Are Waiting lists common?

DragonClaw

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I called up Medstar and got the base pay info at 14$/Hr

He also said they've got an entire department that cleans the ambulance and stuff

But, there's a lot of applicants and there's a waitlist of around a month.

Is that common? I guess that's a good sign that it's a good place to work, right?
 

DesertMedic66

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Yes waitlists are common. A month isn’t much of a waitlist.
 

GMCmedic

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A waitlist is not necessarily a good sign.
 

Virgil

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My division of AMR had/has a waitlist, we're pretty staffed from what I here, but I know that it was first come, first serve for interviews and that went quick.
 
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DragonClaw

DragonClaw

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My division of AMR had/has a waitlist, we're pretty staffed from what I hear, but I know that it was first come, first serve for interviews and that went quick.

Aside from getting a paycheck, what are the perks for working for AMR?
 

DesertMedic66

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Aside from getting a paycheck, what are the perks for working for AMR?
They have a discount program at some major locations (phone companies, vehicle manufacturers, etc).

They are nation wide so you can transfer divisions.

They have the federal contract for disaster response so if you apply for the team you can be a part of that.
 

Virgil

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Aside from getting a paycheck, what are the perks for working for AMR?


I'm still new so I'm sure there's better educated folks out there. But everything @DesertMedic66 said. Also, there's a TEMS team for medics, Honor Guard, and my division specifically just won a huge contract for our union. Pretty cool.

All in all, AMR seems to run a pretty tight ship, but it's influence in the US is so wide that you can do pretty much about anything under the AMR umbrella. If you get bored running calls on a rig, you can do events, bike team, etc.
 

DesertMedic66

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I'm still new so I'm sure there's better educated folks out there. But everything @DesertMedic66 said. Also, there's a TEMS team for medics, Honor Guard, and my division specifically just won a huge contract for our union. Pretty cool.

All in all, AMR seems to run a pretty tight ship, but it's influence in the US is so wide that you can do pretty much about anything under the AMR umbrella. If you get bored running calls on a rig, you can do events, bike team, etc.
It all depends on the division. Some are good and others are complete ****. Some divisions offer special training/assignments (SAR, TEMS, bike team, racetrack, power cars, etc) and other divisions do not. Some divisions are union and others are not.

While they are all still AMR the differences between them make each division seem like a completely different company.
 

Virgil

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It all depends on the division. Some are good and others are complete ****. Some divisions offer special training/assignments (SAR, TEMS, bike team, racetrack, power cars, etc) and other divisions do not. Some divisions are union and others are not.

While they are all still AMR the differences between them make each division seem like a completely different company.

That's understandable. Never heard of AMR SAR, I guess our division doesn't do it. I know that some subdivisions near us can't cut into our shifts because we're union and they aren't. Or something like that.
 
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DragonClaw

DragonClaw

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I'm still new so I'm sure there's better educated folks out there. But everything @DesertMedic66 said. Also, there's a TEMS team for medics, Honor Guard, and my division specifically just won a huge contract for our union. Pretty cool.

All in all, AMR seems to run a pretty tight ship, but it's influence in the US is so wide that you can do pretty much about anything under the AMR umbrella. If you get bored running calls on a rig, you can do events, bike team, etc.

TEMS? And honor guard, like, for funerals? I don't know what bike teams or power cars are, either.
 

DesertMedic66

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That's understandable. Never heard of AMR SAR, I guess our division doesn't do it. I know that some subdivisions near us can't cut into our shifts because we're union and they aren't. Or something like that.
I’m not aware of any division in CA that does SAR. There is a team in I think Colorado called the Reach & Treat team.

There is a huge divide between Riverside division and Palm Springs and Hemet. Palm Springs and Hemet are able to cover each other’s shifts and events. The only time Riverside division is used by another division is for Stagecoach and Coachella however management is trying to limit that as much as possible.
 

DesertMedic66

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TEMS? And honor guard, like, for funerals? I don't know what bike teams or power cars are, either.
TEMS = Tactical EMS. It’s more of a show than being extremely useful. You can post a normal EMS unit in the cold zone and they will do what 99% of most TEMS units do. SWAT isn’t going to have you extremely close to the scene while being under protected, under trained, and unarmed.

Honor guard does funerals, flag ceremonies, and other events of the sort.

Bike teams are used for large events that cover a large space. Not every division has them since it will be based on how many and what sort of events that division usually covers.

Power cars are all ran a little differently. A division close to me has power cars. Employees sign up for it as an extra shift. As soon as they get 6 transports or AMAs they are done for the day and get paid for an entire 12 hour shift. If you bust your butt you can get done in 4 hours and have the rest of the day off.
 

Tigger

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I’m not aware of any division in CA that does SAR. There is a team in I think Colorado called the Reach & Treat team.

There is a huge divide between Riverside division and Palm Springs and Hemet. Palm Springs and Hemet are able to cover each other’s shifts and events. The only time Riverside division is used by another division is for Stagecoach and Coachella however management is trying to limit that as much as possible.
I think the RAT team is in Washington State. Colorado operations are kind of in a gray area when going off the road and onto the trail. My op doesn't encourage it but at least no longer will right you up if you go for a walk to a patient.
 

DrParasite

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All a waitlist means is they have more applications than spots available. Plenty of crappy places have waitlist, because people still need job. And other places won't even accept application if they don't have spots available. It all depends.

My first full time EMS agency always had a waitlist, because they could keep their per diem EMS positions listed to collection applications even though they had no spots available. When they had openings, they would already have a stack of applications to go through to work on filling the position, instead of waiting for people to apply. Most full time positions were filled by current per diems.

It doesn't cost you anything to fill out and submit an application. you still need to move, etc, so apply everywhere, and see who offers you a spot.

In general, and in theory, larger agencies allow you to do more stuff, have more potential for growth and other opportunities besides just being on the ambulance. They also tend to treat people more like numbers, because they have a stack of applications waiting, so if you don't like it there, they can replace you with 10 more people willing to do your job by tomorrow. Again, these are only generalizations, and even smaller divisions within a large organization can operate vastly differently.
 
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