Great_Llama

Thanks Red, Some more great info. Yeah I talked with AMR. They only have sign on bonuses for medics, and they pay relocation for them, but not I's. But it sounds like a lot of good options there. AMR had said he'd probably hire me once I got certified, but we'll see in a year. Hehe. I really liked what I saw online about medstar. Seemed like a very progressive unit. But this definitely gives me some ideas and things to work for. At this point I think it's pretty much a done deal, my wife really wants to move closer to family and I have no real reason to stay here. So again, thanks to all for the info! This helps a lot.

Hey Woody, Thanks a ton for the reply. Been trying to contact some companies down there, but so far no dice, so it was good to finally get a reply. I was looking at numerous states, but through the weeding out process (read where my wife would like to live), it is either we stay here or move to the Dallas/Fort Worth area. We really like what we've looked into concerning Fort Worth. So anyway, thanks again. I won't be out of school until May of next year, so I have some time, but it takes time to get ready for a possible move, so figured I'd check now. But I will send you an email once I'm getting closer to that time frame and would certainly appreciate any help you could offer in navigating the EMS waters in Fort Worth.

Contemplating a move to the Texas area (Fort Worth area) and wondering how things are for EMTs there. My wife wants to get closer to her family, but I'll be getting my EMT-I in Georgia before we move. How is reciprocity? Is Texas a National Registry state? I'll be NR here before I leave if we end up leaving. How's the pay and is the system there fairly progressive? I checked into a group there, Medstar911, I believe it's called. Seemed like a good group. Before anyone says, "Its not about the pay, etc, etc", please don't. I'm well aware that I won't get rich in this field and that's not what I'm asking, I still have to get paid, not going the vol. route, so knowing what the pay is like in an area before I move is important. For me there is a point where it would be worth it, and a point where it wouldn't. If anyone can give me some insight I'd greatly appreciate it. If you prefer not to list anything here, please feel free to PM me. Thanks in advance. Llama

I can't speak to the medical condition and a part of me would certainly respond negatively towards the staff at the hospital based on this article alone, but having lived in LR for a few years and not being a fan of the Democrat Gazette, or truthfully and mainstream news media, I have to question the whole tone of the article. It's clear to me that the writer is basing "facts" on one side of the story, since he made it clear the agency involved wouldn't respond, they are taking what they think they know and making it into a "fantastic" story. Of course that is their job. No one would read it otherwise, it would just be a bunch of useless facts that no one would understand of pay attention to so they embellish. The tone of the article bothers me because it seems like a journalist doing their best to paint a grim and dismal picture of abuse and lack of care. I've also worked in prisons, where I myself was responsible for the "care" of 200 inmates at any given time, these were set at 100 to a side. This was as a guard. Inmate lie, cheat, steal, etc. You can't believe anything they say because it's all a game, the whole system is a game. You have officers that are trying to play this game and win while being generally understaffed and overworked. So you can't watch everyone. I've been on suicide watches before and I didn't lose anyone, nor did anyone ever actually commit suicide at our facility while I worked there (don't know about before or after), but I know it's simply impossible to watch everyone. I also worked our infirmary and I could go on and on about the actions of inmates and how hard it is to deal with them on a day to day basis. Yes they still deserve care, but they make it harder on themselves, because they see everyone as a potential target for their little games and as such the staff often has to deal with not only the the real medical concerns of people once they can actually figure out what is really going on, but also try to weed past the mind games and crap that the inmates are always trying to pull, often to get a shot of something or another. They have nothing better to do. They should investigate and if they were found to have not treated this person properly they should be disciplined and held accountable, but I think it's hard to form an informed opinion based on one news article. Its one of those times where you say, if it really was that bad, something should be done, and in truth the lawmakers in the area will certainly do something, because too many people will take the article at face value. There are too many people that believe anything CNN, ABC or the like throws at them, no matter how ridiculous the claims. I don't want to turn this into an argument over the news media, but in my opinion taking any article or news story for face value, when all the facts are clearly not known is silly. It would be easy to say "hang them evil horrible health care providers" and in fact this journalist has all but said that and convinced others of their "facts", but I highly doubt we've heard the whole story simply by reading this article, so I'd personally caution against a rush to judgment. Just my opinion. Sorry if I took the topic off track, but there was a perspective missing from this whole article and that made it bad journalism in my opinion.

Woah...that's good pay. Is the cost of living high where you live? I believe the AUD is 1 to 1.31 USD, so that is pretty good, but if your cost of living is very high, it may not really be as high as it sounds.

Well I can't comment on the book idea. I've never read any of the other guys stuff, but I did read some stuff on his website and it seemed pretty good. Though I'm of the opinion it never hurts to try. It's your time and if everyone who was told, "you can't do it" listened, we'd not have alot of the books and history that we do have. As to schools. I'm so new to this I don't know what is what. I know I want to be the best, most well educated medic I can be. My school that I am about to go to actually made me take two entrance exams. The first one seemed pretty simple, the second one was very much harder. I'm an excellent test taker and score well above average in most cases, but this last test I took was pretty hard and I don't think every group in the school has to take it. I know in my school the EMT and medic classes are the smallest in the school and the school's entire focus is medical and dental (medical assistants, dental assistants, etc). From what I can tell, compared to the colleges in my area they have the longest and most informative curriculum. The only longer entrance test I had to take was when I went to enter DeVry. So I don't know what the colleges entry exam is like, but the private schools certainly make sure you have a clue about the basics and to my knowledge they are picky about who they let in. I basically had to go through an interview with admissions and with the director of admissions all about why I want to study to be an EMT, etc, to Gauge if I understood the job basically and if I had the aptitude to do it. As to the idea of ambulances becoming mobile health care units, do you think that means nurses will take over ems? I have to agree with what someone else said above. My class is costing me alot as it is, especially considering I'll never make a ton of money doing this job. I can certainly live on the pay, but compared to people with a 4 year degree and their income potential, it doesn't compare. And though I eventually plan to get my degree, it will be in nursing, not ems administration, which is the only bach degree I see here for ems. Medics can go as high as an associates. To invest 4 years to become a medic and then get paid the rate I'll be getting paid, isn't worth the investment. Not to stay at that level at any rate. It kinda makes sense to me though to push medics at least to the associates route, since nurses require bachelors and doctors four years beyond that. Kinda like things double the higher you go. Though again here, the programs for medics seem better at the private schools than they do at the colleges. Seems they just want to push you the ems admin route. What do you see as the difference between training and education? I guess I have always treated them the same because I love to learn, so I'm always studying the things I'm involved in. Also, what is a coffee clinical? I've heard the term, but don't understand it. Thanks. Llama

Personally the statement I was referring to was that of the Down's Syndrome patient was better off dead because he had downs syndrome, since his quality of life was "horrible". That is an opinion, which you are entitled to, but it's not shared by everyone, including some people that have downs, ms, etc, etc. As I said, if the patient chose to not be resuscitated then fine, if the family made that choice, that is also their right. It's their loved one and/or the patients choice in these matters...what makes a Will so important. If the docs knew they couldn't save him and trying wouldn't change the outcome, I personally have to trust to their judgment. I wouldn't want my loved ones going through useless procedures that wouldn't make any difference. However if there is a chance that that will give them a chance at more life, even if only 6 months, I'm going to want them to try...because you simply never know. I can't know this patients mind or his families, so I'll leave it at that. It's done anyway, but if you save a life, it's a save, whether you "think" they'll have a quality life or not. In my opinion some drug addicts would be better off dead, they don't have much quality of life in my opinion, but you'd try and save them and so would I. Perhaps they'll turn around, perhaps not, but that isn't my call. 40-50 years is not a short span of time, though it's certainly too young to die, my Mom died at 50, it's still 50 years. I buried two friends not too long ago in their early 50's. Saying that to show that many people die at 50, whether downs or not, but they deserve every chance they can get to live. Even if it was 20 years we should give the person a chance at life if they choose that way and it's possible...even if that possibility is slim. I've seen "miracles", whether you call them medical miracles or whatever, and I'm sure many of you have. It may not change his down's state, but again....we have the right to choose not to live with downs for ourselves, not for everyone else. Whatever quality there is or lack thereof is your opinion and that was my only real point. You are certainly entitled to that opinion, but I personally disagree with it. What's next? Let everyone who is paralyzed from the waste down die? I mean they have a life, but it's certainly not as quality as someone who has full use of their bodies....I mean it can't be can it? I bet it's quality to them, at least the ones that choose to live with their injuries and overcome them. This case simply stirred the hornet's nest I guess over this issue which will always be argued where ever there are two people, cause everyone has a thought. Whether playing God or not, it's not up to us to decide who should live and who should die based on their disease or their "life expectancy" which is a guess at best. And just because it happens doesn't make it right. Anyway, since I think this has gone past the arguing of this case, which I don't really have the expertise to speak on much, I'll move along. I wasn't really arguing the case itself anyway. The belief that if you have downs syndrome or something that lessens your quality of life you should be allowed to die is in my opinion pompous in the extreme. Perhaps you only meant in this case and if so, again...I wasn't there I can't argue whether the docs did the right thing, but it seemed that this was being said in general of all downs patients that got injured and that is wrong in my opinion. Cheers

In whose opinion? If the patient wanted to go fine. If the family wanted to let them go, again, that is their decision. If they had a will or something stating DNR, or no living on tubes or whatever then their choice again. If this was just something that was going to happen again and shortly and they got a DNR from the right people, then again okay. Or the person would go through too much pain and suffering, as in as soon as they brought them back they'd just arrest again or they were brain dead or whatever else might mean they'd never respond again, then certainly this might be mercy and I hope that was the docs decision. If this person had a chance to live, no matter the downs syndrome, and they wanted to, even if the docs didn't know how long this person might live, and they didn't do anything then shame on them. Just because someone has an incurable disease doesn't mean they deserve to die. They deserve to live every moment of life that is allotted to them. For a doctor to make a moral call and decide that someone may as well be allowed to die because they have downs syndrome is horrible. It's not the doctors call in my opinion, unless the patient has no guardian or will and the doctor is the only one that can make a decision. It's especially wrong to decide that because someone has an incurable disease that they shouldn't be allowed a chance to live. If the ER rooms had decided that with my mom, she'd have lived a few years less than she did. She had cancer that spread all over basically. Chemo wasn't working, bone marrow worked for a year and then relapse and when she was bad the docs worked hard to get her going again. In fact she was told six months when it first got diagnosed and she lived 13 more years, though some of them were tough for her. She had a will to live and fought to the end....but it was clear the fight was going the wrong way and she'd eventually lose, but I can tell you that even though the last few years were tough, she'd have never given them up for nothing. We may not want to live a certain way and may rather be dead than to live that way, but not everyone thinks the same as we do. Some people want to fight to hold on to life until there is no other choice and those people should be given that chance, downs syndrome or no.