Meghan is in college, but she works as an emergency medical technician – riding in ambulances and helping people. Meghan discussed with me some of the details about her job, what she does, and how she helps people.

What is the most exciting part of your job?
When a call comes in and we have to grab our stuff and jump into the ambulance, and race to the scene of an emergency, a car accident, fire, or ­anything really.

What is one interesting story from your job?
Every day is an interesting story. I deal with all kinds of patients in all kinds of situations.

Why did you choose to be an EMT?
I really like to help people, and I love having to work under pressure, knowing something’s at stake. I like knowing that what I do makes a huge difference in people’s lives.

What ways have you impacted someone’s life through your job?
I impact people directly every day, whether it’s ­doing CPR, giving someone oxygen, or helping bandage their wounds, but sometimes the impact I have can’t be seen and goes unnoticed to everyone but the person I help – like when I talk to someone who has a sick or injured family member.

Being a paramedic or EMT isn’t always about helping the injured person but also the family. Many times the family is as scared as the person who is ­injured, and we have to help them also. Often they don’t know what is going on, so we try to explain what is happening and answer their questions and concerns.

What do you do for your job and what exactly is it called?
I am an EMT-B, which is a emergency medical technician basic level. That means I drive ambulances or work in the back of an ambulance with patients.

What kind of education do you need?
To be an EMT it takes one semester of college, where you spend several hours in class doing book work. You also have clinical hours volunteering in an emergency room or on an ambulance practicing and learning skills.

What are some of the special abilities you need to do EMT work?
You have to be calm and collected in any kind of emergency. You have to help people when they are scared. You have to calm people down. In my line of work you need to know many medical skills, like how to start IVs, splint broken bones, bandage cuts and burns, perform CPR, and many others.

What is your salary?
It changes every day. As an EMT I get paid hourly, but depending on where I work, I may be paid per ambulance ride.

What is something you wish you had known before you got this job?
A lot of the time we sit around waiting for an emergency call to come in – it can get boring.

What do you like and dislike about your job?
I really like helping people. I really don’t like things I have to smell and clean up, like vomit and urine, to name a few.

Who would you like to thank for getting you where you are today?
My EMT teacher, Aaron. He was a great teacher and helped spark my passion for the medical field. His energy and love for his job as a paramedic and instructor was really inspiring. He has helped me so much and taught me many valuable lessons. I don’t know how I could repay him.