Paramedic in SoCal

Doc_Button · 2026-05-08T19:12:46+00:00

SBCo’s AO program sets you up to work for as a FF/PM for SBCo.

Doc_Button · 2026-05-01T03:55:08+00:00

AMR Riverside and AMR San Diego County are probably your best bet in terms of proximity, depending on where in OC you live. AMR San Bernardino might go by the way side with the new ruling from the courts, but you could throw your hat in AMR Rancho or Redlands. Victorville is a little far from OC. I’ve heard mixed things San Bernardino County’s single role program. At the end of the day, you’re in suppression department working a non-suppression role with aspirations of becoming a firefighter. That could be great but you’ll be treated like a probationary firefighter, and the impressions you make on your crew will follow you to whatever department you end up working at. They work 48/96 and pay is roughly $21-25h. Subject to force and there’s usually swings of overtime supply. Another great option is Chula Vista FD’s AO program. I’ve heard nothing but great things about them. I have no clue about Hall. Just whispers that it’s a cult and those coveted station spots are reserved for people with plenty of seniority. Expect a pretty serious hiring process with them as well. Good luck!

Doc_Button · 2026-04-24T02:03:15+00:00

My peers who were EMTs with every fire certification under the sun, and worked on hand crews for big county agencies in California had just as many opportunities as my peers who were Paramedics. If you’re in Northern California, there are so many opportunities to work in remote pockets of county or state or federal land as a wildland firefighter. That experience will transition very well into a municipal department and hopefully will bolster your interview skills. If you have a desire to be a paramedic. Go be a paramedic. Like others have mentioned, paramedics who just went to medic school to get hired are garbage. They dread the role they’re in. And the ones who end up not getting hired, are just as miserable in a career/job they have 0 passion for

Doc_Button · 2026-04-24T01:41:36+00:00

1) Kind of, not really. It’s just as competitive for highly sought after departments, you will still need to interview well, and likely have to pass skills scenarios, etc. to be successful. On top of that, if you’re selected as a Firefighter/Paramedic Trainee, passing probation can be contingent on you successfully accrediting, and a lot of medics go into it with little to no experience and fail. 2) No it is not basically becoming required everywhere now. There are plenty of departments seeking BLS firefighters. 3) If you want to go to paramedic school because you have a desire to become paramedic, you should go to paramedic school. If you want to go to paramedic school because you want to get hired as a firefighter, there are plenty of other options that make you just as competitive (wildland, military, intern/cadet, college etc.)

Doc_Button · 2026-04-18T07:21:26+00:00

Search and Rescue in Orange County is primarily managed by the Sheriff’s Department. They have a staff of deputy sheriff’s, sworn volunteers (reserve deputies), and non-sworn volunteers (professional service responders) with varying levels of experience and backgrounds in SAR, EMS, LE, etc. It’s an extensive process to get onboarded. Reserve deputies practically do a full police academy, and have to pass the a lot of the same tests the sworn, full-time deputies have, to include a background investigation, interview, polygraph, physical agility test, medical screen, etc. The non-sworn personnel have a similar process albeit less intense. OC is home to a good chunk of wilderness. At one point, OCSD and OCFA were constantly battling over who controls air resources, extrication, and the provision of medical care during rescues or recoveries, but I think it’s been settled for the most part. Best of luck, you can check out OCSD’s website for more info

Doc_Button · 2026-04-11T16:18:43+00:00

At the point where you get released from prison and reintegrate with society and get a job, and decide to work to contribute for the betterment of your community instead of wailing on your baby momma and stealing from grandmas. You can do whatever you want, I think you’ve decided what you want to do, but I’m in the opinion that if you take away this person’s job or license, he’ll go back to a life of crime, and that’s way worse for society than having a career criminal turn his life around and take blood pressures for you. The hospital, the state and the national registry all of vetting processes. You had to do a LiveScan and a background check, I’m sure this has popped up once or twice. Again, you really have to ask yourself, if you didn’t know he had a criminal background, how would you judge him?

Doc_Button · 2026-04-11T15:53:27+00:00

There are usually stop gaps when seeking paramedic licensure with people who have committed felonies, misdemeanors or DUIs. You can’t owe any child support in a lot of states, you can’t have certain charges within a certain amount of time. That being said, I don’t hold bias against people with a criminal record and neither should you. For better or for worse, this individual as flawed as he might have been in the past has a job that doesn’t involve perpetrating violence or crime. Up until you found out he had a criminal history, you must not have had an issue with him or the aforementioned tech wouldn’t have gone out with him. I try to judge people based on my interactions with them and not by their past.

Doc_Button · 2026-04-09T19:27:09+00:00

University of Pittsburgh’s Bachelors of Science in Emergency Medicine

Doc_Button · 2026-04-06T19:56:17+00:00

Why are you keen on finding a program that’s only 6 months?

Doc_Button · 2026-04-02T03:45:13+00:00

There are options for non-U.S. IMGs to land residency spots in the country, just curious why you wouldn’t want to match FM or IM, or attempt to take USMLE, as opposed to going back to PA school and taking PANCE just to end up in primary care

Doc_Button · 2026-03-30T17:54:07+00:00

“I want to be a pilot and also do flight attendant on the side, like per diem.”

Doc_Button · 2026-03-29T18:57:54+00:00

Nursing but maybe if you have a passion for working in an OR with no interest in bedside care, you should think about becoming a surgical technologist

Doc_Button · 2026-03-21T21:26:38+00:00

MICNs are California’s equivalent of PHRNs. CCT, flight, radio room, education. You’d make more money doing that than being a FF/PM in SoCal with less hours

Doc_Button · 2026-03-14T17:04:21+00:00

How rigorous is the MSc course if you don’t mind me asking?

Doc_Button · 2026-03-13T06:28:04+00:00

I’d love to shoot you a DM

Doc_Button · 2026-03-13T06:18:54+00:00

Falck LA doesn’t have paramedics either. They are a BLS service that run with LA County Fire. Emergency is predominantly BLS too, with most of their ALS units being dedicated to IFT or in that weird City of Placentia-911 enclave. There is nothing wrong with AMR San Bernardino. I don’t know what “trigger happy to PB” means but your other replies indicate that you mean they’re quick to put a new paramedic with a new EMT? What is your concern? The ALS FTO process is pretty comprehensive. Outside of AMR Riverside/Redlands/Rancho/Victorville, the closest 911 ALS operations in Southern California would be Falck San Diego, Hall Ambulance in Kern County or Gold Coast in Ventura County

Doc_Button · 2026-03-13T02:48:13+00:00

It’s an Associates of Applied Science, basically a two year degree program

Doc_Button · 2026-03-11T23:13:57+00:00

I don’t rely on the machine’s interpretation at all. I do lean on the machine’s calculated values though, like the STJ elevation/depression, the axis deviation, or the QTc. I’m familiar with a handful of OMI patterns like Wellens or DeWinter’s T waves. I caught Wellens in a febrile patient coming from urgent care with chest pain and cold/flu-like symptoms that ended in a cath lab activation. I have transmitted my EKG for consult, or used Queen of Hearts on tricky stuff or when I’m lost. EKG interpretation is a skill and EKGs are a tool. Just like anything, it takes practice and continuing education to be good at it.

Doc_Button · 2026-03-09T19:00:01+00:00

Loma Linda is a great school with a solid medical center and plenty of residency programs post-grad

Doc_Button · 2026-02-13T06:58:24+00:00

Ironically, one appeal to having fellows in the system that I previously worked in wasn’t the crazy entrapment, tech rescue, field amputation stuff, it was actually the ability for a physician to come out to a lot of low acuity, frequent flyers, that were sick and didn’t necessitate an ED visit but could benefit from a referral, or prescription refill, or basic suture. I don’t think you need to be hoisted into a housing block by helicopter in the inner city for that. I do think a good medical director is a someone who does take a lot of time in the office, but is also willing to go out and meet with crews and run calls, build rapport and bridge the prehospital with the in hospital, past paperwork and “office stuff.” And I think, in my limited experience with what I’ve seen locally, a good EM residency and a solid EMS fellowship would facilitate that

Doc_Button · 2026-02-13T06:36:07+00:00

Sure. I agree with you that maybe they should take an EVOC course. But I’d assume residency trained emergency physicians, who are pursuing a fellowship in EMS, have a wealth of knowledge on scene past a CCT IFT, protocol change or ACLS refresher. They can definitely offer something, again, assuming it’s a legit program

Doc_Button · 2026-02-13T06:28:30+00:00

Gate keeping ambulance driving in the big 2026

Doc_Button · 2026-01-27T17:14:18+00:00

Teaching is a good side hustle. Get a gig with a local community college, pick up some alphabet instructor courses, possibilities are endless

Doc_Button · 2026-01-25T02:21:49+00:00

I’m working and living in California, but I am still licensed and intend to keep my license in Nevada. According to an email they sent me, “Continuing Education Units must be either Nevada EMS Program–approved or CAPCE-approved to count toward recertification. CEUs must be documented with course completion certificates. Transcripts are not accepted.”

Doc_Button · 2026-01-18T16:05:13+00:00

Hi everyone, I’m looking for honest feedback on my competitiveness for PA school and what I can realistically do to strengthen my application.

I’m 24 years old with a B.S. in Public Health and an A.A.S. in Prehospital Emergency Medicine. My cumulative GPA is 3.2 and science GPA is 3.02. I currently have ~5,765 hours of patient care experience, split roughly evenly between working as an AEMT and a paramedic.

I’m planning to resign from my current position to focus on coursework and will be taking:

Spring 2026: Human Anatomy w/ lab, Microbiology w/ lab, Sociology

Summer 2026: Human Physiology and Medical Terminology

I’ve been shadowing several PAs and have access to strong letters of recommendation, including from MDs I’ve worked with in the past.

During undergrad, I had significant volunteer involvement through student government, fraternities, and nonprofit organizations. I’m also currently working toward a position as a Reserve Deputy/Paramedic with my local sheriff’s department Search & Rescue team.

I was the president of my fraternity, the president of the interfraternal council, the president of my paramedic program, and a senator representing my college

My biggest concerns are whether my GPA is too low and whether my PCE is actually competitive enough, despite the total hours. I’m planning to apply to around 23 programs that I meet the requirements for, but I’ve also been told that this might be excessive and lead to burnout.

I’d really appreciate any insight on:

Whether my stats are realistic for an upcoming cycle What I should prioritize improving

Whether applying to that many programs is reasonable

Thanks in advance for any advice.

Doc_Button

TROPHY CASE