Private vs County etc.

[maverick56]

Ok, forgive this very newbie question, but I can't help it. I just got an interview with a private EMS company in Flint, MI and was wondering what the main differences are between them and the county system. I'm from small-town Northern Michigan with no civilian working experience yet, just ride-alongs up here.

[Zablackw]

County is owned by the local county government and you will be a part of the county services. Pay and benefits come from the county government. So pretty much a teacher that works for the same county you work as a medic gets money from the same place you do along with the benefits.

Private services are privately owned companies either by hospital or by privately independent owners. You still get benefits and and insurance and the pay just depends on where you go. Where I am from, I work for Puckett EMS which is a privately owned company that has awesome benefits and pay but you go up north a little ways you have some privately owned companies that have crap for benefits and pay. Generally in Georgia county services do have better benefits but not better pay.

[flamingemt2011]

Too broad a question to answer with any specificity: You have poor county services that have poor pay and/or benefits and are on the verge of being privatized. You have county services that have great pay and benefits and are very secure. You have privates that are fly-by-night and are near bankruptsy, and you have privates that are CAAS accredited and have excellent pay and benefits. You have privates who do 911, you have privates that are exclusively non-emergent transport. You have county servcies that just do 911, you have some that do a mix. You have privates that are mom and pops, then you have some that are major corporations.

You will have to investigate your area and compare.

[EMS1700]

I used to work down south with some guys who were from Flint and worked for STAT ambulance. They liked it alright and said it was a good job. I think from my conversations with them that STAT was the 911 provider for that county.If that's true then that would mean they provide both non-emergent/emergent transports. Your question being the difference between them and the county, if they (STAT) are the 911 contract then there would be no county service there just a private running the contract. They moved and left the job for the same reason the rest of the guys I worked with from the North...to cold!

[croaker260]

There is an ages old expression... When you have seen an EMS service...You have seen ONE EMS service.

Meaning that even services that are right next to eachother or even overlap, can be completely different.