DFIB

That sounds like a prety good linguistic tool kit. I was wondering if you knew some Romanian. You European dudes all know at least a couple of languages. I learned both my languages before the age of five so I am pretty much bilingual. You know what that they call person who knows two languages bilingual, trilingual for three, polyglot for 5 or more. Do you know what they call a person who only knows one language?

@ vorenus How many languages do you speak? Are you totally bilingual, trilingual?

The article talks about too much O2 but is not very specific. If I remember correctly the EMT-B orange book mentions that in COPD patients O2 should be given with care but never withheld. I will have to look up the specific text.

That is a tough question. There are several sites similar to the ones you mention. I have heard that JBlearning has a test that is similar to NREMT but have never used it. I understand the difficulty in understanding an Anglo-Saxon language when your native tongue is an Eastern Romantic Language. His difficulties may go beyond just medical terminology. The subtle differences in the NREMT answer language could be key. I would focus at least part of his preparation on English grammar and written syntax and place oral exercises to a secondary importance. Since the exams are written he might want to spend time in simply understanding the written material, grammar, sentence structure. He doesn't need to understand the question in English even though that is the language he is reading it in.This may already be your approach. I would be interested in what some our other bilingual members might opine on this matter. Best Wishes

Eat some kangaroo-kabobs or lizzard on a stick or whatever the local delicacy may be.

I know 5 ladies that sold their houses an built one big house for them all to live in. it was their own kind of retirement community. It seemed to work well for them, Each had a small apartment and shared cooking and living room. Your OP has got me thinking about ways to test a communal idea among people that would have something to contribute. I have thought of a social experiment that would be interesting. I think that the medium ground and possibly a test group could be to form a group where people live in their own homes but contribute services to the "commune". Services are valued on a point system. For example: 1 hour mowing the yard = 100 pts, a Dr. Consult = 500 pts, 1/2 plumber service= 250pts. Every service has a point value and folks pay into their personal account by providing services to other members. When you provide a service the adequate points are added to your account, when you receive a service the points are subtracted. This gives people a chance to trade services for services without the necessity for cash. Goods could be added as well, a bushel of purple hulls=15 points, 1lb of venison =25 points, 1 rabbit=25 points, etc. If you can put one of these together you would have a good idea of people in your area that would be open to a communal society even if they don't all live together.

Dwayne, I am impressed that of all the things we talk about you remembered my incredibly moronic, altruistic practice of giving stuff away. In fact I have thought frequently of your advice about getting and not getting paid. It is true that all societies have an intrinsic need to gather and often separate from other segments of society into a communal world where the values of mutuality could be cultivated and individual needs met by the communal resources. In modern society, at least in my humble unscientific opinion, we get these needs met by interacting and “paying it ahead” so to speak an entire network of family groups, church groups, social clubs, coworkers and friends that help each other out with no expectation of gratification but an informal understanding of fraternal requital. I think that in the society where I live we have a communal society where a very large group of friends help each other. For example, I haven’t paid for a Dr. visit in years but am available when they need help with cross border commerce or an extra set of hands in the OR. When my daughter was born I gave the anesthesiologist a dog because he wouldn’t take my money but I helped get his daughter a scholarship in school. There is true friendship and loyalty among us. I love these guys but I don’t know if any of us would want to give up independence and individuality. You have a very interesting idea and something that I have never thought about in the terms you put forth. Most communes have a common unifying thread, religion, politics or some other need that unites them. The idea of being together with no unifying factor has never occurred to me and I will have to do some thinking and reading before I can form an opinion. If you get a hotel make it a Radisson or a Ritz. No motel 6 please.

I have heard medics in texas say " My doc will almost let me do surgery in the ambulance" as a statement that his medical director turst his competency. Some of those protocol extentions seem pretty fantastic.

Congratulation on your promotions! The only medivacs I have seen are at the picture show.

Actually it is a lot easier than opening airway first. Check a pulse, start compressions. I have heard of some services going to uninterupted compressions with survival ventilations with positive results.

Yea, sometimes a clean line of sight will increase range as well. Maby you could talk them into setting their router next to a window or something.

I was reading about Nitro and Wellens Syndrome where in a right sided MI Nitro would definitely be contraindicated.

I have not recertified by taking the test and obviously am not a medic so I might be talking out of my butt. I did however just take a lower level National Registry test. One thing You might consider if you took your test before the new adaptive test format is to go back to the books for all of the details that we tend to forget because we hardly ever use them. Another thing is that the questions are according to curricula and I found that what I would answer from experience is usually not the question they want. Here is a post where I talk about the test itself and what you might be able to expect. The NREMT web page has a good Power Point about the test. I think taking the test would be a challenge that would force medics to revisit the books. It is probably a good idea from the provider stand point as well.

No positive productive activity is a waste when you are 19. Rack up your time in the ambulance as experience and keep going. If you want to be a medic, go for it. Subjects will make infinitely more sense to you with the experience you have under your belt from your ambulance service. As far as your critics. There are two important factors in the reception of criticism. First; Who is offering critique? and second; Why are they offering criticism? If the person criticizing you is your peer it is important that they are a close peer that can. I mean which of your peers can more adequately comment on your work from an informed point of view. While FF medics are your peers they are not the peers that observe your work first hand and their opinions would necessarily have to be based on a preconceived idea of your service. This pre-conceived idea would therefore be flawed and incorrect in many ways. So ... if some dude is running his mouth and demonstrating his ignorance what should you care? Your preceptors and immediate peers can give you an adequate operational evaluation of your effectiveness and job performance. Also, Why are they criticizing you? There are many reasons that people criticize in an demeaning way. Most of them are rooted in some psychological/emotional inadequacy. Are they demeaning you? Are they boosting their own ego by messing with you? Did your service have a medic in the past that was a tool? Does your service compete with them for patients? There are many reasons why people are mean. In any sense, if you are doing your job correctly, I wouldn’t worry about those other guys that much. You seem to have a plan so stick to it. Before long you will be a medic.

I have a router that is hard lined into the main modem and repeats the signal. I dont know if there is one that recieves wireless and repeats. Since wireless is blocked by walls and stuff you might could run a cable and a router to high ground (up a coconut tree) for a better signal. You would need an extention for a power source as well. Aha! Check this out. There seem to be a lot on the market. If you get one let me know how it works! http://www.wirelessnetworkproducts.com/hd26972.aspx I missed the part about the pringle can models.

I had no idea what it was called although I have seen tons of malnourished, wormy kids. I think I will just call it the alphabet malnutrition syndrome He might have back problems but only secondary to the loss of abdominal fortitude. A large part of our back support depends on abdominal fortitude.

I have not knowingly seen a person with ascetis but will begin to look.

Yes, just kidding about "the Duke" but I am pretty sure that Elvis had 60 lbs of poop. I would be courious as to the patients diet fiber content and bowel habits.

You know John Wayne had 40 lbs of feces in his intestines when he died. seriously it is just a stab at a possiblity. No stistical information involved. We might could add giardia lamda and entamoeba as well.

I think we would find an enlarged liver, lots of feces, not much adipose tissue, possibly ascites or ascaris lumbricoides infestation. More than likely a combination of all

I wear bifocal safety glasses when running calls. I am considering refractory eye surgery in about 10 years.

Do you know if the changes are focused on increasing the scope of practice/level of competency or is it more of just a name change for the certification level? I am courious as to what the enhancements are planning. Are they just going to expand protocols for basics in areas such as IV administration or is it equivalent to requiring everyone to increase a certificate level? Will EMT enhanced do cardiac monitoring, entubations etc?

Welcome to the city! Relocating from LA sounds like a good idea. Suerte.

They must have used an 8 font.

I don't know if it beats Kandahar but I would think that it probably does. PNG! Pretty cool.