firedoc5

Due to a possible border line migraine starting and reading with just one eye, I admit I didn't read some of the longer posts. But it was in my experience we've had medics (one in particular) that would go on an Interstate transfers thinking they would be back in time for when their child would get home from school. Well needless to say it would not always work out that way. So about 3:10 we would hear on the radio that someone needed to pick up Chrissy. If we would go, and usually in an ambulance because we were usually already out and go and pick up Chrissy. We would strap her in the jump seat. But on the occasion before we would get her to the station where the dispatcher or secretary could watch her we would get a call. We would then put her up front so whoever was the passenger could ready whatever we thought we might need. Of course Chrissy got a kick out of it. When we got to the call Chrissy knew exactly what to do and not to do. I won't get into the list but she followed it to the 'T". and not once did we have a problem. This went on for at least six years. And I can honestly say that no matter what the call was she never "freaked'. Actually we were all very proud of her. And even though it didn't happen all the time it was frequent enough that when she graduated 8th grade we made her an Honorary EMT. :salute: It did occasionally happen with other kids that we had to 'escort" from home but she was the one that was the regular. It makes me feel old but I think she's about 28 with a couple of kids now

Thank You. :blob7:

"Ode To Billy Joe" - Bobbi Gentry

This might be a stupid question, but...Can they merge the two and rename it something like "The FDNY & EMS Pipes and Drum Corps"? Like I said, it might be a stupid question. :violent1:

And don't you love it when the patient, usually a young'un, wants to have the lights and sirens going, even when the situations doesn't call for it?

I'm sorry, I guess the phrase of "lighten up" was not appropriate. It really was actually aimed at what someone else had said. I understand and respect the point you made. I guess we were lucky that we didn't have a misunderstanding like the one you mention. As far as I know we didn't have anyone cross that "back woods Arkansas family line. As far as trying to keep things separate between professional and personal life separate, it was sort of hard to keep them separate for us since there would be be 3-5 of us living at the ambulance building. And many of those that did spend the night did so on such a regular basis you might be able to consider them residence too. Again, my apiologies. I really am sorry for my inappropriate choice of words.

I've been an avid NASCAR fan for years. You see drivers walk away from horrendous crashes time and time again. The big issue for this is the drivers themselves. No matter how bad they hurt and their legs work they insist on walking to the ambulance or other emergency vehicle. It's a pride/toughness type of thing. After a wreck when they lower their window net it's a signal to everyone that they are OK. Sometimes they are lowering the netting before coming to a complete stop. So how do they know they are "OK' that quickly? Some are seriously hurt but they lower that netting any way. Even when they do get out and take a few steps and know they are hurt they still refuse a flat lay. I believe it was Neil Bonnet" that refused help and walked to the ambulance. Once inside they laid him down and when they got to infield care center he had three lumbar fractures. These cars are super safe. More than likely you are safer in one of those cars at 200 mph than you are at 50 mph than your own car. And there has been significant improvements in the past few years, especially since Dale Sr.'s accident. The SAFER wall barriers, the mandatory full face helmet, and the HANS device to protect the neck has been a giant leap in safety.And don't forget the "Humpy Bumper". I'm not going to get into the impact/crinkle points that are now engineered into the new "COT" designs. NASCAR does have it's own safety team. They travel from track to track. But their main function is to work with the local services. They train and inform, more or less orientate the locals for ten to fourteen days before a race. Come race day they are out with the crews to supervise. But NHRA, drag racing, does have their own full time service, "The Safety Safari". that run the whole show, but they still work with local agencies. I am by no means an expert on sports car's engineering design and safety, but this what I've learned and my understanding of what's going on with NASCAR. Some of it I might be wrong with, but for the most part I know they are making great strides in improvement.

"Stayin' Alive" - Bee Gee's

That is something to think about. What if the patient finds out later that the medic that had treated him had/has some specific disease? When the patient finds out is freaks, "That medic had WHAT???". Will he want to sue? Be tested time and time again? Who knows what kind of legal action he may want to pursue.

I don't know if I'd be labeled as old school or not, but I'd have to go with paddles since I hadn't used pads very often. If I had a choice, which since I'm out of the active field now, I just don't know. :-k

A lock. Unless needing a fluid challenge or pushing a series of multiple drugs, it's one less thing to hold, get in the way, get caught on, etc.

If they were both docs, why didn't they just do it to each other after they sobbered up and not charge each other. Maybe they thought it would be more fun. :)/

When it comes to evil we can NOT forget to mention Barney. :violent3:

"Outlaw Women" - Hank Jr.

"We Built This City (on Rock & Roll) :puke: -Starship

I'm not exactly sure how to respond to this question. As others have said you have a knee jerk reflex of saying no way. But after thinking about it for a little bit I'd say it would depend on the disease and how it is transmitted. The main issue I have would be HIV and would say NO way. Also, depending on what the disease may be, is what stage would it be in? I worked and taught with a who had contracted malaria as a POW in VietNam. About every nine to twelve months he would have to go to St.Louis for I guess what would be treatment for what would be considered a flare up. It was my understanding that as long as he wasn't having a flare up he was not contagious. Is that something to consider too. This is something I'm going to have to think about and read up on.

When I went through my sports medicine & massage therapy training I learned some accupressure procedures but I'm not sure about using as a regular treatment in the field with EMS. Sure there are a few things you can do along with some muscle manipulation but I don't know about it's practical use especially if you have a short transport time.

This is being posted for just a couple of "PM's" I received about this topic that I didn't feel like having to repeat to each and every one. I guess I should have stressed that this was not a regular practice. The guys would usually wear at least P.E. shorts and the women usually wore scrubs or were totally clothed. There were a few that would wear at least a sports bra and shorts. It's not like we were sleeping in the raw. When it came to "sharing" a bunk it was not very often, not just any ole time. And it would be with someone you knew wouldn't mind. If it was someone that you weren't comfortable with, or vice versa, then you went into the TV room and tried to sleep in a chair or something. We were sleeping on call, and everyone knows that the more you sleep in the less you have to put on when you have to jump up and put on clothes. And yes, there were several of us comfortable enough that if we did have to completely change clothes we were OK with it because we were such a tight knit "family". And very rarely did a spouse have a problem with it. Besides, most of the spouses worked at the same place and of course if they were on call together they'd share the same bunk. Now if we made a big thing about it, talking to others or bragging about it to others, then yes, I could see where that would cause an issue. We just never talked about it. Most of the time we never gave it a second thought. We did use some tact. The main reason there might have been some bunk sharing was that it was a small private service and a small bunk room, and there were only three, and sometimes only four bunks. Usually that's all that would be staying the night, But on some nights when it had been real busy and others were called in to cover for any additional calls they just stayed for the rest of the night instead of going home. Many times after it had been busy and things would slow down, they'd go home. They'd just get home and it would get busy again and would get called back in. So they'd just stay the rest of the night. So at the risk of sounding rude, which I am by no means trying to do, lighten up.

I don't see any immediate problems with working. Until a problem does comes up, God forbid, I don't see any kind of issues about it.

How long has he been at the job? If he stayed with it and got use to it maybe he could get over it eventually. Who knows, maybe one day he'll try it and finally just "get over it".

"Red, White, & Blue" -Lynyrd Skynyrd

Normally I'd say just have someone work with the guy, be patient, get to the bottom of his fear of inserting needles, but something tells me, nope, hang up the hat. Something I don't normally believe in is hypnosis, but why not look into it...?

And don't forget those scary TeleTubbies.

"Don't Step On My Blue Suede Shoes" - Carl Perkins/Elvis

I know co-workers can get really close. Some say just as close as family, or even closer. I especially notice this with private services where things are just more relaxed and less formal. The one serv. I was with was very laxed. You may come into the bunk room at 3:00 ready to drop and you collapsed into your bunk. Then you notice someone else is already in your bunk. After you get over the surprise and identify who they are, and hopefully they are of the opposite sex, you just sort of roll over and think, "whatever" and go to sleep. If for some reason there are more people around than there are spaces to change, you all just changed in the same bunk room and went about your business. You generally didn't think anything of it. And of course there were be a few that had a special closeness. But let let me stress it was usually always short of a sexual relationship. Case in point, we had a bad wreck very late at night. We got our patient care done and were in the ER parking lot. One of the gals who responded from home came up behind and and told me not to move. She had her body right against my back and heard her unzip her jumper. Then she sort of moved around. She said she had gotten dressed so fast that she had her bra in a twist and it was driving her crazy. Why she didn't go into a restroom or somewhere other than the parking lot. A few days later we were sitting around the table, and her husband was there too. And the subject came up. She told me, and her husband that she knew that she trusted me that I wouldn't turn around, and even that I did so, she didn't mind if I saw her. Her husband thought it was hilarious. But that's just how close we were. For the first few weeks I worked there I thought that maybe other services were like that. But I later found out it was usually the opposite. Why we were so comfortable together I don't know. But coming along with being so close, especially when it came to family/ brotherly/ sisterly type of relationships, there was a down side. Occasionally there would be the brotherly/sisterly type of fighting. At times it could get quite intense. Are there other's out there that had those kind of working conditions? I appreciated that things there in that kind of working conditions were that way. I think with my personality I fit right in. Occasionally we would get someone new and they just couldn't fit in. We usually tried to get them to lighten up but they rarely did. They didn't stay real long. Also, do you think that kind of working enviroment was appropriate?