Moving to Boston

[N-Smith]

It looks like I'm going to be relocating to the greater Boston area from Chicago within the next 3-4 months and was wondering what I should know as a Paramedic coming into the area - rough salary expectations, good and bad employers etc...

Any and all input is appreciated!

[island emt]

The greater Boston area is kind of a vague description.

Do you plan to live & work in Boston proper or commute as many do from the suburbs? A lot of folks have moved north to NH for lower housing costs and commute the gauntlet to get into the "circle". I know folks from Southern Maine that make the commute 2 1/2 hrs into the greater Boston area for the better lifestyle and lower costs of Maine.

PM me if you want some more info.

Housing costs inside the 128 circle are very high and cost of living , ie property taxes insurance are also high.

Jobs vary from Boston EMS to one of the many privates that do contract 911 service in suburbia. Some of the privates are Alert, Cataldo, Trinity, & of course the evil empire. Many of the smaller cities are fire based EMS.

Pay scales range from $12.00 / hr up to $23.00/hr, some with benefits others not. depends on where you go.

[paramedicmike]

Keep in mind, too, that if you're thinking of working for BostonEMS you'll be hired as a basic, work as a basic, then after some time as a basic be able to apply for promotion to paramedic regardless of your background.

Many of the local municipalities are fire based. Many also use privately contracted EMS services (some of which IslandEMT noted).

Getting hired, even as a medic, can be challenging. I tried on a couple of occasions to move to the Greater Boston Metro Area. Getting even an interview as an experienced medic was, shall we say, a challenge.

Other than that, IslandEMT is pretty spot on. Your description is vague. Inside 128 is expensive. Traffic is a bear. Commuting from Maine or NH isn't unheard of.

[wrmedic82]

Well if you run into a female paramedic named Jamie Dismuke. Tell her I said Hi and that I still think she is a paramedic bad azz!!!!

[island emt]

Should probably add Armstrong, Fallon & ea scare to the list of privates. There are others, but I have no personal knowledge about them.

In the PAST I have worked with folks from most of them in my former employment at a major racetrack / motorsports venue. They hired a lot of part timers to beef up our crews from all over New England.

most of the privates have 911 contracts in suburbia, along with transport shuffle.

[chiefmedic64]

First check out http://www.mass.gov/eohhs/provider/forms/public-health-oems-forms.html#out_of_state, This is the state OEMS web site for out of state certification for all levels. Boston is municipal based but many of the cities that border Boston are private (Somerville, Revere, Everett, Quincy, Weymouth, Milton, Cambridge , Malden, Medfield). Cataldo, Fallon, and Armstrong have alot of these contarcts. ProEMS has Cambridge. AMR may not be in MA much longer if there employess and union dont agree to concessions and they have several contarcts with 30 minutes to a hour from Boston(Brockton, Taunton, Plymouth) . You also have Brewster Ambulance which has been expanding quite rapidly and is looking to pick up metro boston 911 contracts it had several years back. A little further North you have Trainity and Action