Calgary EMS HIRING FREEZE?

[JungleJudy]

Does anyone have any information about when Alberta Health services will be hiring in the City Of Calgary??? I have been out of school for almost a year now and still no work except for very little rig or seismic work... Can anyone give me answers because everyone I speak to can't seem to give me a straight answer...

Thanks, Judith

[Quakefire]

Move to Saskatchewan? You could probably get a pretty steady job with Canadian Industrial Paramedics here as well if thats the way you want to go

[Canadian Caesar]

If I recall correctly, Calgary EMS actually just completed a round of hiring not even a month ago. One of my co-workers got on with them and is now working there.

I'm not sure where is best to hear about upcoming hiring competitions. but keep your eyes peeled on the ACP website as well as Alberta Health Services Careers website.

Sorry that it looks like you missed that one. Hope this helps. Best of luck Judy.

[Siffaliss]

Does anyone have any information about when Alberta Health services will be hiring in the City Of Calgary??? I have been out of school for almost a year now and still no work except for very little rig or seismic work... Can anyone give me answers because everyone I speak to can't seem to give me a straight answer...

Thanks, Judith

Unfortunately rig work (everyone has done it) isn't generally considered experience, due to the lack (or absence of) calls. There are more smaller services in and around the Edmonton area as opposed to southern Alberta that hire frequently; rural is a good place to start out and get some actual experience before attempting a larger, urban center.

Try this:

http://www.collegeofparamedics.org/pages/Employment/default.aspx

Edited November 18, 2009 by Siffaliss

[tniuqs]

Can anyone give me answers because everyone I speak to can't seem to give me a straight answer...

No one can give you an answer because Dr. Drunk-man is not letting out any information in planning, it was just announced on the TV that more changes are coming to more rural facilities (scary) but the 600 current vacant positions for HCW will not be filed, and an additional 550 voluntary lay offs ? This man is singlehandedly with the restructure (centralization) during a recession, takeover of Ambulance Operations with the only goal to bust unions is destroying the system and sending educated and experienced Health Care providers away in droves.

Remember that EMS accounts for about 4 to 6 % of the entire health care budget ...... nuff said.

http://www.healthjobs.ab.ca/SearchResults.aspx

Search Paramedics, there are positions posted but getting hired a completely different story.

Many of the links provided through ACoP are simply head hunters in the industrial sector and have no contracts as its "freeze up" season they wait until the ground is frozen, (before drilling gets up and going) accept for plant turn overs and pipeline's.

cheers.

Thats the straightest answer I can provide, but with this Drunk Man at the helm is like stapling Jello to a wall.

[Siffaliss]

Like I said before ... we have to pay for Duckett and superboard bonuses somehow right?

I'd certainly like a six figure wage, never mind bonus ... yeesh

[SA_Medic]

Oh, good thing I read this posting before I started my planned reciprocity nightmare to the great white north. Please keep a brother updated on when things change?

Regards

S

[emtannie]

And, let's not forget the rumor that if Duckett cuts EMS by 3% this year, he gets a $150,000 bonus.... where is his incentive to be fiscally responsible to the province, rather than adopting the Ralph Klein hack and slash with abaondon method of cutting funding?

Judith, I agree with Siff.... look outside Calgary... there are other services hiring, and you may find that working outside Calgary and building experience will get you farther in the long run, than waiting for Calgary hirings only. Yes, Calgary may be the most convenient for you at this time... but look outside the city... and don't discount the more rural services. Handling a critical patient when you don't have a major hospital 10 minutes away or another ALS unit to back you up is a valuable skill...

Best of luck..

[Siffaliss]

And, let's not forget the rumor that if Duckett cuts EMS by 3% this year, he gets a $150,000 bonus.... where is his incentive to be fiscally responsible to the province, rather than adopting the Ralph Klein hack and slash with abaondon method of cutting funding?

Judith, I agree with Siff.... look outside Calgary... there are other services hiring, and you may find that working outside Calgary and building experience will get you farther in the long run, than waiting for Calgary hirings only. Yes, Calgary may be the most convenient for you at this time... but look outside the city... and don't discount the more rural services. Handling a critical patient when you don't have a major hospital 10 minutes away or another ALS unit to back you up is a valuable skill...

Best of luck..

Annie you are a smart lady

Perhaps whomever is giving Duckett this bonuses should consider putting the money back into the health care system where it's actually NEEDED? He doesn't care where the cuts are or what they do to us, look at the money he's getting!

When I did my EMT program, I left Edmonton to live in Calgary for the summer. My school didn't have a program running in their local office. When I didn't have classes I drove from Calgary to 170km north of Edmonton to work for the rural service I was at during my earlier EMS days. (Yeah, 4 years in and I'm still green). I was hired during my practicum and stayed with that service for a while, and it was a 200km drive away.

I dunno, seems like even as recent as 2006/2007 working rural was a right of passage into busier places. Now? Well ... so many people seem like things should just be given to them because they passed ACP and have a reg number ...

Annie, your thoughts on that? (Not like I don't already know!)

Edited November 22, 2009 by Siffaliss

[emtannie]

Annie you are a smart lady

Perhaps whomever is giving Duckett this bonuses should consider putting the money back into the health care system where it's actually NEEDED? He doesn't care where the cuts are or what they do to us, look at the money he's getting!

When I did my EMT program, I left Edmonton to live in Calgary for the summer. My school didn't have a program running in their local office. When I didn't have classes I drove from Calgary to 170km north of Edmonton to work for the rural service I was at during my earlier EMS days. (Yeah, 4 years in and I'm still green). I was hired during my practicum and stayed with that service for a while, and it was a 200km drive away.

I dunno, seems like even as recent as 2006/2007 working rural was a right of passage into busier places. Now? Well ... so many people seem like things should just be given to them because they passed ACP and have a reg number ...

Annie, your thoughts on that? (Not like I don't already know!)

Ahh Siff, I thought you would never ask.....

Judith, these are my personal opinions only, and remember, you get what you pay for....

I work for both a rural service and a city service; I am also an instructor and have supervised EMT practicum placements, and have followed the careers of a number of my students.... and I see a number of fresh EMTs straight out of school who have been hired as casuals for the city service I work for... I see a number of areas where these newbies need a lot of work... (1) on a tough call, they find it far too easy to hand the call completely over to the medic, and not do any thinking or assessing on their own. (2) they find it easy to be "the driver" and not take any responsibilty for how the call went, other than getting the medic to scene, and getting the medic and patient to the hospital (3) they haven't developed patient communication skills - their only patient experience was on their EMT practicum, which really does not give them a well rounded exposure to patients - they don't know how to talk to elderly patients to keep them calm, or an agitated patient to get the information they need. (4) working for an ALS service, they do not spend enough time developing their basic skills (basic assessment, vital signs, history taking) (5) overall, they get used to the security blanket of having ALS always available, and unless they are actively moving towards being a medic, they end up backsliding on the skills they do have.

Now... on to rural services. Of course there are drawbacks here.. you may be working with volunteers, who may or may not have their skills up to date either. Yes, it may be inconvenient for you, as you may have to commute, but, on the other hand, some services do provide housing for those staff who come in from out of town, for no cost or a very small cost. You may not get a high call volume. You may be working a BLS service, where ALS may be more than an hour away. However, there are positives to this as well. You will get to attend often, if not most of the time, which will improve your skills, and your confidence. Having to deal with patients for more than 10 minutes will allow you to see if your interventions work or don't work, and force you to review your assessment and interventions to see what you could be doing to better help your patient. It forces you to be a thinker, and not use ALS as your security blanket. Many times, doctors in smaller centres are very happy to answer any questions you may have, and allow you to assist in procedures that you wouldn't have the opportunity to assist with in a larger centre. You will get the opportunity to follow up on patients more, and see long term effects.

A word of warning... do not be the EMT who thinks that just because you have that tiny piece of paper that ACP sent you (for all the money you spent, that little card isn't even laminated) you should be able to walk into the job of your dreams instantly. It rarely happens. If you show that you are willing to work, and willing to learn, and are willing to make some sacrifices for your career, doors will open. Some of my students worked 2 and 3 casual positions at a time, at various rural centres, to get the skills and experience they needed before they moved on to larger centres. Some of my students went to larger centres right away, and given the two, I would hire the first ones in a heartbeat, and not the second, as I know the first ones have a wider range of experience and knowledge. The students who show the commitment to getting the experience and working on their skills will do better in the long run.

Judith, I am not trying to scare you... I am trying to get you to look at a bigger picture, and the possibility that short term pain (I get the feeling you don't want to be anywhere but Calgary) may lead you to long term gain.

Again, best wishes in your endeavors.