Falck EMS Aurora Colorado

[firemedic0227]

Anyone here familiar with this Company? I do know they run the 911 for Aurora Fire Department. I'm currently a firefighter paramedic looking to possibly move to Colorado, just wondering if working for Falck would help my chances of getting on with Aurora Fire. Are there any other private services in the Denver Metro area that run 911 EMS?

 

[PotatoMedic]

Get on with Denver health. Falck has good insurance and a nice 401k but pay sucks and Aurora fire looks down on you from what I'm told.

 

[Summit]

Friend worked for them when they were R/M then got bought. Seemed happy enough.

 

[VentMonkey]

I agree with @FireWA1. If I was thinking of moving to the Denver metro area as a 911 paramedic I wouldn't bother with anyone else. I caught a class with a couple of Denver paramedics not too long ago, they seemed genuinely content with their service.

I'm not from Colorado, but I believe there may be one or two DG paramedics on this forum, good luck.

 

[Handsome Robb]

I agree with @FireWA1. If I was thinking of moving to the Denver metro area as a 911 paramedic I wouldn't bother with anyone else. I caught a class with a couple of Denver paramedics not too long ago, they seemed genuinely content with their service.

I'm not from Colorado, but I believe there may be one or two DG paramedics on this forum, good luck.

@Ensihoitaja


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[Ensihoitaja]

@Ensihoitaja


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Thanks for the mention.

I wouldn't bother with Falck. It's a terrible system to work in. The Falck management used to be the Rural/Metro management when I worked there. I've not heard any reason to believe that they would be any better towards their employees now than they were then.

Denver Health is hiring. We've opened up a lot of new positions to keep up with population growth/call volume. I believe there's going to be an academy in January. I'm happy to answer any questions on Denver here on in PM.

 

[VentMonkey]

Do they pay DOE? Are they still all 10 hour cars? How does that "X" on your guys' bench seat work exactly (I find this amazingly efficient)? Finally, are there still differentials for nights/ weekends? All I got for now.

 

[Ensihoitaja]

Yes, starting pay is DOE- in fact, to some extent, you do better coming in with experience than if you started right out of school.

Pretty much everything is 10-hour shifts. The one exception is our Englewood ambulances, which run 12-hour shifts out of DFD Stations 37 and 38. OT is over 40 in a week, so every Englewood shift gets you 2 hours of overtime.

Evening shift diff= $2.42/hour Night shift diff=$4.65/hour. No weekend differential.

The X is printed right onto the bench seat- "step up, and have a seat on the white X."

 

[VentMonkey]

The X is printed right onto the bench seat- "step up, and have a seat on the white X."

This, I frickin' love this. A few more:

Is Denver Fire an ALL BLS department? How is the overall report with them? How does the promotional ladder work?

Thanks, @Ensihoitaja, if I think of more I will ask. Also, I am sure the op will benefit from this as well.

 

[Ensihoitaja]

Denver Fire is all BLS first response. We do all the ALS.

Overall rapport is very good, I have no issues with them. From what I hear from some of the older medics, it's the best it's ever been.

We have lieutenants as field command staff, at least 2 on the streets at any given time. There's also captain and chief promotional opportunities. Those are more office/admin than field work.

We have a full in-house educational department, including a paramedic school and all the EMS training for Denver Fire. There's multiple positions in education, some are on the promotional ladder, some are lateral moves.

 

[Tigger]

Incidentally from what I've heard from some FF friends, I'm not sure AFD is a great place either. Pay is good, but not a lot of good things said about the culture there.

 

[VentMonkey]

Is a company by the name Pridemark still around? I know they were absorbed by R/M when that whole deal went down, but admittedly, I know next to nothing otherwise regarding Colorado EMS.

 

[gonefishing]

Is a company by the name Pridemark still around? I know they were absorbed by R/M when that whole deal went down, but admittedly, I know next to nothing otherwise regarding Colorado EMS.

Most of the RM take overs never changed names to keep a good reputation seeing as RM didn't have the best management. Ask any South West Ambulance employees.

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[Tigger]

Is a company by the name Pridemark still around? I know they were absorbed by R/M when that whole deal went down, but admittedly, I know next to nothing otherwise regarding Colorado EMS.

@Ensihoitaja

My understanding is that RM let them continue to operate as an "independent" operation but they lost several bigger contracts which sort of negated that. And now that AMR absorbed RM, there is little if anything left of Pridemark. They once had Boulder and Boulder county (AMR now), Wheat Ridge (West Metro Fire), Edgewater (West Metro Fire) and Arvada (Arvada Fire). AMR still operates a 911 ambulance in Fairmount which was once a Pridemark contract. I think a few of the Pridemark managers started a new company called Apex?

 

[VentMonkey]

Ask any South West Ambulance employees.

Or any former Bowers employees??...but I digress.

Given the above post, I think I'd stick to my original Colorado option should I ever find myself out that way, but I must admit @Tigger's primary services seems fairly legit, and a bit of a hidden gem in and of itself.

 

[captaindepth]

Here is the business end of one of our Denver Health ambulances. As you can see there is the " Big White X" on the bench by the side door.

 

[VentMonkey]

Here is the business end of one of our Denver Health ambulances.

Sort of like a reverse mullet, party in the front?

 

[Ensihoitaja]

@Ensihoitaja

My understanding is that RM let them continue to operate as an "independent" operation but they lost several bigger contracts which sort of negated that. And now that AMR absorbed RM, there is little if anything left of Pridemark. They once had Boulder and Boulder county (AMR now), Wheat Ridge (West Metro Fire), Edgewater (West Metro Fire) and Arvada (Arvada Fire). AMR still operates a 911 ambulance in Fairmount which was once a Pridemark contract. I think a few of the Pridemark managers started a new company called Apex?

That's right. Pridemark kept the Wheat Ridge and Fairmount contracts after Arvada Fire started running ambulances. Once Rural/Metro was bought out by AMR, AMR eliminated the Pridemark brand.

Mike Donner founded Apex and took a few old Pridemark managers with him. I see them around, but I don't know what (if any) contracts they have.

 

[captaindepth]

Sort of like a reverse mullet, party in the front?

Definitely! I think we have the most fun out of all the companies in the area, but thats just my (biased) opinion.

 

[Handsome Robb]

That's an interesting place to store a scoop stretcher.


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