EMT-B hell/job search frustration

[DCP Whit]

This is a long boring story I have to write, not that you have to read.

It was three and a half years ago I decided I wanted to become an EMT. To this day I still cannot tell you why it's been my career of choice. I know the pay is awful, the hours are worse, after paramedic there isn't to many positions to expand to, and the list goes on. Every other paramedic I talk to tells me they wish they were a firefighter or PA and if I was smart, that's the route I would take. I don't care, all I know is I want to be an EMT and probably a paramedic. Besides, if I really do hate it, I can always switch careers later in life. I'm only 22.

I proudly told my Mom my career plan. Her response was something like "no son of mine is going to throw his life away on a trade education" but if I used her exact language I would be banned from this site. She gave me two weeks to move out. Not exactly the response I had expected. Up until this point all I wanted to do was drink hard booze and chase girls. I had no money, no car, and hardly a part time job.

It took me a little more than a year to get things stable enough to enroll in the EMT-B course at Denver Health. I had a car and a girlfriend who also had a car, a steady

and decent paying job, and we had about $900 in the bank when I started class. $900 seemed like a lot. We didn't have enough $$$ to pay for the course out right, we had to

use a payment plan. My job knew of my availability and we had it all worked out.

A month before school, my girlfriend is laid off and takes a job that pays her a lot less. A week before school starts, my car brakes down. The repair was to expensive to worry about until after I've paid of the 1,200 for school which has to be paid monthly for 4 months.

It's only a week and a half into the my training when I walk into work to see 3 highschools in uniform and the owner. I already know what's happening here... those kids are hired at minimum wage. The owner tells me that because of my availability I'm to expensive to manage. Are you F*CKING KIDDING me!?! Except, I'm not fired. I'm still on his pay roll with no hours. No unemployment, no pay checks.

Sometime during the first month we cut everything to bare necessities. No internet, no TV, or entertainment of any kind. Try looking for a job without internet these days. The only meals we have are little servings from the retirement home my girlfriend works at which we share. Awful food.

It gets worse before it gets better. The battery in my girlfriends car dies. We don't even have $60 to replace it. Reduced to walking and public transportation. Not quite as bad as it sounds.

The next three months completely ruined us financially. We have to pay rent by the third like everyone else. Yet everytime a day before the check clears, the automatic withdraw for school comes out. That's an over draft fee of $30, then a bounced check fee of $30 more, and the apartments charge $25 for a bounced check, $50 late rent +$5 everyday it's late + and additional $200 after a week.

I did my best to make everybody aware of this disaster. The apartment company said I shouldn't have signed the lease. The school said I had made the payment plan through a separate company. That company told me tough luck. The bank "understood" but couldn't help. Ect ect.

I ended up being the best student I've been since high school. I did all my homework, studied for all my test which I rocked out. Passed everything on my first attempt, got my NREMT, and Colorado state cert. The owner's mother gave my job back (she actually runs the place, her son is just a figure head). I've been able to bring all my accounts back to positive last month, and went back and got my IV. I even proctered (sp?) a test for the new EMT-Bs.

I've been sending out resumes like crazy and haven't heard a thing back. To my dismay, I've learned that a lot of my former class mates are working for ambulance companies and even at Denver Health (at this moment, my dream job). I did find out, however that when I was 16 and dumb I stole from Safeway and that still shows up on my recoded. Its going to be another 2 months before that's all taken care of. Even the Red Cross won't take me as a volenteer with it on there.

Did I ruin my chances of working for those companies I applied for previosly?

One more peice of bad luck, I got pulled over for a red light little while ago. A lawyer will cost me $800, but if convicted it'll be on my MVR for 7 years. Wish me luck on that.

Anyways... I feel better now. At least I'm not still in EMT-B training racking up debt.

[FireMedicChick164]

Hey Brother...I feel your pain. Glad you are back in the green as far as your bank account goes! I have been a NY EMT B for 9 years and for the last 2 have been an EMT CC (our EMT I) I joined my local volunteer FD when I was 19 and they have paid for all of my EMT school thus far). I just recently landed a good job and began to see my bank account go up.

I have been going to college on and off for the last 10 years to train to be a teacher (in between life getting in the way). Lo and behold I have 2 more semester left to go and there are no teaching jobs around here! My fiance was laid off from his teaching job in February and can't seem to find anything. I was working teaching pre school for the last year trying to pay the bills and it wasn't working. We have to pay for our wedding and get my debt all paid off and my nerves were starting to fray.

My life is beginning to look up. So is yours. I just wanted to let you know that you are not alone in the frustration of the job search. That conviction you have may hinder your getting a job but some employers still may hire you if you can speak to them and let them know that was in the past and you have every intention of going forward honestly. You never know. Private companies (at least here) pay just above minimum wage. If you can get in to a big city EMS as a career that's probably the route you want to go. Some of the hospitals here hire EMT's as ER Technicians....have you looked into that route. Do any of the hospitals have their own EMS? Good luck with your job search and keep me posted.

Meri

[Dustdevil]

She gave me two weeks to move out.

Hey, at least she gave you enough time to go through EMT school. It could be worse.

No, wait... it couldn't be worse. My mistake.

[tniuqs]

LOL @ Dust, but he is right YOU have good health.

This is a long boring story I have to write, not that you have to read.

Well I took the time to read it, read it over yourself and just LOOK at the Mountain you have already climbed.

Maybe print this out and give it to the Judge on the red light infraction .. it couldn't hurt, some judges do have a heart.

Keep plugging along and set your targets higher than a a Denver Job its a big world out there, full of opportunities.

ps It could be worse, getting booted out of the significant others with no real warning and sleeping in a truck for 2 months is way worse .. been there have the torn "T" shirt !

Edited July 15, 2011 by tniuqs

[DCP Whit]

Could be a lot worse. I definitely wasn't dumped and had to sleep in my broken down car, and I'm glad of that. Yet It was the steepest struggle of my life thus far. Certainly gained some life experience.

Things have picked up a little bit. I was hired by Aramark as and EMT at the summit house on Pikes Peak. The job barely covers the gas so I only go down twice a week. The actually job sucks. 97% sales clerk, 2% medical. For that two percent, I'm really just an over qualified breathing coach. But it carrys the EMT title.

I've thought about looking in other states, but I'm a little hesitant for a few reasons. For one, this place is home. I can't tell you how much I love this state! Secondly, in Colorado EMT-B are allowed to do just about everything we've been trained to do. I have heard in some states such as California EMT's aren't able to do much more than drive. Or that in Florida, fire takes all of the decent calls and punts just the transports onto EMS (this guy didn't believe me that EMS is more active in CO until another, older EMT backed me up). Most importantly, Denver Health is the organization I want to work for. They have an excellent reputation here, I get the sense that they are a bit ballsy, and they are extremely selective. Selective enough that the best chance is to come up in their program and I don't fancy paying out of state tuition.

That being said, I have few questions now. For one, why are there so many inconsistencies in EMS from company to company and state to state? I'm certainly not completely against looking out of state, so which states is it good to be an EMT-B? I'm looking for a state that allows EMT's to practice the majority of their skills and where EMS isn't completely dominated by fire. Also, what kind of reputation does Denver Paramedics have to you, if any. What other city's/companies have a good reputation in your region?

Just probing what else is out there. Thanks.

[Dustdevil]

I'm looking for a state that allows EMT's to practice the majority of their skills...

LOL... what "skills" would those be? Please take as much space as necessary to give us this long list of "skills" you learned in a 3 week-long first aid course that most any person on the street could also do. To be very honest, you have less training and skills than most nurses aides. And even if you do get a job, you'll still use those "skills" less than the aides do. The only difference is that they don't get to drive like maniacs. But, if you think about it, you didn't get any more driver training than they did. At least their school was cheaper than yours, and they won't have any trouble finding a well paying job with it.

Not busting on you personally, bro. You're just one of the thousands who get sucked in to this every year by too much television, and take a big leap without looking first. One day's research -- or one HONEST instructor at the school (very rare) -- would have told you what you now know, but don't want to admit. Your mum was right. You made a very poor choice. And these patch-factory EMT schools get rich off of that choice. Half the guys teaching them never found an EMS job either, unless you count teaching.

I believe it was Will Rogers who said, "If you find yourself in a hole, the first thing to do is stop digging." You can either take this one on the chin and proceed to better think out important life choices in the future, or you can stay here in this hole with a million other unemployed/underemployed EMTs and keep digging yourself deeper. Then you'll wake up one day, closing in on 30, still with no education or "skills," and too broke and busy with life to start again.

[Kiwiology]

Sorry you are having a rough time mate, but you have a 100 hour wonder course that does not qualify you to touch a patient or set foot in an ambulance outside the United States.

You want to know how long it takes to become an "EMT" here? A year ... and that is for the volunteers, to actually get paid for it you gotta go to University for three years and get a Paramedic Science degree.

[tniuqs]

Then you'll wake up one day, closing in on 30, still with no education or "skills," and too broke and busy with life to start again.

Hey hold on now, 30 is the "new" 20 !

[DCP Whit]

heh... way to drop the hammer Dust. I can respect that, and I will make time to deliver a proper response. In the mean time, you should know I will in the future make sure you are aware of any achievements and or set backs I ecounter in the EMS world.

Catch you on the flip side, my friend.

[jsd67]

Move up North to the East coast. NYC area etc...

It depends on your location really. I know in my area, I've seen EMT-B's start at $19.00 / hour... and they do not start at any less than $15.00

I talked to an EMT in my area who has been doing it for about 6 years and he said that the companies usually hire in 3 month rotations. I guess if any openings come up within 3 months, they try to hire....

It really depends on the State you live in.

Edited January 26, 2013 by jsd67