This article is very useful and informative to every person who thought about being a paramedic. It is a FAQ about the job of paramedics and what they do on a daily basis. It inspires me a lot to write about this particular subject since I am very passionate about this job, and I am looking forward to doing it every day.
It is very rewarding to be a paramedic because you save lives on a daily basis. As a paramedic, you have to be really strong mentally in order to safely keep doing this job without having mental health issues such as depression. It is a really fun job considering you encounter new people every day and you help them.
Paramedics usually take care of patients in an emergency situation where someone needs urgent care and nee to be brought to a hospital quickly. However, you often get not urgent calls. For example, someone who fell and need help to get up or someone who feels weak since a week. Paramedics can give medication to someone in need, they can stop a bleeding, patch a wound and way more.
Every day is different from the last day, that's the beauty about this job. Even though you might have similar calls, they are all different from one another and there is a huge variety of different calls you might get.
Paramedics work for the city, although there are private companies, those are also financed by the state. You don't really have a variety of places to work at, they are all almost the same. Every company has its advantages but in the end, it is the same job.
To become a paramedic in Quebec, you have to go to CEGEP in a program called Pre-Hospital Emergency Care. It is a-3 year course and you are guaranteed a job when you finish.
Paramedics actually have the worst remuneration between emergency workers if you compare them to firefighters and police officers. The salary is between $43 000 when you start to $70 000 when you reach the top echelon.
Paramedics have to stay in good shape, they have to physically train during their career to maintain good muscles to help them move their patient. Also, there are changed in their protocol every 2 to 3 years, which means they need to have a formation every 2 to 3 years.
There are multiple dangers related to that career since you have to drive in emergency faster than the traffic and since you can cross red lights. Also, you have to intervene in situations where you might have to take care of a dangerous person, someone on drugs or even someone in a prison.
The chances of paramedics being replaced by robots are really low since you have to have a clinical judgment in order to save the injured. Furthermore, paramedics have to drive the ambulance faster than the established limits and see everything around them in order to proceed carefully. This job is very varied in its chores and very technical, which would make it hard for a robot to do it properly.
Usually, paramedics retire at the age of 55 to 60 if they want to have their full pension. Unfortunately, a lot of them tend to retire earlier due to injuries and sometimes mental health problem caused by the hardcore things you might see in that career. At that age, when you finish your career, you have seen every possible health problem, sickness and injuries a person can have, since you are on the front line.
To conclude, as of right now, in April 2021, I am currently finishing my second year of study. In August, I will be starting my third and final year in this program. Which mean, in about a year and a quarter I will be a paramedic. I am thrilled and really looking forward to it.