exploit EMTs to make a buck, there will be no promotions,low pay,bad attitudes (mostly from management). i hope enough people read this and choose not to take the job, if you dont believe me go to the interview and see what a  joke the interview process is, theyll hire anyone because they have a hard time holding on to people.



As a current employee of Priority One, I would argue that P1 is definitely not the worst company. Also I will say, I don't hate my job and as far as taking illegal call, you do reserve the right to refuse them. Just explain your reasoning and if need be, write an incident report.


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## usalsfyre (May 23, 2012)

Me thinks someone has a skewed view of what IFT was going to be like....


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## med4life16 (May 23, 2012)

*Absurd!*

Wow, you are incredible....P1 would not run you in SD County without a license.. They would at least send you to county EMS & pay for your license first if they were that desperate. I did!  

You better have a really nice "believeable" resume for your future employers... oh and hopefully your employee file is clean. By the looks of your attitude, I'm pretty certain that you should be worried. Background investigators don't like people like you. Sorry. 



EMT29 said:


> only reason im still there is im finishing up school and a resume looks much better if you hold one job longer. oh and you obviously haven't worked a shift with Mike Parker when he jumps on as a Medic, and when Pam gets on to dispatch and has us all running with some impossible ETAs or trying to upgrade a call to ALS,when there constantly asking us for ETAs its because Pam is near by *****ing. and Jen yeah i Agree total :censored::censored::censored::censored::censored:. oh and as far as illegal calls. they have tried 2 times to get me to pick up a in San Diego County where im not certified, i had to argue with them but i know for a fact some EMTs have been sent to San Diego to run calls in the past.


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## usalsfyre (May 23, 2012)

And lock in 4...3...2...


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## ffemt8978 (May 23, 2012)

1


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