I think I'm done

countryboy1871

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I have been working at my department for almost 5 years but I have been questioning if I'm in the right career for a while now. I can't tell if I hate my job or if I just hate my department (Fire/Ems). My department has been described as "toxic and broken" by coworkers and a Chaplin. Things really started to go down hill about 3 years ago. I was working with a person at the department for a entire month and 3 patients, 2 family members and a cop all filled complaints against them in the same month. Since I was their partner naturally I was to blame for them going and filling reports, and honestly I probably should have filed complaints to because they were all justified. They got a slap on the wrist and that was it but because I was the partner I have had a target on my back ever since.

At first I shrugged it off but its been 3 years and I have talked to my chief multiple times and I am still forced to work with them at least twice a month. Last month I was checking my half of the trucks and I emptied a ice cooler on the truck. This was a cooler on the truck I was supposed to be checking. I was not told that they had already emptied that cooler and next thing I know we are moments away from almost getting in a fist fight over ice....our ice machine makes over 300 lbs a day. After his they toss multiple bucks on the floor while yelling as loud as they can about nothing. They then step out back and they can still be heard yelling through the concrete wall. The chief asks me what is going on...I tell him and all he does is go and sit in his office.

On days when I work with the one person I actually like working with I still find myself not wanting to go to work. We are in a small town and cover half the county, and if are not on a 6 hour transfer, getting a 911 call from the hospital because they don't know how to tube a patient or they don't have a OB kit and they're not sure if they can deliver this baby in the hospital so they call for a ambulance, we are probably at the station doing our own duties. We have also been short handed for over a year and its not uncommon (like this month) were I only have 6 days off and we work 24 hour shifts followed by 24 hours of being on unpaid call. We are only paid if we are called in.

No one talks to anyone from work outside of work. I remember when I first started I wanted to have a small BBQ and get to know the people I would be working with, I couldn't even get the people on duty to stop by. I know that I need to leave this department but I'm starting to wonder if I should just find another career.
 
Sounds like it might be more about the wrong employer than the wrong career. Besides what you wrote here, what don't you like about EMS? Have you worked anywhere else?
 
Sounds like it might be more about the wrong employer than the wrong career. Besides what you wrote here, what don't you like about EMS? Have you worked anywhere else?


This is my first Fire Ems department. I hate transfers because the hospital forgets we do work for them, a 6 hour round trip transfer for a patient that has NOTHING wrong with them. Had a transfer at 1am and they were being transferred for a " consult".

Plus my schedule 24 duty, 24 call, 24 D, 24 c, 24 d, 24 c, maybe 3 days off or 1 day.
 
You need a new department.


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Uh, your department sucks. A lot. If I worked there, I would hate it too. You need a new place.
 
GTFO of that place. Sounds like Hell on earth.
 
I would love to relocate to Washington state, my wife's family is there and I have a few friends that have moved there. But there's a catch 22, I we can't move to Washington until I already have work set up, but I can't get work set up until we get up there.
 
I would love to relocate to Washington state, my wife's family is there and I have a few friends that have moved there. But there's a catch 22, I we can't move to Washington until I already have work set up, but I can't get work set up until we get up there.

Sounds like you need something that fits you better. That said, your problems are not unique; both working for a substandard dept and needing to make tough choices if you're going to change that are common issues.


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...And working as a firefighter in Washington is extremely competitive. Like hundreds of applicants for each position. Not kidding.

If you're serious about working as a firefighter in Washington, you'll need to make a trip there and spend a couple of days. Get to Natiknal Testing and Public Safety testing, get a CPAT and take as many tests as you can.

Then get a job that you can survive on for a few years while you try to get hired.
 
I was told the same thing about my fire science degree but it's just been a expensive piece of paper
 
Washington notoriously does not accept much in way of reciprocity; both medical or fire.


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I've been looking into what jobs I could get that might be related to the Fire/Ems, like the Scott airpack guys that service and inspect airpacks. But only having fire department experience, associates in fire science and a associates of art (general education) I'm not sure what jobs I qualify for
 
Washington notoriously does not accept much in way of reciprocity; both medical or fire.


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Wait, what? Washington accepts NREMT for everything (except paramedic in King County) and IFSAC and ProBoard fire with verification.
 
Haha. I may have painted that too broadly... DISREGARD! I don't know what I'm talking about. [emoji1417]


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I'm not sure what issues you're having with transferring to Washington. You can submit your application and your license will be pending until you have employment. It's free to submit and once you got that step done you can to a prospective employerb that. I called the number directly from their state ems site and they were extremely helpful.
 
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