EMT interview question

[fieldeffect]

Hey guys, I need to interview an EMT for a school project, I am looking into becoming an EMT and I was wondering If you could answer some of my questions! Thanks in advance. I would greatly appreciate the help!

1. When you were in college, what did you think your career was going to be? What was your undergraduate major field of study?

2. What credentials, educational degrees, licenses,etc. are required for entry into this kind of work?

3. What kinds of prior experience are absolutely essential?

4. How did you prepare yourself for this work?

Present Job

5. Describe how you occupy your time during a typical work week?

6. What skills or talents are most essential for effectiveness in this job?

7. What are the toughest problems you must deal with?

8. What do you find most rewarding about the work itself, apart from the external motivators, such as salary, fringe benefits, travel, etc.

9. If you were to leave this kind of work, what would drive you away from it.

Prior Experiences

10. Which of your past work experiences affect what you do now.

11. Have any of your job changes been for reasons of life style? Please explain.

Life Style

12. What obligations does your work place upon you, outside of the ordinary work week? Do you enjoy these obligations?

13. How much flexibility do you have in terms of dress, hours of work, vacation schedule, place of residence,etc?

Additional Questions

14. How did you get into this career?

15. Does this meet your interests, skills and vales?

16. What are the pros and cons?

17. What is a typical day like? what do you like most/least?

18. What are the skills and personal qualities needed to enter into this career?

19. What educational Background is required?

20. What are work conditions: hours, dress, location, physical environment, etc.?

21. What are the career paths in this field?

22. Is this a competitive field? Can one enter without experience?

23. What are the entry level salary and benefits? What is long range earning potential?

24. How does the future look for this career (employment outlook)?

25. Advice/ Recommendations

[Just Plain Ruff]

Why not go to one of the local fire houses or EMS stations and ask them if you can ask those questions. I'm all for helping out the new guy but there are two benefits of asking someone local to you these questions.

1. It can start helping you talk to patients/people and asking them questions. What I mean is that you are going to have to ask a lot of questions to patients and some people are uncomfortable with that so why not begin with someone in a non-stressful environment.

2. It's called networking where you get to know the local EMS crews and who knows, maybe that person you interview will be able to help you down the road in your job quest. This might be the thing that will help you get the job, they might just remember you as the plucky wannabe emt who came and gasp asked them about their job. You might just meet your best ally and you may just make a friend.

Another reason is that you should really be doing this type of assignment face to face rather than via email or posting. This actually makes me consider you as a lazy person who doesn't want to go the extra mile and seek out a emt in your area for a face to face but then again, I could be wrong.

It seems to me that there have been several students come here asking for our help on assignments that they should be doing on their own. I hope I have mis-read you.

Find a fire house, ask if you can interview them for your project, I guarantee that someone at the station will help you out.

Or I'm sure some nice soul here will do the work for you.

[ERDoc]

Ruff is right. You best bet is to ask someone local to you. EMS is a very fragmented field with different requirements for different areas. We have representatives from many countries, each with its own way of doing things. It's always nice to have a new, interested person post here, so since you put the effort into coming here and asking, I will answer your questions based on my experiences.

1. When I was in college, I wanted to be a doctor and I majored in Biochemistry.

2. To be an EMT where I was one (New York State in the early 1990s) all you needed to do to become an EMT was have a pulse (breathing was optional) and pay for the class. The class was a 100 hour course with 10 hours of ER observation time.

3. No previous experiences were essential. It would be helpful to have a basic understanding of anatomy prior to class.

4. I didn't prepare myself. A friend convinced me to join to local volunteer EMS squad.

5. There is no such thing as a typical week. It all depends on where you are. When I was a volley, we had pagers so we could respond when there was a call. When I worked for a private service, we mostly did renal roundup, hospital discharges/transfers and nursing home transports. You'd sit in the ambulance until you got a call.

6. Staying calm and driving safe. Being able to talk to people is also a little important

7. The toughest problem was management. When you work for a private you are there to make money and if you are not doing that, they are not happy. You also had to get used to not getting off on time.

8. Back then I was a buff, so I got my kicks off trauma and sick people. This is not accurate now.

9. Putting up with the non-medical crap will burn you out.

10. All of your past experiences will make you what you are now. You experiences as a young EMT will provide a learning process that will shape you as an older EMT or medic.

11. Yes, I went to medical school to get away from the badge bunnies. Nothing turns a girl off like student loans.

12. I can't really answer this.

13. For the private I worked for we had a set uniform. It was just like any other job as far as time off. For the volley, you had to wear something that had the VAC's name/logo and had to wear pants and closed footwear.

14. Like I said before, to become an EMT in my situation/location all you had to do was have a pulse and pay the fee.

15. Yes, but I wanted more which is why I went to medical school.

16. Pros-a job you will love to do, satisfying to help people Cons-many people are not thankful for what you do, pay sucks

17. A typical day is spent taking people to the hospital

18. No skills necessary but you should be able to talk to people.

19. None

22. EMTs are a dime a dozen but it is easy to enter the field since turnover is high but there are some more competitive jobs

24. Until we can eliminate alcohol, drugs and stupidity there will always be a job

[Just Plain Ruff]

I knew Doc had a nice soul.

Now you need to go to the local firehouse and ask the same questions that were answered by ERDoc. The answers you get will be different but remarkably the same.

Edited October 9, 2013 by Captain ToHellWithItAll

[ERDoc]

Maybe we shouldn't ruin this young and vulnerable person yet. NEVER speak of EMS with firemonkeys. You will get blank stares and the occasional, yeah we did that but just so we could get promoted to firefighter.

[Just Plain Ruff]

Maybe we shouldn't ruin this young and vulnerable person yet. NEVER speak of EMS with firemonkeys. You will get blank stares and the occasional, yeah we did that but just so we could get promoted to firefighter.

But finding a EMS Station where he's at might just be an impossibility. But I do know a couple of Medics who work in a fire based system that actually are good medics and don't want anything to do with the fire side. I for one want one of them to take care of me rather than the alternative that is out there in their system. A caring medic can save your life, a caring firefighter can show you how to use a fire extinguisher.

But in all seriousness, I really do respect the fire guys that i've worked with in the past. I don't want em working on me as a patient but if I'm on fire, bring em on.

yes making him go to the firehouse might just make him regret his decision to join ems but since he didn't give his location I made an assumption that he was from some area where fire ran EMS.

SO Original poster -- where you from?

Edited October 9, 2013 by Captain ToHellWithItAll

[ERDoc]

Maybe that came of worse than it was meant to. I have the utmost respect for FFs when it comes to firefighting and rescue ops. When I see flames, I am running OUT of the building. My dig isn't even at the FFs themselves (except for the douchey ones that further the stereotype), it's more at the system that has developed where providing medical care to the sick and injured is see as less valuable than saving their property and belongings.

[Just Plain Ruff]

Maybe that came of worse than it was meant to. I have the utmost respect for FFs when it comes to firefighting and rescue ops. When I see flames, I am running OUT of the building. My dig isn't even at the FFs themselves (except for the douchey ones that further the stereotype), it's more at the system that has developed where providing medical care to the sick and injured is see as less valuable than saving their property and belongings.

Both on the same page doc.