Emergency Medical Technicians

EMTs must work under all kinds of conditions, both indoors and outdoors, and sometimes in very trying circumstances. They must do their work regardless of extreme weather conditions and are often required to do fairly strenuous physical tasks such as lifting, climbing, and kneeling. They consistently deal with situations that many people would find upsetting and traumatic, such as deaths, accidents, and serious injuries.

EMTs usually work irregular hours, including some nights, weekends, and holidays. Those working for fire departments often put in 56 hours a week, while EMTs employed in hospitals, private firms, and police departments typically work a 40-hour week. Volunteer EMTs work much shorter hours.

An additional stress factor faced by EMTs is concern over contracting HIV or other infectious diseases from bleeding patients. The actual risk of exposure is quite small, and emergency medical programs have implemented procedures to protect EMTs from exposure to the greatest possible degree; however, some risk of exposure does exist, and prospective EMTs should be aware of this.

In spite of the intensity of their demanding job, many EMTs derive enormous satisfaction from knowing that they are able to render such a vital service to the victims of sudden illness or injury.

About 66 percent of EMTs surveyed by PayScale.com in 2024 reported that they were satisfied with their careers.