Getting a spot with an EMS crew?

[bbqLei]

Hey party people
I acquired my NREMT cert for EMT-B last November and only recently have been looking to put it to use.

I just need assistance and pointers on how to secure a spot, and if I do, what to expect.
I've gotten to hang out at firestations very often and meet the kind of people I would work with, since a lot of them run rescue calls too; it's the field experience that I'm not familiar with. What is it like once you've been hired? Is there some company training before being put on an ambulance? Is it as daunting as it seems? I'm excited to start, but unsure where to.

I've been looking at AMR here in Colorado with little luck. No responses as to whether I'm what they are looking for, or if they have even seen an application.

If it's at all pertinent, I'm a 20 y/o male; I got certified in Florida and had to get cert reciprocity here in Colorado. Driving record is pretty clean. Though as an EMT-B, I was not trained for IV cert in Florida - they didn't want kiddies pokin' anyone at all, even for blood glucose testing. It was only recently I discovered there's a separate cert for that.

Thanks!

 

[TransportJockey]

Apply everywhere. that's the best advice to get on as an EMT-B. If you're in CO, you need your state cert, IV cert, and EKG cert to be remotely comptetitive in the job market up there.

 

[bbqLei]

Ah man that's terrible news. EKG and IV certifications were of no mention back in Florida - it was first responder, EMT, and Paramedic. No in between, just those three tiers, IV and EKG inclusive in paramedics.
Thanks for the heads up my friend.

 

[TransportJockey]

Ah man that's terrible news. EKG and IV certifications were of no mention back in Florida - it was first responder, EMT, and Paramedic. No in between, just those three tiers, IV and EKG inclusive in paramedics.
Thanks for the heads up my friend.

Those are Colorado state specific things. Not too hard to get though

 

[chaz90]

Those classes really don't take long. If you want to get a job in CO, go take them. Should just take a few weeks.

 

[bbqLei]

I'll have to look into those. That would explain why I haven't heard of those certs before, Jockey. Thanks you guys. I just hope out-of-state charges will not be relevant...

 

[TransportJockey]

I'll have to look into those. That would explain why I haven't heard of those certs before, Jockey. Thanks you guys. I just hope out-of-state charges will not be relevant...

What do you mean out of state charges?

 

[bbqLei]

What do you mean out of state charges?

For any classes based on getting those certifications. I'm not from Colorado; most colleges/institutions will not even count me as a resident until I am 23 years of age, regardless of how long I've been here.

Meaning I would have to go through the effort of applying, submitting documents, paying an unnecessarily large sum of money, submit more docs, just for the certs. The only reason I'm giving any skepticism is because I have an option of returning to Florida in a few months, where I could just avoid all this trouble and most likely get hired there much easier.

 

[TransportJockey]

When I lived there I was under 24 (the age cutoff for emancipation for FASFA) and was able to be counted as a resident after a certain amount of time. At least for terms of in-state tuition. That's odd they won't let you

 

[chaz90]

I took my EKG and IV courses through Thompson Valley EMS in Loveland. No actual college credit for it, but I didn't care about that. Super cheap that way, and it did everything I needed it to do.

Don't know if TVEMS still does them, but look around for options besides the community colleges. Check hospitals too.

 

[Handsome Robb]

They're both like a week or two long, not super difficult. Having the EKG cert doesn't allow interpretation, just allows you to place the electrodes and gives you a general idea of what you're looking at.

 

[bbqLei]

Oh, that is some relief. Thanks to each of you as well, I will surely look into it.