Which Island

[austin.in.texas]

Sorry to waste your time on this question. i will be moving to hawaii as a EMT/Paramedic in about a year. my question is, i not for sure which island to move to. i cant afford to go to all of them before i move so im doing as much research as possible. i know certain islands have a better chance of me getting a job so. if u have any feedback at all i would appreciate it. Thanks

[WindwardOahuRN]

Sorry to waste your time on this question. i will be moving to hawaii as a EMT/Paramedic in about a year. my question is, i not for sure which island to move to. i cant afford to go to all of them before i move so im doing as much research as possible. i know certain islands have a better chance of me getting a job so. if u have any feedback at all i would appreciate it. Thanks


EMT's don't make all that much money here. Barely a living wage. A bit more if they have advanced certification. I've talked to many and their chief complaint is the low pay.

http://www.honolulu.gov/esd/ems/emsemply.htm

Make sure you have a job secured before you move here. I've heard horror stories about EMT's whose mainland training and certifications were not accepted by Hawaii agencies.

[austin.in.texas]

i am speaking with them right now about that. lets say everything goes thru and i can work there, what island do u think i should move too. lets just say i can get a job on most of them?? thanks for the feedback

[craigwatanabe]

Let's see:

Kauai - My cousin's an EMT there, he loves it, wages suck.

Oahu - Lotsa action there, expensive living, wages suck.

Maui - Getting to be like Oahu, wages suck.

Molokai - Did you enjoy watching that old show Green Acres? wages suck.

Lanai - Ditto that for Molokai. Wages suck.

Big Island - ETA's make for many fatalities so your job will be challenging here. Oh and wages suck.

A garabage man makes more than an EMT. Nuff said.

[helen]

If you prefer the urban lifestyle then Oahu is the island you want to go to. On the other hand if you want the rural lifestyle then Oahu is still a valid choice since there are some rural communities on Oahu.

[WindwardOahuRN]

Let's see:

Big Island - ETA's make for many fatalities so your job will be challenging here. Oh and wages suck.

.

A bit of a veer OT but what the heck.

I regularly work with one of the best trauma surgeons on Oahu.

We were discussing the ETA's re: trauma airlifts from the neighbor islands to Oahu. Specifically Queen's, of course. Seems they have done a study.

FIVE DAMN HOURS.

Forget the "Golden Hour" stuff.

[WindwardOahuRN]

i am speaking with them right now about that. lets say everything goes thru and i can work there, what island do u think i should move too. lets just say i can get a job on most of them?? thanks for the feedback


Jeez. What is important to YOU?? PUHLEEZE do not respond with "Oh it doesn't matter----I'll be in HAH-WHY-EEEEEEE!!!"

T'anks. :D

[craigwatanabe]

A bit of a veer OT but what the heck.

I regularly work with one of the best trauma surgeons on Oahu.

We were discussing the ETA's re: trauma airlifts from the neighbor islands to Oahu. Specifically Queen's, of course. Seems they have done a study.

FIVE DAMN HOURS.

Forget the "Golden Hour" stuff.

Now imagine from the moment of trauma on the Belt Highway, one-hour for first response, another hour for ETA then the trip to Oahu. I'm sorry but out here you better have good life insurance cuz you'll bleed to death on a flesh wound before you'll get adequate medical attention.

[WindwardOahuRN]

Now imagine from the moment of trauma on the Belt Highway, one-hour for first response, another hour for ETA then the trip to Oahu. I'm sorry but out here you better have good life insurance cuz you'll bleed to death on a flesh wound before you'll get adequate medical attention.

Oh I know. Not exactly what you are referring to, but along the same lines--- many's the time we have been given the ETA for an airlift arrival, been re-advised as to ETA, been re-advised yet again, then gotten the call that the transfer has been cancelled.

No, the patient did not miraculously get better....:(

I honestly think I would go crazy with the delays on the neighbor islands. I am a wham-bam-thank-you-ma'm kinda nurse. NOW NOW NOW or even faster. It's an ICU mentality that I cannot shake. It is what I think all patients have a right to, something I would fervently hope my loved ones would receive if, God forbid, they should need it.

[Miulang]

And it's just as bad on Maui: with only one major hospital on the island (which now mercifully also has some ability to take care of emergent things like heart attacks with the brand new wing they built), being on Maui with a life-threatening condition pretty much dooms you because first you have to get to MMH, then after the diagnosis and referral, you have to wait for the air ambulance and then it's the transport to whichever hospital in Honolulu that will do the specialty care. Healthcare on the Neighbor Islands reminds me of what it's like for people who live in the rural areas of Alaska...you better stay healthy, because your life could depend on it!:eek:

WORN: Is there only one EMSS for the whole State? I know Kapiolani CC offers EMT training, but where do most of those EMT's go once they get their certification? I couldn't find any job vacancies on the state site for EMTs (there was a position as an instructor at KCC, though). Up here in Seattle, each County has its own system (funded through county-specific taxes) and we have Medic One units attached to most of the larger fire stations. The response time is generally less than 15 minutes (I live withiin 5 minutes of 2 Medic One units).

Miulang

[austin.in.texas]

So being that it is hard to get a job there as a EMT, do u think the big island is a better chance for me?? i no the wages are gonna suck. they suck anywhere, honestly. Here in Austin, tx, EMT start out as $7.5 to $9.5 an hour, so i expected that.

[Miulang]

So being that it is hard to get a job there as a EMT, do u think the big island is a better chance for me?? i no the wages are gonna suck. they suck anywhere, honestly. Here in Austin, tx, EMT start out as $7.5 to $9.5 an hour, so i expected that.

Tack on an additional "surcharge" of about 20% to anything you might consume (from clothing to food to gas for the car) and then try to figure out if you could live on $9.50/hour. The cost of living is less on the Big Island but you might not be able to get a job as an EMT. So is your goal to live in Hawai'i regardless of the kind of job you get, or to find a job as an EMT?

Miulang

[WindwardOahuRN]

WORN: Is there only one EMSS for the whole State? I know Kapiolani CC offers EMT training, but where do most of those EMT's go once they get their certification? I couldn't find any job vacancies on the state site for EMTs (there was a position as an instructor at KCC, though). Up here in Seattle, each County has its own system (funded through county-specific taxes) and we have Medic One units attached to most of the larger fire stations. The response time is generally less than 15 minutes (I live withiin 5 minutes of 2 Medic One units).

Miulang

Honestly, Miulang, I don't know. From what I see, nearly all the EMT's here are local men and women. Maybe there are "inside" postings. Perhaps KCC has the inside track?

One thing I have heard, more than once, is that the KCC training is the "gold standard" as far as hiring goes here. Mainland applicants have been more or less shut out by the very specific requirements of the EMS placements here. That's why I advised the potential Texas transplant to make sure he has a bonafide job offer before he moves to Paradise. :)

[craigwatanabe]

The Big Island can be a frustrating place for EMT's as a lot of it will be drug or alcohol related. I think you'd be better off being a coroner.

A bit OT but my mother fell backwards off of a chair onto a tiled floor. The lump on the back of her head was about the size of an orange so I whisked her to Hilo Hospital in the ER. We waited almost six hours until she was the next to be seen. Then some guy comes running in with his arm bandaged up and dripping a lot of blood. Apparently he was trying to cut a tree limb with a Sawzall (reciprocating saw) and slipped sawing his arm instead.

At that point the swelling had diminished and my mom was still coherent so I told the nurse I was taking my mom home. She said once admitted she couldn't let her go without her seeing someone.

At that point I flipped! WE'VE BEEN WAITING A QUARTER OF THE DAY FOR SOMEONE TO SEE HER. I told her I'm taking my mother home where she can rest comfortable in her bed instead of having to sit in that freezing waiting room in uncomfortable seats. She's in her 70's.

The nurse came out from behind her desk demanding that we stay. I told her to sue me and we walked out. Man I was pissed. I understand Triage but she wasn't even looked at initially. What if she had some internal bruising or bleeding from that fall? Six hours of waiting could have killed her if it was any worse.

It's bad out here in Hilo and sometimes an ambulance call is the only way to find good medical care at a moment's notice.

[Miulang]

I guess an alternative job could be working for one of the private ambulance services. I know AMR operates in Hawai'i. Of course, private ambulance companies usually only transport patients between hospitals or nursing homes so you generally wouldn't get to do any of the neat heroic stuff like filling someone with Ringer's lactate and epinephrine or thumping someone's chest like you do as a medic.;)

Miulang

[austin.in.texas]

if i could get a job as a EMT or a Medic, i would be happy doing anything. if i started working for a nursing home i wouldnt care. im not saying i would want to stay doing that but its a start. i completely understand locales getting the job before me, it would suck but i would be understanding as long as that person was more qualified or the same as me. i know its going to be tuff but im gonna try to figure it out. thanks again for all the posts

[Miulang]

if i could get a job as a EMT or a Medic, i would be happy doing anything. if i started working for a nursing home i wouldnt care. im not saying i would want to stay doing that but its a start. i completely understand locales getting the job before me, it would suck but i would be understanding as long as that person was more qualified or the same as me. i know its going to be tuff but im gonna try to figure it out. thanks again for all the posts
Why don't you take it one step further and get an RN license? There's more opportunity for nurses than EMTs ANYWHERE in the country, and they get paid better, too.

Miulang


P.S. Unfortunately, sometimes in the "real world", "who" you know is more important than "what" you know.:o

[austin.in.texas]

i have thought about that too.im still not sure what i am going to do yet but that is why i am trying to do as much research as possible before i go. it will be at least a year before i go. i want to have at least 8 grand saved up. so in your experience in living in hawaii, which island do u like the best or you would recommend me trying out first?? i no its a hard choice but whats comes to your mind first, like i said, thanks again to everyone