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qkmsqflh joined the community
- Yesterday
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San Mateo seemed to have a comparatively more advanced and exciting system than CoCo or Sonoma, for AMR. And, of course, no system is perfect, it's always a work in progress. But I get excited to hear about systems interested in progress, rather than profits. That's interesting that you wound up out here the way you did. Most tend to deal with what the area has to offer or drive mad commutes. I'm no different. I came out to do an internship at Prevention Point Pittsburgh to finish a bachelor in public health and was just really impressed by all Pittsburgh had to offer, in term of how livable it is and how awesome the harm reduction and healthcare people I met were.
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I worked for AMR in San Mateo County as an EMT for 2 years but while I was in medic school I was feeling the same thing you were. I felt like I was working for a big corporation that didn’t really care so much about patients as they did about their bottom line. Don’t give me wrong, the operation that I worked at was actually pretty awesome but I just could not see myself there for an entire career so I did a bunch of research on different third service agencies in the country. I just always wanted to work for a city or a county. Just randomly on a whim, we started doing some research about Pittsburgh (cost of living, climate, taxes ) And found out that Pittsburgh EMS does things that no other EMS service in the entire country does. It seems like every agency has their ups and downs, some people will bitch about anything but I have to say I don’t feel supported and valuable here. Right now it seems like we’re on the upside of the curve. So it’s getting a bit busier out there. Not like NYC or anything, we’re just waiting for it to hit. We have specialty resources on the street 24/7 That are enhancing our regular medic units. We are really aggressive PPE Protocols in place that make me feel safe on every call. We’ll see what this weekend brings.
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Thanks for the response, @Richierich31, the system here sounds amazing! I was working for AMR in Sonoma and Contra Costa counties. I love the crews I worked with, but I got really burnt out by the corporate structure. I never felt like AMR had my back or opened meaningful access to opportunities or gave meaningful support. I'm actually in nursing school at Pitt right now in the accelerated BSN program. I had planned on getting a PHRN after graduation (end of summer, supposedly), then seeing how I could interface with Pittsburgh EMS through that. Then this pandemic came down. I feel a lot of responsibility to be out on the street taking care of people and backing up my brothers and sisters in EMS. I saw that the application portal had opened up, so I submitted one. I was hoping that my timing would get me in before the peak hit here. If it takes 6 months to get in, well, I hope the crisis won't still be happening by then, though I suppose there's only one way to find out. Regardless, it's good to get some insight on the process, and to hear about all the cool aspects of the system here. A follow up question, how is it out there right now? Pittsburgh doesn't seem to have been hit very bad yet, and I hope it stays that way, but that can be really hard to assess as a bystander. I've been volunteering at UPMC in Oakland, and it seems pretty dead at Presby. Are crews feeling a lot of pressure right now? Are things "normal", or even slow? Anyway, take care, stay safe out there, always be badass.
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We're now wearing eyepro and surgical masks for all calls. If we do any airway stuff above an NC, it's gowns and N-95's. All pts get a surgical mask. Since I'm running out of a hospital, we're supposed to be wearing a surgical mask whenever we're inside the building. Apparently, N-95's are reusable if it was not exposed to any liquids. Not sure how to tell that. I'm feeling lucky right now. We've gone a couple of days, and the rules haven't changed on us.🙂
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If you get into this line of work without understanding what you can get exposed to, you should get another line of work. I've probably been exposed to so much sh*t that my pts never told me about over the last 30+ years that it would make me have nightmares.
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I've gotten an ad looking for staff to work there FT temporary. The rate was quite eye opening. Also got one looking for people to work in Detroit.
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Hey there, I’m at Pittsburgh paramedic and I lived in California my entire life until I moved here a year ago with my wife. I moved out of the Bay Area and moved to Pittsburgh... one of the big reasons was working for Pittsburgh EMS. I Work for AMR for a couple years and the Bay Area went to the Paramedic school in San Francisco. Have you started the process yet? Right now the process takes about 6 months. If you are in Pittsburgh right now I would try to get a medic job in between to get familiar with PAs protocols. Its a longer process but I love where I work. I’m excited to come to work and I work for the residents and visitors of a great American city. It’s a great place to work. There’s a lot of opportunities that we have. We do all rescue for the city. We have two heavy rescue trucks that are manned by two paramedics 24/7/365. We do River Rescue where we man a boat with 2 paramedic public safety divers 24/7/365. We have a motorcycle team that gives us an ALS response capability on Harleys. We have a proven Tactical team that is embedded with Pittsburgh Police SWAT. The process starts with the application, which you can get in now. There is a residence requirement so you have to live within the City of Pittsburgh by the time you get your final offer. There is a physical agility course that you have to complete. Details are in the job description. Then is the background check and polygraph. Yes, there is a polygraph exam done during your background check. After the poly is a psych interview with a doctor. After that is some more paperwork and then job offering and training. Let me know what else you need. It’s a great place to work. There are a lot of opportunities and we are paid really well.
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Richierich31 joined the community
- Last week
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Hi everyone, I'm sort of new to Pittsburgh, PA. I have four years of ambulance experience as a medic in the California Bay Area, many as an EMT before that. Pittsburgh EMS just opened their application process and I'm pretty excited to get back on a box amidst the crisis we're all in. I was just wondering if anyone on here has experience with their hiring process, what kind of testing they do, or have any good tips. And, if hired, what does the onboarding process look like? Anyway, stay safe and healthy everyone.
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xmsoypzc joined the community
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dinsmore83 joined the community
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Despoina joined the community
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In 2014 I got ticketed for a dui but never charged for it. I was parked in my neighborhood and got caught with alcohol in my car and since I was 17 (minor) there was a zero tolerance policy. I drank very little. I was below 0.08. Very low. I moved literally an “inch” so it counted as a dui. It eventually got expunged from my criminal record, but if you look at my DMV record it shows that my license was suspended. I tried applying for uber and they declined me so now I’m worried I cannot become an EMT because of this “suspension” on my driving record. Is there any hope for me?
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Austinstotelmyre joined the community
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Mandy Fitserwald joined the community
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SCATTERGORIES...it's harder than it looks!
Mandy Fitserwald replied to itku2er's topic in Funny Stuff
Taylor Swift -
gmfidufr joined the community
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Coronavirus Isolation Precautions
Just Plain Ruff replied to Old EMT's topic in General EMS Discussion
Yes, time off, vacation, sick time, holidays all banked in one bucket. - Earlier
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PHO? I'm guessing that's what your service calls banked time?
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Thanks! Were they allocated to NY?
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Coronavirus Isolation Precautions
Just Plain Ruff replied to Old EMT's topic in General EMS Discussion
Well I hate to sound like an old crotchety medic but every one of us knows what we signed up for. We are exposed to all sorts of pathogens, we take precautions, and if you don't then it's not on your service, it's on you. These days you have to protect yourself because no-one else is going to do so. Go in on every call with the mindset that they have COVID, Sepsis, EBOLA and every other communicable disease and protect yourself. You have to protect yourself first. If you are not protected, then DO NOT GO IN TO the scene. You would not go in a fire scene if you didn't have bunker gear on right? You would not go in a TB patients room without an N95 mask on right? Today, it's on you to protect yourself because in the END, you have to go home to your family and no one is going to provide for your family other than you. -
Problems Getting to Your Phone
Just Plain Ruff replied to TheWolfman2112's topic in Equiqment and Apparatus
Huh? -
Problems Getting to Your Phone
ehliseo88 replied to TheWolfman2112's topic in Equiqment and Apparatus
I've noticed that telephones can once in a while be tough to get from your pocket in regular situations, and that were given me thinking that it'd probable be even tougher to do so in conditions in which your adrenaline is pumping and camera smartwatch and the entirety is taking place very fast. And I'm asking folks that paintings in rapid-paced enviornments so that I can get an accurate idea of how many humans surely revel in the hassle we are seeking to resolve. -
they was approx 100 ambulances in CT lining up a few hours ago... dont remember if they were massing in bport or new haven... might have even been stanford... the pic i saw had a train station in it... im from wtby ct...
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I just saw a few posts online from people saying they know of out of state EMS units being deployed to NY to cover due to COVID-19. Anyone have more information?
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Makes me wonder if this will drive some providers out of the field once this is all said and done.
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Coronavirus Isolation Precautions
Just Plain Ruff replied to Old EMT's topic in General EMS Discussion
When I went out due to developing a fever and was told to stay home for 14 days which was shortened to 7 days due to not having further symptoms, I was told that I could either use PHO's or not get paid. How's that for fun times. -
All evidence continues to support taking full droplet precautions with suspected COVID patients. This one's the real deal. The numbers out of Italy tell the story as to what will happen if we don't take this seriously soon enough. My service switched our sick leave (75% pay) to general leave with pay (100% pay) to discourage employees from potentially infecting colleagues.
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http://www.vch.ca/about-us/news/news-releases/vgh-leads-the-way-in-traumatic-brain-treatment Very long story short, look up the monro-kellie doctrine, and principles of cerebral perfusion pressure. -
From what I know of the US system I would suggest getting your RN and doing some form of Paramedic bridging program. Take that with a grain of salt however as I've come up through the Canadian system where working your way to the Critical Care Paramedic (CCP) level is the best way to gain entry to air ambulance work (1 year PCP education, 2 year ACP education, 2 year CCP education). As you can see the path is roughly 5 years of post secondary paramedic education in Canada, which you'll find is markedly different from the US path.
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I have seen this idea being brought up on social media. What are your thoughts?
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Coronavirus Isolation Precautions
Just Plain Ruff replied to Old EMT's topic in General EMS Discussion
our agency has put out a "every respiratory patient has covid until proven otherwise so we better see you wearing your PPE's" I had a exposure last monday, got a fever thursday and was sent home for 2 weeks of quarantine. got called yesterday and asked if I had any symptoms after 3 days of being home, said no. was told if still no symptoms after 7 days they will put me back on the schedule this friday so I get to go back to work. This is based on CDC guidelines for exposure and return to work but when I return to work I get to wear a mask for the remainder of the 2 weeks of my quarantine time which they are determining if it's based on date of exposure or date of symptom presentation. That's where the disconnect is. I work 24 hour shifts so I will only have to wear the mask for a maximum of 3 shifts but maybe only 2. I was not tested on the day I had symptoms because they said I was "LOW" risk. I got a week off for having a fever for 8 hours. not sure if that's overkill or if it's doing the right thing. I'd rather be working. but I'd rather do the right thing than not and infect other people. thank god for Doordash food delivery and a great friend at work who delivered some food staples (milk, bread, diet pepsi and trash bags to us yesterday).
