FIRSTMED Ambulance Employee Reviews for Emergency Medical Technician

"First Med: The company that doesn't give a darn about its employees or their families."

What do you like about working at FIRSTMED Ambulance?

"The pay was good. The EMTs and Paramedics are good people and work hard. You never have to worry about seeing your boss because they never come to Richmond, they are 3-4hrs away."

Do you have any tips for others interviewing with this company?

"Don't do it unless you just need a few months work with some cash. There is NO career chances here and working there will not give you any benefits."

What don't you like about working at FIRSTMED Ambulance?

"I was an employee for almost 2 years and my biggest problem was there is no room for a promotion. Vacation and Sick time are only awarded after working for a full year, which is nearly impossible. There is NO acceptance for family excuses (ex/ Child illness, car accidents, family death, family emergency) If you call out and do not have a SIGNED doctors note or try to take time off when you are scheduled you are classified as Abandoning your shift and are terminated first offense. Time worked (Senior Status) Has NO effect on your position at the company. You will NEVER be promoted unless you become friends with someone, the management in place is just a Click of friends who watch for each other and don't care about anyone else. The average time working for First Med is about 3-6months before you are terminated. The company has NO management in area and there are NO warning for mistakes. First time offense is grounds for termination. In a medical field supplies are key! So are working trucks! First med has NEITHER! Expect to get called in being told your truck is not working and to stay home and miss a day of work at least one to five times a month. They dont fix trucks when problems happen they wait till it breaks down totally. Supplies take weeks or even months to get. ALS trucks went WEEKS without monitors and BLS trucks find themselves without oxygen and tubing due to lack of supplies. The closest thing you have to management are Lieutenants which are stationed at the office but because of SEVERE lack of employees they are normally found on the streets running calls. The next closest thing you have would be the Personnel Manager 3-4hours away on the other side of the state. If you call don't expect an answer, they will NOT answer the phone if its a richmond area code calling. The dispatch that is responsible for the Virginia area is located in North Carolina and has no clear mapping of the area. So dispatched calls come randomly and are normally long distance and unneeded. You will find yourself being told to go across town to a facility while another truck at that facility is told to go to the one your near. Company policies only matter if they effect an EMT or Paramedic. Dispatchers and Management are IMMUNE to any policy disputes.The fact is if you apply you WILL be hired. However you will not work there for long. On average there are 2-3 firings a month, Sadly that is not an over-exaggeration."

What suggestions do you have for management?

"There is no management really to give suggestions to. They are just a bunch of people who sit at a desk and pretend to be important. They should answer the phone when employees call them. They should be located in the area."