Paramedic to Hawaii

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Emergency Metaphysics

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Greetings folks,

I know, I know: Hawaii, right? Who doesn't want to live there? But in all seriousness, as a recent graduate of paramedic school, I'm looking for a radical change from the 9-month winters of the Midwest and a change of scenery.

So, this post is about doing some reconnaissance on the state of EMS in Hawaii. I know AMR seems to be the main provider there. Can anyone give me an inside scoop on working for AMR and/or doing paramedicine in Hawaii? Looking for anything you can give me. I did a search of the forums before posting this and didn't seem to come up with anything relevant. I'll keep hunting.

Many humble thanks in advance for the assistance.

Cheers,
M.
 
Well first good luck. You will want to look into Kapiolani Community College EMS program and contact the director of EMS and ask about the continuing education program for the EMS transition program. You need a couple cert classes and TB since you will do extra ride time I believe since they base it off education and not how long you have been a paramedic if I remember correctly but the director can give you a definitive answer. You will do a NREMT like medical exam at the Paramedic level. I did mine at the EMT-Basic. By like I mean it do it your way but don't miss the highlights or little stuff and be able to justify why you maybe added in extra assessments to rule out differentials ect...

Many redo Paramedic school and EMT-Basic school to get hired by City and County EMS. City and County EMS is the 911 provider for Oahu Island. They will also pay for Paramedic School even if redoing it. City and County budget wise is not doing great but our mayor is trying to better fund it. Supposedly they are hiring again we will see how many people they actually take. AMR is very hard to get on out here unless you already work for AMR or you know somebody locally. Most AMR folks may also work for City and County EMS on Oahu if they are at AMR Oahu. AMR is also on the outer island for primary EMS except the Big Island. City and County EMS is primary 911 for Oahu and AMR does the critical care transfers and backup.

Scope wise nothing special. Look up State of Hawaii Paramedic protocols to have a look. They have been taking things out of the scope recently according to Paramedic friends of mine. Not as much trauma as elsewhere and very little gun crime. Cost of living is expensive hard to make it working for the Oahu service. Starting Paramedic pay is 52kish. They used to be on 4 12's one week and then 3 12's the next and alternating that. AMR is 48 hours a week. Not sure if City and County EMS switched back to 8's where you might work 3 8 hour shifts in a row because of a shortage. Part of the reason they went to 12's at City and County EMS.

Best bet you could apply to one of the local ER's that will take someone with NREMT and not care about a state license until you get settled and state certified. Also hospital jobs and really any EMS job they may take 3-8 months to get back to you.The City and County is a bit better but from application to hire on and orientation could be a long process 3-6 months. Everyone is on island time. Get a local 808 number burn phone from Walmart. That is common partly because everyone wants to work in a healthcare here. Some hospitals prefer the Paramedic but you will be a glorified CNA. They may let you draw blood depending on where you work. Castle Medical Center ER techs do Foley's, IV's, blood draws and more than other ER techs in the state from what I have heard. Queens our Level 2 trauma center which acts as our level 1 trauma center here. their techs don't do much from what I here. Basic CNA and splinting mostly.

Hospital you can apply to include on Oahu: Hawaii Pacific Health has 3 hospitals (Straub, Kapiolani Womens Health, Pali Momi), Queens Medical Center, Queens West, Castle Medical Center, and Kaisers Permanente but Kaiser is are hard to get on with and they want TNCC and some nursing specific certifications so makes me think they want a nursing student who they can promote.

Best of luck, I will be moving in December after getting done with my Public Health degree. I did the EMT-Basic transition worked on the rig for three months doing that program and took a ER job to fit around school. I am looking forward to moving hopefully to an EMS agency possibly or policy work and volunteering worst case scenario. Things are very different here not in a bad way but like anywhere things are different. Hope this helps. Feel free to PM for other questions.
 
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To add AMR also does the general transfers if they are to busy City and County EMS will do a priority one transfer with a RN from the sending hospital to get them to Kapiolani which has the NICU and PICU or Queens for severe trauma in Adults.
 
Emergency Metaphysics said:
Greetings folks,

I know, I know: Hawaii, right? Who doesn't want to live there? But in all seriousness, as a recent graduate of paramedic school, I'm looking for a radical change from the 9-month winters of the Midwest and a change of scenery.

So, this post is about doing some reconnaissance on the state of EMS in Hawaii. I know AMR seems to be the main provider there. Can anyone give me an inside scoop on working for AMR and/or doing paramedicine in Hawaii? Looking for anything you can give me. I did a search of the forums before posting this and didn't seem to come up with anything relevant. I'll keep hunting.

Many humble thanks in advance for the assistance.

Cheers,
M.
Click to expand...



Wow. Big move. Good luck, Meta!
 
kev54 said:
Well first good luck. You will want to look into Kapiolani Community College EMS program and contact the director of EMS and ask about the continuing education program for the EMS transition program. You need a couple cert classes and TB since you will do extra ride time I believe since they base it off education and not how long you have been a paramedic if I remember correctly but the director can give you a definitive answer. You will do a NREMT like medical exam at the Paramedic level. I did mine at the EMT-Basic. By like I mean it do it your way but don't miss the highlights or little stuff and be able to justify why you maybe added in extra assessments to rule out differentials ect...

Many redo Paramedic school and EMT-Basic school to get hired by City and County EMS. City and County EMS is the 911 provider for Oahu Island. They will also pay for Paramedic School even if redoing it. City and County budget wise is not doing great but our mayor is trying to better fund it. Supposedly they are hiring again we will see how many people they actually take. AMR is very hard to get on out here unless you already work for AMR or you know somebody locally. Most AMR folks may also work for City and County EMS on Oahu if they are at AMR Oahu. AMR is also on the outer island for primary EMS except the Big Island. City and County EMS is primary 911 for Oahu and AMR does the critical care transfers and backup.

Scope wise nothing special. Look up State of Hawaii Paramedic protocols to have a look. They have been taking things out of the scope recently according to Paramedic friends of mine. Not as much trauma as elsewhere and very little gun crime. Cost of living is expensive hard to make it working for the Oahu service. Starting Paramedic pay is 52kish. They used to be on 4 12's one week and then 3 12's the next and alternating that. AMR is 48 hours a week. Not sure if City and County EMS switched back to 8's where you might work 3 8 hour shifts in a row because of a shortage. Part of the reason they went to 12's at City and County EMS.

Best bet you could apply to one of the local ER's that will take someone with NREMT and not care about a state license until you get settled and state certified. Also hospital jobs and really any EMS job they may take 3-8 months to get back to you.The City and County is a bit better but from application to hire on and orientation could be a long process 3-6 months. Everyone is on island time. Get a local 808 number burn phone from Walmart. That is common partly because everyone wants to work in a healthcare here. Some hospitals prefer the Paramedic but you will be a glorified CNA. They may let you draw blood depending on where you work. Castle Medical Center ER techs do Foley's, IV's, blood draws and more than other ER techs in the state from what I have heard. Queens our Level 2 trauma center which acts as our level 1 trauma center here. their techs don't do much from what I here. Basic CNA and splinting mostly.

Hospital you can apply to include on Oahu: Hawaii Pacific Health has 3 hospitals (Straub, Kapiolani Womens Health, Pali Momi), Queens Medical Center, Queens West, Castle Medical Center, and Kaisers Permanente but Kaiser is are hard to get on with and they want TNCC and some nursing specific certifications so makes me think they want a nursing student who they can promote.

Best of luck, I will be moving in December after getting done with my Public Health degree. I did the EMT-Basic transition worked on the rig for three months doing that program and took a ER job to fit around school. I am looking forward to moving hopefully to an EMS agency possibly or policy work and volunteering worst case scenario. Things are very different here not in a bad way but like anywhere things are different. Hope this helps. Feel free to PM for other questions.
Click to expand...

Thanks so much for the good reply. I'm sorry it's taken a while to get back to this thread. This is all excellent information and worth a great deal of thought on my part. I'll do some more digging on this subject and maybe something will come together ... maybe not. I never anticipated job hunting in this profession would be so difficult. So, I appreciate the time you put into your response.

Cheers,
M.
 
Your welcome and not a problem. I was not exactly expecting a response I figured I would have got a PM and this would just be a resource for others. I have been grateful for others who have shared wisdom and there thoughts and ideas on this site and in life. It's nice to pass that along in a way.

I never anticipated moving to Hawaii to care for my parents a number of years ago. I found the process confusing and difficult but learned a great deal in the process in doing the transition. I figured it's worth sharing with others.

Pulling the trigger is the hardest thing to do with a move I suppose at some point you just gotta commit your brain and heart into doing it so to speak. I would say most job hunting is difficult including in healthcare because we don't have resources all in one place. Good luck with whatever you decide.

Sincerley,
Kev54
 
I used to work for Honolulu EMS. It's a very busy system, as most big cities are, with a high burn out rate. Protocols are decent. Keep in mind that 95%of the Medics on Oahu all went to the same medic school; so while everyone still has their own style yours will just stick out that much more.

It is full of wonderful people and great paramedics.

My advice to you is to spend an extended vacation in Hawaii and do some ride alongs if possible. Working/Living in Hawaii is very rewarding but not for everyone. It's not a permanent vacation.

Coming from the mainland, especially the Midwest, means that it is going to be a huge cultural shift for you. People in Hawaii are generally wary of, "that mainland attitude". It's an adjustment for a lot of people. I believe being half Filipino and from California helped me adjust to the cultural differences. Mainly that it is a juxtaposition of Hawaiian, Asian, and local flavor all rolled into one. Some people blend in really well while others can be ostracized. It's an attitude thing mainly; just be humble and you'll do fine. As with anywhere the whole, "we do it this way where I'm from" mantra makes locals hate you. Don't be selfish.

Learn to love spam. Brush up on your pidgin, Japanese, Filipino (mainly illocano), and you'll have a head start.

Oahu always has a shortage of medics. You should be able to land a gig there. Just don't expect to own property any time soon. Prepare to work a lot of overtime. When i left there were no step raises. Rookies make the same hourly as senior medics. Don't expect to go home for the holidays without paying 4x normal plane tickets. (Everyone tries that holiday time ). Cost of living is also through the roof.

The best things in Hawaii are free though.
 
BeachMedic said:
I used to work for Honolulu EMS. It's a very busy system, as most big cities are, with a high burn out rate. Protocols are decent. Keep in mind that 95%of the Medics on Oahu all went to the same medic school; so while everyone still has their own style yours will just stick out that much more.

It is full of wonderful people and great paramedics.

My advice to you is to spend an extended vacation in Hawaii and do some ride alongs if possible. Working/Living in Hawaii is very rewarding but not for everyone. It's not a permanent vacation.

Coming from the mainland, especially the Midwest, means that it is going to be a huge cultural shift for you. People in Hawaii are generally wary of, "that mainland attitude". It's an adjustment for a lot of people. I believe being half Filipino and from California helped me adjust to the cultural differences. Mainly that it is a juxtaposition of Hawaiian, Asian, and local flavor all rolled into one. Some people blend in really well while others can be ostracized. It's an attitude thing mainly; just be humble and you'll do fine. As with anywhere the whole, "we do it this way where I'm from" mantra makes locals hate you. Don't be selfish.

Learn to love spam. Brush up on your pidgin, Japanese, Filipino (mainly illocano), and you'll have a head start.

Oahu always has a shortage of medics. You should be able to land a gig there. Just don't expect to own property any time soon. Prepare to work a lot of overtime. When i left there were no step raises. Rookies make the same hourly as senior medics. Don't expect to go home for the holidays without paying 4x normal plane tickets. (Everyone tries that holiday time ). Cost of living is also through the roof.

The best things in Hawaii are free though.
Click to expand...


Excellent reply. I thank you. I'll bear all of this in mind as I further contemplate a move there. The idea about an extended vacation there and some ride along time is great. I just hate the idea of a "working" vacation. But, if it gets me the inside scoop, it would be worth it. We'll see what happens. It's so early in my career that pretty much no one but the most desperate are going to hire me out of my current employer. I simply don't have the experience (medic for 3 months) to make myself competitive in places like Hawaii or Colorado (another place I'd love to work). So, I think in the short-term I'm going to have to sit tight, get some more experience, and see what the job market does over the next 6 to 10 months. I'm not interested in making a big move to a nice place only to burn out so early in my career. I'm not exactly a spring chicken, either, so I'm being more calculating about any potential move. I want to put down roots somewhere --- hopefully.

Thanks again.

M.
 
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