I have done between 20-30 careers fairs and open days to
promote the ambulance service. Some events have attracted school leavers and young
university applicants, whereas others have attracted a much broader range of (older)
people with much more life experience who also have an interest in joining the
ambulance service.
As a member of ambulance staff, engaging with visitors at
careers events can provide an excellent way to indulge my ambulance geekiness,
and boast of the equipment and heroics provided by ambulance staff every day.
It also makes sure I can reply competently to a range of questions; what does that do? What’s the worst thing
you’ve ever seen? Do I need to be able to drive? What if I don’t look good in
green?
Most people I speak to fall into three broad categories.
First are those with a serious determination to join the
ambulance service; this group have already done their homework and provide a
thrilling challenge to speak to and support their passion. Hungry for success,
they can seamlessly talk about a variety of healthcare issues which stands them
in good stead for an interview, and shows a commitment that will help them
through the challenging times of ambulance training.
The second category, and most commonly seen among younger
people, is those with a pleasing interest in the ambulance service, but regrettably
are heavily reliant on their parents to ask the questions and demonstrate their
interest. For me, this group ring alarm bells as I generally don’t feel they
have the personality to successfully pass a selection interview and will also
struggle to engage with patients while on placement. By all means bring your
parents or partner and let them be part of the event, but remember you need to
lead it!
The third group are those who don’t yet know if they are truly
interested in an ambulance service career, but are there for a look round and
willing to be persuaded. As a representative of the profession, this can be a
really exciting group to work with; if I do manage to ignite a passion I can
feel proud I was the spark that started it all. I have now met a few qualified
ambulance staff who have approached me and thanked me for the initial conversation
several years before.
5 common behaviours among those who I feel are serious
candidates and have the potential to be great ambulance clinicians are:
·
Diverse work and voluntary experiences
Being a member of St John Ambulance or
working in a supermarket at weekends is fantastic, and will help demonstrate
some relevant life experience which is appealing to recruiters. However, bear
in mind many, possibly even the majority, of applicants for ambulance service
jobs will also have similar experiences. There is ALWAYS someone who has done
more St John Ambulance than you, so joining it at 16 to bolster a student
paramedic application can pale into insignificance compared to other
candidates.
Therefore, do as much additional activity
as you possibly can, so you build up plenty of interview-ready knowledge and
understanding. It’s getting harder to get work experience in the NHS where you
get to actually see patients, but friends and family who work in health and
social care might be happy to speak to you, or invite you to their office for a
look round.
Aim to be able to talk to an interview
panel about something relevant to the ambulance service, but which they are
unlikely to have heard much about before, because it will help them remember
you. Perhaps a placement with an Occupational Therapy team, working with a
committee on a project which has national significance to your voluntary
organisation or having a special responsibility at your Saturday job will give
you a unique angle to mention in an application.
·
As academically qualified as possible
There are lots of routes into the ambulance
service. It seems consistently seems that the least frustrating way to progress
is to have a complete set of GCSEs at grade C and above, three good A levels
with a science focus, and ultimately having a degree in Paramedic Science. If
you don’t have these, it’s not necessarily a barrier to being offered a place,
or to eventual progression, but you will need to spend potentially years
catching up with competing candidates who already have the pre-requisite
qualifications.
Do yourself a favour and try pass the exams
the first time round, and always keep your foot on the gas when offered the
chance to study. You will fail some things, but that’s ok as long as you’ve
lots of other qualifications to help people have faith in your ability to learn,
and you’ve only needed to do minimal retakes.
·
Understanding of the ambulance service, and what
it might look like in the future
We keep 50% of patients out of the
emergency department and have a huge role in the assessment, management and referral
of patients in the community with a level of autonomy only doctors had a few
years ago. Interviewers want to know you understand modern ambulance work, and
can contextualise it with the traditional heart attack and road accident role
of the ambulance person.
If you’re 18 now, and plan to complete a
Paramedic Science course as soon as possible, you might be qualified in 2021.
If you stay with the ambulance service for your whole career, that means your
retirement party is going to be sometime in the late 2060s! Applicants need to
anticipate what the future might hold, how they are going to prepare for it and
consider what they will be able to contribute to the ambulance service’s
continued success.
·
Well read; engaged with ambulance professionals
on social media
People are trying to help you. There are
online opportunities to engage with medical professionals from around the world;
some will have been in your exact situation and have experiences similar to
yours. Facebook groups, Twitter conversations and blogs provide a valuable and
current insight into the ambulance service. You don’t have to spend any money,
travel or have special qualifications to get involved. A little bit of social
media activity learning about the ambulance service done every day quickly
builds to a wealth of knowledge that you can discuss at interview and
demonstrate considerable credibility. Social media is a great way to find out
about ambulance service developments, controversies and build relationships
with all sorts of people that might be able to help you with your career.
·
Put themselves out there
Joining the ambulance service isn’t
easy. It’s a complex and politicalised organisation of dedicated professionals
trying their hardest to do a difficult job in challenging circumstances. You
study not to pass the exam, but to be ready when you’re the only person between
the patient and the grave. You need to prove that your worthy of being part of
it because lots of people will tell you that you’re not.
It will mean getting up early to
attend university fairs hundreds of miles away, spending your own money on courses,
dedicating endless hours of your time to pouring over applications and making
the effort to connect with admissions tutors, managers and recruiters who all
want to help the right candidate who is willing to prove themselves. Many of
these experiences will be fruitless, but you only need one `yes` to make it all
worthwhile.
Overall, to even get your foot in the door of the ambulance
service it can take years of commitment, even when there is no promise of a job
at the end of it. Keep focused. Work hard.
Matt Green
@MLG1611
April 2017
@MLG1611
April 2017
