Volunteerism

This week, co-host Chris Cebollero and I welcome EMS1 columnist Nancy Magee to the Guest Table, where we discuss the issues facing volunteer EMS, from funding and leadership to recruitment and retention. Nancy is prepping for her workshop at EMS World Expo in New Orleans, and she wants to make the content as responsive as possible to the concerns of ...

… Nancy Magee has a new column up on EMS1. Six Cultural Changes Made By Successful Volunteer Agencies Read, share with your colleagues.

… Nancy Magee has a new column up on EMS1. “For some volunteer EMS agencies, failure to evolve and a willingness to lower standards to the lowest common denominator out of desperation to fill the roster are the beginning of the end. Cultural stagnation and a focus on interpersonal dissent and drama are the hallmarks of a dying organization. Low ...

… there’s a new episode of the Inside EMS podcast where co-host Chris Cebollero and I discuss the latest EMS news, and address a listener’s question on whether a separate certification standard should be developed for volunteer EMS. TL;DR version: Not just no, but hell no. On the other hand, much of my opinion on volunteer EMS has changed over ...

You see them at EMS conferences all the time. Invariably, they’re wearing tee shirts with their squad’s logo, or a jumpsuit festooned with merit badge patches, and sometimes they’re wearing their department pager, even though they’re a hundred miles or more from home. You can spot their cars in the parking lot, because many of them have half the Gall’s ...

… Episode 10 of the Inside EMS podcast is available on EMS1, our RSS feed, and iTunes. Last week we taped a portion of the podcast on location at the Connecticut EMS Expo, and we had the opportunity to talk with a handful of attendees on our topic this week: Is volunteerism good for the future of EMS? My take ...

EMS volunteer squads are like a battered wife, covered in bruises and scared of her own shadow, stuck in an abusive relationship with Small Town America.* Because, if you ever suggest that perhaps their town could and should pay them for their services, but never will as long as they're willing to provide them for free, they're all, "B-b-but I ...