the 100% directionless thread

I think it's interesting that we don't have a good list of really desirable services to work for. When one of us finds one of these elusive great places, it almost seems Iike an accident.

And those who don't know how good it can be wind up working for a crappy PUM or private doing SSM, making 12 bucks an hour and thinking it's the best thing since sliced bread.
 
The problem is, how do you define a desireable service? If can be as different as the person looking. And places, like where I'm at for instance, are improving and will be one of those desirable places soon enough.
 
DEmedic said:
I think it's interesting that we don't have a good list of really desirable services to work for. When one of us finds one of these elusive great places, it almost seems Iike an accident.

And those who don't know how good it can be wind up working for a crappy PUM or private doing SSM, making 12 bucks an hour and thinking it's the best thing since sliced bread.
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I think it comes in phases. Objectively, my job is awesome- primary 911 coverage for about 40,000 people, high-acuity calls and patients but also can BLS patients when it's indicated, I make $24 an hour on a 24/72 schedule, and I have some supervisory responsibilities....but I also do miss just hopping in a truck and running 12 hours with no responsibilities other than patient care and ops.
 
ViolynEMT said:
Welp, that counts Phoenix out.
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TransportJockey said:
Doesn't CHP fly A-Stars? It's roughly the same size
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I think so, but once we have a patient in one of them, we basically can't really do anything. It's too small with their layout.
 
I would say come to Doha, but... yeah. Seasons.

Although "dusty summer inferno" "decent winter" and "brief scattered storms" are kind of seasons...
 
That moment when you look at the schedule to see who you're working with....but instead notice that nearly a third (14 out of 46) units on the schedule have openings :-/
 
DEmedic said:
I think it's interesting that we don't have a good list of really desirable services to work for. When one of us finds one of these elusive great places, it almost seems Iike an accident.

And those who don't know how good it can be wind up working for a crappy PUM or private doing SSM, making 12 bucks an hour and thinking it's the best thing since sliced bread.
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San Luis ambulance is hiring right now. It CA, but it's also the beach.


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So @TransportJockey asked what makes a desirable service. And he's right, it's different for everyone. The things that I want may be things you could care less about.

I'm actually less worried about the progressive nature of the service and more interested in the pay and retirement. Is the culture good? What are the shifts? SSM? How about the stations? What's the contract like? How the relationship with fire? What's the promotional ladder like? How about the initial FTO period? What the average turnover of medics in the system? How involved is the MPD? What is the QI like? Safe trucks? Is education important or just a check off?

There are some great places I'd consider, but they do SSM. Other places I'd thought about mandate that ALS ride every call. Or they have a horrific internal culture and the rank and file is miserable.

I guess I measure each of these jobs against SCEMS and I'm not going to find anything else like it.

Here's the dream: single medic QRV, great pay. Decent medicine. Happy department with strong QI and paid CE. In a place with seasons, an airport close by and trader joes within driving distance. Mountains and/or water (oceans or lakes) in close proximity. How hard is that?
 
DEmedic said:
So @TransportJockey asked what makes a desirable service. And he's right, it's different for everyone. The things that I want may be things you could care less about.

I'm actually less worried about the progressive nature of the service and more interested in the pay and retirement. Is the culture good? What are the shifts? SSM? How about the stations? What's the contract like? How the relationship with fire? What's the promotional ladder like? How about the initial FTO period? What the average turnover of medics in the system? How involved is the MPD? What is the QI like? Safe trucks? Is education important or just a check off?

There are some great places I'd consider, but they do SSM. Other places I'd thought about mandate that ALS ride every call. Or they have a horrific internal culture and the rank and file is miserable.

I guess I measure each of these jobs against SCEMS and I'm not going to find anything else like it.

Here's the dream: single medic QRV, great pay. Decent medicine. Happy department with strong QI and paid CE. In a place with seasons, an airport close by and trader joes within driving distance. Mountains and/or water (oceans or lakes) in close proximity. How hard is that?
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To me it does sound like you're looking for the needle in the haystack job..... Good luck in your search but I am not aware of any place that encompasses all of those things. Gonna be one or two things that don't fit the bill. Often times you have talked about Sussex being a really great place, ever consider going back? So many places are aggressively phasing out QRV type system which I think is the opposite trend that needs to happen but none the less everything revolves around billing money it seems now a days :(
 
CANMAN said:
To me it does sound like you're looking for the needle in the haystack job..... Good luck in your search but I am not aware of any place that encompasses all of those things. Gonna be one or two things that don't fit the bill. Often times you have talked about Sussex being a really great place, ever consider going back? So many places are aggressively phasing out QRV type system which I think is the opposite trend that needs to happen but none the less everything revolves around billing money it seems now a days :(
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I have thought about it. A lot. Maybe that's the answer. Although, moving back to DE isn't super appealing from a quality of life standpoint.

However, I think these unicorn jobs are out there, we just don't know about them because they're low profile. They're not publishibg papers or doing high profile, King County style research. They're not actively recruiting in JEMS and offering a sign on bonus... They're just doing solid work and paying their medics well. So, most of us never hear about them. I had no idea about Sussex until I found it by accident and as I spread the word, they've attracted medic from all over the place, several from posts I've made here.

The service where I just interviewed paid over 72k base for a medic with my experience. That's not counting paid CE and overtime. Not bad for 2 shifts a week. (See why I'm bummed that I didn't get that job?)

If you don't want to be a fire fighter, why should you have to settle for 12 hours in a truck, doing SSM for 13 bucks an hour? That's not a career. That's just a job, and not a very good one.
 
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DEmedic said:
So @TransportJockey asked what makes a desirable service. And he's right, it's different for everyone. The things that I want may be things you could care less about.

I'm actually less worried about the progressive nature of the service and more interested in the pay and retirement. Is the culture good? What are the shifts? SSM? How about the stations? What's the contract like? How the relationship with fire? What's the promotional ladder like? How about the initial FTO period? What the average turnover of medics in the system? How involved is the MPD? What is the QI like? Safe trucks? Is education important or just a check off?

There are some great places I'd consider, but they do SSM. Other places I'd thought about mandate that ALS ride every call. Or they have a horrific internal culture and the rank and file is miserable.

I guess I measure each of these jobs against SCEMS and I'm not going to find anything else like it.

Here's the dream: single medic QRV, great pay. Decent medicine. Happy department with strong QI and paid CE. In a place with seasons, an airport close by and trader joes within driving distance. Mountains and/or water (oceans or lakes) in close proximity. How hard is that?
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AMR in Prescott, Az?
 
DEmedic said:
why should you have to settle for 12 hours in a truck, doing SSM for 13 bucks an hour? That's not a career. That's just a job, and not a very good one.
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This right here. I couldn't imagine making a career where I spend 12 hours a day for 4 days a week sitting in a rig. No thank you, give me a station.
 
exodus said:
I think so, but once we have a patient in one of them, we basically can't really do anything. It's too small with their layout.
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Last time I checked they do fly the A-star, but they're usually apparently staffed with a pilot and a medic. Both have to be CHP officers and it's my understanding that the medic has to have 1 year as an officer before getting assigned to the helo.

Because of the staffing, they're considered a rescue aircraft and not an air ambulance, at least as I understand things there.
 
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