The Advantages of Being a Locum Paramedic

Are you thinking of becoming a Locum Paramedic?

Being a Paramedic is an extremely rewarding job, but it can be stressful, with long and often unsociable hours. If you’re a Paramedic who loves your job, but wish you had a better work / life balance, moving to Locum / agency work may be the answer.

Flexibility

There has been an increasing shift towards Locum work for Paramedics in the UK, as being in charge of when and how you work and who you work for, including choosing shifts and location, is a big draw when it comes to choosing between permanent work and Locum work.

Working as a Paramedic in a permanent role can often mean set hours and shifts, which doesn’t give much room for flexibility, whereas moving to working as a Locum Paramedic gives you greater control over how you balance your work and life. This is especially handy if you want to arrange your work around other commitments such as family life and holidays.

Variety

Being able to choose from a wide variety of contracts is another plus for many Paramedics, offering the chance to work in varied settings for all-round experience. And with the right healthcare recruitment agency, you get all the hard work of finding these contracts done for you, with new opportunities given as they arise.

Whilst the majority of Paramedic jobs are with the NHS (via the local Ambulance Trust), there are other public and private employers of Paramedics including private ambulance services, the prison service, the armed forces, events companies (overseeing public gatherings such as sporting events and festivals) and oil/gas exploration companies. A good agency will deal with a variety of jobs, giving you the choice and scope you need. For example, at ID Medical, we currently have Locum Paramedic opportunities in both public and private organisations including quarantine hotels/ staffing hotels around major airports, frontline Ambulance work, repatriation work, vehicle cohorting work as well as placements in emergency departments across the country.

A personal approach

As a Locum Paramedic, it is important that you get what you want from your work, which is why working through a healthcare recruitment agency – that will take into account your skills, experience and qualifications in order to match you with the right roles – is crucial. We do all this and more; including looking at preferred locations, shifts, availability and any other requirements that need to be taken into account. We also understand that convenient and easy to access communication is key, which is why we can, for example, communicate with you via WhatsApp to let you know what shifts are coming up, and, we’re available 24/7 so you can contact us at a time that works for you. 

Pay

Rates of pay for Locum Paramedics are also extremely competitive and at ID Medical, we’re committed to sourcing the best available rates of pay, which is paid automatically and efficiently, daily, weekly or monthly depending on the contract.

We hope our blog helped answer any questions you had on becoming a Locum Paramedic and if you’re interested in finding out about our latest opportunities, please get in touch. Our specialist Recruitment Consultants can help you find roles and shifts that fit around your needs, with 1-2-1 support and guidance at every step of the way.