dkay72027

Sorry, Dust, for not answering your question earlier. I thought it was rhetorical. My community situation may be unusual, but I have to say I am quite satisfied with the care my family would receive by our group. We have a Paramedic/RN, a EMT/RN, 4 certified Emits and 8 first responders. Both nurses are BSN's. They have been flight nurses and ER nurses. It would be more of a concern that there is no level one trauma center in the state. Until about five years ago, there was no volunteer medical service in this area. People complained for a long time, but there were no plans by the county or the paid ambulance company for a station in this area. People just waited for the ambulance. I, personally, waited for an ambulance with my husband's grandmother for over an hour. She was in a diabetic coma and I had no training. The ambulance got lost on the dirt roads. My husband is also an EMIT and did work for a paid service in an area with no volunteer medical help. The company, although quite eager to grow, would not provide more widespread stations in the county. People just had to wait. When the company did open a station in an underserved area, but with a low call volume, it actually delayed the raise promised to the other employees. They needed the extra money to supply and man the low call station. I do belong to the state association and if there was a strong belief in our state of the correlation between ems pay and volunteering, I would strongly consider stopping. But I don't think private companies would be willing to lose money on low call areas, and I know the people would never agree to higher taxes to support county services. They would say, "just put duct tape on it and wait for the ambulance." (Kind of joking -- but not completely) Thanks, everyone, for being considerate and discussing this in a civilized manner. You have restored my respect for the site. No, he is no longer with a paid service. He was given the opportunity to make 5 times the money in an unrelated field and be his own boss. I would love to have a paid station in our area. But, even if all the volunteers stopped volunteering, I believe it would not happen. People would just have to wait again.

Please excuse me if this post is a little disjointed. It is a work in progress. I completely understand the one's who feel their pay is directly affected by volunteers and I would agree in urban communities. Mine is not, so I am feeling a mite hypocritical. But, when you suggest other ways of volunteering, is it not a case of "not in my back yard"? All volunteering has the potential of taking away from someone's pay, even adopting a highway. That being said, I do not feel volunteering affects the pay of EMT's as much as other things. I feel it is the public's perception of the field for one. I was asked by a young woman recently about becoming an EMT. She was under the impression that the job was fairly easy and paid well for our area. I explained the low pay, stress, etc. that you guys put up with. I am a volunteer, I realize that if it gets to me, I can lay off for a while. My family will not suffer. Most people assume a EMT's pay is about the same as a nurses. They see that an EMT works 24 on, 48 off (in my area). They think "well, that's pretty cushy. I have to work 5 days to get 2 days off". They think an EMT is paid to sleep and when they are at meals. They do not realize that you can be woken or called from your food at any time. They assume that like their job you get paid overtime after 8 hours and double time after a certain amount. They think 48 hours off is the same as two days off for them. They do not realize that if they get Sat/Sun off it is actually about 60 hours. They see what a teacher does. They see what a doctor does. They have no idea what an EMT does, unless they or someone close needs one. Public education of the field is necessary for pay to increase. Most people do not realize that the cashier at Wal-Mart makes as much as the person who will be there in an emergency. If they did, it would make it easier when asking for more money. What is the answer? I don't know. Someone could write a book, there could be public meetings or ads in the papers. Increase the public's knowledge and you'll be more likely to increase pay. And volunteers would still be welcomed by the public and more accepted by paid services.

I began visiting this forum to obtain information. There is rarely any new information, just the same old bashing of volunteers and EMT-B’s and I’s. Sometimes, they are insulted, not for their ideas, but for their grammar or spelling. I am not a writer, and I do not have a degree in English, so my post may not be perfect, but I hope it will be easily read. I am one of those pesky volunteers. I do not do it for personal acclaim. I avoid recognition, if at all possible. I don’t enjoy the adrenaline rush. (That is one of the reasons I do not do this for a living.) I do this because I feel everyone should give back to their community in whatever way they are capable. I also volunteer in other ways – trash pickup, cash donations without tax deductions, free tutoring, etc. I also do ems because there is a need and I am able. I am intelligent enough for the education required, I do not get sick, I can deal with the psychological issues and my paying job is flexible. I have seen on this site repeatedly that the ems field is the only medical field where services are given away free. What about "Doctors Without Borders"? That is a volunteer medical organization. In my county, there is a free clinic. Local doctors, dentists, nurses, etc. volunteer their services for the good of the community. I am an EMT-B. I am not a failed paramedic or nursing student. I have no doubt I could make it through a paramedic program of any type. I do not choose to be a paramedic. I have a great respect for most paramedics. My choice is no reflection on whether or not they are necessary. They definitely are a necessary part of pre-hospital care. But, so are basics and intermediates. We all have are roles. When reading some of the other posts, I get the impression that only the most highly trained personnel are needed. Anyone else is a “whacker.” Well, by that line of reasoning, why not have two trauma surgeons manning the ambulance? The cost outweighs the benefit. I do not request an electrical engineer to change a light bulb. I also do not see the need to have every member of a construction crew have an architecture degree. There are levels to every field, and all the levels are valid and vital. I am not bashing paramedics. They are very important. The service I am affiliated with is non-transport and the ambulance service is mixed – one paramedic, one basic. I am thrilled when they arrive on scene. But, they are also happy to see us. We have given them information while they are enroute, so they have an idea of what to expect. We have them packaged and ready to go on most scenes (some require paramedic expertise.) We have a helicopter on flying stand-by, if necessary. When the paramedic arrives, he/she is in charge. But, he/she has back-up for whatever is needed. We keep current on CEU’s and make sure the first responders are well trained. We keep current on local protocols. We do our best. There are lots of volunteer EMT’s just like me. We are not perfect; we have our jerks and adrenaline junkies. But paramedics are not perfect either.

I am a volunteer EMT-B in AR. I also have friends who work in the field in various positions, EMT-Ps, RNs and other EMT-B's. If you have a question, I'll try and answer. If I can't, I can probably find your answer.