As mentioned earlier the response this blog has been getting has been incredible!!! Even reaching the national forefront, as you will very soon hear about:) Here is some more testimonials and interesting responses for those of you still interested in applying to the Cayman Islands EMS service and being highly courted by the slimeball fraudamedic EMS manager Stephen Anthony Duval:
Hey Mr. New York,
Stick it out and demand change? You mean like the two CEO's that the HSA has gone through? Each didnt last 6 months. Check out the online past issues of Cayman Compass and Cayman Net News. Change is feared and resisted with the HSA. That is why the Clinical Manager quit after repeated breach of his contract by the HSA. He wrote an entire set of protocols that defined a scope of practice for Basics, Intermediates, and Paramedics. But they were never approved. Nobody showed up at meetings to provide input. Medics don't show up at inservice meetings to learn about new progressive drugs being added to the ambulance.
Talk to the people who worked there over the past 10 years. Talk to somone who has worked there for 5+ years and admits that change will never happen with current management.
You are talking about a place that tells you in your interview that they want to rebuild their department, add CE's, develope protcols, etc. and then resist all the change they say they want. Then they tell you this is not California, Canada, UK, etc., and "go back to your own country white boy".
RESPONSE FROM EDITOR: I love it, the truth hurts, Stephen Anthony Duval, I'm still waiting for your certifications!!!!!! I guess I'm going to have to wait a little longer:)
Dear West Side,
Would you stay with a system that forces you to practice poor medicine? Would you push expired medications? Would you stay around and transport critical trauma patients to the only hospital, knowing that the hospital will sit on them for hours before calling an air ambulance to evacuate them Maimi? Would you want to work for an agency that even the physicians are jumping ship? Thats right. ER Doc's, and the HSA's ONLY cardiologist quit recently. It is career suicide working there.
Leaving the HSA has nothing to do with being a coward. It has to do with sticking up for your own rights, and values, and refusing to practice poor medicine in a counry that can more than afford to have nothing but the best, but refuse.
I work for an agency that demands excellence. We have pro-active physician advisors, a QA/QI process, and in depth protocols with progressive and liberal procedures and standing orders. An agency that takes pride in their patient care, and does not accept medics and emt's that don't. An agency that requires participation in CE's monthly, but schedules them at various times to meet the needs of all shifts. They pay for your expenses to go to conferences, classes, and other agency CE's. So that they know that they have emt's and medics that are up to date on their education. In Grand Cayman, none of this exists. Why work there? Out of dedication to tourists? I am of no good to touists there. The best thing they can do is have travel insurance, and demand an air ambulance back to the States, or wherever they are from.
Don't sit there and call people cowards, yellowbellies, and hypocrits. You have no idea what it is like to work there. You dont like it in LA, there are pleanty of other places to work, most of us have gone back to and found them. We initaited change, we cahnged where we worked, so that we could provide the quality care that we were trained to do.
RESPONSE FROM EDITOR: ahhhhhh! it gets better everyday.......
Eloquently stated! In addendum, I would also like to comment on this subject. In fairness to Mr. New York, it really is hard to believe that such poor circumstances can exist. While experiencing it first hand I would call home and tell my former crewmates the stories and not one of them could believe me. These people are not cowards or yellow bellies. They feel that EMS workers worldwide should be on alert when pondering the prospect of working in the islands, you should be thankful that you finally have a resource like this. Others were not as fortunate. If you hate your job so much and do not want to heed the warnings of this blog why don’t you apply for the job on Med Hunters? Hell, there are plenty of positions open, you should not be turned down! Your phone interview will consist of the HR and EMS managers telling you that they have a “unique and dynamic service” and that they offer training, CE, protocols and more. The contract you sign only applies to what you are expected to do, they can breach it AND the labor law at will. When they call you ask them to fly you down for a face-to-face interview, a tour, and a ride-along; after all, this is a rather big decision to make over the phone. Ask them for a copy of the protocols and their CE program. THERE IS A REASON THAT THEY CONDUCT PHONE INTERVIEWS; it is a bit difficult to see the whole picture through a telephone. Many of the local guys are expired and complain because the H.S.A. does not afford them the opportunity to recertify their credentials nor offer CE’s. Think about it, if these guys became nationally registered, they could recertify through CE via mail like most NREMT’s. If you do not want to take their word(s) for it, read the online newspapers www.caycompass.com and www.caymannetnews.com and see what the national newspapers are printing about the H.S.A. 5 ER nurses, 4 ER physicians, 3 cardiologists, 2 CEO’s, and well over 10 paramedics in the past 2 years can not be wrong. (these are just the only ones I know about)
RESPONSE FROM EDITOR: I'm still waiting for your certifications Stephen!!!!!!
