Burnt out?

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Arw33

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A lot of people have told me that being an EMT is a bad career because they feel I will get burnt out fast, and not keep the job long. Is this true?
 
Being an EMT is bad career choice due to low pay. Burnt out or not.
 
Many jobs that are considered entry level with very few requirements to start and very little education to get the cert have low pay and a high rate of turnover. Some blame "burn out" although they leave after just a few weeks or months on the job. It would seem they didn't find their true calling or just weren't cut out for the patient care aspect of the job. Some may also found out that being an EMT wasn't exactly how it is portrayed on TV. However, it is much more glamorous to say "burnt out" and tell some cool stories about running L&S rather than say they hated doing patient care.

The good news is that you do not have to stay an EMT for your entire "career".
 
I think the deciding factor in how long you will be active and satisfied depends on how you got into EMS. Is being a caregiver something you've wanted to do your entire life, or is it a paycheck that your friend told you about for completing a single (woefully inadequate) college class? To be a little bit trite, did you call it, or did it call you? Don't get me wrong, everyone who does emergency medicine will go through low periods; how long the "funky times" last is totally a function of your personality and drive. For those who see it as strictly a "pay for performance" thing, once the siren song has faded, (pun intended) will there be enough left in the job for you to stay in the field? I'm not going to get into the whole "vollies are more dedicated because we do it for free" debate;' that's a topic for another thread and another day. Paid or volunteer, part-time or full, you will get out of it what you put into it. If your only reward is found on every other Friday, then you probably won't last; on the other hand, if caring for the sick and injured has been your dream since you were rolling a Tonka ambulance across the carpet in your parents den, you will probably be around for a long time.
 
You must make sure this the career path that you want to pursue. I have gotten bitten by the "bug" when I was a very young lad. Hell, I rember the cadilac ambulance. It dosen't matter either if you are paid or volly. I seen people that got employed where I work, and only lasted 1 day or a week. There has been people that joined where I volly, get voted in, only to see them for 1 call, and never see them again.

N.B. It dosen't matter if you are paid or volley.. I know volunteers that have burned out just like paid. If you love your job or where you volunteer, there is no such thing as burn out.
 
Arw33 said:
...they feel I will get burnt out fast, and not keep the job long. Is this true?
Click to expand...

They know you better than I do. Do they think you, in particular will birn out or do they say the profession burns out a lot of people?

Yes, a lot of people in EMS get burned out. What is burnout? Hey, that's a good thread, stay tuned.
 
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