CEO Update: September 15, 2023

State EMS Council

This week, Alicia and I attended the NYS State EMS Council meetings along with many other representatives from our region. Throughout the summer, I had the opportunity to work on The NYS EMS salary survey with the finance committee that worked to gather comprehensive insights from participants across all regions. At the State Council meeting, the Finance Committee was able to present the key findings of the survey: 

• Participation Rate: The survey achieved a 10% return rate, with active participation from EMS professionals across the state, ensuring diverse input. 
• Career Attrition: Alarmingly, 37% of respondents expressed their intention to exit the EMS field within the next five years. This highlights a pressing challenge in retaining talent within EMS while recruiting new providers. 
• Workload: A significant majority, 73%, reported working more than 40 hours per week, indicating the demanding nature of EMS roles and their impact on work-life balance. 
• Exploring Other Healthcare Paths: A substantial 68% of participants admitted to considering a transition to a different healthcare profession. This suggests a willingness to explore alternative career avenues within healthcare and the need to find ways to retain the current providers. 
• Reasons for Departure: When asked about their reasons for planning to leave EMS, respondents cited inadequate pay/benefits (65.7%) and the availability of better job opportunities outside of EMS (51.3%) as the primary factors contributing to their departure decisions. 

These findings underscore critical challenges in the EMS sector, including the need for addressing compensation and benefits, as well as creating more attractive career pathways to retain EMS professionals and maintain a high level of service quality in emergency medical care.

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