Its tax time! How much are we making in EMS?

[46Young]

I have reread my original post & I didnt say if I had a degree or not.

Your assumption is incorrect. No degree here is 2 years. If you want to do an appropriate degree, on its own, it is 3 years.

We also have the option og general entry, which, once again is 3 years to qualify to a stage that is somewhere between an EMT-I & EMT-P. Even those with a degree will go to this stage & then go through a competitive process to be accepted into a Paramedic training program, regardless of having a degree, for a further period of training. We are also required to undertake personal & professional development over a 3 year period with skills certification in that time as well.

I have made many references to the need for the US agencies to increase their skills modelling, without claiming ours to be perfect. The body of knowledge we are taught from day 1 prepares us for autonomy (ie, no medical control to discuss options with), as well as giving us the skills & drugs to properly treat our patients. I suggest you read some of my medical posts to see if I am a Medical First Responder.

6 Figures is common for rural officers here, with metro around 90K US.

My prior understanding of the Australian, Canadian, and New Zealand systems was that a degree, which I would assume is at least a two year, was the minimum one needs to have in order to be employed. Throughout the various threads, whenever the subject of the American EMS educational system or educational standards were addressed, reference was often made to the fact that the aforementioned systems all require degrees to be employed, unlike the US. So, how does the Australian system work regarding education and employment?

[theotherphil]

Earnings: $98,000 (AU)

Job Title: Intensive Care Paramedic

Experience: Nearly 1 year as AU ICP, 2 years as UK SR Paramedic, 3 years as UK Advanced EMT

Type: Government

State: NSW

Avg OT: 12 hrs/fortnight

Average fortnightly take home pay is $2,850 AU. I work 2 days then 2 nights then 5 days off. Shifts are 12hrs.

6 Figures is common for rural officers here, with metro around 90K US.

I'll echo what Phil is saying. I am Metro and as can be seen above, I earn $98k AU ($88k US) with minimal OT. You are given some nice incentives to work rural and it'll be easy to crack $115k AU without overtime.

OT boosts the pay massively....a weekend OT shift (12hrs) can gross between $1,000 and $1,200 AU (>$1k US)

Edited March 1, 2010 by theotherphil

[aussiephil]

My prior understanding of the Australian, Canadian, and New Zealand systems was that a degree, which I would assume is at least a two year, was the minimum one needs to have in order to be employed. Throughout the various threads, whenever the subject of the American EMS educational system or educational standards were addressed, reference was often made to the fact that the aforementioned systems all require degrees to be employed, unlike the US. So, how does the Australian system work regarding education and employment?

I cannot speak for Canadian or New Zealand systems.

Within Australia we have 6 seperate services, 1 in each state, with 5 of them government run, 1 privatley run, under contract to the state government. I can only speak for my service. A government run service.

We have 2 forms of entry. Graduate & general. Graduate entry requires the completion of the university degreee & the person is fast tracked to a set level. General entry is for everybody else & takes additional time to achieve the same level. Both commence with an 8 week induction program. This covers Anatomy, physiology, pharmacology & skills needed to operate on road. During this time all officers have 1 week where they are observers on road. From there, these officers are laced at a station as a Trainee Paramedic (all officers here are referred to as Paramedics). They spend 10-12 months undertaking practiacl experience, as well as distance education in preparation for their next stage. They work under supervision of a senior officer.

Once this stage is completed they return for 3 weeks of education. This encompases more in depth anatomy, physiology & pharmacology, as well as assessments on skills, learning new skills etc. At this point these officers are posted to a station. This will most likley be rural.

This is for a period of up to 24 months. During this time they have continuing contact with Clinical Training Officers, Paramedic Educators. They then return for another 3 weeks of didactic education. More in depth anatomy, physiology & pharmacology (added to each time) & more skills added & assessments. Provided they pass all exams, they will graduate to Paramedic at this time.

Graduate students skip the second level of study & qualify as a Paramedic after serving as a trainee for up to 12 months, as recognition of Prior Learning.

After this our service calls for anyone interested in becoming an Intensive Care Paramedic. This is a competitive process requiring a written application & interview selection process. If sucessful, the person then undertakes 6 wseeks of didactic training, 4 weeks of theathre time to develop intubation skills & 6 months supervised on road time. Following this they then continue to work, unsupervised but are not considered fully trained until they have completed their first recertification 1 year later.

Those who have attained a Bachelor of Clinical Practice (Paramedic) as still subject to standard employment applications & are not gaurenteed a career. Many who choose tyhis degree also undertake nursing & prefer that as a career option.