you're in charge…..now what ? why does everyone hate me…an introduction to being an ems...

You're in charge…..now what ? Why does everyone hate me…an

introduction to being an EMS supervisor

How to survive as an EMS Supervisor or Manager

Help !!!!!!!! (yes….you are in charge and have to do something)

Why are you here today ?

• Organizations: Structure, Cultures & Behaviors

• Understanding and managing the C word (change)

• Communication 101• Leadership • Management tips• Conclusions

Stated simply - EMS tends to promote people who have been there the longest as opposed to those with managerial education or training

So how do you avoid the being a victim or example of the Peter Principle?

What is leadership ?› “..the ability to persuade through

process, or encourage through example, individuals with similar shared objectives to achieve outcomes”

~ Merriam Webster’s Dictionary

“Leadership is the art of getting someone else to do something you want done

because he wants to do it”

- Dwight D. Eisenhower

EMS is starving for leaders who have:› Vision› Passion/Energy› Integrity› Courage to take calculated risks

Honesty Competency Consistency Vision

“Every organization has a culture, that is a persistent patterned way of thinking of the central tasks and human relationships within an organization. Culture is to an organization what personality is to an individual.”

James Q. Wilson, 1989“Bureaucracy, What Government Agencies do

and why they do it”

All EMS agencies have a culture and no two are the same - it's what makes working with or for each EMS agency unique.

Organizational (or corporate) culture is the beliefs, values, and symbols that a company uses to define itself.› “How things are done around here."

A system that coordinates:› People› Jobs› Technology› Management

Practices

How are tasks assigned? Rules (SOPs/By-laws) Authority &

Responsibility› Is there always someone

steering the boat?› Is it the right person? Are

you the right person?

Do you know what to do?

Do you know your organization?

Do you understand the challenges of running it successfully?

Change› “..to make different in some

particular … to make radically different … to give a different position, course, or direction…”

~ Merriam Webster’s Dictionary

The only people who like change …

Change is universal…..› Has everyone in the room experienced

some degree of change in their EMS agency ?

› Is your agency the same as it was – 5 years ago? 10 years ago?

› Tell me about it

…But it is the most feared component of leadership› You need to be a “master of change.” › How you look at change will largely

determine how you react to it. › Change and challenge bring constant

opportunities to grow and improve.

Stage 1 – Unfreezing / UnlockingBreaking the habit, disturbing the

equilibriumLeads to uneasiness, feeling

frightenedResults in anger and defense of

status quo

Stage 2 - MovingReduce threat and break barriersProvide informationNew group identity

Stage 3 – Refreezing / Re-lockingNew feelings and responses

become comfortable for the individual and are reinforced by others.

Change now becomes status quo.

You are now in a leadership position› “Person in the Middle”› Expected to have a good working knowledge

of EMS tasks, as well as local, regional and state policies and procedures

You are the operational “bottom line”› Your decisions effect the people who work for

you and the patients that are treated by your EMS agency.

Trust Maturity Perspective Ability to escalate and de-escalate

Spoken Word 

Written Word 

Visual Images 

Body Language

Messenger with a message

Encoding Channel for

communication Receive receives

the message and decodes

The most important thing to do with:› People under you› People over you› People on the

same level as you

Language barriers Cultural barriers Organizational barriers

When taking action as a manager….ask yourself if it can pass the “mother test”› If your mother sees it in the local paper will

she make a copy and carry it in her purse to show all of her friends …

› or shred it, burn it, and then bury the remains?

Give your employees the benefit of the doubt › Get all the facts› Do not rush to judgment › Give people a chance to explain

If you didn’t write it, it didn’t happen….› The good….and the not so good….› Document !!! › Document !!!› Did I mention - DOCUMENT !!!!› And keep it !!

(*Calling Your Attorney)

Accept that every job has some element of politics and bureaucracy› Politics – the art or science of government;

the total complex of relations between people in society

› How many times have you heard or said the words, “I don’t want to get involved in politics.”

Take common sense steps to avoid mistakes› Always have someone else look over your

written work (memos, policies, etc)› Double check authority sources (federal,

state, regional, local) for updates before putting out “final” documents

› 24 hour rule – Don’t type angry

Everybody makes mistakes – you are going to as well. › Own up - figure out what went wrong -

move on! (yes, you read that right)› We call these “lessons”› Don’t dwell on what can’t be changed

Identify the key players:› Boss, secretary, predecessor, Medical

Director, office manager, etc. › Relationships – with those under you, on

the same level as you and above you - will make you or break you

› Employees are the key to your success› No one can do it alone

Mentor

You will need one or more Ideally, there should be a mentor in your

EMS agency who remembers what it's like to be a first-time supervisor, someone who makes themselves available.

Figure out how they got where they are, the choices they made and the obstacles they faced

“We’ve always done it like that.”

“That will never work here.”

“Because I’m the boss, that’s why.”

“You do your job and I will do mine”

Also, remember that in your capacity as a supervisor or manager there is no such thing as:› “Off the record...”› “We’re having a private conversation….”› “It’s just between us…..”

Don’t take criticism personally

Do not be vindictive Be contrite when you are

wrong Be fair

If it doesn’t feel right, don’t do it.

Take responsibility

Be critical of yourself in a constructive way (honest self - assessment is key to success)

Know your people – and apply them accordingly› Appoint talented administrators,

preferably stronger than yourself

Be 100 % committed to the organization› Embrace errors and learn from setbacks › Remove obstacles

Management is 10% education, 40% experience and 50% intuition

Its tough at the top - not easy to be a supervisor – even less easy in EMS.

It will get easier – I promise. (but never simple)

Books› First Time Manager

Lorin Belker and Gary Topchik› The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People

Stephen Covey

National Fire Academy (NFA) Classes› Advanced Leadership Issues in EMS› Management of Emergency Medical

Services

“Don't tell people how to do things, tell them what to do and let them surprise you with their results…”

~ George S. Patton

“The best executive is the one who has sense enough to pick good men to do what he wants done, and self-restraint to keep from meddling with them while they do it…”

~ Theodore Roosevelt

Thanks for listening

rbarishansky@gmail.com