Chief1C

Suppose the liquid and bits of glass shot out the tip, into their nose... or eye.. What does that prove? We don't even carry Ammonia Inhalants. If someone has fainted out of emotional response, etc; or is faking it; we still treat them as a syncope victim. If you're treatment is splashing some water on them and shoving a cloth soaked with spirits of ammonia or a crush ampule in their face... Wake up, it's not 1950.

Even though they sell dash lights to anyone, in all sorts of styles and colors; most vehicle codes will show them as being illegal in personal vehicles. If you do want to sport an emergency light, it must be visible w/ in 360 degrees of the vehicle. Besides, I doubt they all install them properly. You go sliding into something w/ a light cord over the air bag, you'll wish you didn't have it in the first place. Nobody looks good w/ part of a Kojack light impaled in the side of their head.

Okay, maybe 'death' was a reaction to the heinousness of the crime... But still, he'll sit in a facility till he's 21, just like a boarding school. The only difference is, he can't leave. There needs to be a greater consequence for something like this. I'm sure the crime itself will affect him for the rest of his life, but that isn't enough. Just because he's 12, doesn't mean he should be counciled, hugged and let go to live his life. I think that psychological treatment and/or a correctional institute till he's 25 would be a fair sentence. Perhaps tack on that he can never be near small children, for life. Any more on the story?

Counciling? He beat a child to death with a baseball bat, over a television program. They need to start punishing these kids, not coddling them.

Death penalty. That's just f**ked up. or Life in prison w/ out ever seeing light, or having human contact again.

Hell.. I'd find a dark corner and let it go. Kick my ass out, I'm not holding it in. Besides, the last time I checked, manhunts for police suspects didn't fall under the firefighter job description.

Police won't do traffic control here; if the DOT isn't on hand; either fire or EMS has to do it. I personally don't care who it is, so long as I don't get run over. Some places have 'fire police', however, my station doesn't have any. Usually, the least helpful fire person is assigned to this task.

Huh?

If it's a crew on an ambulance, chances are they aren't just trained in first aid. However, keep in mind, in many communities in the US, ambulance services are called first aid squads, etc. Just something carried on in name through the years. Rescue Squad, First Aid Squad, Life Saving Crew, etc. stems back to the days of Julian Wise.

The driver, I believe, was ticketed for not having control of the ambulance.

My tax lady warned me, that even though I could write off items I purchase, or fuel, etc.. I was leaving myself open to be audited. Even with lists, mileage records and receipts, she felt it was a bad idea.

Is that like mutual aid?

I don't know of any department, even paid on call, that provides vehicles for its staff. If they could afford to do that, they would probably be staffed anyway. I've only ever seen vehicles for chiefs to use on departmental business.

Oh, they know. My insurance company bought my current light. Some dumb SOB cut the cord in two places and broke the lens somehow. The tried to remove it by dragging it across the roof, but couldn't pry the magnets loose. My vehicle courtesy light is registered w/ the state police and I have a permit for it somewhere. I believe that's a vehicle code requirement in Pennsylvania, however I doubt many follow it. I also have professional liability insurance specifically for Emergency Responders. I feel that its a necessary safety device for parking along the road. However, I'm more apt to not use it while responding, b/c we know red lights make people stupid, and blue just confuses the hell out of them. I used to zip along w/ the light on, but nobody ever pulled over.. and I don't pass even in legal passing zones w/ the light on. I wouldn't want to appear to anyone that I was being wreckless while responding.

When they started replaying episodes from 2001, I emailed TLC/DSC Health. I received your basic, generic reply, and from what I put together, negative on new episodes. I've seen other discussions that sited professionalism, the all evil HIPAA and other misc. excuses. I haven't even seen it on in reruns, so I'm going to go out on a limb and say the show is dead.

$15.00/500 Single sheet, two sides; We write a paper trip sheet while on the call, provide a copy to the ER, then back at base we enter the information into a computer. At the end of the month, the paper copies go into our files. A disc w/ the computer info is mailed to the Regional EMS office. The discs are free, I fear there would be too many errors if we carried computer based PCR's. Several hospitals provide on site computers for that information to be entered right away, should the service not use a paper copy. However, I feel our system works fine, with very few errors. The printer only charges us for the cost of a box of paper.

It's entertainment.. Hollywood and the media seem to believe that seeing this type of entertainment has a very stong value to the American couch potato. What better way to feed that interest, than to see the victims in a dangerous environment? Being removed from a $50,000 tin can, picked up off the floor of a restroom tripped out on drugs, or being dragged out of a pool of blood on the sidewalk. However, it seems that they'd rather see the end result of all that, by the number of programs that are based on it. (Trauma Life in the ER, Code Blue, Critical Hour, etc)

Except for the patient, of course, we have a long list of things that one must accomplish before riding on any apparatus (EMS and Fire). That includes juniors, explorers, ride along, etc.. If they don't have this list of courses, they cannot respond to any of our calls, be around patients, or be on any scene. That is our SOG for qualification to respond. It's up to the individual service what they want you to have before you can respond and assist. EMS may require FR and EVO; or EMT; Fire may requires Fundamentals, Essentials, Pump Ops; the truck Co. requires Essentials and Truck Ops as the minimum before you can board the apparatus. No reason to have people on scene to free lance, if you want to observe, with out training.. Take a spot on the sidewalk, behind the tape. HIPAA - 6hr CPR - 2hr Pathogens - 3hr IST - 16hr Hazmat Awareness - 8hr

I'd have immobilized it, if necessary with stuff from the rig. If they're concerned with loss of pulses or setting off bleeding, make them do it. I'm very picky about splinting, and I have a strict policy on not moving ppl that aren't properly immobilized. Especially open fractures with anything that should be on the inside, protruding. Unless of course there is some factor that calls for them to be moved, eg. fire, fluids, toxins, etc. Just for the sake of infection control, it should be at least covered. I mean damn, I won't even get in the rig w/ out any open injuries covered. Esp. w/ all the hospital borne infections. This seems a little odd, I'd say it would be more of a liability to leave a fracture open and free to move about.

Carl Post wrote an excellent book, while I had trouble staying interested, it's good for history of the advanced life support side of EMS. I've found amazon to be an invaluable tool in finding EMS history books. My favorites, however, are the picture books w/ visual time line of ambulances and funeral coaches.

Plain language, if we need help, we say just that and have a stage out issued for any additional units. That way nobody else gets involved, except those required. i.e. PD, etc. We have 'man down' buttons on the radio we are required by SOP to carry from the ambo. We also have emergency buttons on the radio console, this will transmit a DTMF code and an audible signal, however only other radios can detect it. The dispatch center is not set up to receive either the man down alarm or the emergency distress alarm. Hence, making both pretty much useless.

The individual interviews are the best part of the whole DVD.

http://www.armstrongmedical.com/ami/item.c...mp;sbsection=14

Yeah, Newspaper reporters.. Try stopping that mess, you're better off not saying anything. Reporters and "Free This Free That" folks get really defensive.

I use it for transport, never been questioned or rejected by the software. Usually write out treatment.. My treatment would prolly entail talking to them, we're going for a nice ride in the country, no judgement, wanna talk, weather, sports, let them help you, be open, vitals, etc.. I suppose if they were severely ill b/c of what they had done, ALS would be thrown into the mix.