Dustdevil

As long as you aren't that person, don't sweat it. They will more than likely have a copy of your PCR there anyhow. Go over it when given the chance and refresh yourself. If there is anything you do not absolutely, positively remember for an absolute, crystal clear fact, just say, "I don't recall." That simple. Nobody's going to badger you about your memory. And neither side wants you guessing or making stuff up without any recollection. And, if your employer isn't paying you for that day in court, find another job. They suck.

Wait, is it a person vs. the state, or is it the state vs. a person? Makes a BIG difference. :?

Yikes. I'm not looking forward to getting my new licence. I definitely have not gotten any better looking in the last 8 years. :?

Not me. That would be one of the extremely rare cases where I would be happy to have a basic for a partner.

I agree. Especially since an IV itself is pretty useless. It is only going to cause EMT's to stay and play, resulting in prolonged scene times with no benefit to the patient. And anybody who hasn't gone on to paramedic school in three years certainly doesn't have my confidence anyhow. Horrible idea all the way around. Medical director should be sacked. As for the IV tips, as already stated, do it fast. Get in quickly. Don't gradually push your way through. It's not good for pain and it's not good for success. The more warning you give the vein, the more it is going to avoid you. They have minds of their own, and quite frankly, they don't want to be punctured. Just do it! Don't think about it. Don't analyse it. Don't obsess over it. Just do it!

His buds are the ones that called the ambulance. His buds want him out of there. I am only too happy to comply. The appearance of cops in this mix is more likely to produce violence than to prevent it.

Okay, how about an english, history, or psychology book? Work on your degree while you're still young enough. If it's your sanity you're worried about, don't read anything at all. Get out of the house and do something. Work out at the gym. Practice martial arts. Go running. Go swimming. Go skiing. Go flying. Play tennis, hockey, or soccer. Take up photography and document your career, your family, or the beauty around you. I just don't see any value -- or even entertainment -- in burying my nose in a book about somebody else who did the same thing I'm doing. Not exactly mind expanding. It's a rookie thing. With apologies to Devin. Although, there are plenty of New York wackers out there, so he won't be missing any meals. :wink:

They might. But that's their business. That would be a question for www.firehouse.com . Personally, I think it's a fair trade. I get a pocket full of cash. The patient doesn't get reported. Everybody's happy!

Educational books. You aren't finished learning yet. You're not a wannabe anymore. You ARE the paramedic now. Move on past the sensationalism of the silly wannabe books. Start writing your own book. Start today taking notes on each and every day of your career. Then, twenty years from now, you can write a book or two and help pay for your retirement.

Haha... they could play only "Boys From Oklahoma" and "Carney Man" at their concerts and everybody would still be happy! Good guys. Long time friends. Happy to see them make the big time.

Do you have a link source for that regulation? Never heard of it. In fact, I very rarely see an EMS provider wearing an ID card around North Texas. Arlington is the only one that comes to mind, and they are a bunch of AMR wankers. I can't imagine that if this were actually a law, so many agencies would be ignoring it.

Please tell me you're joking. :?

We just posted at the same time, so make sure you scroll back and read. No feeling of urgency is a good thing. Go with it. Hold it near and dear to you. It will serve you well in your career. There is nothing more annoying than a partner who gets all urgent about everything. So long as you aren't lethargic, don't worry about it.

Go back and revisit it all with the crew you were riding with. Hopefully, you did plenty of "debriefing" over the run when you got back to the station that day. But you still obviously have questions and things you want to say. Do it with them. And do it with your instructor too. You don' need a "debriefing." I don't think you are having emotional problems. I think you just need to get it all in perspective operationally and medically so you understand everything that happened, and that you did a good job. $hit happens, and that MVA is no different than every other critical MVA you will run on. If for some bizarre reason you still feel uncomfortable or begin to obsess on this incident: 1. DO NOT start asking around about CISD. It's bull$hit snake oil. 2. Seek professional help. And CISD idiots are not professionals. Licensed Professional Counsellors and Psychologists are professionals. 3. Get out of EMS now, before it causes you irreparable emotional damage. Good luck!

Great first post! I like you already! Not only is that a great idea to talk to incoming medics after they deliver their patient (I've never seen a student really do that in a serious, educational manner!), but it is also impressive that you are openly critical of yourself, as well as willing to share that criticism with us here. May you go far! :thumbright:

Might I give an unofficial, off the record heads up to the local cop on the beat about it? Sure. I watch out for him. He watches out for me. But I bloody well am not making a "report" of what I saw. Depending on how relevant any given circumstances are to a patient's condition, I may or may not make note of it in my PCR. However, the PCR is privileged info that is not legally shared with law enforcement, so it would not be brought to their attention. And minus 5 for using radio codes. :roll:

Good on you! Your ability to resist the overwhelming temptation to do what all the cool kids are doing speaks very well of you and your potential to be a great medic. I hope you are representative of the new breed. It's definitely a New York thing, and one of the things that makes NY EMTs look like such wankers to the rest of the country. You (referring to all EMT's and medics, not Mr. Greene personally) have no authority. You're just a medical provider, and a poorly trained one at that. As a wise man once wrote, you have no more authority than a barber. And the barber has a licence and ten times the training you do, so get over yourself. It's not part of your uniform. And utilizing it to procure favour from merchants or the police is unethical. No good can come from possessing such a badge. None. If those instructors have old pre-FDNY badges that they keep as a matter of pride, I can halfway understand that. But if they walk around with it on their belt or around their neck like they are an extra from NYPD Blue, or worse yet, just had it made up out of the Galls catalogue, they're wankers, and anything they are teaching you is suspect.

Professional educators found the answer to that dilemma decades ago. Pre-tests. Just like the ones given in BCLS, ACLS and PHTLS. My students won't only have written homework assignments to turn in. My students will take a written exam in class over that homework. And that homework and exam will come before the topic is even covered in lecture. Then, class time won't be wasted rehashing basic concepts that they should have learned from their textbook. And failing a pre-test is just as detrimental to your grade as failing a final exam. You won't skip your reading assignment more than once and stay in my class. The problem is, too many schools are just too afraid to kick people out. Once the lazy whiners start mouthing off about how unfair your program is, enrolment drops and agencies steer their people elsewhere. Let's face it, educational standards and quality is NOT at the top of the list of reasons that most people choose a school.

That is usually the sequence of events. V-fib commonly results in a seizure. It's like the old hip scenario. Did the hip cause the fall, or did the fall break the hip?

That's very true, Cos. The problem is, it's easier for them to blame the situation on the EMT than to simply admit that their dispatch protocols and tiered response system -- which led to this SNAFU -- suck arse.

Dude! :shock:

I'M A CARNEY MAN!! http://www.CrossCanadianRagweed.com/audio/bb_carneyman.ram I want a big red nose I want some floppy shoes I want a squirty flower squirt it on you Like all the bad clowns do I want to juggle bowling pins in the sun I want to join the circus, the circus looks like fun I'll sit and work the gate or I can guess your weight I'll even sell the corn dogs I don't care As long as I am there I'll hand out baseballs at the dunk tank I'll ride my funny car laughing... all the way to the bank Cause I'm a carney man I'm a carney man I'm a carney man I'm a carney man carney man carney man The human cannonball I'll rise above it all Up higher than the trapeze I can fly Oh god I'm gonna die I am a carney worker I make two bucks Every hour come to find out ... this job it fücking sucks! Cause I'm a carney man I'm a carney man I'm a carney man I'm a carney man You need a corndog I can tell You need a corn dog I can tell I'm a carney man

Probably a little steroid psychosis on top of it all, just for good measure.

Interesting. Eight dollar an hour EMT does CPR and breaks ribs = no lawsuit. Fifteen thousand dollar machine produced by highly insured, billion dollar company breaks ribs = lawsuit. Who'd a thunk it? :roll:

Unfortunately, they include all ambos in the growth rate. The growth rate of EMS is dismal.