Leaderboard

Hello everyone...I am a volunteer EMT in MD, for the second time around. I first became an EMT when I was a senior in high school. Now, two marriages, one divorce, two kids and one career later I am at it again, hoping to make it my second career, one way or another.

Doing skills isn't the only thing that students need to learn while in your care. I too would never trust vitals on a critical patient taken by a student, or a newer medic, or Fire, or anyone but me or a trusted partner that I had experience with. There's no shame there. At least if we're both using 'critical' to mean in imminent danger of losing their life. I once ran on a home invader that had his right arm nearly severed by a shotgun. I let a student start IVs, pack the wound, push narcs, etc. Other than his dangling arm and being really pissed off for being shot "for no reason" (as he had a knife, not a gun) I was confident that he wasn't trying to die. And for the record his condition led to my decisions, not a desire for inferior care secondary to the cause of his injury. With skills, there should be about a bazillion to one ratio of critical patients to non critical patients that they can practice on. Set them to doing something menial on the critical patients, printing out ECG to examine, bagging, holding pressure, prepping equipment if you want..Something that allows them to participate, but still have some mental energy to expend on observation. But allowing them to see a more experienced way to do things while showing that at all times patient priorities overcome any desires of the medic or the student are pretty friggin' valuable things to learn too...They don't stop learning simply because they stopped moving. We set an example, either good or bad, every minute that we are together with them... If you're apologizing for prioritizing efficient, focused care on a critical patient instead of the student's education then you're cheating them out of perhaps one of the most important lessons to be learned in the back of an ambulance.

Congrats Babe... Yeah, I had no idea who you were! I thought, "Man, that's strange, I think I've seen about three posts from this chick and she's telling us about her baby?" :-) Babies are way owesome...I promise that one of the first things you'll learn from your little one is that no matter how hard you've tried to avoid it, you've forgotten how to find miracles in tiny things...It's really cool to relearn. And don't mind Kat. Any time he gets hinky his day care nurse cleans his ass with sandpaper...it makes him a bit crotchity...

You people are completely missing out on your pop culture references:

I just realized, re MY Medic Alert dogtag: I should update to include that I'm primary caretaker of a person suffering from senility dementia symptoms.

As a paramedic that has experienced anaphylaxis personally, I would not hesitate to give someone with BP of 60 systolic epi. According to my allergy specialist people wait to long to give epi and it is hard to reverse the "flushed toilet" quickly. I hated the after effects of epi and so when I had the second "idiopathic" anaphylactic event, I convinced my crew to go straight to benedryl and fluids. (I did not initially present with hives- just itchy hands and feet to very low BP then unconsciousness). He had a stern discussion regarding that decision after the fact. He reminded me of EPIs role in helping to super charge the compensatory system and he strongly encouraged its use early, if there was any suspicion anayphylaxis was the cause. I also believe a recognizable medical alert tag is important. But I have noticed that my basic instructors are not emphasizing the need for a quick search for jewelry. All it needs is a contact number if there are mulitiple allergens. Just my thoughts on the matter...

welcome back! We're pretty sure lone star is doing 12-20 for impersonating a Paramedic

As a gun owner and somewhat a student of history it is simple. The fear is that registration leads to confiscation. There have been plenty of statements from the anti-gun groups that todays proposed gun laws are "just the beginning". Conficscation has occured in other countries. and if allowed to will happen here. Hell, even Hitler got several contries to agree with voluntary gun confiscation " for the children". . Sound familier? Therefore many gun owners take a no-compromise stance becasue they dont trust the other side to be reasonable, despite all their "fluff" and statements. The pro-gun and the anti-gn crowd comes from two different ends of the spectrum on a lot of beliefs. but the differences in opinions on guns is just too much to ever compromise on I think. Add to the fact that the anti-gun lobby lost any credibility with their thin definition of assault weapons (a made up catagory by the way) and their own demonization of gun owners themselves...these two sides will never agree. Its as personal as pro-life and pro-choice. On a personal note, for a party that built its reutation in the 60's on civil rights...which included gun rights for black people (*little known fact)....they need to remember that GUN RIGHTS are CIVIL RIGHTS. If they protected them as much as they protected the right to vote, the right against search, the right of free speech..then they would have a lot of respect by gun owners like me. Instead they are in my view very hypocritical. Gun rights are a consitutional right, and that is what sets it seperate from every other example...such as car registration, the right to smoke, etc.... To answer the "well regulated militia" question.... This was defined as a well equped soldier by a SCOTUS descision in the 1930's, and again in the 1990's. Therefore any individual weapon is offered protection by the second ammendment, where crew served weapons (i.e. true machine guns like the M2 .50) are not. Going further back, a collection of writings called the federalist papers further discuss that the term "well regulated militia" applied to every person of majority who could bare arms. There are some who are pro-gun to preserve the right to fight against tyranny , including by our own government. There are others who are pro-gun because they understand...like most of us I would imagine, that the world is a harsh and unforgiving place with a lot of bad people in it. They want guns for self defence. History has it that any government that would deprive its citiziens from self defence The reality is that they are the same argument. Guns in law abiding hands protect gun owners and their family against tyranny, whether it is tyranny from govenrment, or tyranny from the meth head down the street. And the same reality is that any goverment that would deny its citizens the same basic protections it grants its enforcers of the law...i.e. semi automatic firearms with magazines in excess of 10 rounds...is by defintition tyrannical. A great scholarly discussion is here: http://www.guncite.com/gc2ndpur.html And a not quite as scholarly but equally moving discussion here: http://jpfo.org/filegen-n-z/six-about-2nd.htm In short, if you value any of the other rights you enjoy, how would you feel if they were taken away from you? Even under good intentions? Thats how I feel about the second ammendment as well.

Are you ready for students then? I do not mean any disrespect, but maybe you are not as comfortable with calls as you should be to have students riding with you. Is this possible? Also, what about them makes you nervous? Is it that they might make mistakes? Or maybe you are worried about something coming back on you? Maybe you could elaborate on what exactly stresses you out about it? Also, communication goes well with any relationship, professional or not. This can help you and the student figure out how things might need to go on a scene. Are they the new student, who needs pushing, or the more seasoned student that needs a safety net you may provide... ? Helping your students learn sometimes means they have to figure things out, slowly. You may be able to start an IV quickly, though the student may need longer to become used to the process (or maybe even the equipment your service uses). I really do not know how to make you more comfortable with having students. You were one, maybe some introspective reflection can help you in dealings with students. Only advice I can give about being able to step back is and relax is to take the right hand, place it on your right gluteus maximus, the left hand on the other, and SIT ! LOL

pfft I have a lot going on right now...plus we all know nurses save medics so

I am a student who is currently doing clinicals. I take no offense when my preceptor double checks my work or outright ignores me when they have a job to do. I would not feel bad at all, I expect them to check my work, thats also how I learn. In terms of your anxiety, try explaining how things are going to go down prior to the shift, that way everyone knows their place.