From: The Attitude Of Some EMS Providers

[KelliPVAC 32]

I don’t want to rain on anyone’s parade here, but would like to comment on a theme I’m seeing in these and other peoples comments. I want to say straight off the bat; I’m a volunteer in the area as well as someone who is looking to make a career out EMS. The area I volunteer is supplemented by paid Paramedics who pull shifts in 8 hour increments at one of the two volunteer agencies in the district. Now, Lilblueeyes, please don’t take any personal offence to this, but I think comments and attitudes like the one displayed in your above comments is what gives volunteers a bad reputation with paid individuals. I know, because the same ideology/themes are alive and well where I volunteer. The general aura of your comments seems to try and evoke some sort of sympathy for volunteers because we give time out of our lives to help provide a service to the community. Make no mistake about it, no one is obligated to provide free services, its something many, including me, do by conscious choice. Because of this, I think it’s immature and inappropriate to try to hold volunteerism on some sort of pedestal. Furthermore, it’s clearly not fair of you to indirectly assert that volunteers have a much larger interest in providing patient care than does paid staff. Not only is it unfair, but it’s frankly a false statement. Speaking from my own experiences, if it was not for a paid Paramedic stationed at my volley house, the ambulance would rarely get out of the building and patient care would rarely be administered. Frankly, the only times that I could guarantee adequate personnel and equipment would be at some MCI, insanely huge fire or even a large MVA. Otherwise, your average volunteer could give a hoot about someone with chest pain. And this really speaks to why volunteer organizations suffer. You often have incompetent glory seekers staffing these agencies. Paid staff respond to every call, regardless of severity, they will be there, they will have a driver. That’s why I’m glad the community I live in (I volley outside where my “home” is located) has a paid EMS system, because other than myself and the people I have the honor to volunteer with, I would not want one person from that agency stepping foot in my house to initiate any form of care. At the end of the day, I feel strongly that feelings and comments like those above only hinder what the real goal is: provide the highest level of pre-hospital emergency care possible. Volunteers and paid staff need to work together. And today they don’t work together as well as they can because of pervasive attitudes like this. Who wants a know-nothing volunteer with extremely limited experience telling a well seasoned paramedic what to do? It’s uncalled for, and frankly I don’t blame those staff who have a distaste for volunteers because 99.99% of the time you can trace it back to the ignorance, stupidity, unprofessional, and glory seeking of some of the organization’s membership. I’m glad that the crew I ride with has a reputation for not tolerating stupidity, unprofessionalism and ignorance as well as having a positive working relationship with all of the Paramedics our district employs. Volunteering in an EMS agency isnt and shouldnt be like being a member of a collge frat or club, its not a social event. I don’t mean to brag, but this is how every crew and every organization should work. You don’t need to be receiving a pay check to be considered professional, its about the attitude you have, the commitment you make and the high standards you set for yourself.

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I don't think that the statement made by LilBlueEyes was putting volunteers on a pedestal. I do agree at times there is a different attitude between the "paid" people and the "volunteers", which I'm not saying agree with. Many times a "paid" person will refer to a call as a job, to them it is, personally I feel my job is 9-5 in an office.

I feel with whole issue started when a "paid" fireman was questioning a volunteer VAC. I am proud to say thay my agency was able to treat 807 people without getting paid.

I personally have grown up with "volunteering", and has played a huge part in my life, and I would never change that. It is nice to be able to help a friend, neighbor or family member in need, and not feel it is my JOB to do that. I do it because I want to, not to get paid.