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We are basing this discussion on the fact that being entitled to wear certain types clothing is a fundamental human right that all nations and societies must accept? Perhaps; however, with all the other travesties such as raping, killing and genital mutilation that occurs on a daly basis in other countries, what the French do regarding their national dress code is rather unimportant at this point in time IMHO. Take care, chbare.

somebody was digging in the thread graveyard...

Hey there, congrats on getting an interview couple of points to take in mind here 1. Dress professional - being a female this doesn't mean a dress, but dress pants and a nice shirt/sweater that look professional (ie business attire) is good - a suit on a female typically is a bit much in my experience. By all means pants should be clean and well pressed looking crisp as well as shirt. Make sure your hair is tidy and not hanging in your face if you have certain cuts - down is okay as long as simple, but ponytails are best saved for another day. 2. Save the slang for another day. Yeah, yep, or the like are considered unprofessional and immature. Just don't use them. 3. Bring along a copy of your resume for the interviewer to relate to. Often they don't have a hard copy in front of them, and it looks responsible if you have one prepared for them to refer to. You can always keep it should they not need it. Carry in a black/brown/navy folder that's subtle. 4. DO YOUR HOMEWORK - find out something about the company before you go in there. Often, one of the first questions I've been asked is what do you know about our company and why do you want to work here? Obviously, if they cater to the transport environment and you want to work 911, it's not a good fit and they won't hire you. Also, don't be afraid to find out what areas they cover, and why you want to cater to that area - is it because you want to take care of your community? because you desire to work in urban ems? or rural ems? Is it because they have an excellent reputation for caring for their employees? If they have won awards recently (last 2 years)- helps to mention them shows that you have done your homework. 5. I'd leave the vet experience out of things. They really aren't concerned with the fact you can restrain a pissed off kitten or properly anesthetize a dog - those aren't skills you'll be using in the field. Other than the fact you may be comfortable with a few of the medications and medical terminology, it doesn't pertain much to the field. BUT - if you have human experience or even child care experience something like that, then that's a good thing to accent. Also, if you finished with an excellent score in your class or were top of it, whatever, that can be to your benefit to relay. In addition, if you are wanting to actively pursue your medic and have taken anatomy/physiology or other classes pertinent to EMS those are good to highlight. 6. Always have a couple questions prepared to ask at the end of the interview - you don't want to look stupid by saying nope, I think you've covered it. Don't be afraid to ask about continuing education, education benefits, etc. You want to look like you could apply anywhere and be considered a valuable asset. Be eager, but listen closely. 7. ALWAYS thank them for their time, then ask for a card if you have additional questions. Send a thank you via e-mail as soon as you get home highlighting why you are the person for the job. Little things like that stand out and makes you stand out a little more. If you don't hear anything back, follow up with them every week until they tell you the position is filled. Keep in touch, but always be polite. Also - just another note - make sure your car is clean (I've had them say later that was something they noticed was my car was clean and they knew I'd keep the truck clean) and that you're polite to everybody. Alot of places will use someone else or other employees to screen how you interact with the crew. Don't be suprised if they have you wait for a bit just to see your interaction with them - I promise they'll likely ask them later what they thought and you want that impression to be good ! 8. Last thing to note - be sure your facebook/myspace/twitter etc are clean and pics are something that would be professionally accepted. Yes employers do scope out potential employees ! Been done many times. Finally, Good luck ! I hope you have good success and look forward to hearing how it went for you !

What is your primary job role Tezza??????

Sad to hear - it's a big responsibility to be driving ambulances and unfortunately many take it all too lightly. Wishes for speedy recovery.

Wow, just wow. I guess you cant do much but wait till more info is available to you about this. I would be crappin my pants in your position. I know its hard to do, but relax, breathe, and see what happens, and go from there. ((hug))

I had Babs make me a tshirt and send it to me in Afg. It said, "Be kind, spay and neuter your hose monkeys." I only wore it one day before enough people got mad that I had to take it off... :-) Dwayne

If you want my attention, try bleeding. That is my absolute favorite, and it will be my first shirt once I am certified.

LTC facilities are definitely a challenge, I can safely say, as I'm sitting here on graveyard shift at an assisted living. There are many that provide good care, if not excellent care... I would second what Dave said, though, as far as staffing inadequacies and weird mixes of levels. Now that I work in this setting, I totally see where some of the LTC stuff comes from as far as why we didn't call sooner, what we didn't do, etc. The honest to God truth is that LTC facilities attempt to care for problems until it becomes WAY out of their capacity (which is part of what they're supposed to do), OR, problems just honestly get missed/overlooked. It's not intentional neglect, as far as I can tell- it's mainly that the nursing staff is overworked and simply doesn't remember everything reported to them by the care providers/CNA's over the course of a shift. I had to report someone's SOB with exertion and increasing pedal edema about 5 times over the course of 1.5 weeks before he finally went to the doctor. Surprise- nurses got fired in between his doctor visit and results being faxed back, and it took another week before folks realized that he had been diagnosed with CHF. The BIGGEST challenge to providing good care is consistent communication. Where EMS only has to get the basic history info and acute history and treat the patient for ~ 1hr at most, LTC facilities provide care for weeks, months, or even years. Try getting every nuance observed over your shift communicated to the next shift, and have them communicate that in turn to the shift after that... it's like a giant game of "Telephone" and so you have to be vigilant in your documentation and reporting to make sure important stuff doesn't fall through the cracks. Then there's the issue of how good your nursing staff is... we had a few LPN-FAIL! types and now we mostly have very good LPNs with a few pool nurses to help fill out the schedule. I totally get why it's frustrating from both sides and why LTC facilities and EMS don't always play well together- they're coming from different worlds, and sometimes EMS sucks and sometimes the LTC facility sucks. Throw some egos and misunderstanding of what the medical purpose of your given role is in there, and you've got a grade A cluster! Just my rambling... Wendy CO EMT-B

Good luck. I think that clean car means clean ambulance is off. I have a super clean, orginized and stocked truck but my pov is far from it.