Best state and county to work as a paramedic! ?

[STXmedic]

Im tempted by Acadian. I liked the Beaumont area when j drove through

I wouldn't... They don't offer 10k sign ons because they have people beating down the door to work there. I know RM is sorely underwhelmed by his experience with them so far. @RocketMedic

 

[TransportJockey]

I wouldn't... They don't offer 10k sign ons because they have people beating down the door to work there. I know RM is sorely underwhelmed by his experience with them so far. @RocketMedic

I know talking to KElly he hasn't been too upset with them, but it might be like the evil empire and vary by division...

 

[bizzy522]

I wouldn't... They don't offer 10k sign ons because they have people beating down the door to work there. I know RM is sorely underwhelmed by his experience with them so far. @RocketMedic

Absolutely.
I agree 100% SE Texas is not for everyone and a culture shock. I moved here from Boise Idaho. I went from beautiful mountain and 4 seasons to oil refineries and humidity.
Acadian IN MY EXPERIANCE is a all in all good company.. You are in a system status private EMS company that mixes 911 and IFT so you WILL have issues arise from time to time. But that's the name of the game. I guess it comes down to you.. what do you want? Do you just want a change for a years? Do you want to find a service to retire at? I can tell you for me personally I will only be here until the paramedic program is finished Ill be moving on

@TransportJockey if you have any questions shoot me a message.

 

[STXmedic]

I know talking to KElly he hasn't been too upset with them, but it might be like the evil empire and vary by division...

I could certainly agree with that. I'm just wary of companies begging people to come work for them. WilCo doesn't offer sign on bonuses because they're a quality system and have people knocking down their door. ATC. Montgomery. Schertz locally. They don't need to beg and bribe because people actually want to work there and don't often leave once they get there. Like bizzy said, would be a good place for some experience. That's not something you really need...

 

[RocketMedic]

If I had known what I know now, I would have followed up more with Medstar or stayed at Pafford (which, despite the "Cleveland steamroller" model of employee compensation, was clinically pretty decent). I'm about 60% finished with the onboarding process and I'm already pretty done. Sorely, sorely underwhelmed by Acadian.

It's not that Acadian is a bad service. They're not. The pay is decent (ish), the schedule is decent. Equipment is nice. 2/2/3 schedule for every other weekend off. Benefits are bc/bs, day one effective. You start participation in their esop at one year.

..and then it gets subpar.

The HR policies seem to come from some weird Cajun/Midwestern glutton-for-punishment model. PTO is not accrued, it's given in week-long blocks at the one-year anniversary of employment...something like 44 hours a year for the first three years. Sick time is accrued separately, but they don't pay the first sick day off for three years or something. They do offer "Lagnappie" days that let you take sick time as pto, but not for a while. Pay isn't bad, I'm at $16.61 an hour and make almost exactly what I did in Oklahoma.

The medicine is fairly shoddy in my opinion. You can download our protocols on the PPP app, but so far, I'm not terribly sold on this place. They are highly conservative and risk-averse, but even worse, it seems that cost of treatment is strongly considered. QI preemptively read us the riot act on fluids (verboten for most patients), we account for IO needles like narcs (because apparently the company vice presidents want to get rid of them for cost reduction). They push nasal intubation aggressively (don't mind) but they explicitly discourage aggressive airway management. The pain management protocol is a joke. Acadian is explicitly not a "pain-free" organization.

Morale-wise, I've been on their trucks for three weeks and it's the same as most places. I keep hearing it gets better, but I dunno. I sense this is a job to hold until I can find something that is better. Looking at a few alternatives in Texas.

I don't know much about other places, but the transfer vs 911 ratio here in San Antonio is about 50/50. Meh.

 

[triemal04]

In all seriousness, have you ever worked for a department that, at the time you were there, you actually liked and considered a "good" department?

 

[RocketMedic]

TransportJockey, I would love to work Pecos if it wasn't a week at a time.

 

[NomadicMedic]

In all seriousness, have you ever worked for a department that, at the time you were there, you actually liked and considered a "good" department?

Sussex County DE is excellent is almost every respect. Good to great medicine. Very decent pay. No IFT, all ALS chase cars. Nice stations. Excellent equipment.

Not one bad thing to say about the service, and if I wanted to live in DE, I'd go back in a second.

 

[triemal04]

Sussex County DE is excellent is almost every respect. Good to great medicine. Very decent pay. No IFT, all ALS chase cars. Nice stations. Excellent equipment.

Not one bad thing to say about the service, and if I wanted to live in DE, I'd go back in a second.

Sorry, I should have been more clear; I was specifically referring to the poster directly above my post.

 

[Chewy20]

If you have your NREMT, a lot of areas in TX don't mind you applying with the stipulation that you must get your TX card before you can start orientation and work. I know WilCo and ATCEMS are like that.

@Angel like TJ said you can get hired on with ATCEMS as long as you have another state cert. You just need to have a TX cert by the time you graduate from the academy. If you already have NR then all you have to do is apply and pay the $125 fee. If you do not have NR you just have to take the written portion nad pay same fee.

Apparently the same for WilCo and others!

 

[NomadicMedic]

Sorry, I should have been more clear; I was specifically referring to the poster directly above my post.

Hahaha. Gotcha.

 

[Angel]

To anyone who knows, and I will call but they are close now so...
How will fingerprints work? It looks like they also want fingerprints and although I've had them done several times here in Ca, I know agencies don't share that info.
(Unless of course I'm reading it wrong)

 

[triemal04]

To anyone who knows, and I will call but they are close now so...
How will fingerprints work? It looks like they also want fingerprints and although I've had them done several times here in Ca, I know agencies don't share that info.
(Unless of course I'm reading it wrong)

In this area at least you just go to the the police (probably have to be one of the more main stations) and for a fee they'll either fill out a fingerprint card, or if they use it, use livescan or another electronic verrsion.

 

[TransportJockey]

To anyone who knows, and I will call but they are close now so...
How will fingerprints work? It looks like they also want fingerprints and although I've had them done several times here in Ca, I know agencies don't share that info.
(Unless of course I'm reading it wrong)

Texas uses a specific vendor. They might have a place near uou that works for that vendor. The DSHS site has a link in the reciprocity packet

 

[RocketMedic]

In all seriousness, have you ever worked for a department that, at the time you were there, you actually liked and considered a "good" department?

No, I have yet to find my unicorn.
I started my career at friendly little hospitals without much full-time potential. I am not going to live at work.
I found EMSA to be a case of untapped potential wasted by complacency and shortsightedness. They didn't want progressive medicine or positive change, they wanted asses in seats and non controversial standard care.
I found Pafford EMS to be everything I wanted in an EMS provider, but without the attendant sustainability I need to justify working there. I think I made a mistake leaving Pafford from a job-satisfaction point of view and I certainly think Pafford's medicine was better, but I am happier with my personal life as it is here in San Antonio. I would rather have a pacific personal life and accept work flaws than I would have the reverse.
I find Acadian to be a holding pattern for the time being. It's not bad, but it isn't what I want it to be either. I feel like Acadian is the most "private" of any service I've ever worked, and although that's not bad, it's not where I want to spend my career.

I want a unicorn job. Fire-like job security and benefits, good medicine, real promotional opportunities and within a twelve-to-fifteen hour arc of El Paso, and close enough to a decently-sized city or nice locale where my wife and I both have employment, recreational and educational opportunities. I want a living wage without living at work.

I know you and others look at me as a whiny, cocky, arrogant elitist, but I am not terribly eager to accept mediocrity.

 

[teedubbyaw]

To anyone who knows, and I will call but they are close now so...
How will fingerprints work? It looks like they also want fingerprints and although I've had them done several times here in Ca, I know agencies don't share that info.
(Unless of course I'm reading it wrong)

Most here in Texas use FAST. May see if they have any locations outside of the state.

If you have any questions on agencies in central Texas, let me know. We've got some really great services here.

 

[RocketMedic]

Teedubbyaw, I'm looking for exactly that- a great agency in Central Texas. Proximity to San Antonio a plus. Any advice?

 

[triemal04]

No, I have yet to find my unicorn....

......I want a unicorn job. Fire-like job security and benefits, good medicine, real promotional opportunities and within a twelve-to-fifteen hour arc of El Paso, and close enough to a decently-sized city or nice locale where my wife and I both have employment, recreational and educational opportunities. I want a living wage without living at work.

I know you and others look at me as a whiny, cocky, arrogant elitist, but I am not terribly eager to accept mediocrity.

If I recall correctly there were quite a few more than you listed, going all the way back to your time in the Army. And if I further recall correctly the typical mantra was "this place is terrible...but that other service is great...no, actually this other service is terrible and the last was better...no, it's really terrible too..." and so forth. I'm not bringing this up to be insulting but so that other's reading this can be aware of this problem:

Good, very good jobs in EMS are not "unicorn jobs." They exist, and in much greater numbers than many people think about. The reason that people may never be hired by one or even know about one are because of what's involved in getting them; 2 very specific things.

You need to go to the job; which may include moving, or creating a long commute for yourself, but also actively seeking these places out and finding out when they hire. At least a fair number that I know of really don't advertise that much; they don't need to and someone who takes the initiative to go to them will often end up being the better hire. In essence, you have to do your due diligence, which a lot of people in EMS can't, or won't do.

You need to have the right attributes that they are looking for, be that work experience, education, background, personality, interpersonal skills, or most likely, a combination of all of those things. If you don't have these things, you need to figure out which is lacking and, if possible, fix that.

But, all to often in EMS, many people are not willing or capable of doing either one, or both of these things. Or unwilling to look objectively at the situation.

A good department is a good department. Not a "unicorn job."

(all those were a general "you" as well)

 

[Angel]

Most here in Texas use FAST. May see if they have any locations outside of the state.

If you have any questions on agencies in central Texas, let me know. We've got some really great services here.

I do! I'm open to all possibilities right now. I just dont know much about texas or where to begin looking besides what is mentioned on here.

ETA: yea i can get a live scan done easily. ill check and see if theyll accept that. I have to go through the packet a bit more thoroughly

 

[RocketMedic]

If I recall correctly there were quite a few more than you listed, going all the way back to your time in the Army. And if I further recall correctly the typical mantra was "this place is terrible...but that other service is great...no, actually this other service is terrible and the last was better...no, it's really terrible too..." and so forth. I'm not bringing this up to be insulting but so that other's reading this can be aware of this problem:

Good, very good jobs in EMS are not "unicorn jobs." They exist, and in much greater numbers than many people think about. The reason that people may never be hired by one or even know about one are because of what's involved in getting them; 2 very specific things.

You need to go to the job; which may include moving, or creating a long commute for yourself, but also actively seeking these places out and finding out when they hire. At least a fair number that I know of really don't advertise that much; they don't need to and someone who takes the initiative to go to them will often end up being the better hire. In essence, you have to do your due diligence, which a lot of people in EMS can't, or won't do.

You need to have the right attributes that they are looking for, be that work experience, education, background, personality, interpersonal skills, or most likely, a combination of all of those things. If you don't have these things, you need to figure out which is lacking and, if possible, fix that.

But, all to often in EMS, many people are not willing or capable of doing either one, or both of these things. Or unwilling to look objectively at the situation.

A good department is a good department. Not a "unicorn job."

(all those were a general "you" as well)

Aware of this, but disagree. A "good" job is one that fulfills most of the criteria. A unicorn job is one that fills them all. Some good jobs may be unicorns, not all good jobs are worth it.
I have moved from several places because I wanted betger. Hasn't failed me yet.