Community Forum Archive

The Epilepsy Community Forums are closed, and the information is archived. The content in this section may not be current or apply to all situations. In addition, forum questions and responses include information and content that has been generated by epilepsy community members. This content is not moderated. The information on these pages should not be substituted for medical advice from a healthcare provider. Experiences with epilepsy can vary greatly on an individual basis. Please contact your doctor or medical team if you have any questions about your situation. For more information, learn about epilepsy or visit our resources section.

Working As EMT With Seizure Disorder?

Sat, 09/27/2008 - 00:40

Is anyone here and EMT or Paramedic? I have some questions about how I can get a job in the field since I have partial seizures. And how or if I should disclose the info to potential employers.

I am an EMT-basic and just interviewed for a job with at a local ambulance service and it is a requirement that you know how to drive the ambulance. I was planning on just being going with BLS trucks and working in the back rather than driving, but they said they still wanted everyone to know how to drive. Problem is I have a seizure disorder and I really didn't want to disclose that to them. I stay alert and everything durning them, but feel kind of odd. Not so bad I wouldn't be able to do my job, but if I were to be driving I would have to pull over (its partial seizures, I stay aware enough to do that and can still do simple tasks during them). Should I tell them this info if they call me back to offer the job? My neuro hasn't reported me to the DMV, so I don't know how they would react or it they would then report me (can they do that?). Would that get my EMT licensing revoked? I really didn't want to drive in the first place because I get lost easily (I pretty much have directional dyslexia, so I even get lost in my city even though I have lived there for all 23 years of my life), then I panic when I get lost. I mentioned that part to them and they said that they have a few employees like that and it wasn't a problem. I was hoping that that would take care of me not driving, but apparently not. So how do I deal with this? Should I tell them about my condition or just leave it out? I've never had one while driving and they are fairly well controlled with meds. But driving the ambulance with it scares me, if I don't tell them and it happens, I could put a patient at risk because I couldn't get them to a hospital quickly due to me having to pull over and recover, I could lose the job, get my license (both EMS and drivers) revoked.

Thanks for any input! Oh, and just as a side note, I am not photosensitive or sound sensitive, so lights and sirens won't be a problem for me. I just get them whenever for unknown reasons.

Comments

Thank you

Submitted by It'sAboutHowHardYouCanGetHit on Fri, 2018-01-26 - 17:44
I just want to say thank you. I received, got diagnosed with epilepsy, and lost my firefighting job/scholarship all in 4 months when I was 17. Broke my heart I thought I would never have a real chance to get on a paid department again. Knowing stories like yours keeps me to strive and push forward past the ignorance. I can't tell you enough how much this has impacted me, thank you.

Sign Up for Emails

Stay up to date with the latest epilepsy news, stories from the community, and more.