Leaderboard

I'm an EMT Student trying to decide what path to follow. I know for a fact that I want to do EMS, and nothing else, but the best paying jobs in my area are for FF/EMT-P. There are ambulance districts around me, but pretty much all but one pays less than $15 an hour. I really don't have any desire to go putting on turnout gear and climbing up ladders, but I have heard that many firefighters are on the ambulance majority, if not all the time. I wouldn't even mind doing medical calls on the fire truck and extrications. The FD jobs are very hard to get, but is it worth it? I don't want to be stuck on a fire truck all of the time.. Should I just stick to EMS? Thanks, JT

don't you mean for most departments - DEMOTION or punishment.

I've been a firefighter, and I've been a paramedic, and solely a paramedic for over 30 years now. No complaints here. I seriously can't understand how being moved off an ambulance and onto a fire truck could be considered a promotion.

Hi JT, Welcome to the City. Is it worth it? That's a good question. The jobs are, indeed, hard to get. If a FD job as an EMS provider is your best bet locally for a stable, well paying job then you should probably go for it. If your local department is anything like departments commonly discussed here and with which many of us have experience you probably won't have much trouble getting plenty of ambulance time. Should you stick with EMS? That depends on you and what you want to do. If you want to be an EMS provider you can make it happen. If the FD is the best option for an EMS job in your area then you should at least go for it. The worst they can tell you is that they don't want you as a FF. The best they can tell you is they want you on the ambulance so all the other guys who really don't want anything to do with EMS can be on the engine. There is plenty of discussion here about fire based EMS. If you're looking for some light reading take a look through the forums.