Ambulance Driver's License (ADL)

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Double-E

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i'm looking into what it takes to get an ambulance driver's license and i'm having a hard time finding any straight answers. here's what i've gathered you need:

EMT-B cert
cash (it's...like...anywhere from $12-$25, amirite?)
???
profit!

but in all seriousness...from what i've gathered you just buy some book (which the lady @ the DMV said was quite pricey...any details on this? which book series or type of book is required?) and just take a written exam...right? :wacko:

i'm in CA but i'd like to hear ppl's experiences from all over...
nm_ambulance_080610_mn.jpg
 
go to the DMV. get a ambulance drivers handbook (5-10$). read the book... wake up... read some more.... go for a run... read some more... take in a movie... read some more... have dinner... finish reading it... go to bed... wake up and read it again because you have forgotten what the heeelllll you read. go to the DMV and pay to take the ADL test. take the test. pass it? great! More than likely you'll fail it at least once. Take the test that has been corrected, memorize it, and take the test again. 1/3 of the questions on the new test will be copied from the last one. If you fail it again, you can still take it once more. You can take the test up to 3 times that day on that same fee. I know of no one that has failed it 3 times straight and (personally) only one that passed it on the first try. If you pass they give you a temporary (3 month) ADL then and there. you pemanent slip of paper (I mean ADL) will be in the mail.

Now that is only part of it. You also need a Medical Exam to be allowed to drive a transporting vehicle like an ambo. The form can also be found at the DMV. See a doc, have them examine you, sign you off, submit that paperwork to the DMV, and pocket the "green card" whihc is good only for 2 years. (NOTE: Some employers arrange for you to get this exam).

mind you, I haven't recerted my CA ADL in 4 years... so things may have changed. but that is what i remember and I believe I still have my handbook somewhere in my office.
 
I can only tell you about NY, PA, and NH...neither of these require anything more than a standard driver's license to drive an ambulance. Most companies require you to do a CEVO type course, which they either do themselves or repay you to take.

I have no clue how Cali works it
 
In NM all you need is an EVO course to drive a rig. No special license needed
 
in mass you just need a ticket and a pulse to drive an ambulance.
 
Yea. How about we get the government organizations to actually work together, especially when the checks kinda of go together (like EMT-B and ADL). Oh, but noeessss, there are privacy concerns.
 
Double-E said:
i'm looking into what it takes to get an ambulance driver's license and i'm having a hard time finding any straight answers. here's what i've gathered you need:

EMT-B cert
cash (it's...like...anywhere from $12-$25, amirite?)
???
profit!

but in all seriousness...from what i've gathered you just buy some book (which the lady @ the DMV said was quite pricey...any details on this? which book series or type of book is required?) and just take a written exam...right? :wacko:

i'm in CA but i'd like to hear ppl's experiences from all over...
nm_ambulance_080610_mn.jpg
Click to expand...
for one thing, it is not "ambulance driver"!! that is one of THE BIGGEST insults to a Paramedic! once when i was on a ride we got into it with this snooty CNA at the ER because she told us that she didn't need an ambulance driver (uggh, i hate that word!!) telling her how the patient was doing when she could see for herself. i very politely (well, that's kind of stretching it) informed her that she could go back to whatever floor she came from and be a bedpan changer like she really was. you can guess how many laughs that got! we had PATIENTS and TOP ER PHYSICIANS laughing at it; i guess no one like her anyway (except for maybe the bedpans; she WAS the one who dumped them) lol sometimes you just need a good laugh but PLEASE , i tell you, PLEASE DO NOT USE THE TERM "AMBULANCE DRIVER" AGAIN!! IT IS DISRESPECTFUL WHERE I COME FROM!!
 
MedicObserver said:
for one thing, it is not "ambulance driver"!! that is one of THE BIGGEST insults to a Paramedic! once when i was on a ride we got into it with this snooty CNA at the ER because she told us that she didn't need an ambulance driver (uggh, i hate that word!!) telling her how the patient was doing when she could see for herself. i very politely (well, that's kind of stretching it) informed her that she could go back to whatever floor she came from and be a bedpan changer like she really was. you can guess how many laughs that got! we had PATIENTS and TOP ER PHYSICIANS laughing at it; i guess no one like her anyway (except for maybe the bedpans; she WAS the one who dumped them) lol sometimes you just need a good laugh but PLEASE , i tell you, PLEASE DO NOT USE THE TERM "AMBULANCE DRIVER" AGAIN!! IT IS DISRESPECTFUL WHERE I COME FROM!!
Click to expand...

I'm pretty sure he's talking about a cert to specifically drive an ambulance, separate from teching calls. A cert in addition to an EMT ticket. Some states like Vermont and New York you do not need an EMT cert to drive the ambulance, so technically, those are ambulance drivers.
 
MedicObserver said:
for one thing, it is not "ambulance driver"!! that is one of THE BIGGEST insults to a Paramedic! once when i was on a ride we got into it with this snooty CNA at the ER because she told us that she didn't need an ambulance driver (uggh, i hate that word!!) telling her how the patient was doing when she could see for herself. i very politely (well, that's kind of stretching it) informed her that she could go back to whatever floor she came from and be a bedpan changer like she really was. you can guess how many laughs that got! we had PATIENTS and TOP ER PHYSICIANS laughing at it; i guess no one like her anyway (except for maybe the bedpans; she WAS the one who dumped them) lol sometimes you just need a good laugh but PLEASE , i tell you, PLEASE DO NOT USE THE TERM "AMBULANCE DRIVER" AGAIN!! IT IS DISRESPECTFUL WHERE I COME FROM!!
Click to expand...

Lighten Up...We are Ambulance Drivers...or do prefer the term cab driver.

or cabulance driver?

Do you get upset when people ask if have oxygen on your truck, too?
I know personally my rigs have a lot of oxygen on board...all the air inside the truck is full of O2...and that is usually good enuff...
Besides, you list your training as "Lay Rescuer", so how is that not insulting to a paramedic, who has gone thru all that training to become a medic
Hell, I've been a paramedic for a while now and still call myself an ambulance driver.

so tell me what do you think of this joke:
Q:what is the difference between god and a paramedic?
A:god doesn't think he is a paramedic.

I love that joke...it is lame and old and well, dumb...but still funny...
 
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Public ridicule, is that the way we educate people as to what we do?

If I was your fifth grade english teacher I would be disrespected at your grasp of grammer and that attempt at a paragraph.
 
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well..

I woke up one morning, 10am, went down to the DMV, purchased the book, while waiting an hour in line, I read the book, took the test and missed 1.

Dunno, but that's just me, lol.
 
MedicObserver said:
for one thing, it is not "ambulance driver"!! that is one of THE BIGGEST insults to a Paramedic! once when i was on a ride we got into it with this snooty CNA at the ER because she told us that she didn't need an ambulance driver (uggh, i hate that word!!) telling her how the patient was doing when she could see for herself. i very politely (well, that's kind of stretching it) informed her that she could go back to whatever floor she came from and be a bedpan changer like she really was. you can guess how many laughs that got! we had PATIENTS and TOP ER PHYSICIANS laughing at it; i guess no one like her anyway (except for maybe the bedpans; she WAS the one who dumped them) lol sometimes you just need a good laugh but PLEASE , i tell you, PLEASE DO NOT USE THE TERM "AMBULANCE DRIVER" AGAIN!! IT IS DISRESPECTFUL WHERE I COME FROM!!
Click to expand...

In California you need an EMT-B certification to attend patients on an ambulance and an ambulance driver certificate to drive the ambulance. Amazingly enough, ambulances don't drive themselves yet and in most states (including California), you have to be an EMT-B or higher to drive (note: In California you don't have to be an EMT-B until 6 months after getting the driver certificate unless you work for a volunteer group).

Seriously, don't you think that if this wasn't a legit question that the people who actually work in the field would have gotten indignant?
 
MedicObserver said:
for one thing, it is not "ambulance driver"!! that is one of THE BIGGEST insults to a Paramedic!
Click to expand...

You shouldn't take offense. Yes they may not be accurately describing your job to you or calling you by your proper title...there are reasons "ambulance driver" is in many people's vocabulary. Alot of us forget from time to time that EMS is a relatively young field - only 43 years after the after the "White Paper" was written and released. Prior to that time, EMS was pretty much a pick-em-up and take them to wherever they wanted to go service...usually by a hearse and two funeral home workers in a 'Good Humor' outfit. Many people called them ambulance drivers...which is what they did.

Yes things have changed much since that time, but you aren't going to change many minds that have used that term since childhood and have never needed to use their service. Especially the elderly who remember them only as ambulance drivers. You can get into pissing matches if you want...or you can let your actions and professionalism speak for itself.
 
djmedic913 said:
so tell me what do you think of this joke:
Q:what is the difference between god and a paramedic?
A:god doesn't think he is a paramedic.

I love that joke...it is lame and old and well, dumb...but still funny...
Click to expand...

Never fails to remind the paragods that they were once basics too. Surprisingly, many don't need reminding. ^_^

As far as ADLs in NV go, from what our new Ambulance Director told me, they're not necessary. You need NREMT-B cert, NV State EMT-B cert, and Ambulance Attendant's License. (Must be over 18 to get these, not sure if that's uniform across country) You got these, you get to drive.

No seperation here between driver/tech. We have trouble staffing just two two-person crews here, so you're expected to fix it up with your partner who drives and who does pt care. Usu. Rock Paper Scissors or some other random method for first call, and then switch off every other call after that. In my case as a Basic, I get the lame calls where ILS and ALS (read IV's, intubation, and drugs) are not needed. :sad:
 
CAOX3 said:
Public ridicule, is that the way we educate people as to what we do?

If I was your fifth grade english teacher I would be disrespected at your grasp of grammer and that attempt at a paragraph.
Click to expand...
yes i must say that my grammar is poor. i have excellent writing skills but i am not very computer friendly and i don't type on home row like you're supposed to; i do the old 2-finger peck and jab at the keyboard-type deal. i dont have time to go through and use caps, punctuation and all that.
 
MGary said:
Never fails to remind the paragods that they were once basics too. Surprisingly, many don't need reminding. ^_^
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You can never forget where you started.

WE were all Basics once. Some of us even started as 1st responders.

I have never forgetten that once upon a time I knew nothing, had no experience, and no confidence. Over the years, I gained experience and confidence....and, well...ok, so I still know nothing...lol

But you need to remember these things for new people, or people that are new to the area, or to a new level. Remembering this will keep you patient with these people and help them to grow and learn and gain those things which I have gained. This will make them better. Even tho those paragods and old timers would rather them out of EMS. They grumble instead of teach.

As ending line from the Red Green show says: "We're all in this together"
 
djmedic913 said:
Lighten Up...We are Ambulance Drivers...or do prefer the term cab driver.

or cabulance driver?

Do you get upset when people ask if have oxygen on your truck, too?
I know personally my rigs have a lot of oxygen on board...all the air inside the truck is full of O2...and that is usually good enuff...
Besides, you list your training as "Lay Rescuer", so how is that not insulting to a paramedic, who has gone thru all that training to become a medic
Hell, I've been a paramedic for a while now and still call myself an ambulance driver.

so tell me what do you think of this joke:
Q:what is the difference between god and a paramedic?
A:god doesn't think he is a paramedic.

I love that joke...it is lame and old and well, dumb...but still funny...
Click to expand...
i just get so p.o.'d because people say "oh, there goes the ambulance driver!" that really gets me torqued because it does not come anyways near describing everything that responders do or all that they put up with. i have ranted and raved on that theory for the past 2 years and have found more truth to it everyday. and, in response to your question, if someone asked me if i had oxygen in the truck (we refer to it as a bus where i'm from) i would gladly show it to them and give them a full speech and demonstration of its proper use and application (this would take forever, because i'm a really good public speaker) but they would now know that i have oxygen in my bus. however, if they were blue and passing out, i would skip the demonstration and get consent to begin BVM ventilation or call for an ALS unit to get an airway inserted.
 
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