DigDugDude

thanks for the reponses i talked with the ER boss today and have lined up a ER tech position for after graduation of my EMT B course in july. Which is cool which will get my foot in the door. im going to continue with the paramedics route currently because if I work here till the end of this calendar year ill qualify for much more money next year for my nursing and since paramedics is cheaper and the money resets each year ill just bust it out of the way now. besides there are currently no waiting lists for the medics programs and long waiting lists (which im already on) for the nursing program. @fiznat thanks for the info and defense I did honestly think the reaction of the boardies here was a little critical myself but to each his own. @paramedic yah i guess i should have said the doctors can be hard to work with rather than calling them dicks i have a habit of typing like a talk something i need to work on myself. all in all though THANKS! and if theres any chicago paramedics/EMT's that have been keepin up with this please shoot me a private message as i have a few locally specific questions about companies ECt. D

@Mike.....not mad at all i would have responded sooner but i never got any emails saying people responded to my post i just assumed i would be notified. To give further detail, At the hospital I work at most of the doctors are much older and jaded and for the very most part they DO come off dickish. Its a problem at my workplace and HR is trying to fix it. The reason I want to get into EMS is beside care is not challenging in the way I want it to be. At my job new nurses out of school arent allowed in the ER without a couple years experience. But at the same time the paramedics in the ER have about as much power as the CNA's - no blood draws, no intubation, no meds, no ekg's ect. Because my job will fully pay for all the schooling I want to get into. I am going to get my EMT-P while still continuing to bust out nursing degree courses. I know its probably a longer route but at the moment i really think im going to end up getting my nursing degree as well as paramedics license. I want to work in the ER but critical care transport nursing appeals to me as well. I was asking about the money because yah it does make a difference. I would love to be a teacher but guess what im not going to be able to live comfortably on what they make. Money isnt everything and I get that but the sad truth is there are many jobs that pay well below not only their worth but also just general cost of decent living requirements. I was only asking the opinion of people who have been in the flight/critical care field because personal know how alot of times can do much more than a google search. thanks for the input so far guys!

Im a 27 year old guy living in Chicago and have been a CNA in a hospital for a little over 2 years. I thought I wanted to be a nurse but I have learned bedside care is incredibly boring and the doctors for the most part are dicks. That and seeing the same patient every day for weeks at a time really wears me out. Whenever I get floated down to the ER I really have a good time, the time flies by and its new patients all the time. Lately I have really been thinking about Paramedics. But currently im making 13.50/hour as a lowly CNA. I hear the EMtTs make like 9-11$ and the paramedics make 13ish......which hardly seems worth it for the year and a half of schooling I would need to just end up making less than im making now. PS. my job would pay for any EMT/Paramedic schooling I wanted to go to. I hear the critical care medics make WAY more as do the flight medics (hourly and call bonus wise) but does anyone know what those job prospects are like? Are they in demand? Is it stable? And what do critical care paramedics and flight medics do when there arent and critical/flight calls? Do they just go out on regular calls? Does their pay go down if its a regular call? I really like the idea of being able to intubate, push meds without having to call a MD first, and just the general bat shit craziness of code calls, PLUS I like the fact that I could be out in the van riding around or working in an ER. I know the majority of the time its not that crazy at all but I really cant see myself as a nurse or not till im older anyways. So yah anyone have opinions or thoughts on the critical care/flight medic route? Im also not a fan of becoming a firefighter but it kinda seems like I may just have to go that route to actually make decent money. And when I say decent money I mean 45-50g/year I dont need alot of money to be happy but from what im seeing a regular paramedic making 13/hour = 24g/year = no bueno. Also suggestions for Chicago based Ambulance services? I feel like people dont like to name names but honestly its just asking opinions! So yah guys any input would be GREATLY appreciated! -D