# UMass EMS



## VentMonkey (Nov 18, 2016)

Has anyone worked for, is anyone working for, or does anyone know of someone working for/ who has worked for this service?

It seems like a fairly solid setup, and I am curious to know if it's viewed as any more---or less---prestigious than Boston EMS. If so, why or why not?

Their protocols seem to fairly aggressive for what would appear to be an urban EMS system, and if I'd ever up and leave to the greater MA area I would probably forego teching for however many years at Boston EMS for a job here, thanks guys.

http://www.umassmemorialems.com/


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## Tigger (Nov 18, 2016)

Haven't lived in Massachusetts for a bit, but yes it has a very good reputation. Double medic ambulances for the city of Worcester and town of Shrewsbury, all BLS fire. I've heard that it is a very competitive hiring process, not a lot of turnover going on the there. And they wear some rad leather jackets.


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## EpiEMS (Nov 18, 2016)

Tigger said:


> Haven't lived in Massachusetts for a bit, but yes it has a very good reputation. Double medic ambulances for the city of Worcester and town of Shrewsbury, all BLS fire. I've heard that it is a very competitive hiring process, not a lot of turnover going on the there. And they wear some rad leather jackets.



Is BLS fire transporting?


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## Tigger (Nov 18, 2016)

EpiEMS said:


> Is BLS fire transporting?


Not in Worcester of Shewsbury.


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## VentMonkey (Nov 18, 2016)

Tigger said:


> Not in Worcester of Shewsbury.


How far in relation to Boston is Worcester? Also how does it compare to the locals (Bostonians) with BEMS? BEMS seems traditionally prestigious to some, sort of like FDNY EMS.


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## DrParasite (Nov 18, 2016)

VentMonkey said:


> How far in relation to Boston is Worcester? Also how does it compare to the locals (Bostonians) with BEMS? BEMS seems traditionally prestigious to some, sort of like FDNY EMS.


working at FDNY EMS is not prestigious at all, except according to those who work at FDNY EMS.


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## NysEms2117 (Nov 18, 2016)

VentMonkey said:


> How far in relation to Boston is Worcester?


about an hour and 15 minutes driving normally with minimal traffic, realistically about an hour 45 **if my memory serves me well**


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## VentMonkey (Nov 18, 2016)

DrParasite said:


> working at FDNY EMS is not prestigious at all, except according to those who work at FDNY EMS.





VentMonkey said:


> How far in relation to Boston is Worcester? Also how does it compare to the locals (Bostonians) with BEMS? BEMS seems traditionally* prestigious to some*, sort of like FDNY EMS.


Edit for clarification.


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## EpiEMS (Nov 18, 2016)

VentMonkey said:


> Edit for clarification.



Hey, as a tri-stater (CT-NY-NJ), I would say this: I'd rather work at BEMS (starting at $54k, average Boston one bedroom rent ~$2k) than FDNY EMS ($31k, average NYC - all borough - one bedroom rent more like $2700)...and I would rather stay out of Boston...

(Also, BEMS is better organized.)


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## VentMonkey (Nov 18, 2016)

EpiEMS said:


> Hey, as a tri-stater (CT-NY-NJ), I would say this: I'd rather work at BEMS (starting at $54k, average Boston one bedroom rent ~$2k) than FDNY EMS ($31k, average NYC - all borough - one bedroom rent more like $2700)...and I would rather stay out of Boston...
> 
> (Also, BEMS is better organized.)


I'd rather work at Worcester/ UMass EMS.


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## NysEms2117 (Nov 18, 2016)

EpiEMS said:


> Hey, as a tri-stater (CT-NY-NJ), I would say this: I'd rather work at BEMS (starting at $54k, average Boston one bedroom rent ~$2k) than FDNY EMS ($31k, average NYC - all borough - one bedroom rent more like $2700)...and I would rather stay out of Boston...
> 
> (Also, BEMS is better organized.)


ALBANY!


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## Tigger (Nov 18, 2016)

VentMonkey said:


> How far in relation to Boston is Worcester? Also how does it compare to the locals (Bostonians) with BEMS? BEMS seems traditionally prestigious to some, sort of like FDNY EMS.


Far enough away that if you're interested in spending much time in Boston you would not want to live in Worcester. Western Boston suburbs are nice, pricey though. The thing with Worcester is that it is not a prestigious city (some may have more choice words for it, but it's probably nicer than Springfield), so I am not sure it can really be compared to Boston, and neither can its EMS service. Worcester is significantly smaller and does not feel like a big city to me.


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## EpiEMS (Nov 18, 2016)

Tigger said:


> The thing with Worcester is that it is not a prestigious city



It's got some amenities though, no? Right behind Boston in population, and several colleges/universities, too.


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## Tigger (Nov 18, 2016)

EpiEMS said:


> It's got some amenities though, no? Right behind Boston in population, and several colleges/universities, too.


Sure, and to be clear I grew up in the Boston suburbs and worked only in Boston and the southcoast area. But Colorado Springs has all those amenities as well, and it is far from a big city too, despite being like 400k. Worcester is kind of "gritty" too and is not geographically near much.


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## EpiEMS (Nov 18, 2016)

Tigger said:


> Sure, and to be clear I grew up in the Boston suburbs and worked only in Boston and the southcoast area. But Colorado Springs has all those amenities as well, and it is far from a big city too, despite being like 400k. Worcester is kind of "gritty" too and is not geographically near much.


Makes sense. No disagreement on the "gritty"  nature of it - I remember my visit to Clark...


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## NomadicMedic (Nov 18, 2016)

Worcester is pretty sketchy, but seems like it would be a fun place to work as a medic. I grew up down the road in CT and worked/lived in Worcester for a while in 2000. It was not a place high on my list of liveable cities. I was happy to get out and move back to St. Louis.


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## VentMonkey (Nov 19, 2016)

Thanks for the replies, everyone. I just found it interesting as this system seems fairly aggressive for A) being what would appear to be an urban setting overall (RSI protocol), and B) sort of overlooked perhaps?

Then again, I have no real working knowledge of what EMS on the other coast is like. I figured this was worth sharing even if someone else from that area had never heard of them, then they may be worth taking a look at.

Also, their HEMS program seems pretty solid, so perhaps there is some rural settings that they respond to.


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## Tigger (Nov 19, 2016)

VentMonkey said:


> Thanks for the replies, everyone. I just found it interesting as this system seems fairly aggressive for A) being what would appear to be an urban setting overall (RSI protocol), and B) sort of overlooked perhaps?
> 
> Then again, I have no real working knowledge of what EMS on the other coast is like. I figured this was worth sharing even if someone else from that area had never heard of them, then they may be worth taking a look at.
> 
> Also, their HEMS program seems pretty solid, so perhaps there is some rural settings that they respond to.


The UMASS Lifeflight and EMS are two pretty separate entities as far as I understand. The HEMS program was/is very well regarded, though they no longer fly with physicians. There are only two helicopter services in MA (and only an additional three in New England), and the smaller number of helicopters seems to make for more impressive programs.


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## EpiEMS (Nov 19, 2016)

VentMonkey said:


> Thanks for the replies, everyone. I just found it interesting as this system seems fairly aggressive for A) being what would appear to be an urban setting overall (RSI protocol), and B) sort of overlooked perhaps?
> 
> Then again, I have no real working knowledge of what EMS on the other coast is like. I figured this was worth sharing even if someone else from that area had never heard of them, then they may be worth taking a look at.
> 
> Also, their HEMS program seems pretty solid, so perhaps there is some rural settings that they respond to.



I think it may be overlooked because of location - "why Worcester when Boston is so close (and pays relatively well)?", if you will.

EMS on the east coast, I can't imagine it differs much from the west coast, honestly - ranges from as liberal as Kern County to as rigid and silly as LA County (though the most liberal EMS systems are probably in Texas, I'd wager).


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## NomadicMedic (Nov 19, 2016)

But Worcester. Oof. It was kind of a hellhole when I was there. 

Lots of East Coast EMS is pretty good. The place where started in 1988 (Jesus, I'm old!) is a pretty decent private. They run ALS intercept trucks, have decent gear, pay okay. Uniforms are ugly as sin though. (http://americanamb.com/)

If I had to move back to CT though, I'd try to get a job at either Lawrence + Memorial Hospital's Paramedic intercept service or at Middlesex Hospital's service.


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## RocketMedic (Nov 23, 2016)

I really miss the California I remember, but I've been away for a decade and I was a kid. professionally, Texas offers a lot of opportunities that other states just don't, and I like that. paramedic-initiated blood transfusions and ketamine, rsi.....if I said those in California the state would shred my license, but here, the state says "go for it".


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## DrParasite (Nov 23, 2016)

DEmedic said:


> Worcester is pretty sketchy, but seems like it would be a fun place to work as a medic. I grew up down the road in CT and worked/lived in Worcester for a while in 2000. It was not a place high on my list of liveable cities. I was happy to get out and move back to St. Louis.


wait a minute...... you consider Worcester to be sketchy, but happily moved to St. Louis?  http://fox2now.com/2016/09/28/st-louis-tops-list-of-25-most-dangerous-cities-in-america/ (Although I can't believe this list is entirely accurate, because none of the historically dangerous cites of Philly, Newark, Camden, Irvington, Flint, etc made the list, so it's possible that certain cities may have fudged their numbers to look better)

For the record, I prefer working in sketchy areas, and think they tend to be busier and more fun (yes, enjoying my job is something I look at regarding a potential employer).  As long as you pay me well, treat me like a person instead of a number, and keep me busy but still let me pee and eat as needed, I'm pretty happy.

That all being said, while I prefer working in sketchy areas, I will definitely enjoy living in the peach and quiet suburbs.


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## NomadicMedic (Nov 23, 2016)

Yeah, I lived in a nice section of STL, and worked in radio there. I rarely saw any of the squalor. Although, my ex-wife was from Granite City... so there was that. 

Worcester was just a pit all the way around. Zero redeeming qualities.


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## Tigger (Nov 23, 2016)

DrParasite said:


> wait a minute...... you consider Worcester to be sketchy, but happily moved to St. Louis?  http://fox2now.com/2016/09/28/st-louis-tops-list-of-25-most-dangerous-cities-in-america/ (Although I can't believe this list is entirely accurate, because none of the historically dangerous cites of Philly, Newark, Camden, Irvington, Flint, etc made the list, so it's possible that certain cities may have fudged their numbers to look better)
> 
> For the record, I prefer working in sketchy areas, and think they tend to be busier and more fun (yes, enjoying my job is something I look at regarding a potential employer).  As long as you pay me well, treat me like a person instead of a number, and keep me busy but still let me pee and eat as needed, I'm pretty happy.
> 
> That all being said, while I prefer working in sketchy areas, I will definitely enjoy living in the peach and quiet suburbs.


There are nice parts in pretty much every city...


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## BobBarker (Nov 23, 2016)

DEmedic said:


> Worcester is pretty sketchy, but seems like it would be a fun place to work as a medic. I grew up down the road in CT and worked/lived in Worcester for a while in 2000. It was not a place high on my list of liveable cities. I was happy to get out and move back to St. Louis.


I like that video, but why are they going code 3 with a stable patient? Same with Episode 4. Patient complains of Dizziness in Ep 4, paramedic says hes very stable yet transports him code 3.


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## Flying (Nov 24, 2016)

Billy D said:


> I like that video, but why are they going code 3 with a stable patient? Same with Episode 4. Patient complains of Dizziness in Ep 4, paramedic says hes very stable yet transports him code 3.


In my experience w/ one company L&S on all calls was a department-wide policy that providers were either afraid of disobeying or were berated for doing so by their peers.

So you ended up with total bollocks such as:
"It's a *911* call, they get lights and sirens."
"Why do you think this lady deserved to go to the hospital slower?"
"If you have lights on, you need sirens."

In short, company culture or you don't know better.


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