AnthonyM83

Never realized how retarded Pinky actually sounded....

Well, kinda...there's a few things you can give before base contact like IV, but each time you have to call in, give entire report, then often your only orders for that patient are: O2 and IV. Or O2, IV, 12-lead. Or O2, IV, Valium if he starts to seize again. So, you'd have the IV ability anyway before calling in, but you can't just decide that O2 IV is all he needs, you have to get that from the nurse's base station (it's so close to the show Emergency! it's sad).

LA is exactly how JP described. BLS you usually don't make contact, though some hospitals like you to call in (half the time it's a receptionist) just so they can get a bed ready. But with busier hospitals, it doesn't quite matter. ALS, they read the entire runsheet off to base station nurse, just so they can tell you "O2 and IV".

We hardly ever update after initial contact unless something major happens that they need to specifically prepare and get more resources/personnel for (like a full arrest). As for the triage report for non-emergent patients, it seems to depend on the hospital. The overworked really freaking busy ones want just the basics and have a few questions to make sure it doesn't qualify as critical....then half the time they send them back out to the waiting room. Sometimes I have to sell the patient (we're that patient's advocate, right?) so they get seen right away...but most don't do that because if they're 'too serious' then we have to wait with them in the ER hallways until a room becomes available (can take HOURS). Half the time you end up trying to sell it that they're not critical, so you don't have to wait...some people are known to lie (I've been tempted, it sucks waiting 6 hours when you know patient will be fine, but they meet some criteria...that would be stepping into the dark side).

I'll admit I didn't read the previous thread at all, but if the issue is whether someone with depression should just be able to tough it out and change their lifestyle and thinking to move on, then I'll say that's not being inclusive of all types of depression. Most current theories in psychology seem to be adopting the biopsychosocial model, in which biological chemicals, ones own psychology and mind, and one's environment all play varying roles in mental disorders. If you're depressed because of poor coping skills, internalizing and globalizing negative events, and don't have a social support network then you could end up very depressed when something traumatic happens....but you might be able to pull out if you learn how to better cope and deal with those traumatic stresses and changing how you look at the world. But if biology is a strong enough factor, you're going to get pulled in deep to the point where you can't even help yourself. It would be unreasonable to expect someone to pull out of it without professional assistance and probably drugs (to get you through while you retrain your brain with things like cognitive therapy...which will physically change your brain back).

And it LOOKS plain stupid...especially when there's also a medic intern plus an EMT trainee....that's 10 people in a living room at times. Sometimes I just wait outside, but I also want to hear what goes on for the times they send the patient with us BLS-only when it's really ALS criteria. It's frustrating, but at least I'm getting call volume experience. Once I'm a medic, I'll afford enough gas to commute out of county for work.

Our company does not do dialysis runs, but if I were on one, I couldn't imagine why I would return her to the dialysis facility once they had transferred care (though, Rid helped explain why that hospital might want that)....but really would the dialysis facility have resources to care for her?

What were they going to do upon locating the patient? Pull him over and make contact? Bad idea. Notify PD? Still not great b/c of liability in going around looking for patient (though in reality liability/danger in that situation is low)...but at least not totally acting like cops. Maybe because we roll 8 people deep on every call (2 squad Medic/FF's, 4 engine FFs, and 2 ambulance EMTs), I might be too used to situations that would be considered inappropriate elsewhere.

Totally depends. What kind of overdose? What was his behavior like? How far is he going? If he's just down the street and no violent behavior, just confused, we'd probably drive down to make contact because it's the same as if we had been dispatched to the sidewalk or inside a house. It would be just as if the call came out for an overdose on the sidewalk. We rely on dispatch to decide if we should stage, otherwise we go unless we find a reason not too (did he run into the backyard where we could be cornered? Weapon? Aggressive behavior? Age and stature? Is it some guy getting belligerent or a 90lb kid just walking around like a zombie?).

Great link Ruffems, Watching my first ever episode right now . . . it's surprising how much it actually reminds me of work. Of course, we would have figured out the hyperventilating girl was "HP" (refer to previous post to find what that means) right off the bat...and Harbor's not nearly that nice with their anxiety attack patients...too busy. ;-)

Sounds similar (but different) to what we were taught in EMT school in Palo Alto (taught by San Jose FD guys who had a training video out on it). Use the long nylon straps. Create a box around torso by (L-shoulder-->L-Hip-->R-Hip-->R--Shoulder) and tighten. Create 2nd box from hips to legs, but you interlink the two boxes near the waist, somehow. When you tighten that, it tightens everything. Person can go upside down. Secure spinal immobilization. Can be done fast if properly trained. No one here in LA's seem to have heard of it. We just do nylon straps with buckles in an X across the chest, one across at waist, one across at ankles. It's a JOKE...does NOT immobilize, unless you go super heaving with passing...even then not really. nothing to keep you from sliding down, only up.

Don't know much about it, but LACoFD recently switched over from Lidocaine to Amiodarone. Heard it was cheaper, harder to screw up...but also less effective and fewer indications for it. But that's just what people were talking about...no idea if it's valid.

Well, it's so easy to become am EMT and so many do it just to try it out, that I can see how it'd be easy to abandon it easily. Whereas, at least around here, getting onto a FD takes YEARS...for those who make it on, it's something they really want and they emerge themselves into that culture...there's also more camaraderie in that field, so it'd be harder to leave it behind. I agree with Dust on the LE stuff, though...I wasn't fully sworn, but a cadet/explorer/CSO for about 7 years and during formative/influential teen years...some part is left behind, some never will be.

Guess we give points for effort. . . or somethin' ? ROFL at Weekend at Bernie's

Right on Spock. Good work for your efforts on that study. BVESBC, you totally didn't have anything to say in reply to my or others' post...hmmm just like that last guy who came spouting stuff. Well, at least no posts are better than those posts.

Any story involving someone falling through the ceiling right in front of you is a good one.

I honestly just bookmarked the New Posts link...I've only seen the front page a few times...I look at it sometimes when I get the EMTCity updates newsletter thing

Man you started off with a lot of assumptions. I think some excuse them because you're probably taking them based on the local experiences you've had. You're dealing with a national web board, though... take the time to figure out the nationwide trends. Also, take the time figure out who's who and what type of person they are before you go slamming them. Honestly, a lot of the stuff you said makes you look really bad. Imagine having a new guy at a party start talking crap about another (who happens to be a professional fighter) and challenging him to fight. Or maybe he calls someone else wimp (but everyone at the party knows he just ran into a burning building and saved an infant last week). Or he's an EMT and starts telling the group "how it is"...without knowing that everyone there is at least an EMT, if not paramedics, nurses, respiratory therapists, medical doctors, EMS educators, political proponents, and leaders in their field. It's almost embarrassing correcting that new guy...they're embarrassed FOR him...and since the party members are in their own house, they don't really need to puff their chests and argue. They'll just state what they know is true. You have some good defenses, but nothing that will justify all you've said. You can get pissed off at the site and leave or you can keep arguing until you feel you've won OR you can see it as a little realization to take a few steps back and figure out what we're all about, then see where you can contribute to this community. I think you're the type who would benefit from it (especially if you learned a bit more tact). (I'm honestly still smiling about not knowing the English spellings...you were too busy learning Latin from middle school through grad school to learn that one? That's just part of being educated and cultured... totally excusable if you've already shown you are....but when you're trying to push that idea but failing, THEN you make the mistake...man it's just funny) Honestly, look forward to good conversation with you on the site as you settle in.

That's so true, so many forget that it's a human life at stake often. Now, it's understandable at times because that's what lets you work without stress and lets me do a better job not concentrating on the human aspect (on critical calls), but when either being at one's best either on-scene or during training, that's when you really have to remember what's at stake and how much pain loss of a family member causes.

hehehe

Oh man...if this site gave rep..... Ownage

Or go cause trouble and get banned from the parade forever. Whatevs. I mean seriously, sometimes ownage is more fun than getting your original goal. I'm cool with that as long as one admits it...just don't complain later on. But plenty of times I've given up original goal just for pay back satisfaction I prefer the walk softly, but carry a big stick method. People, please calm down. *GSWs to the knees* Sir, I said please quiet down. Aggressiveness is (usually) useless...UNLESS doing it for fun...which I honestly enjoy. But as a way of achieving a goal usually, eh.

I don't get why you're ashamed. I mean it really blows. I know this is a huge event for you guys and it would make me furious that the FDNY band farked it all up for you guys, but the letter kind of makes sense...at least this way you'll be able to participate in later years. It's tactically working it out to fix FDNY's mistake. Edit: changed meant --> mean

Here's the personal gallery: http://www.emtcity.com/phpBB2/album_personal_index.php Kinda hard to get to it...gotta click on all the tabs, find the photos (that's combined with clip art so some might think it's all clip art and avatars and not click), then bypass all the main choses and go to bottom next link of personal gallery).

I spent like half an hour editing it a few months ago trying to give it a better flow. Exhausting though. Haven't gone back.