Dustdevil

Every system should have a deaf paramedic in the dispatch office to interpret in case a deaf person calls 911.

I assume it's not available from Books On Tape.

I don't have a problem with them on a bus. But they definitely have no business on an ambulance.

If you are a competent medical professional, and there is some question as to the reliability of your auscultated BP, you know it. You KNOW you aren't positive about what you heard. You don't have that luxury with a machine. So even if your auscultated BP is questionable, you still get vastly more information from it than you do from a machine. Screw those machines. Save the money and put it in my benefits package instead.

LMAO! I like that! Very true too!

Anybody who thinks tramadol isn't an effective analgesic simply isn't taking enough of it! :twisted:

We need a Dubin style capnography book!

Agreed. The majority of the time, my 12-lead is going to tell me what I need to know. If it doesn't, then I still maintain a high index of suspicion. I certainly wouldn't delay my 12-lead by playing a numbers game. And if the 12-lead results are positive, the whole point of the numbers game becomes moot.

You call that a decent market? :? If there is such a surplus of EMTs that transfer companies can afford to be that picky, I would call that a terrible market.

Just curious, did you check out the job market in your area at all before investing in school? Truth is, you may have to move if there is nothing in your area.

I've seen reversal at least once that I specifically recall. But I certainly wouldn't speculate that it was due to hyperventilation. Guy had a major stroke while plowing his field out in the middle of nowhere. I worked on him for an hour or so, lowering his pressure and ICP with everything in the box. Hyperstat, mannitol, Solu Medrol, Valium. Filled up the foley bag. The emesis basin too. By the time we made it to the hospital, his pupils had indeed equaled out. It caught me by surprise and I remember wondering to myself if I hadn't been mistaken in noting them as unequal in my initial assessment. By the way, I would like to say how happy I am to see a basic taking such serious interest in mundane pathophysiology. =D>

I think if you believe $40k is "high paying," you need to set your sights higher! Anyhow, as to your question, why not do both? Why not be in EMS and make $40k? There are certainly services that pay that. And even better yet, there are services in much nicer areas where the cost of living is low enough that $40k actually IS good money! $40k is slave wages in NYC.

In Vermont you can serial rape the dog for four straight years and still get off. No pun intended.

I wish there were more "proficient" medics out there then. I still see and hear of this happening today, twenty years after we realized it was a bad idea. It seems to be a mixture of medics who simply don't have the sense to know when to stay and when to go, as well as those who simply get carried away with the moment, intoxicated by the smell of blood, and totally lose track of time as they play around. Either way, it's unacceptable and still happens. :?

Wow, you just described me to a T! I've never shed a single tear over a lost patient. But animal suffering just tears me apart. Everytime I have stopped to help an animal, I spent the rest of the day in tears. As for the question at hand, I really don't know. As much as I love animals, I also understand the reluctance that many people naturally have to stop. Stop and do what? Call 911? They won't come. If they do, their only concern is keeping traffic moving. Some communities are blessed with an excellent Animal Services department who will respond quickly to pick up the animal and either transport it to a vet (during business hours) or euthanize it in extreme cases. But that is the exception, not the rule. So what is a driver to do if he or she stops? How do you determine who the animal belongs to? In many cases, they belong to nobody, so searching is futile. How does the driver help the animal with no training? And how does one do so without becoming a victim of the frightened animal's bite or struggling? Not to mention the other dangers. We had a young girl stop here to help a stricken dog and got run over herself in the process. I've come close to being hit myself while helping an animal. It is easy to come to the emotionally reactionary conclusion that these people are heartless criminals, but in many cases it is just not so. They are genuinely scared people who simply don't know what to do and are afraid of what they will see. It's the same thing that keeps some people from going to a friend's funeral. It's the same thing that keeps people out of EMS. It's just the way some people are. They aren't criminals. They're just human. Of course, I also recognize that there are some heartless bastards out there. But how do we know who is who? I just don't think it is feasible to drag them all into court to sort them out. I wish it were. But I don't think it is.

Ah, the question which is asked weekly appears on a Tuesday this week. Texas LP - Licensed Paramedic (paramedic with an AAS in EMS or a BS in any other discipline) EMT-P - Tech school paramedic EMT-I - Intermediate (mixed 85 and 99 standards, depending on school. Not many in Texas) EMT-B - Basic ECA - Emergency Care Attendant (40 hour first responder course. Not allowed to work ambulance.) All except ECA are National Registry.

Nah, you couldn't do take downs or extrications on it, but you can scoop them off of the LBB once the takedown or extrication is completed. Then the LBB becomes a tool, not an immobilization device, which it was never really meant to be and does so very poorly.

Saw that one awhile back. Definitely no surprises for me. Anybody who has used both devices should know that. Glad to see somebody validated it scientifically though. I'd like to see everybody scooped. Plop them onto the ER gurney and take your scoop with you. That way the patient doesn't remain on a hard board, you don't lose your equipment at the ER, and the immobilization burden is on the ER doc, where it belongs.

Thank you! Would you be interested in teaching paramedic school in Texas? I just got out of a refresher class where all the medics yelled "BUNDLE BRANCH BLOCK!!!" at every notched QRS they saw. They were so captivated by those notched complexes that they usually completely missed the underlying rhythm. When I showed them that those were not BBB's, they were shocked and said they had been taught that all notched QRS's were BBB's :?

"Robert was killed by Union soldiers." Bastards. Apparently, I have been hated by many generations throughout history: - killed by Greeks who were working for the Nazis - killed by people who present themselves as defenders of nationalist areas. - killed by a Welsh raiding party in 1088. - killed by Civil War bushwhackers. - killed by a white van! - killed by a shotgun blast to the chest, in the front door of his home. - killed by a mob. - killed by knife like scalpel. - killed by an arrow in this dreaded Forest. - killed by enemy small arms fire while his platoon was on search and destroy mission. - killed by the Indians. - killed by a fall from his horse in August 1872. - killed by a drunk driver. And the hits just keep on coming! :shock:

This is how: Hey, if I get to pick my body-to-body partner in Canada, I think I might have to give it a try too!

gluteocoulrophobia (fear of ass clowns) That's why I got out of EMS. 8)

I'm with you on the cleaning thing. Once I got stuck with a new partner (because his old partner wouldn't work with him anymore) who didn't share my passion. We picked up the ambo and went to our station for the day. When we got there, he went inside, plopped his fat ass into a recliner and watched foosball all day. I never even got out of the ambo for two hours as I inventoried, cleaned, and disinfected every part of the truck like I always did at the beginning of every shift. By the time I finished, we caught a run. When we got back from the run, I again stayed in the bay to clean the ambo and restock. About mid-day, the shift supervisor calls me on the phone and asks me what the problem is between me and my partner. I told him I was completely unaware that there was a problem and asked him what he was talking about. Apparently, the partner actually called up the supervisor and COMPLAINED that I was antisocial because I had not come into the station and watched footie with him and the firemen. He actually had NO IDEA that I was out there cleaning the ambulance! It never even crossed his mind. When the supervisor realized that my partner had contributed NOTHING to maintaining the ambulance that shift, he was suspended for two shifts, unpaid. The moral of the story is, don't ever complain about something unless you know for sure you're on the right side!

You'll learn phlebotomy in fifteen minutes of medic school. There is no benefit to a "head start" on it unless you intend to get a job as a phlebotomist while in school. Most would recommend that you don't look for shortcuts or head starts to ALS education through phlebotomy or ACLS classes. It's a waste of time and money. Take the education in it's logical order as it is offered in medic school. Spend your time and money on something useful and valuable -- education. Go take a couple semesters of Anatomy & Physiology, algebra and English. Be a professional, not a labourer. Good luck!

Sorry, but I'm not here to be politically correct or blow smoke up anybody's behind to make them feel better about their 120 hour first aid certificate. I'm here to talk facts. This isn't even about people. This is about educational standards. Anybody who takes personal offense to a discussion of the inadequacy of EMT education in this country can either get over themselves or go back to school. Their fragile egos are not important to me. Our patients are important to me. And I do not support anything that is not in the patient's best interest.