crotchitymedic1986

You are totally missing the point, this isnt about sex, its about discrimination. And unfortunately EMS/Fire is still mostly run by homophobes.

Why is it out of line ? I believe that homosexual males are still discriminated against in Fire/EMS, maybe you guys can prove me wrong. I think homosexual males who want to work for a municipality have to hide their gayness, or they will never get hired by most Fire Departments. You are correct to say it is illegal to discriminate, but that doesnt mean it doesnt happen; employers are just smart enough to not say that was the reason someone wasnt hired. PS : Actually it is not illegal to discriminate against homosexuals in most states.

I remember the first time that I got assigned to work with a flaming male homosexual partner. I am not a homophobe by any means, and had always thought of myself as tolerant (had an uncle and a nephew who were homosexual). The only thing bad about working with him was his phone conversations between him and his partner (especially at night). The conversations were much the same as you would expect between girlfriend and boyfriend, but it was a little creepy to hear him talking to a dude about how much he wished he was at home so that they could cuddle, kiss, etc...... Anyway, the reason I bring this up is that EMS has pretty much accepted lesbians for sometime now, but the flaming males could only seem to get hired at private or hospital based services. Has that changed, or do the fire-ems organizations still discriminate against homosexual males who are not hiding in the closet ?

Think you have it bad in the USA, check out this 3rd world ambulance: http://via%20www.dumpalink.com/videos/Ghet...lance-8cda.html

probably so, but read the threads. Any thread over 3 pages gets into an arguement.

tsk, tsk............ It's christmas time guys:

Spenac, that isnt rural, thats GOD' COUNTRY !

After reading through the forums the past few days, I have realized a trend. So in an effort to provide you more time for Christmas shopping, I am going to summarize every post on here, so that you do not have to spend any time reading any of them (and no, I am not talking about my posts, as I intentionally piss you off, and deserve many of the names I have been called). Summary of all posts on EMTCITY for the week of Christmas: EMT B's suck EMT I's suck Paramedics suck Nurses suck Doctors suck I have a scientific study that proves you suck By the way you suck, no you suck. Rookies suck, and should be allowed on the truck Old codgers should be buried, and not allowed on the truck, because they suck no its you that sucks Firefighters suck Volly's suck no its you that sucks your momma how dare you question me, because you suck. OK, you are up to date on all topics, go shop.

I am not sure it is an EMTALA violation if it is deemed a non-emergency. Even if you are hospital based EMS, EMTALA only mandates a screening exam, which can be done by paramedics if the hospital's bylaws OK it.

As I stated in the post about "Paragods"(the poster called it supermedic or something else). If everyone that works with you is calling you a jerk, you probably are one. Everyone has the "one" person that they dont get along with for whatever reason, but only the true jerks and paragods have issues with practically everyone they work with. If you feel that you may be a "jerk", go to the supervisor who does the scheduling for your service, and ask them for some feedback, as they will have heard all the "reasons" people do not want to work with you.

There is a simple alternative to this scenario, I know of a service that charged $50.00 directly to the water bill (after the fact). If the bill wasnt paid, water was turned off. $50 doesnt sound like alot, but by the time you bill medicaid 3 times and get denied, if you have a viable claim to start with, $50.00 in 30 days sounds pretty good. This makes the elected officials the "bad guys" when they turn that water off, instead of EMS at the time of the call.

Alot of what doc says is true, hospital based has better purchasing power. I would argue that the benefits are not that great at most hospitals (unless you are part of a large national chain), as most Hospital based EMS providers are either stand-alone urban indigent care/ trauma centers, or are stand-alone rural providers, which means they are basically a small business, and usually have poor benefits as compared to a municipality (403B, insurance is more expensive, may not cover doctor's office visits, or may only be a 70/30 or 80/20 plan, usually no vision coverage). Although the medicare reimbursement rate for hospital based services has improved, it is still substandard compared to private or government. For instance, if your hospital ems brings a chest pain pt to your ER and it is not diagnosed as MI, you can only either bill for the ER charges or the EMS charges, not both. Hospital base services do have an advantage in their yearly "charge-off" to medicare, but it doesnt make-up for the poor reimbursement rate year-round. The reason I see hospital based EMS going under is as follows: Hospitals will see cuts in indigent care funding (if they had it to start with), they may not be able to float bonds as they normally do to raise capital, and with more layoffs - more patients will be uninsured. Hospitals usually only make single percentage point profits (<5%), if they are making a profit at all. So when they cut, they have to cut where it will do the least harm: The Education department is usually first along with commuinity outreach or mobile services, followed by EMS. Some are opting to drop OB as well. EMS people may subscribe to the theory that they wont cut us, because we bring patients to the hospital, and they cant afford to lose patients. But the reality is that most patients have already chosen their hospital based on preference or where their doctor practices, not on the suggestion of EMS (especially in a rural environment where there may only be 1-2 hospitals within a 50 mile radius). They can not close the ER, as it would damage the community; they can argue that privatizing EMS would not (and it may not depending upon the quality of that provider).

My results: A note on terminology. Personality traits describe, relative to other people, the frequency or intensity of a person's feelings, thoughts, or behaviors. Possession of a trait is therefore a matter of degree. We might describe two individuals as extraverts, but still see one as more extraverted than the other. This report uses expressions such as "extravert" or "high in extraversion" to describe someone who is likely to be seen by others as relatively extraverted. The computer program that generates this report classifies you as low, average, or high in a trait according to whether your score is approximately in the lowest 30%, middle 40%, or highest 30% of scores obtained by people of your sex and roughly your age. Your numerical scores are reported and graphed as percentile estimates. For example, a score of "60" means that your level on that trait is estimated to be higher than 60% of persons of your sex and age. Please keep in mind that "low," "average," and "high" scores on a personality test are neither absolutely good nor bad. A particular level on any trait will probably be neutral or irrelevant for a great many activites, be helpful for accomplishing some things, and detrimental for accomplishing other things. As with any personality inventory, scores and descriptions can only approximate an individual's actual personality. High and low score descriptions are usually accurate, but average scores close to the low or high boundaries might misclassify you as only average. On each set of six subdomain scales it is somewhat uncommon but certainly possible to score high in some of the subdomains and low in the others. In such cases more attention should be paid to the subdomain scores than to the broad domain score. Questions about the accuracy of your results are best resolved by showing your report to people who know you well. John A. Johnson wrote descriptions of the five domains and thirty subdomains. These descriptions are based on an extensive reading of the scientific literature on personality measurement. Extraversion Extraversion is marked by pronounced engagement with the external world. Extraverts enjoy being with people, are full of energy, and often experience positive emotions. They tend to be enthusiastic, action-oriented, individuals who are likely to say "Yes!" or "Let's go!" to opportunities for excitement. In groups they like to talk, assert themselves, and draw attention to themselves. Introverts lack the exuberance, energy, and activity levels of extraverts. They tend to be quiet, low-key, deliberate, and disengaged from the social world. Their lack of social involvement should not be interpreted as shyness or depression; the introvert simply needs less stimulation than an extravert and prefers to be alone. The independence and reserve of the introvert is sometimes mistaken as unfriendliness or arrogance. In reality, an introvert who scores high on the agreeableness dimension will not seek others out but will be quite pleasant when approached. Domain/Facet........... Score Extraversion...............98 Friendliness.............99 Gregariousness...........99 Assertiveness............94 Activity Level...........99 Excitement-Seeking.......60 Cheerfulness.............94 Your score on Extraversion is high, indicating you are sociable, outgoing, energetic, and lively. You prefer to be around people much of the time. Extraversion Facets Friendliness. Friendly people genuinely like other people and openly demonstrate positive feelings toward others. They make friends quickly and it is easy for them to form close, intimate relationships. Low scorers on Friendliness are not necessarily cold and hostile, but they do not reach out to others and are perceived as distant and reserved. Your level of friendliness is high. Gregariousness. Gregarious people find the company of others pleasantly stimulating and rewarding. They enjoy the excitement of crowds. Low scorers tend to feel overwhelmed by, and therefore actively avoid, large crowds. They do not necessarily dislike being with people sometimes, but their need for privacy and time to themselves is much greater than for individuals who score high on this scale. Your level of gregariousness is high. Assertiveness. High scorers Assertiveness like to speak out, take charge, and direct the activities of others. They tend to be leaders in groups. Low scorers tend not to talk much and let others control the activities of groups. Your level of assertiveness is high. Activity Level. Active individuals lead fast-paced, busy lives. They move about quickly, energetically, and vigorously, and they are involved in many activities. People who score low on this scale follow a slower and more leisurely, relaxed pace. Your activity level is high. Excitement-Seeking. High scorers on this scale are easily bored without high levels of stimulation. They love bright lights and hustle and bustle. They are likely to take risks and seek thrills. Low scorers are overwhelmed by noise and commotion and are adverse to thrill-seeking. Your level of excitement-seeking is average. Cheerfulness. This scale measures positive mood and feelings, not negative emotions (which are a part of the Neuroticism domain). Persons who score high on this scale typically experience a range of positive feelings, including happiness, enthusiasm, optimism, and joy. Low scorers are not as prone to such energetic, high spirits. Your level of positive emotions is high. Agreeableness Agreeableness reflects individual differences in concern with cooperation and social harmony. Agreeable individuals value getting along with others. They are therefore considerate, friendly, generous, helpful, and willing to compromise their interests with others'. Agreeable people also have an optimistic view of human nature. They believe people are basically honest, decent, and trustworthy. Disagreeable individuals place self-interest above getting along with others. They are generally unconcerned with others' well-being, and therefore are unlikely to extend themselves for other people. Sometimes their skepticism about others' motives causes them to be suspicious, unfriendly, and uncooperative. Agreeableness is obviously advantageous for attaining and maintaining popularity. Agreeable people are better liked than disagreeable people. On the other hand, agreeableness is not useful in situations that require tough or absolute objective decisions. Disagreeable people can make excellent scientists, critics, or soldiers. Domain/Facet........... Score Agreeableness..............93 Trust....................97 Morality.................75 Altruism.................98 Cooperation..............84 Modesty..................37 Sympathy.................78 Your high level of Agreeableness indicates a strong interest in others' needs and well-being. You are pleasant, sympathetic, and cooperative. Agreeableness Facets Trust. A person with high trust assumes that most people are fair, honest, and have good intentions. Persons low in trust see others as selfish, devious, and potentially dangerous. Your level of trust is high. Morality. High scorers on this scale see no need for pretense or manipulation when dealing with others and are therefore candid, frank, and sincere. Low scorers believe that a certain amount of deception in social relationships is necessary. People find it relatively easy to relate to the straightforward high-scorers on this scale. They generally find it more difficult to relate to the unstraightforward low-scorers on this scale. It should be made clear that low scorers are not unprincipled or immoral; they are simply more guarded and less willing to openly reveal the whole truth. Your level of morality is high. Altruism. Altruistic people find helping other people genuinely rewarding. Consequently, they are generally willing to assist those who are in need. Altruistic people find that doing things for others is a form of self-fulfillment rather than self-sacrifice. Low scorers on this scale do not particularly like helping those in need. Requests for help feel like an imposition rather than an opportunity for self-fulfillment. Your level of altruism is high. Cooperation. Individuals who score high on this scale dislike confrontations. They are perfectly willing to compromise or to deny their own needs in order to get along with others. Those who score low on this scale are more likely to intimidate others to get their way. Your level of compliance is high. Modesty. High scorers on this scale do not like to claim that they are better than other people. In some cases this attitude may derive from low self-confidence or self-esteem. Nonetheless, some people with high self-esteem find immodesty unseemly. Those who are willing to describe themselves as superior tend to be seen as disagreeably arrogant by other people. Your level of modesty is average. Sympathy. People who score high on this scale are tenderhearted and compassionate. They feel the pain of others vicariously and are easily moved to pity. Low scorers are not affected strongly by human suffering. They pride themselves on making objective judgments based on reason. They are more concerned with truth and impartial justice than with mercy. Your level of tender-mindedness is high. Conscientiousness Conscientiousness concerns the way in which we control, regulate, and direct our impulses. Impulses are not inherently bad; occasionally time constraints require a snap decision, and acting on our first impulse can be an effective response. Also, in times of play rather than work, acting spontaneously and impulsively can be fun. Impulsive individuals can be seen by others as colorful, fun-to-be-with, and zany. Nonetheless, acting on impulse can lead to trouble in a number of ways. Some impulses are antisocial. Uncontrolled antisocial acts not only harm other members of society, but also can result in retribution toward the perpetrator of such impulsive acts. Another problem with impulsive acts is that they often produce immediate rewards but undesirable, long-term consequences. Examples include excessive socializing that leads to being fired from one's job, hurling an insult that causes the breakup of an important relationship, or using pleasure-inducing drugs that eventually destroy one's health. Impulsive behavior, even when not seriously destructive, diminishes a person's effectiveness in significant ways. Acting impulsively disallows contemplating alternative courses of action, some of which would have been wiser than the impulsive choice. Impulsivity also sidetracks people during projects that require organized sequences of steps or stages. Accomplishments of an impulsive person are therefore small, scattered, and inconsistent. A hallmark of intelligence, what potentially separates human beings from earlier life forms, is the ability to think about future consequences before acting on an impulse. Intelligent activity involves contemplation of long-range goals, organizing and planning routes to these goals, and persisting toward one's goals in the face of short-lived impulses to the contrary. The idea that intelligence involves impulse control is nicely captured by the term prudence, an alternative label for the Conscientiousness domain. Prudent means both wise and cautious. Persons who score high on the Conscientiousness scale are, in fact, perceived by others as intelligent. The benefits of high conscientiousness are obvious. Conscientious individuals avoid trouble and achieve high levels of success through purposeful planning and persistence. They are also positively regarded by others as intelligent and reliable. On the negative side, they can be compulsive perfectionists and workaholics. Furthermore, extremely conscientious individuals might be regarded as stuffy and boring. Unconscientious people may be criticized for their unreliability, lack of ambition, and failure to stay within the lines, but they will experience many short-lived pleasures and they will never be called stuffy. Domain/Facet........... Score Conscientiousness..........99 Self-Efficacy............96 Orderliness..............99 Dutifulness..............89 Achievement-Striving.....97 Self-Discipline..........99 Cautiousness.............95 Your score on Conscientiousness is high. This means you set clear goals and pursue them with determination. People regard you as reliable and hard-working. Conscientiousness Facets Self-Efficacy. Self-Efficacy describes confidence in one's ability to accomplish things. High scorers believe they have the intelligence (common sense), drive, and self-control necessary for achieving success. Low scorers do not feel effective, and may have a sense that they are not in control of their lives. Your level of self-efficacy is high. Orderliness. Persons with high scores on orderliness are well-organized. They like to live according to routines and schedules. They keep lists and make plans. Low scorers tend to be disorganized and scattered. Your level of orderliness is high. Dutifulness. This scale reflects the strength of a person's sense of duty and obligation. Those who score high on this scale have a strong sense of moral obligation. Low scorers find contracts, rules, and regulations overly confining. They are likely to be seen as unreliable or even irresponsible. Your level of dutifulness is high. Achievement-Striving. Individuals who score high on this scale strive hard to achieve excellence. Their drive to be recognized as successful keeps them on track toward their lofty goals. They often have a strong sense of direction in life, but extremely high scores may be too single-minded and obsessed with their work. Low scorers are content to get by with a minimal amount of work, and might be seen by others as lazy. Your level of achievement striving is high. Self-Discipline. Self-discipline-what many people call will-power-refers to the ability to persist at difficult or unpleasant tasks until they are completed. People who possess high self-discipline are able to overcome reluctance to begin tasks and stay on track despite distractions. Those with low self-discipline procrastinate and show poor follow-through, often failing to complete tasks-even tasks they want very much to complete. Your level of self-discipline is high. Cautiousness. Cautiousness describes the disposition to think through possibilities before acting. High scorers on the Cautiousness scale take their time when making decisions. Low scorers often say or do first thing that comes to mind without deliberating alternatives and the probable consequences of those alternatives. Your level of cautiousness is high. Neuroticism Freud originally used the term neurosis to describe a condition marked by mental distress, emotional suffering, and an inability to cope effectively with the normal demands of life. He suggested that everyone shows some signs of neurosis, but that we differ in our degree of suffering and our specific symptoms of distress. Today neuroticism refers to the tendency to experience negative feelings. Those who score high on Neuroticism may experience primarily one specific negative feeling such as anxiety, anger, or depression, but are likely to experience several of these emotions. People high in neuroticism are emotionally reactive. They respond emotionally to events that would not affect most people, and their reactions tend to be more intense than normal. They are more likely to interpret ordinary situations as threatening, and minor frustrations as hopelessly difficult. Their negative emotional reactions tend to persist for unusually long periods of time, which means they are often in a bad mood. These problems in emotional regulation can diminish a neurotic's ability to think clearly, make decisions, and cope effectively with stress. At the other end of the scale, individuals who score low in neuroticism are less easily upset and are less emotionally reactive. They tend to be calm, emotionally stable, and free from persistent negative feelings. Freedom from negative feelings does not mean that low scorers experience a lot of positive feelings; frequency of positive emotions is a component of the Extraversion domain. Domain/Facet........... Score Neuroticism................0 Anxiety..................0 Anger....................1 Depression...............4 Self-Consciousness.......1 Immoderation.............35 Vulnerability............2 Your score on Neuroticism is low, indicating that you are exceptionally calm, composed and unflappable. You do not react with intense emotions, even to situations that most people would describe as stressful. Neuroticism Facets Anxiety. The "fight-or-flight" system of the brain of anxious individuals is too easily and too often engaged. Therefore, people who are high in anxiety often feel like something dangerous is about to happen. They may be afraid of specific situations or be just generally fearful. They feel tense, jittery, and nervous. Persons low in Anxiety are generally calm and fearless. Your level of anxiety is low. Anger. Persons who score high in Anger feel enraged when things do not go their way. They are sensitive about being treated fairly and feel resentful and bitter when they feel they are being cheated. This scale measures the tendency to feel angry; whether or not the person expresses annoyance and hostility depends on the individual's level on Agreeableness. Low scorers do not get angry often or easily. Your level of anger is low. Depression. This scale measures the tendency to feel sad, dejected, and discouraged. High scorers lack energy and have difficult initiating activities. Low scorers tend to be free from these depressive feelings. Your level of depression is low. Self-Consciousness. Self-conscious individuals are sensitive about what others think of them. Their concern about rejection and ridicule cause them to feel shy and uncomfortable abound others. They are easily embarrassed and often feel ashamed. Their fears that others will criticize or make fun of them are exaggerated and unrealistic, but their awkwardness and discomfort may make these fears a self-fulfilling prophecy. Low scorers, in contrast, do not suffer from the mistaken impression that everyone is watching and judging them. They do not feel nervous in social situations. Your level or self-consciousness is low. Immoderation. Immoderate individuals feel strong cravings and urges that they have difficulty resisting. They tend to be oriented toward short-term pleasures and rewards rather than long- term consequences. Low scorers do not experience strong, irresistible cravings and consequently do not find themselves tempted to overindulge. Your level of immoderation is average. Vulnerability. High scorers on Vulnerability experience panic, confusion, and helplessness when under pressure or stress. Low scorers feel more poised, confident, and clear-thinking when stressed. Your level of vulnerability is low. Openness to Experience Openness to Experience describes a dimension of cognitive style that distinguishes imaginative, creative people from down-to-earth, conventional people. Open people are intellectually curious, appreciative of art, and sensitive to beauty. They tend to be, compared to closed people, more aware of their feelings. They tend to think and act in individualistic and nonconforming ways. Intellectuals typically score high on Openness to Experience; consequently, this factor has also been called Culture or Intellect. Nonetheless, Intellect is probably best regarded as one aspect of openness to experience. Scores on Openness to Experience are only modestly related to years of education and scores on standard intelligent tests. Another characteristic of the open cognitive style is a facility for thinking in symbols and abstractions far removed from concrete experience. Depending on the individual's specific intellectual abilities, this symbolic cognition may take the form of mathematical, logical, or geometric thinking, artistic and metaphorical use of language, music composition or performance, or one of the many visual or performing arts. People with low scores on openness to experience tend to have narrow, common interests. They prefer the plain, straightforward, and obvious over the complex, ambiguous, and subtle. They may regard the arts and sciences with suspicion, regarding these endeavors as abstruse or of no practical use. Closed people prefer familiarity over novelty; they are conservative and resistant to change. Openness is often presented as healthier or more mature by psychologists, who are often themselves open to experience. However, open and closed styles of thinking are useful in different environments. The intellectual style of the open person may serve a professor well, but research has shown that closed thinking is related to superior job performance in police work, sales, and a number of service occupations. Domain/Facet........... Score Openness to experience.....18 Imagination..............1 Artistic Interests.......63 Emotionality.............53 Adventurousness..........61 Intellect................50 Liberalism...............2 Your score on Openness to Experience is low, indicating you like to think in plain and simple terms. Others describe you as down-to-earth, practical, and conservative. Openness Facets Imagination. To imaginative individuals, the real world is often too plain and ordinary. High scorers on this scale use fantasy as a way of creating a richer, more interesting world. Low scorers are on this scale are more oriented to facts than fantasy. Your level of imagination is low. Artistic Interests. High scorers on this scale love beauty, both in art and in nature. They become easily involved and absorbed in artistic and natural events. They are not necessarily artistically trained nor talented, although many will be. The defining features of this scale are interest in, and appreciation of natural and artificial beauty. Low scorers lack aesthetic sensitivity and interest in the arts. Your level of artistic interests is average. Emotionality. Persons high on Emotionality have good access to and awareness of their own feelings. Low scorers are less aware of their feelings and tend not to express their emotions openly. Your level of emotionality is average. Adventurousness. High scorers on adventurousness are eager to try new activities, travel to foreign lands, and experience different things. They find familiarity and routine boring, and will take a new route home just because it is different. Low scorers tend to feel uncomfortable with change and prefer familiar routines. Your level of adventurousness is average. Intellect. Intellect and artistic interests are the two most important, central aspects of openness to experience. High scorers on Intellect love to play with ideas. They are open-minded to new and unusual ideas, and like to debate intellectual issues. They enjoy riddles, puzzles, and brain teasers. Low scorers on Intellect prefer dealing with either people or things rather than ideas. They regard intellectual exercises as a waste of time. Intellect should not be equated with intelligence. Intellect is an intellectual style, not an intellectual ability, although high scorers on Intellect score slightly higher than low-Intellect individuals on standardized intelligence tests. Your level of intellect is average. Liberalism. Psychological liberalism refers to a readiness to challenge authority, convention, and traditional values. In its most extreme form, psychological liberalism can even represent outright hostility toward rules, sympathy for law-breakers, and love of ambiguity, chaos, and disorder. Psychological conservatives prefer the security and stability brought by conformity to tradition. Psychological liberalism and conservatism are not identical to political affiliation, but certainly incline individuals toward certain political parties. Your level of liberalism is low. Note: The report sent to your computer screen upon the completion of the IPIP-NEO is only a temporary web page. When you exit your web browser you will not be able to return to this URL to re-access your report. No copies of the report are sent to anyone. If you want a permanent copy of the report, you must save the web page to your hard drive or a diskette, and/or print the report while you are still viewing it in your web browser. If you choose to save your report, naming it with an .htm extension (example: Myreport.htm) as you save it may help you to read it into a web browser later

I will have to take it again, i wasnt asking people to post their results so i didnt save my results, and since the previous poster took the long test, I guess it is only fair to take the same test.

Here is an online personality test, if you are honest with your answers, you may learn a few things about yourself that you didnt know. Even if you do not care to know personally, many employers use this exact type of test on prehires, to weed out some candidates; so you may benefit professionally to be able to see what they will see when making a hiring decision about you. There are two choices, a long and short test, the short test takes about 10 minutes to complete. I have not tried the long test yet. BUT REMEMBER, YOU HAVE TO BE HONEST. IF YOU PICK THE ANSWER YOU THINK THEY WANT YOU TO CHOOSE (TO SCORE HIGHER), YOUR RESULTS WILL NOT BE A TRUE REFLECTION OF YOU. http://www.personalitytest.net/ipip/ipipneo1.htm

No you didnt misunderstand the question. By law, most providers maybe forced to work her; In some systems you have some leeway in who you choose to work or not to work (decapitation or other severe trauma), or you may have the option to work for a set amount of time and then call the code.

aryan, I am sure there are many expensive text books you can buy, but you can learn all you need to know from your local ER or Lab. And there is a good reason to learn this, as many Nursing Homes and Assisted Living Facilities have started drawing blood and sending labs out instead of sending the patient to the ER. So you may start getting calls for "abnormal labs" and will have a copy of the lab results handed to you. For emergency purposes if you understand: white cell counts, H&Hs, Electrolytes, and medication ranges (Digoxin, Seizure Meds, etc), you will know most of what you need to know.

There is a difference: If you are judging me on my statements or actions, and decided to dislike me that is fine. If someone is lying about my statements or actions, I feel the need to correct the lies, and not in an effort to get someone to like me, but to set the record straight. If I posted that the reason I dont like you is because you beat your wife/girlfriend, and that was not true, I imagine that you would want to correct that lie, not in an effort to win my friendship, but to correct the lie.

Damn Mike, that was impressive (going to get a dictionary so I can understand all of what you said).

Good advice Wendy -- thanks

That all sounds good ERDOC , but here's the kicker: She said, "well I guess I know how AIDS patients feel now". ANd I thought to myself (didnt say outloud), "Actually you dont, because we probably treat AIDS patients with more compassion than we do rape patients". I am still on the fence about any physical contact, but I wonder if there is a nice way to ask the patient in conversation if she wants to talk about it ? I mean if you responded to a 14 year old girl who was crying uncontrollably, I think you would ask some compassionate questions to try to help her. Then again, if she wants to talk about the rape, are we qualifed to answer responsibly without doing more damage ?

No, but when I asked about that, she said a hug from a man would not have bothered her (I explained the health care professionals might have been distant). I realize that would not be the case for every rape patient, but at the same time is there not room to meet in the middle ? Do we have to be all the way on the "cold" side ? She stated that even the female EMS nurses treated her the same way. Which is why I asked if anyone has talked with a rape counselor. I am not suggesting that we start hugging every rape patient, but we are usually the first people they see after it has happened, can we be more compassionate without causing harm ?

I always followed that philosophy as well, but I recently discovered that a friend of mine was raped years ago. She has progressed to the point that she can talk about it now, and the one thing that she stated that made me reconsider was that she said that she felt like a piece of meat, not a person, by the way that she was treated by the Police, EMS, Fire, and ER people that she dealt with. Not that they treated her bad, or unprofessionally, but because they all "stayed distant" to her, in what she described as her hour of greatest need. She said everyone seemed "cold and sterile" towards her. No one would look her in the eye, touch her, or have a real conversation with her. She thanks god for the "rape counselor" who came to see her in the ER, because she was the only one who treated her like a person, the only one who hugged her and told her it would be alright, the first person to smile with her after they cried together. Now, I have to wonder if thats what all my patients were thinking ? I wasnt trying to be cold or sterile, but I imagine I might have came across that way, in my effort to do no further harm. Has anyone ever had a rape counselor to give an inservice for your staff ?

15 looks, and no suggestions ????????

Here's another one for you, from my ER days (and I have several similar stories) . 42 year old male was lifting weights, began to experience severe right wrist pain. The health club calls 911, patient has no other symptoms. paramedics tell patient he might need to get it x-rayed. pt drives himself to hospital, drops dead from MI in triage, but luckily was resucitated. Similar stories happen every week somewhere in the US.