An emergency medical technician or more commonly referred to as an EMT, are an integral part of the health care field. They respond to many types of emergencies and perform a number of actions including offering care to a heart attack patient, gunshot wounds, splinting a possible fracture as well as many other scenarios. They offer various types of treatment to people at accident scenes and transport them to the hospital. Basically, they provide the appropriate medical careuntil the patient arrives at the hospital and the doctor is able to take over.
An EMT requires specialized training including licensing and certification, which usually varies with each state. Their certification will need to be renewed every few years. The EMT salary range can widely differ depending on the location. However, the working hours are typically more than 40 hours a week, so the salary will be higher due to overtime.
The basic EMT usually makes at least $14 or more per hour. Though you could earn more if you search for an area that pays a higher wage; you could be paid as high as $30,000 per year. If you choose the right employer from the beginning, you have a higher chance of being paid more as well. For instance, if you seek employment through your state administration, you will most likely be paid over $40,000 per year. Most EMTs receive an annual bonus totaling somewhere between $120 and $1200 as well.
The state in which you work also plays a role in the EMT salary. Some states simply offer a higher salary than others. States such as Hawaii and Alaska offer over $40,000 per year; similarly the city of Denver, Colorado is one of the highest paying cities in the United States, paying over $45,000 per year.
Overall, the more experience you have in the field, the higher the salary you will be paid. A new EMT that has at least 1 to 4 years of experience will start at about $23,000 per year; although, they can make between $25,000 and $40,000 per year. An EMT with at least 5 years of knowledge and practice will be paid somewhere in between $29,000 and $43,000. So, as you can see, the pay scale continues to increase with the number of years experience that has been acquired.
An EMT can increase their salary if they opt to complete further education and training in order to become a paramedic. Paramedics receive a much higher salary than an EMT. As an EMT, you will need to continue your education every year anyway in order to maintain your certification, so if you simply take a few extra courses, you can increase your salary greatly. It will prove to be a worthwhile investment of your energy as well as your time.
In order to become an EMT, you will need a high school diploma or GED. The EMT training generally consists of 3 levels. There is a level that is called EMT Basic・ This job description includes providing basic care for a patient at the scene of an accident and offering simple transport to the hospital. The EMT salary at this level is between $21,000 and $32,000. The second rank is called EMT Intermediate・ The duties at this level vary between each state. Their salary that is offered is between $23,000 and $34,000. Lastly, the highest level is the EMT paramedic・ They have the ability to provide a broad range of procedures. The salary at this top level is between $31,000 and $46,000 per year.
The Bureau of Labor expects the EMT jobs to increase by approximately 10% within the next 10 years. If you are in search of a new career or simply want to advance your current EMT salary and status, there is no time like the present to begin training within this career field.
