Life on an Ambulance (and other stuff)

Happy 4th of July

2009-07-01T10:17:00.016-04:00

Happy 4th of July!!

I hope everyone has a safe and wonderful holiday. Make sure you are careful with the little ones with sparklers, fireworks, matches, etc. Make sure they are supervised at all times. Also make sure you are watching the little ones around the pool. The last thing you want to do is end up having to call 911 or in the ER.

While all of you are enjoying your holiday guess where I will be - that's right on the ambulance. It's alright, it seems this last year if there is a holiday it is on my shift to work. But hey at least its overtime pay for working the holiday.

Yes, I still have my paramedic student and OMG he is driving me batty. He wants to start IVs on patients that don't need them (non-traumatic low back pain) but I have to tell him to start an IV on a patient that has passed out or had a seizure or has been drinking for 5 days straight and has decided that he wants to go to detox.

We had a nice long talk last week and he is doing better, however he better step up to the plate because I think he only has 9 more rides left. Big improvement or no graduate. I hate to do that to anyone, but I cannot with good conscience pass someone who cannot do the job. If I did he will end up going to work at some agency and having no idea what to do and end up killing someone. I couldn't live with that.

Again I hope all of you have a happy and safe holiday and enjoy the fireworks, bar-b-ques, day at the beach/lake/pool and think of me...... working! LOL

Michael Jackson (this may offened you, you have been warned)

2009-06-26T12:50:00.010-04:00

Well as the entire universe knows by now Michael Jackson died yesterday of a "sudden cardiac arrest". Which now it has come out from people close to the family that he received a shot of Demerol earlier Thursday and it may have led to his death. Are there any celebrities today that are not on some kind of drug whether legal or illegal?

While I am sorry for his family and close friends and offer my condolences and prayers to both for their grief - I just wonder, why is this getting as much press coverage as it is. Celebrities die every day - Ed McMahon died earlier in the week and Farrah Fawcett passed away a couple of hours before Michael and you barely hear anything about either one of them.

Last night I was watching the "E" network special report and was shocked and appalled by one of the reporters who stated that at the movement of Michael Jackson's body by helicopter to another location (I guess the ME's office) that it flew over their building and that the entire office held quite and looked up - he compared this to a presidential passing the way the people were just in awe. Please, that is so insulting and ridiculous that it is unbelievable.

While I like Michael Jackson's music mostly from the 80s and some of the 90s and will remember him looking like the picture above I don't think that he deserves this much press. I have been unable to turn to any news network today to get any pertinent news because every single network is all Michael.

Lets face it 90% of the population believe Michael Jackson was a pedophile. There other 10% are just in denial. I mean it, if a regular person had been accused of doing what Michael was accused of (molesting children) he would be under the jail and unable to pay off family and witnesses of the people he victimized. Sorta reminds me of the whole OJ Simpson thing, but don't get me started on that. While Michael did give a lot of money to charities and children's organizations you have to admit that unfortunately for him the bad outweighs the good.

He is not, was not and shouldn't be considered any type of roll model. It seems like the more popular he became the weirder he became. Normal people do not have multiple facial surgeries to the point that they are basically no long recognizable to anyone including themselves. Normal people do not dangle their babies from balconies of hotels. Normal adults do not have strange children sleeping in bed with them and think that it is all OK.

As a final note I would just like to send my sincere condolences to the families and friends of Ed McMahon and Farrah Fawcett. They will both be truly missed.

Just as a side note: I happen to love watching the "E" network ,it is one of my favorites and I watch all the time I just think they as the regular press need to think before they speak - but don't we all.

Liked this

2009-06-23T13:41:00.002-04:00

I found this in a book I was reading and really liked it. Hope you do to...

"Wherever you put your face your eyes see the horizon and your tomorrows, never yesterday. The sadness in your heart is a yesterday you can no longer see, so put it behind you and walk always forward."

The paramedic student

2009-06-23T10:11:00.012-04:00

I worked all weekend. It was very slow which is unusual for a weekend. I think that the heat kept everyone either indoors in the AC or at the beach/lake/pool. I can't remember it ever being this hot. Its the kinda hot that when you just stand outside you start sweating. I so hate that. I think this is a good picture to describe exactly how hot is has been in sunny Florida.

I currently have a paramedic student on my truck for his 3rd semester ride time sign offs. The student has to ride 240 hrs basically being the paramedic on the ambulance or rescue with an experienced paramedic with him/her. This is basically the make or break of a student.

I think I am being challenged with this one. The past students I have had were very respectful, interested in learning and not an over pain in the butt spoiled brat! He will tell you that his mom told him if he didn't go to paramedic school she would cut him off. Yes the family has lots of money.

He is 23 and acts 14 - I know its a guy but please. He thinks he knows everything, but he knows enough just to be dangerous. He is an attractive guy, however not the OMG kind. He thinks he is. I guess he picked a female preceptor and thought he would skate by because all of the women in the emergency room settings just loved him. Sorry, there is NO skating on my truck. If you don't know what you are doing I will handle it in a professional manner, however this guy is to spoiled for his own good.

He has gotten some of the lowest scores I have ever given a medic student. I have to prompt him to do certain things such as listening to lung sounds (by the way he wasn't bringing his stethoscope to his ride time - HELLO - we took care of this really quick) or doing a secondary exam on patients to make sure you haven't missed something.

Some of the knowledge he should have comes from being an EMT on the road before going to paramedic school. I absolutely do not recommend anyone to go straight from EMT to paramedic school. You should work on the road as an EMT with a paramedic for a minimum of 1 yr. You don't realize how much you don't know till you do this and the small amount of clinical ride time for EMTs most of the time doesn't cover half of what we do.

But I digress. The student actually rolled his eyes at more when I said something to him about an injury (yes it was very minor) that he forgot to tell the RN taking the patient about. If we hadn't been in the middle of the ER he would be 6 feet under. I don't get it, there is no way I would ever have done that to a preceptor. I explained to him that if he didn't tell the RN about the injury that when they found it they would wonder how much else you missed and not trust you to give all pertinent information on your next patient. In other words you look like an idiot.

He is getting better with his interviews and treatments, thank God. I just hope that I can't get rid of all the arrogance without taking away his confidence. It is a challenge, but I will be very glad when he is done with his ride times and he is someone else's problem.

My little PSA (Public Service Announcement) for the day:

Please do not abuse your local emergency room or the staff. Some people use the ER as a primary doctor's office going for colds, sore throats, flu like symptoms or something that your primary doctor, local health department or walk in clinic can handle.

If you choose to use the emergency room as a primary doctor's office then be prepared to wait, wait and wait some more. Please understand that there are people coming in by ambulance, there are people that are more sick than you that will go first.

Please do NOT tell the triage RN that you are having chest pain or shortness of breath if you are not just so you can get to a room quicker. There maybe someone else that comes in after you or by EMS and you are taking a bed for the common cold.

Also understand that the staff in the ER are constantly busy. They do have some lulls here and there but for the most part the staff is going all day long. If a RN or CNA (certified nurse assistant) don't get to you immediately they are not ignoring you, they may have just got a patient that is in critical condition or a patient in cardiac arrest. Please be patient.

The Beginnings

2009-06-18T13:28:00.011-04:00

Hello. I started a blog a while back and kinda let it go. I'm starting again because sometimes it just is a good thing to write some of the stuff that happens on the ambulance down. I know some of you probably won't believe it. But I guarantee any story I post on here will be true only the names will be changed to protect the innocent or colossally stupid.

First a little about myself:

I have worked in the emergency medicine field since 1998. First in a local emergency room as a secretary, which translates to did just about everything except nursing stuff. I decided in August of 2001 that I wanted a change and since I worked with, saw and spoke with several EMS people throughout the day I decided that this was what I wanted to do.

I went to an information session at my local community college in late August. Got all of my application and paperwork back to the college the first week of September. Then September 11th happened. That was probably one of the worst days ever. I was at work in the ER when everything went down. It's the first and I think last time that supervisors didn't have a fit if people were watching TV in the rooms with patients.

I started EMT school in January 2002, graduated May 2002 and started working on an ambulance, which at the time was a hospital based service, in June 2002. Paramedic school unfortunately had to wait due to financial issues. In July 2006 the company I worked for got permission from out board of directors to fund 15 EMTs to go to Paramedic school. The company would pay us our regular salary and pay for our school as well as cover our shifts so we didn't have to work and go to school. I applied and was given a seat in the class. I graduated in May 2007 and I am now a Paramedic.

I loved every minute of it. It was fun, exciting, an adrenalin rush that I didn't expect. I was concerned about dealing with the blood/gore/families of the sick and dying as well as the patients themselves. I have been asked many times since starting in this field: "How can you do this?" I could never do that. My answer is simply that 99% of people that go into the field of EMS are type A personalities. We like to be in control and this is one of the few places we can be in total control. When I and my fellow co-workers are on a call and it is really bad (someone really sick, dying, bad trauma, anything to do with a child) the emotion part just shuts off and you go into auto pilot and do what you know you have to do to get that patient to the hospital alive. The emotion comes after the call. That is why if you have ever be in the ER when an ambulance crew has come in with something bad you will see them walk out the door almost as soon as patient care is turned over.

If you see any of the crews laughing and joking after a bad call, just know this is a coping mechanism. It has nothing to do with what really happened. You have heart the phrase laugh or cry?

Just a public service message for everyone who has an emergency vehicle of any kind coming out behind you with lights and sirens going. Please DO NOT stop in front of them, do not go to the left. All EMS workers are taught to go to the left, cars on the road please pull to the right. DO NOT under any circumstances pull out in front of an ambulance or fire truck. This vehicles weigh a lot more than you think and stopping on a dime because you just pulled out in front of us is not always possible. Make sure that you are watching your rear view mirrors and side mirrors often, don't become so engrossed in your cell phone conversation that you forget everyone else on the roads safety including your own. Remember the EMS workers may be going to your home, your neighbor's home or a family member's home. Do you really want to slow these people down, especially when with this career SECONDS DO COUNT!!