I have a few questions RE: EMT and Paramedics

[kimberelli]

HI,
I stumbled accross this website and am so glad I did. I am considering taking the EMT course and possibly the EMT-P course. I live in Irving (Dallas) Texas, in case any of my questions or state specific.
Here are my questions:

1) I am a female, is this a male dominant job? Is it harder to find work and get hired?

2) Do the EMT's just drive the ambulance or actually have patient interaction? I honeslty don't want to drive the ambulance but want more patinet interaction. So I am curious what my best option is, probably the EMT-P but maybe the EMT-II.

3) How do you get the EMT-II training? It seems that I mostly find courses for EMT-B and EMT-P. I was thinking maybe people get EMT-B certified and then do add-on courses in IV and EKG lead training but not certain.

4) How do you go about getting a job? Are there a lot out there? How easy is it to get a job when you have just become certified? Is there like an EMT Registry or something?

5) Since I am still up in the air on doing this ( I have 3 small children) I was thinking of going to the local fire station and seeing if they would allow me to go on a ride along, is that common? Is there a proper channel to go through to request for this or just go to the local station?

6) How emotionally draining is this job? I have friends that have tried to discourage me from doing this and of course give all the worst case scenarios, which I am certain exist, but day to day how draining is it?

Thanks in advance for any other info you may have, any experiences or suggestions, I really appreciate it.
Hopefully a future EMT or Paramedic
Kimberly

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[GeneGoddess]

1. I'm female, but only volunteered. I mostly worked with male paramedics, but only because my crew most mostly male. I never really had any discrimination. This was Tomball, TX (outside Houston).

2. I had plenty of patient interaction as an EMT-B. I occassionally drove, but usually didn't unless it was a 2 person crew and I was working with a higher rank (EMT-I or EMT-P).

3. I never did EMT-I training.

4. I STILL get flyers for job openings, and I haven't volunteered in 5 years and my certification lapsed last year.

5. I never did any ride alongs before I took my class, but I can't imagine that they would run you off. I'd call a small volunteer company and ask.

6. I enjoyed it immensely, but I was volunteer only. It gave me a great sense of helping the community. But it can be emotionally draining. And getting the same calls over and over again (yet another drunk beating his wife, phony calls for stupid stuff) was draining. But overall, I enjoyed it.

I trained with Scott & White and really liked them (they are in College Station and Temple). Call one of the schools around Irving and ask about career training.

 

[SMW83]

my brother is an EMT and right now he's working a Braves Game. That would be fun...get a free meal, work the Braves Games and NBA, NHL, NFL, etc. games...hell...might even get lucky enough to get to work a super bowl sunday game!! FREE ADMISSION!!!!

 

[Emergency!]

Kimberly -

I wrote a pretty indepth reply for you, and when I went to post it "internet explorer encountered and error and needed to close". I will try to rewrite it for you later when I have more time. Unfortunately, I have an ochem test to study for!!

 

[Emergency!]

Okay - I'll try this again -

1) I am a female, is this a male dominant job? Is it harder to find work and get hired?

Whether or not it is male dominant depends on what type of service it is. In private EMS, 911 only EMS, and transport services, I would estimate that its about a 50/50 split. In a couple of the places I have worked/volunteered, females were clearly the majority. In combined fire/EMS, it is still largely male dominated. Does that make it harder to get a job? It all depends on the attitudes of those doing the hiring. There are some very anti-female sentiments out there about working on a fire department, and then there are many who don't care what sex you are as long as you can pull your weight.

2) Do the EMT's just drive the ambulance or actually have patient interaction? I honeslty don't want to drive the ambulance but want more patinet interaction. So I am curious what my best option is, probably the EMT-P but maybe the EMT-II.

Again, it is going to depend on who you work/volunteer for. Some places DO only let EMT-B's drive. Most others will allow EMT-B's to be in the back. The best scenario, especially if you are new, is a three man crew. That way, you get experience at helping the medic on advanced level runs.

3) How do you get the EMT-II training? It seems that I mostly find courses for EMT-B and EMT-P. I was thinking maybe people get EMT-B certified and then do add-on courses in IV and EKG lead training but not certain.

I can't vouch for this being true in Texas, but in MANY (if not most) places, you have to be certified as an EMT-B PRIOR to being accepted into a paramedic program. There are programs out there (especially associates degree programs) where the first part of the course/program is actually the EMT-B class. In Ohio, you must be certified as an EMT-B before moving on to the EMT-II training. (It's not called EMT-II in Ohio). EMT-intermediate (or II or A or whatever it happens to be called where you are) typically does NOT include basic material.

My personal opinion, especially since you are not sure that you are cut out for this, is to start EMT-B. EMT-P is a lot of hours to go through to find out its not for you when you are done. Additionally, I truly believe that a person should have at least SOME EMT-B experience prior to becoming a medic. As a generalization, I think it makes for a better medic. I have worked with medics who went right from basic to paramedic, and you can definitely tell a difference. They might be the best ever at medic skills, but they often forget, or are not very good at the basics (because they don't have a lot of experience at them).

4) How do you go about getting a job? Are there a lot out there? How easy is it to get a job when you have just become certified? Is there like an EMT Registry or something?

This is a tough question to answer. The EMS job market is SO different in different locations. You need to find out what types of EMS jobs are available in your area. If you have lots of private services around, the job market is better. If EMS transport is done largely by fire departments, its a completely different situation. Many fire department jobs are civil service. That means that the application and hiring procedure are very lengthy, and the job market is very competitive. Some also require FF certification prior to hiring, in addition to EMS.

The county I lived in was an all volunteer system. There were a FEW jobs (that actually only became available a few years ago) in this system doing non-emergency transports and helping staff the volunteer squads during the day when no one else was available. Otherwise, you had to work out of the county. As a whole, in a four county area, there were not a lot of paid EMS opportunities.

Where I live now, there are FOUR private services, and plenty of jobs. Downside - pay isn't very good, but that is in this area. In other areas, private EMS is competitive.

5) Since I am still up in the air on doing this ( I have 3 small children) I was thinking of going to the local fire station and seeing if they would allow me to go on a ride along, is that common? Is there a proper channel to go through to request for this or just go to the local station?

Yes, ride alongs are common. I think the first thing you need to find out is if the fire department does EMS. If so, give them a call and find out if they allow riders. If they don't, explain to them that you are interested in the profession, and see if they can tell you of anyone who does allow riders.

6) How emotionally draining is this job? I have friends that have tried to discourage me from doing this and of course give all the worst case scenarios, which I am certain exist, but day to day how draining is it?

It can be very draining both emotionally AND physically. It can also be the greatest high in the world. Again, a lot depends on who you work for. If you work for a busy city service that rarely has any down time, and you get caught on a lot of bad calls, burn out is a risk. There have been days I haven't even had time to eat.

You really need to find someone in your area who is involved in EMS who can give you more specific details on how it works in your area. However, unless your friends are EMT's, they really can't give you a good idea of what the job will be like. Most EMT's will be bluntly honest when asked about the profession.

Hope this helps!

Amy

 

[beanbean]

Great answer Amy!

Kimberelli-

I think you will find that EMS attracts men and woman of all walks of life. Its part of what makes it an interesting field to work in. In my volunteer service there are school teachers, engineers, a funeral home worker, business executives, landscapers, mechanics, firemen, stay-at-home moms, and professional paramedics.

Paid services are a little more homogenous, especially the combined fire/EMS services. There are plenty of women in the field.

Talk to your local volunteer fire or EMS department about taking the class or doing some ride time. Some services do not allow ride alongs due to liability concerns and some require a minimum of CPR and Bloodbourne pathogen training (easy <1 day course).

Good luck

Deirdre

 

[daithi_73]

I took the EMT-Basic course at Methodist Hospital of Dallas in the spring. I am actually taking the National Registry test tomorrow night. I enjoyed the class. The instructor for the EMT-Basic is a really cool lady. The staff overall was very supportive (and tolerant) at the hospital during our rotations through the ER, L&D and the fire department ride-outs.

Clay

 

[thehealingart04]

Kimberelli,
I've been lurking at SDN while taking prerequisites for PA school. I registered so I could post to your thread.

I'm getting an EMT-B to gain patientcare hours towards the application process. I decided to go to Brookhaven CC for EMT simply because it's close to my home and I was already registered there for other classes. I was originaly intent on Southwest Medical for the class but the cost was prohibitive and no college credits are awarded (gotta pad the ol' GPA when possible!). I thought $900 was a little steep when no credits are awarded.

Depending on where you are:

Collin County CC has a program (North of 121)
Brookhaven CC has one too (Farmer's Branch)
Methodist (west of downtown)
Southwest Medical Center (just North of downtown)

If you're near Southwest Medical Center look up Major's bookstore for books and supplies. It is an excellent source for anything you would need and stuff you never knew you needed or existed

Anyhoo, drop me a line if you want in PM or email.