I only see 4?

Then I get to leave… and my motivation begins…..

I am a Volunteer. After my day job I go home, eat a meal and turn my pager on, call dispatch and check in available. Then a smile fills my face. Be it a slow night with no calls or the night that never seems to end with so many calls you wonder what the hell is going on. Yet the smile remains firmly affixed to my face.

Its because of the fact I know that at a moments notice, at someone’s worst possible moment, I will be there to lend assistance. Be it the new mother that doesnt know alot about children and called because baby was caughing alot to the frantic wife that found her husband unresponsive on the floor. I am the one there to help. Sometimes it doesn’t turn out well other times its the happiest day in everyone’s life. But yet I have a smile. I know it is because someone somewhere instilled in me a sense of purpose for the greater good.

My motivation is just to help. Im not in it for the glory or the headlines, hell most times I don’t even hear thank you. Sometimes I get cursed at, spit on, or yelled at. Yet the smile remains. It is because I know that once the person has a chance to reflect on what happened or why, they will know I did them a service that few else would do. With passion and without judgment I did what was required to help. Even though a situation may make me an emotional wreck inside I smile to reasure the patient. My smile is my medicine.

The motivation should always be the patient, not the money or the glory or the pats on the back and the atta boys. The patient IS the motivation. To make him or her or even their families know that the best possible treatment will be and is being given, their rights will be and are respected, and sometimes unfortunatly it doesn’t work out but I will be a shoulder to cry or wail on.

I haven’t been in EMS very long but I know that as long as I feel this way I will stay motivated, my patients will be better off for it, and that my smile will still be on my face =)

So… that leaves the patient. They are my inspiration, my motivation. In the best case scenario they inspire me to test my skills to the limit. On the other end to rise above anger and frustration. It may sound corny but like the old sterotypical answer to the question why did you get into EMS, My motivation is to help people. No matter what form that help takes. At the end of a call I need to be able to say my patient is better off because I was there.

I’m fortunate to work with some very well paid people in my full time job. Several of them are very highly respected industry-wide in their field, and very poorly motivated, and will work harder and spend more time avoiding work than just doing their work would take.

I heard the great philosopher Mike Row say the other day “don’t follow your passion, take it with you.”

I work for one of the cooperate behemoth ambulance companies. The managers here are more concerned with protecting their money stream, than patient care. I have not been in management, but I believe that cooperate offers monetary incentives for performance for managers.

I have always said there are two types of people in “Management”, there are managers and there are leaders. The leaders will let you try new ideas and let their people think freely. Managers just want to meet the predicted volume goals with no regard for the line workers.

You want people to be motivated? Encourage them to bring new ideas to you, encourage open communication. I am not a pack mule, carrots on strings will never motivate me to be creative. Make me feel like the job i do is valuable to the company.