Beware iof NEMSA!

[Just Plain Ruff]

FLight lp. that is completely correct.

a for profit company has a number one obligation to only one thing, to make the shareholders money.

AMR does that in droves.

Everyone on this board as well as all the other boards for EMS out there know what AMR is about. They know what kind of treatment and philisophy that AMR holds and if they choose to work there then they have to take the consequences.

Guys, actions have consequences. We can pat each other on the back and commiserate and say "too bad you got screwed" but if you did any type of due diligence on ambulance providers you would have heard the stories about AMR.

I myself was a "proud" member of AMR's employees in the late 1990's and I reaped the benefit (short term) of making big bucks working my but off and never seeing my family. In the end, I realized AMR was not for me after 1 1/2 years there and left for greener pastures. During my time at AMR we revamped the SSM system and the street posting locations, we attempted to bring in the Independence Fire department union IAFF 315 I think(not sure of the number) and AMR fought tooth an nail to stop that and they did.

AMR is a huge animal and they survive by charging high rates and paying low wages and gobbling up the smaller ambulance services that are in it's way. It's doing the job that they are mandated by their share holders to do, to Make money for the shareholders.

I'm sorry that people have been treated bad by AMR but hey, you get what you pay for or in this instance you get what you work for.

[Scaramedic]

I agree it would be nice to have a choice, unfortunately in the Portland metro area you really don't have a choice. Notice the article said the following...

"Multnomah and Clackamas in Oregon, and Clark and Cowlitz in Washington."

This encompasses all of Portland, it's suburbs, Vancouver & it's suburbs, and all the way north to Longview. Plus the union doesn't cover cities that are covered by AMR along the I-5 corridor all the way to and including Seattle (Medic 1 back up). The only area in the Portland Metro Area that isn't AMR is Metro West in Washington county. They tend to be cot Medics for the local fire, hell no.

AMR came into Portland like a whirlwind and bought up every ambulance company they could. They then received the exclusive 911 contract with Multnomah and then Clark County. It comes down to this, if you want to be a non fire Paramedic in Portland you only have 1 choice, AMR. Also keep in mind a lot of these employees never wanted to work for AMR. They were sold down the river when their employer sold them to AMR.

Peace,

Marty

P.S. AMR is pretty good here believe it or not.

[Just Plain Ruff]

Overall I was satisfied with working for AMR. I knew the risks and the rumors and I kept a level head when I worked there. I didnt' really try to rock the boat unless I knew I was 100% correct.

I do agree that AMR is not a bad place to work as a medic or EMT but it has been my experience as well as the experience of many many of my friends that AMR will drop you like a hot potato if they perceive any problem with you.

It sure sounds like AMR has a monopoly in the portland area and according to my college civics and business law classes a monopoly is not allowed but I'm sure there's some sort of exemption.

I do feel for the people who were lied to and sold a bill of goods that was not what was in the bill of sale.

and yes I do know something about being forced to work for AMR when they buy up the little guys. I knew they were coming in and buying the company I worked for and I accepted and continued to work where I lived.

[zzyzx]

I'm sorry, but I just don't understand this reasoning that it's our fault for working for AMR and that if we don't like it we should just leave. We're not living in the 19th century, nor are we in China. Workers have rights. AMR gets paid lots of taxpayer money, but I don't think AMR serves our community well. Just as AMR negotiates with local governments and other companies for contracts, so will our union negotiate with AMR for better wages and working conditions.

[Scaramedic]

It sure sounds like AMR has a monopoly in the portland area and according to my college civics and business law classes a monopoly is not allowed but I'm sure there's some sort of exemption.

Yes there is an exception see it plastered right on top of the ambulance "Multnomah County EMS."

Supposedly that makes it a "county" agency not a private ambulance monopoly. That is what I understand at least and trust me greater men than me have taken them on and lost.

Peace,

Marty

P.S. That is a publicly available picture on the internet, no private pictures were published. :roll:

[Dustdevil]

Yes there is an exception see it plastered right on top of the ambulance "Multnomah County EMS."

Yep. There it is. Jack Stout's putrid legacy. The service is a governmental agency. AMR is only a contractor providing a service to that agency. AMR is not the big enemy here. The government agency employs them because they WANT somebody who will do it cheaply without the county looking like the bad guys. It's just like WalMart contracting with a company to clean their floors for them. The contractor utilises wetbacks to do the work, and WalMart knows it. But if somebody makes an issue of it, WalMart just says, "Hey, it's not us! It's the contractor!" So anybody who thinks the government is our knight in shining armour in EMS is incredibly naive. It is the government who intentionally keeps standards low. It is the government that refuses to recognise EMS as an essential service. Seriously, folks... who in the hell could possibly believe that government is the answer to any problem in EMS?

[Ridryder 911]

Yep. There it is. Jack Stout's putrid legacy.

Exactly, the old " sole provider" rule. I can see various options with it. Until such, EMS companies were literally fighting for calls (yes, fist fights) and cutting each others throats and no one was winning, especially the patients. Unfortunately, like Dust described these public trusts, counties, etc.. have now contracted out their services to the lowest bid. Then excusing themselves from any responsibility whenever feces hits the fan.

R/r 911

[Scaramedic]

See and that is something I wish the public would wise up on. You cannot tell me that after paying a private contractor with their profit margins that it is not cheaper than the county doing it directly. Hell the city and county is getting sued daily for some absurd thing, so it seems liability would not be an issue. Recently a fire officer was caught on video beating a patient, he still has a job and no charges were filed. How much worse can things get if they eliminate the middle man, meaning AMR. EMSA (Another Jack Stout creation as Dust and Rid know) is another prime example, why pay Paramedics Plus? Why not just hire the staff directly.

F'ing government makes no sense. Never has, never will.

Peace,

Marty

[Dustdevil]

EMSA (Another Jack Stout creation as Dust and Rid know) is another prime example, why pay Paramedics Plus? Why not just hire the staff directly.

That's what "MedStar" in Fort Worth, Texas has done. They started off with Hartson-Mercy running the public utility. Hartson-Mercy sold out to Laidlaw. Laidlaw sold out to AMR. The Authority kicked out AMR and replaced them with Rural-Metro. Rual-Metro defaulted. Who else is left to administrate a system of that size? Answer: nobody. So now the Ambulance Authority runs itself as a government entity without a public utility contractor at all. I haven't had anything to do with them in twenty years, so I'm not really plugged in to the particulars. I'd love to hear how things have changed with no contractor involved. Especially the finances and medical sophistication. I agree that it has great potential.

I like the idea of private enterprise in EMS. It's the American way, and it simply works great in many places. It would work even better if Medicare would quit being Jews. But honestly, I just don't see a single private contractor getting the job done well in a system that big.

[Scaramedic]

It would work even better if Medicare would quit being Jews.

I won't take that personally. :wink:

Peace,

Marty