South Carolina EMS

[Fish]

Anyone on here work in a South Carolina EMS system? If so, who do you work for? Have had a hard time finding anyone from SC on here. Have questions.

 

[Youngin]

Where are you in SC?

 

[phideux]

I've worked County EMS, right now I'm working IFT, and running a volunteer ALS rig. Whereabouts in SC???

 

[Medicnextdoor]

Sc

I am in Charleston South Carolina working for a 3rd service EMS. What do you want to know?

 

[lucro91]

I am a student in York county but I reside in Lancaster so that is where I want to work and is where I do my ride alongs

 

[Fish]

I do not live there now, It is in the cards for the future however.

I am Curious about a few things, I see most counties have third service 911. I like that, how stable is this? Do you have Fire Departments trying to take over left and right or is it a pretty safe bet that it will stay third service?

I am interested in Charleston, Greenville, and Richland County areas. I know these are 3 seperate parts of the state, do any of you know anything about these particular Counties?

I see the norm for pay is high 30's to low 40's, is that good enough for cost of living there?

Anything you can tell me would be great, I am going to visit the areas in spring, have not been there since I was a kid.

 

[phideux]

Actually most of the counties in SC are FD/EMS, very few of them are 3rd service. Charleston, Greenville, and Florence are the 3 that I know of. Chas pays right around 40K for a medic, Florence pays low 30s, don't know what Greenville pays.
I know everyone says the cost of living in the South is low, but if I had a mortgage and car payment it would have been hard to live in a nice area on what Chas pays. Luckily my house is paid for, and I drive paid for POS vehicles.
Don't know about the others but Chas has alot of turnover so they hire alot, the entry test is hard, but if you get in there are some great people to work with.
Local IFT here will pay mid to high 40s, with less hours than county.


Medicnextdoor, do you work for Chas EMS??? I was at M-11 for a year, loved my job, but I left over the Majors overtime elimination plan to make everyone "acting chiefs", and messing with our station assignments, which by the way didn't work.:rofl: I would have been stuck with a 2.5-3hr commute out to Kiawah and Edisto every shift. Aside from that mess it was a pretty good place to work.

 

[Fish]

Actually most of the counties in SC are FD/EMS, very few of them are 3rd service. Charleston, Greenville, and Florence are the 3 that I know of. Chas pays right around 40K for a medic, Florence pays low 30s, don't know what Greenville pays.
I know everyone says the cost of living in the South is low, but if I had a mortgage and car payment it would have been hard to live in a nice area on what Chas pays. Luckily my house is paid for, and I drive paid for POS vehicles.
Don't know about the others but Chas has alot of turnover so they hire alot, the entry test is hard, but if you get in there are some great people to work with.
Local IFT here will pay mid to high 40s, with less hours than county.


Medicnextdoor, do you work for Chas EMS??? I was at M-11 for a year, loved my job, but I left over the Majors overtime elimination plan to make everyone "acting chiefs", and messing with our station assignments, which by the way didn't work.:rofl: I would have been stuck with a 2.5-3hr commute out to Kiawah and Edisto every shift. Aside from that mess it was a pretty good place to work.

When I was looking at SC Counties that run EMS. I found that Charleston, Beaufort, Berekely, Dorchester, Sumter, Lexington, Richland, Union, Pickens, Laurens, Greenville, Spartanburg, Aiken, Anderson, Kershaw, Calhoun, Lee, Oconee, Orangeburg, and others are all third service County run EMS services, it seemed there was more thrid service than EMS/FD.

That being said, is there stability and security at the Counties that run a 3rd service?

I guess anywhere in the US would be hard to survive off of low 40's. My wife works too and would make a bit more than me as a nurse. So with that being said, would you say a combined income of 100-110k in SC is good? or would we just barely be getting by?

Also, off topic, but does anyone know average salary for nursing out there?

 

[phideux]

I think you could live good most anywhere on a 6 figure income. I don't know about the other services, just Charleston, that being said, like I stated earlier there is quite a bit of turnover there, but there is also a good number of people that have been there for years, so there is stability there. Like everything else in life, it is what you make of it. There are career people there, and people just there for a job.
As far as the nursing side goes, I know a few nurses, there seems to be a big pay difference based on where you work, but I see a yearly salaries from the 40s to the 60s being average.

 

[Fish]

I think you could live good most anywhere on a 6 figure income. I don't know about the other services, just Charleston, that being said, like I stated earlier there is quite a bit of turnover there, but there is also a good number of people that have been there for years, so there is stability there. Like everything else in life, it is what you make of it. There are career people there, and people just there for a job.
As far as the nursing side goes, I know a few nurses, there seems to be a big pay difference based on where you work, but I see a yearly salaries from the 40s to the 60s being average.

I understand,

40s for a nurse seem to be the lowest I have heard of anywhere..... 60s is what they make here, so if that were the case it would be an easy transition.

Thanks for the info

 

[phideux]

I understand,

40s for a nurse seem to be the lowest I have heard of anywhere..... 60s is what they make here, so if that were the case it would be an easy transition.

Thanks for the info

40s is the low end, it should be no problem for an ambitious nurse to find a job around here in the 60s+. Especially in the Coastal areas, don't know about inland.

 

[Fish]

40s is the low end, it should be no problem for an ambitious nurse to find a job around here in the 60s+. Especially in the Coastal areas, don't know about inland.

You live in Charleston right? Can you maybe tell me a bit about the area? Weather, Neighborhoods, Schools, things to do, Nightlife...

I haven't been there since I was a kid, and will be going for spring break

 

[phideux]

You live in Charleston right? Can you maybe tell me a bit about the area? Weather, Neighborhoods, Schools, things to do, Nightlife...

I haven't been there since I was a kid, and will be going for spring break

Don't live in Chas. I'm up the road about 90 miles. Weather is typical coastal SC, hot and sticky for 8-9 months, nice for about 3 months. Neighborhoods are like everywhere else, from total ghetto to ultra nice, sometimes within a block of each other. Can't help you with schools, or nightlife. Charleston is a sportsmans paradise though. Deer season kicks off Aug 15th and runs through Jan 1st. Killer fishing and shrimping. If you like the outdoors it's a hell of a place.

 

[Fish]

Don't live in Chas. I'm up the road about 90 miles. Weather is typical coastal SC, hot and sticky for 8-9 months, nice for about 3 months. Neighborhoods are like everywhere else, from total ghetto to ultra nice, sometimes within a block of each other. Can't help you with schools, or nightlife. Charleston is a sportsmans paradise though. Deer season kicks off Aug 15th and runs through Jan 1st. Killer fishing and shrimping. If you like the outdoors it's a hell of a place.

Deer hunting there? Hmmm, I thought it would of been to crowded for that. I am an outdoorsman, I used to live in Maryland and we loved crabbing the pier and I know that SC is good for that too.

 

[phideux]

Deer hunting there? Hmmm, I thought it would of been to crowded for that. I am an outdoorsman, I used to live in Maryland and we loved crabbing the pier and I know that SC is good for that too.

Got a quarter million acres of National Forest within an hour. Plenty of deer and hogs.

 

[Fish]

Got a quarter million acres of National Forest within an hour. Plenty of deer and hogs.

Oh right on, people can hunt on that? We don't have a ton of that in Texas. People hunt mostly on private land in WIDE open spaces.

I noticed that the County services all have state retirement, retirement is important to me. Do any of these IFT services have State retirement or are they all 401k?

 

[mpc83]

I currently am in Kentucky but grew up in sc and did all of my Emt training/ work there ... That being said I don't know of any area (off the top of my head) that runs fd/ems in the middle / upstate an there really isn't a threat of anyone taking over fire wise anywhere in that area ESP Richland/lexington... I lived in Sumter /Columbia and did my Emt training with a Richland co Lt and captain so I'm pretty familiar with their protocols and system and know a little bit about Lexington and Sumter co as I still have friends in all three counties( plus a few more like lee, kershaw (who is currently hiring), Anderson, Aiken) that are all working in ems Some way shape or form (ift or 3rd). So what are you looking for? I didn't catch what kind of job / training u currently have so I'll try to throw out some generals that may help .... Sumter, kershaw and I think lee co all run 24/48 schedule Sumter has a hospital there (toumey aka toumbstone) ( they run out of 3-4 stations i think) it's a nice area and also has shaw afb there which keeps the town growing an afloat (they are currently aligning with the 9th Af and 9th army to create a new joint operation) which has brought 5-10k more people/ families. I grew up there most of my life it's a decent size town with a few bars 1-2 clubs and lots of hunting to do youse fit right in ... A little small for my taste but decent school systems and decent cost of living without breaking your back . There is also a few private transport companies there as well. On that note ....

I'm a bit partial to Columbia. State capital bigger city more thugs for a family/single person to do and a great Ems system county wise... Richland county last I heard ran 55-60k calls a year. They run their stuff on a tight ship mostly but I enjoyed my time there and liked the people a lot. They run on 4 ( set day people set night people) 12 hour shifts a, b,c,d 2 on 2 off 3 on 3 off . They have anywhere from 12-20 trucks on any shift and may run Emt/medic trucks or they prefer (and supposedly want to eventually go to) dbl medic trucks. They do ceu's and help keep I up to date on all training and do it in house mostly. They run more military style but they get their sh*t done ... It's a lot of running but sometimes u can catch a nap... They have quite a few stations that they rotate in a shift ( inner ring of Columbia outer in of columbia depending on where u start depends on call volume... Richland co is pretty darn big btw) as far as pay goes I know what a few ppl there make and it's def more than what an experiences medic in Kentucky makes!! Pm me if u want numbers don't want to air friends pay on a forum. They also have some of the best hospitals in sc ( musc in charleston is up there as well ) they have Richland heart hospital, Lexington medical (great place for nurses btw I have several friends working there and Richland) and a few others Richland is your trauma hospital and also employees several Emt/medic as try have a stork ambulance plus a few of their own. After moving away from such a great area with good ema systems I definitely miss it over there!!

Sc def isn't the fore runner in new and innovative techniques but they usually have solid protocols and decent med control. Certainly things they won't let you do for dumb political reason ( can't do surgical crichs in the field) but they are pretty stable ... Columbia as a city has good night life, great places to volunteer, and several reasonable but not ghetto ( west Columbia and further out near Harrison and the sandhills area) they have good malls and good places to eat and most people are friendly there. Good ole southern hospitality I miss it but prob won't be back... Hope this has helped and ask more questions if need be I'll answer what I can ... And don't judge my typing/ spelling I did it all on my iPhone lol.

 

[mpc83]

I currently am in Kentucky but grew up in sc and did all of my Emt training/ work there ... That being said I don't know of any area (off the top of my head) that runs fd/ems in the middle / upstate an there really isn't a threat of anyone taking over fire wise anywhere in that area ESP Richland/lexington... I lived in Sumter /Columbia and did my Emt training with a Richland co Lt and captain so I'm pretty familiar with their protocols and system and know a little bit about Lexington and Sumter co as I still have friends in all three counties( plus a few more like lee, kershaw (who is currently hiring), Anderson, Aiken) that are all working in ems Some way shape or form (ift or 3rd). So what are you looking for? I didn't catch what kind of job / training u currently have so I'll try to throw out some generals that may help .... Sumter, kershaw and I think lee co all run 24/48 schedule Sumter has a hospital there (toumey aka toumbstone) ( they run out of 3-4 stations i think) it's a nice area and also has shaw afb there which keeps the town growing an afloat (they are currently aligning with the 9th Af and 9th army to create a new joint operation) which has brought 5-10k more people/ families. I grew up there most of my life it's a decent size town with a few bars 1-2 clubs and lots of hunting to do youse fit right in ... A little small for my taste but decent school systems and decent cost of living without breaking your back . There is also a few private transport companies there as well. On that note ....

I'm a bit partial to Columbia. State capital bigger city more thugs for a family/single person to do and a great Ems system county wise... Richland county last I heard ran 55-60k calls a year. They run their stuff on a tight ship mostly but I enjoyed my time there and liked the people a lot. They run on 4 ( set day people set night people) 12 hour shifts a, b,c,d 2 on 2 off 3 on 3 off . They have anywhere from 12-20 trucks on any shift and may run Emt/medic trucks or they prefer (and supposedly want to eventually go to) dbl medic trucks. They do ceu's and help keep I up to date on all training and do it in house mostly. They run more military style but they get their sh*t done ... It's a lot of running but sometimes u can catch a nap... They have quite a few stations that they rotate in a shift ( inner ring of Columbia outer in of columbia depending on where u start depends on call volume... Richland co is pretty darn big btw) as far as pay goes I know what a few ppl there make and it's def more than what an experiences medic in Kentucky makes!! Pm me if u want numbers don't want to air friends pay on a forum. They also have some of the best hospitals in sc ( musc in charleston is up there as well ) they have Richland heart hospital, Lexington medical (great place for nurses btw I have several friends working there and Richland) and a few others Richland is your trauma hospital and also employees several Emt/medic as try have a stork ambulance plus a few of their own. After moving away from such a great area with good ema systems I definitely miss it over there!!

Sc def isn't the fore runner in new and innovative techniques but they usually have solid protocols and decent med control. Certainly things they won't let you do for dumb political reason ( can't do surgical crichs in the field) but they are pretty stable ... Columbia as a city has good night life, great places to volunteer, and several reasonable but not ghetto ( west Columbia and further out near Harrison and the sandhills area) they have good malls and good places to eat and most people are friendly there. Good ole southern hospitality I miss it but prob won't be back... Hope this has helped and ask more questions if need be I'll answer what I can ... And don't judge my typing/ spelling I did it all on my iPhone lol.

 

[Fish]

I currently am in Kentucky but grew up in sc and did all of my Emt training/ work there ... That being said I don't know of any area (off the top of my head) that runs fd/ems in the middle / upstate an there really isn't a threat of anyone taking over fire wise anywhere in that area ESP Richland/lexington... I lived in Sumter /Columbia and did my Emt training with a Richland co Lt and captain so I'm pretty familiar with their protocols and system and know a little bit about Lexington and Sumter co as I still have friends in all three counties( plus a few more like lee, kershaw (who is currently hiring), Anderson, Aiken) that are all working in ems Some way shape or form (ift or 3rd). So what are you looking for? I didn't catch what kind of job / training u currently have so I'll try to throw out some generals that may help .... Sumter, kershaw and I think lee co all run 24/48 schedule Sumter has a hospital there (toumey aka toumbstone) ( they run out of 3-4 stations i think) it's a nice area and also has shaw afb there which keeps the town growing an afloat (they are currently aligning with the 9th Af and 9th army to create a new joint operation) which has brought 5-10k more people/ families. I grew up there most of my life it's a decent size town with a few bars 1-2 clubs and lots of hunting to do youse fit right in ... A little small for my taste but decent school systems and decent cost of living without breaking your back . There is also a few private transport companies there as well. On that note ....

I'm a bit partial to Columbia. State capital bigger city more thugs for a family/single person to do and a great Ems system county wise... Richland county last I heard ran 55-60k calls a year. They run their stuff on a tight ship mostly but I enjoyed my time there and liked the people a lot. They run on 4 ( set day people set night people) 12 hour shifts a, b,c,d 2 on 2 off 3 on 3 off . They have anywhere from 12-20 trucks on any shift and may run Emt/medic trucks or they prefer (and supposedly want to eventually go to) dbl medic trucks. They do ceu's and help keep I up to date on all training and do it in house mostly. They run more military style but they get their sh*t done ... It's a lot of running but sometimes u can catch a nap... They have quite a few stations that they rotate in a shift ( inner ring of Columbia outer in of columbia depending on where u start depends on call volume... Richland co is pretty darn big btw) as far as pay goes I know what a few ppl there make and it's def more than what an experiences medic in Kentucky makes!! Pm me if u want numbers don't want to air friends pay on a forum. They also have some of the best hospitals in sc ( musc in charleston is up there as well ) they have Richland heart hospital, Lexington medical (great place for nurses btw I have several friends working there and Richland) and a few others Richland is your trauma hospital and also employees several Emt/medic as try have a stork ambulance plus a few of their own. After moving away from such a great area with good ema systems I definitely miss it over there!!

Sc def isn't the fore runner in new and innovative techniques but they usually have solid protocols and decent med control. Certainly things they won't let you do for dumb political reason ( can't do surgical crichs in the field) but they are pretty stable ... Columbia as a city has good night life, great places to volunteer, and several reasonable but not ghetto ( west Columbia and further out near Harrison and the sandhills area) they have good malls and good places to eat and most people are friendly there. Good ole southern hospitality I miss it but prob won't be back... Hope this has helped and ask more questions if need be I'll answer what I can ... And don't judge my typing/ spelling I did it all on my iPhone lol.

That was pretty darn good for being on your Iphone, I guess I should of said in my original post that I am a Medic with 5yrs exp. Does Richland pay for Exp or Certs or degrees that you know of? I am glad to hear you say there is no talk of fire take over, why do you think it is so stable in these areas? And do you think the recent bif between Richland CO EMS and Columbia fire concerning letting Columbia FFs drive the Richland ambulances changes anything as far as take over possibilities?

I am going to PM you for those numbers,

Thanks for all of the info

 

[46Young]

Anyone on here work in a South Carolina EMS system? If so, who do you work for? Have had a hard time finding anyone from SC on here. Have questions.

I worked there as a FT paramedic from 10/07 to 4/08. Things may be different now, but I can tell you what I know from that interval.

What would you like to know?