Iv been with the fire department for 7 years now and have only had my EMT for 4 years. Iv just started my fourth year as an EMT.
Between work and other things that have to be done it is very difficult to keep up with the fire department and the EMT stuff. I have been laying low for the past few months.
I would really like to get into the more advanced stuff but like you said work unfortunately comes first as Volunteering don't pay the bills. I have been lucky enough to be able to get alot under my belt though.
I got First Responder certification because me and a fellow firefigher talked the Safety Director at work into paying us to take the class. There are a couple of other guys (5 total) that were allowed to take the class, with pay, that were non firefighters. The class was held by my Fire dept so it was just another day in the classroom for me but the other guys got alot out of it. All of them passed with flying colors which gave me a sense of pride cause I hand picked them.
This is one reason, a really big reason, that I'm still with the company I work for. They are open to new ideas and not afraid to take steps to advance in safety.
Now, if somebody has an accident, there is at least one trained person on all 3 shifts to handle the incident until the ambulance responds. This includes the use of AEDs, of which there are a total of 6 located around the quarry, as well as backboards, jump bags and O2.
I am currently in the process of getting a High Angle Rescue class together as well as Confined Space Recue. Our busy season is about to hit so this could be a challenge but my Safety Director assured me that its a priority step for the better of the safety of the employees. We shall see. :usa