Dustdevil

LMAO! That was beauty! I should read this forum more often.

If you didn't learn English in twelve (?) years of public school, I have no confidence whatsoever in your ability "save lives" with six months of night school. If EMS is your lifestyle, do yourself a favour. Kill yourself now.

LMAO!! I love it!!

Which book you use is not likely to affect your performance on the NR exam. It's not even likely to [negatively] affect your performance in class. The fact that you have studied at all puts you way ahead of your peers, so there is no way that can be a bad thing. If it turns out the book you are currently studying isn't as in depth as the one your class uses, no problem. You'll pick it up in class and through studying then. If it's better than the book you use in class, well then that's a good thing, right? I applaud your foresight, not only in pre-studying, but in astutely choosing the correct topic to study! :thumbright:

Would you like to be specific with your accusations? Or would that be beyond your intellectual and grammatical capabilities?

In a perfect, theoretical world, maybe. In the real world, I have sat on applicant review boards where this was exactly the case. The polygrapher sat down, showed us the results, explained why it was his professional expert opinion that the applicant was using techniques to be deceptive without the box detecting the deception. I'm sure if you look, even this is available on the Internet somewhere. Probably on the same sites as the so called "beat the box" techniques themselves. Again, it is not the box that makes the determination. It is the operator. And a good one can smell deception a mile away. As an analogy, consider taking a pulse. If a lay person palpates a pulse, all he can tell you about it is that he feels a thump under his fingers. If an experienced medical profession takes it, he can tell you rate, regularity, strength, quality, and even an educated speculation of the heart rhythm it stems from. That is the case with the polygraph. The value is in the ihterpretation, not in the machine itself.

For some of us, EMS is a job, not a lifestyle. Just like most computer technicians don't get overwhelmed by the urge to run and help random people with their Microsoft nightmares, many of us don't salivate at the prospect of crawling around other people's wrecks off duty. It's a job, people. Not a lifestyle. Not a calling. Not a hobby. Just a job.

Exactly. Nowhere did I say "there is absolutely NO way that ANY person can possibly beat it." Quit trying to put words in my mouth. I don't watch neato cop shows. I don't watch any shows except for the news and "Trailer Park Boys," ever since they took "Beavis & Butthead" off the air. My observations come from real life, not from television. I know polygraphers. I have taken polygraphs on several occasions. I have observed them on even more occasions. I have studied them. I know what they do and what they do not do. And what they do or do not do is simply not even relevant to this debate. It is what the person administering and interpreting the test does that is relevant! And polygraphers are acutely aware of all the techniques that nimrods read about on the Internet and use to try and beat the box. They know how it affects the results. Consequently, they know how to beat those techniques, or at least detect them. Those are what controls are for. Again, this is perfectly analogous to a piss test. They don't have to find the drugs in your system for you to be guilty. All they have to do is determine you cheated the test. That's enough. You are looking at this thing through extremely narrow blinders. This isn't a paralegal discussion about the legal ramifications and admissibility of the polygraph. This is a discussion of whether or not you can use deceptive techniques to beat the box and the polygrapher not know it. You may beat the box, but your changes of beating the guy operating it are, again, slim to none. And whether or not all your paralegal education and experience tells you that it is admissible in court or not, his determination that you cheated WILL get your application thrown out of the hiring pool.

LMAO! You say that as if you think you'll actually be rolling in the dough once you become an EMT.

Good question! Actually, it raises a sore spot. I transferred out to a firebase on the edge of Ramadi last week for what was supposed to be a 1 month TDY (R&R relief). Well, it turns out this will probably be a permanent assignment. That's not really a bad thing, as I love this new place! On the grounds of one of Saddams palace playgrounds with lots of scenic sites and trees (oh how I have missed trees the last 5 months!). But I only packed my clothes and essential personal items with me. My combat pack, as well as three foot lockers of belongings, are still back at Al Taqaddum. And, unfortunately, the person I relieved here was a real slacker on keeping this place well organised and stocked, so the pack I am currently working out of is the dregs. And the rapid availability of resupply on a firebase is, well... non-existent. So, I am missing my pack right now and hope it arrives soon! Anyhow, yes, I have definitely made some changes: Increased Asherman Chest Seals to 10 (learned that lesson REAL quick!) Deleted QuickClot Deleted old style 4x7 individual combat dressings Increased Israeli Dressings to 6 Deleted the BP cuff Deleted TraumaDex Deleted IV Start Kits Deleted Tegaderm Added 2" Nylon tape Decreased SAM splints to 1 Deleted 3" Ace bandages Deleted MultiTrauma Dressing Deleted ET tubes Deleted Intubation supplies Deleted NuTrake kit Added 2 cuffed Shiley tubes Deleted Hespan Increased NS IV to 3 Increased Bandage shears to 2 Deleted Rocephin Added 2 1gm Ancef Added 2 10mg MS It's so easy to fall into the "new toys" trap when you first get here. But pretty quickly you get back to the basics. Not only does experience do that for you, but simply having to carry all that weight around gets your head straight pretty quick too! That thing sure rides a lot more comfortably now, and it is indeed more functional.

I spent my years as a basic in a suburban setting, which is really neither urban nor rural. I spent my first 6 years as a medic in a major metropolitan city. Then I went to rural. I can assure you that, medically and operationally speaking, this transition is MUCH more of a major matter than moving urban from rural. No doubt about it. There's not even the beginnings of a logical argument to be made the other direction. The only major shock for somebody going from rural to urban is that of bureaucracy and politics. Much more bull$hit in an urban system. In my experience, you can get by an entire career as a substandard medic in an urban system. It's easy to get lost in the crowd. And with close proximity to your facilities, you simply aren't expected to know a lot of serious medicine. You simply fall back on the, "Oh, we're too close to the hospital to worry about that" mantra. You will find a much harder time getting away with that in a rural system. It's a lot easier to tell your patient (and yourself) "we're almost at the hospital" for a five minute ride, while calling in your report and taking vitals than it is to do that for twenty to thirty minutes in a rural system. After the first five minutes, that bluff doesn't fly anymore and you have to start actually doing something for the patient. Even the quantity argument doesn't fly in this debate. Urban runs more than rural? Well, uhh... yeah! But they do it with exponentially more ambos too! There are urban ambulances all over this country -- in huge cities -- growing cobwebs on their square wheels, just like in rural areas, because they are in low volume districts. And again, quantity of runs simply is irrelevant. It is the quantity of patient contact time that is the significant factor here. And on that number, they really even out. Anatomy Chick and NREMT-Basic take this round.

I've never stuck myself in the back of the ambo, but I have stuck a few firemen who were in the way. Oooops! True story!

Yep. And it was created by legal "experts," not survival experts. The COF is getting police officers killed all in the name of saving cities a few bucks in legal fees. It costs the city a lot less to bury a dead officer than to pay off an injured criminal. Me too. Over ten years of my life. And they are the ones who never get their arses whipped too. Coincidence? I think not. Rather? That's a pretty nebulous statement. Why would they "rather" taze somebody? Because they get a kick out of watching them fall to the ground? Wouldn't they get a bigger thrill out of drop-kicking them to the ground? Sure. So then, why would they "rather" taze somebody? It's simple. Because it is safer for both the officer and the criminal. So what problem do you have with that? Enlighten us with the vast insight you aquired as a police officer.

I know that AK and I look a whole lot alike. And many people confuse us in person (which, I believe, led to his last divorce). But it wasn't me who was complaining about not being able to see the video. But of course, I couldn't. And still can't. :? But thanks for trying!

I did not say or intend to imply that they cannot be beaten. I was telling this guy that his chances of beating it are slim to none, and more importantly, that his chances were better with honesty than with deception. And I have to disagree with you that they can "easily" be beaten. Confusing them is not beating them. When you confuse them, they just mark you down as deceptive, which is just as bad as being caught in the lie. That is akin to having your urine test clean for crack, but positive for masking agents. You're still farked. Stand up in court? Nope. Keep you from getting a job? Absolutely. And that's the point being discussed here.

You are the manager of a service that provides medics to run remote duty industrial medical clinics. Your clinics are stocked with 5 morphines and 5 valiums. They are prefilled "Carpuject" vials which come in white boxes with pink writing on them. The boxes look alike except for what is written on them. So here is the scenario. You send out five new vials of morphine to a clinic just before their current stock expires. When it expires, the medic there follows established procedures by calling a [non-medical] management official to witness the wasting of the expired morphine. The medic examines the medicine, then the witness examines the medicine. Then they go to the bathroom where the witness hands the medicine to the medic and she shoots all five vials into the head. Both she and the witness sign the accountability form and log, and the witness leaves. After it is all said and done, the medic discovers that she accidentally wasted the good valium instead of the expired morphine. She immediately reports the error to you, her manager. What do you do?

Sounds like you are putting all your eggs into one very small basket. Determining that one fire department has a cadet programme that *might* pay for your training (as opposed to an education, which means you'll suck), and then *might* hire you afterwards, does not sound like a very serious or thorough job market analysis. I truly do wish you luck. But in the meantime, don't piss off daddy. You're going to be living with him (and off of him) for a very, very long time, even if your plan goes as you want it to.

LMAO@preventative maintenance! That's beauty!

Well, I do agree that there seem to be more losers on the streets today than in earlier years. But I pretty much attribute that to the current generation being slackers. And to me being a cranky old fart. But I don't think the old system you cite made any real difference. Those who will be run off, will be run off. The only difference then was that they were run off before they wasted their money on paramedic school. The ultimate success rates don't appear to be any different.

:shock: I believe this is the first time I have ever heard this said in thirty three years. Good plan. The administration may not think it is in their interest, but if not, you may have an easier time convincing the Hospital Board that it is in their interest to not lose the trust of the community by mismanaging the trust they have placed in them to provide these services. And if not, a well placed public relations campaign with the community themselves may be the answer. Again, good luck!

Finished clinicals on a Friday evening. Began internship the following Monday morning.

Alright, PuzzlePiece... I have been very patient with you and this topic. For some reason, others are coddling you and holding back from confronting you with the bottom line, so I'll do it. Are you hott?

If the lack of time and money to get a proper education is really such a problem for you, I would very seriously consider choosing another field altogether. EMS will be a total waste of your time. If you can't get well educated, you'll suck. And even those who do not suck still make no money. Have you done any serious job market analysis in your area? Do you even know if there are EMS jobs available there? Do you know what the hiring requirements are? Do you know how much competition there is for them? Do you know how much they pay? Chances are the answers to all of these questions will deeply disappoint you. So, you go to a nice little 6 week school to be an EMT and make just over minimum wage, IF you are lucky enough to get a job (which will more than likely be an actual EMS job). And between your enthusiasm and your need for money, you work 80 hours a week to make ends meet. Now, tell me, when do you expect to find time to go to paramedic school? And where do you intend to get the money to go there for the next two years? And after all that time and money invested, what do you do when you can't find a job, or can only find a low paying job with a non-EMS provider? Lights and sirens don't pay the bills. The advice given by others above is on-track. Forget about the drug books. You need to learn years worth of anatomy and physiology before you pick one of those up. But even better than that, do some serious research and soul searching to determine if this whim is really such a great idea in the first place. I don't know you or where you are, but if I were to say it's a stupid idea, I stand about a 90 percent chance of being right. Good luck!

This is extremely common in rural American. In fact, I would bet that a very hefty percentage of Americans live 20 to 30 minutes from the nearest ambulance of any level. I spent most of my EMS career in rural county systems like that. One or two stations covering the entire county with one ambo each. Nothing but VFDs for first responders, except maybe in the county seat town. It was even worse in the pre-911 days when you had to talk for five minutes with the caller just to get directions to their house. Or barn. Or pasture. Or stock tank. I agree that it is simply the price one pays for seclusion and serenity. If there was a fire station on every corner, and the high taxes and bureaucracy that go with them, there would be no point in moving to the country.

The number one problem you are going to run up against will be the fact that they staff their units just fine with the wages they are presently paying. They have drawers full of applications from people just itching to take your place. Again, supply and demand. What is in it for them if they pay you more? Will it make you a better medic? If you will work better for me for more money, than I don't want you working for me at all, will be their argument. See, this is always the problem with unions. It's always "us against them," instead of "what can we do together?" To be successful, you are going to have to focus your presentation on what is in it for them, not what is in it for you. If you go in there telling them what YOU want and what YOU need and what Joe EMT is making at the Los Angeles Fire Department, they're going to tune you out in the first thirty seconds. Don't be the aggressor. Don't even be an adversary at all. Be a salesman. Sell them on the idea that they will be getting great benefits for their money. Ask not what your company can do for you. Ask what you can do for your company.