EMT Volunteer question

[kimberelli]

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I was curious if you can do volunteer work for a bigger city or if that is only available in rural areas?
My situation is a little complicated, but I am planning on getting my EMT-B with the understanding that I will most likely only do p/t volunteer work and am not sure if that would even be something available in a bigger city.
I live in the Dallas area.
I just really want to do EMT work and even volunterring on weekends would be awesome, I am sure a lot of you can relate to this.
Thanks for any info you might have.
Kimberly

 

[bandaidsNhoses]

Kim,

It all really depends on the city. Most major metropolitan cities will be almost entirely comprised of paid crews. It's more cost effective and just plain mandatory for such a large city. I live near & work in New York City where there is an exception. NYC is comprised primarily of paid services - for obvious reasons. Now at the same time, written into the city charter, there are 5 volunteer fire companies and many communities also actually have a volunteer ambulance corp. Now some of these companies/ corps due to the dedication of it's membership can staff round the clock 24/7 like the municipal crews. But most often when ever they have enough staffing, they'll go available for whatever time period they can - mostly nights and weekends. However, New York City is not exactly the norm. There have been volunteers in the city from before it's public safety personel became paid, so therefore have become grandfathered into it.

You best bet, ask around. Ask your emt instructors if they know of vollie corps/depts. that run in the cities near you. At the very least, many organizations will accept students for ride along time on their ambulances/rigs/buses etc. Hope this points you in the right direction and g'luck!

-chrisC

 

[PACtoDOC]

One of the most incredible volunteer experiences I ever worked in was in Northern Virginia. I doubt any place in the country rivals this setup. Prince William County alone has probably 10 major firestations, all with millions of dollars in equipment, state of the art ambulances, and in the daytime, it is run by the paid guys. At night, the volunteers come on and also cover weekends. I worked in Dale City when I was training to be a paramedic and we routinely had DC medics and firefighters on the apparatus' and that was one hell of a way to learn. I wonder if this system is even still in place with some many hundreds of thousands living in the area served. You would think that at some point the residents would want all paid services, but they never seem to. These volunteers I swear make most paid crews where I live now look like idiots!

 

[bandaidsNhoses]

That's pretty much exactly like Prince George's county in Maryland except the paid guys suppliement the vollies. Those vollies could pass for paid anywhere! They even relocated and operate in DC as needed! Talk about professional standards.

 

[OSUdoc08]

I was curious if you can do volunteer work for a bigger city or if that is only available in rural areas?
My situation is a little complicated, but I am planning on getting my EMT-B with the understanding that I will most likely only do p/t volunteer work and am not sure if that would even be something available in a bigger city.
I live in the Dallas area.
I just really want to do EMT work and even volunterring on weekends would be awesome, I am sure a lot of you can relate to this.
Thanks for any info you might have.
Kimberly

Kim,

You can work part time for AMR in Collin County, Hunt County, or Arlington (I worked for them and can get some info for you) or part time for MedStar in Tarrant County. If you want to do volunteer work, these would be rural areas outside the area. Let me know what part of Dallas you live in, and I can tell you what services are nearby.

If you want to do non-911, there are many ambulance services within Dallas county, with AMR paying the most.

Working part-time is very reasonable, with only a 2 shift (12-hours) a month commitment. I just worked every Sunday when I was in college, and worked recently full-time.

 

[pseudoknot]

In Pasadena (Southern California) there is a volunteer program with our fire department called the Emergency Medical Services Reserve in which you can work as a third person on the ambulances (staffed by two firefighter/paramedics) or work at Rose Bowl events. I'm currently in the background investigation process for this; it seems like a pretty cool opportunity. The shifts are very flexible, as I understand it you can work whenever you want for any reasonable period of time (i.e. 4-24 hours) as long as you get at least 18 hours per month.

Not that this helps the OP much, since we're a bit far from Texas!

 

[Rob77]

By far the largest and probably busiest volunteer system in the world is probably Nassau and Suffolk counties on Long Island. The system is compromised of roughly 180 volunteer departements providing EMS and fire protection to about 3.5 million people. --rob

 

[InfiniumEtAl]

Kimberelli;

As sad as it may seem your best hope to achieve your desired goals is to actually choose a private company in the vicinity you desire to work (aka wherever the best traumas are) and sign up as a PAID worker simply working part time for them. This is sad because many areas treat their volunteers as sub-emt's. (Before I get blasted with fan mail what this really means is that...) As an employee you get preferences regarding shift's, partners, rig usage, equipment, events, locations, and yes even calls if your area is large enough. As a volunteer they will appreciate your hard work, but you get pushed to the bottom of the ladder when issues need resolving. The most important thing is to have this work around your education. EMS can quickly consume your energy, time, and desires. Many companies that I have dealt with are extremely flexible to part time students. This is especially true if they are furthering their education, and even more so in the event when EMS is a springboard into the more complex medical arenas. I have worked in the Midwest (multiple companies and multiple cities, as well as on the east coast, city and the Catskill Mountains, as well as overseas) and have seen this to be true in almost all the areas; although New York City is a breed onto their own.

Most companies will also view you as a more stable individual and your letters of recommendation will be written from a different perspective. Having a history as an employee, instead of the status as a volunteer, within EMS may seem on the surface as being less indicative of the epitome of what med schools desire. Yet, I feel that they both have their qualities as long as you can truthfully relate in your essays, or in an interview, what you gained from that relationship. For that is at the core of what they are looking for. How are you going to lead a better life for yourself, your school, your environment, and your patients with the experiences you gained while being an active EMT regardless of your compensation?
Good luck