Where are all the medics going?

MMiz

I put the M in EMTLife
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I read article after article about private EMS being on the brink of collapse due to staffing shortages.

Where are all of the medics going? Why?
 
Nursing, In hospital (in places that will hire medics), PA school, teaching, out of EMS all together.
 
Anywhere. RN, PA, MD/DO, realtor, medical device marketing, sales rep, construction.
 
Where have all the other higher stress lower pay workers gone after the pandemic? They have found ways not to do **** duty especially for a pittance. Private EMS is pretty universally the definition of "for a pittance."
 
Where have all the other higher stress lower pay workers gone after the pandemic? They have found ways not to do **** duty especially for a pittance. Private EMS is pretty universally the definition of "for a pittance."
The pandemic led many people to reevaluate their relationship with work and income. It’s interesting to see the huge worker shortages in critical but typically low paying jobs.

It always seemed to me that EMS was one of those careers that people would pursue irrespective of the pay.

Seeing worker shortages, why hasn’t private EMS drastically improved compensation and quality of life?
 
Seeing worker shortages, why hasn’t private EMS drastically improved compensation and quality of life?

That's a pretty big ask. I think there'll always be a management-skills deficit that inhibits imagination, planning, delegation, evaluation, and achievement. I suppose you could say the same about almost every industry. I think that weakness has more to do with values than with education.
 
The pandemic led many people to reevaluate their relationship with work and income. It’s interesting to see the huge worker shortages in critical but typically low paying jobs.
you know, I know this one former hospital based ambulance driver, who decided to chase dollar signs, and is now a teacher....
It always seemed to me that EMS was one of those careers that people would pursue irrespective of the pay.
Young and single people can be that way.... your priorities change once you find a spouse and want to start a family... kids are expensive!!
Seeing worker shortages, why hasn’t private EMS drastically improved compensation and quality of life?
because that will impact profits?

The way I see it, almost every EMS agency has trouble keeping good providers, yet they haven't done anything to fix their retention issues. Not only that, but many in leadership either don't want to change anything, or aren't allowed to make changes by their higher ups. And if you are getting Grade C or D funding from the AHJ, is there any surprise that you are having high turnover rates?
 
Seeing worker shortages, why hasn’t private EMS drastically improved compensation and quality of life?
Because of the corporatization and commodification of everything. Locally owned and operated businesses may be more agile in their ability to respond to market demands and the owners have more incentive to do so. But when businesses are owned by investment firms and hedge funds, there is no such acumen or incentive. As long as the shareholders get their dividends, no one with the power to make such changes has any reason to care.
 
Is there anywhere that 3rd service/private EMS pays enough to be a career? Combine that with the increasingly aggressive nature society takes towards healthcare providers and public servants, plus the massive push for our kids to go to college beginning at early education, and it's no wonder EMS is a dying field.
 
Is there anywhere that 3rd service/private EMS pays enough to be a career? Combine that with the increasingly aggressive nature society takes towards healthcare providers and public servants, plus the massive push for our kids to go to college beginning at early education, and it's no wonder EMS is a dying field.
Few and far between. And even if it does, the workload often sucks compared to many other careers. My old third service now pays enough to make a career from and has the benefits to match, but their crews work at least twice as hard as I do on any given day.
 
Seems like theyre coming to NJ. We have so many out of state medics on orientation right now we literally dont have enough FTOs to train them all simultaneously. But its literally a $10-$15/hr pay increase for some of these medics just for crossing the rivers. Which makes sense to me, get an immediate raise, dont transport, have a medic partner, do better medicine, have better benefits, arent as busy, only do 911, why not come here?
 
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