What is the minimum age required to join?
Full active members must be 18 years or older. A valid, “clean” driver license is also required..
The squad also supports a very active Explorer Post program for High School Students who maintain at least a C average.
What is the minimum training required to join?
To begin as a probationary attendant, a valid CPR for the Health-care Provider certificate plus a valid Standard First Aid certificate is required (American Red Cross, National Safety Council, American Heart Association, Etc.).
The squad sponsors these courses about every eight weeks.
The classes are offered to new and prospective members as well as outsiders.
What training do members receive?
To maintain our standard of care, the squad conducts training throughout the year, normally the first Wednesday of each month. Topics include:
CPR, professional.
Preventing disease transmission.
Vehicle rescue techniques.
Pediatric respiratory emergencies.
Defibrillation training.
EKG, 12 lead training.
Lung sounds.
Water rescue, and others.
You are invited to stop by at 8pm on the first Wednesday of the month to sit in.
When are the regularly scheduled meetings held?
The squad conducts training the first Wednesday of each month.
Business meetings are held the third Wednesday of each month (except July and August).
You are invited to stop by at 8pm on these nights to meet the squad and get more information.
How often are members “on duty”?
Members are expected to be on duty with a regular evening crew, one evening per week, from 6 PM to 6 AM or be available to respond to calls during the day, Monday through Friday. Members also serve on a crew one weekend shift per month.
The squad responds to over 2,000 calls per year. Most members respond to 100 or more calls per year.
Where do members wait for a 911 call?
Members receive uniforms, pagers and portable radios. “On duty” members usually stay at home or anywhere in town. It is not necessary to stay at the building.
After the 911 dispatcher sends an alert signal known as “tones” to all squad member pagers, the duty crew communicates via the radios and determine where all responding members will meet. Most crews meet at the building and respond to the scene together. With our new building on Henderson Road, crews will assemble according to the location of the call.
Are members compensated?
All members are volunteers so nobody is paid for their service. This is true for most EMS and Fire Departments in New Jersey. Advanced Life Support Paramedics are employees of certain hospitals such as Robert Wood Johnson.
Are there any other rewards?
Voters approved a pension plan for EMS volunteers who meet certain length of service requirements. Also, the state legislature is reviewing a number of other reward programs including college tuition reimbursement and others.
What are “new” members expected to do?
All crews are headed by a chief with a minimum of one-year of experience and certified to the EMT level.
New members are never expected or asked to do things they are untrained for or are uncomfortable with.
New members begin by documenting facts about the patient; by retrieving equipment from the ambulance as requested by the crew chief; or by driving first back from the hospital and then eventually to the hospital.
Again, no one does things they are not ready for but the minute you are ready, the challenge is there!