AnthonyM83

Can't you just put it in the trunk? I didn't know the actual unit had to be locked when going to/from the range...

I got a four year degree in biology from a respectable private school and didn't have to write a thesis for my B.A. I haven't asked all my HS friends, but so far it's only the ones who went to Ivy League schools had had to write one for their bachelor's...

Huh?

I saw the latest commercial today...it's a neighbor/friend stealing the camera now.

From other thread on same topic The reason they wouldn't do it about cops is because there's already the stereotype of corrupt cops, so if they did that it'd probably come off as cop-hating...whereas the public (outside the medical community) pretty much as a high opinion of paramedics, so it would come off more as a joke than as an anti-medic political message. Least in my view. Maybe it IS worth writing in about, just so they know people don't like it...but I don't think intentions were wrong...commercials make fun of a LOT of stuff...so do movies. One of my favorite shows, 24, made LAPD cops look like complete idiots when it came to gunplay...in reality the LAPD probably has more experience with building searches and shootings because it's so violent there. I just made a comment about it to the people watching and let it roll off my back. Less stress that way.

BTW, while I don't mind the commercial, I do mind the way some people replied. I think I had a pretty strong response, but I didn't turn it personal. There's no reason to do and can see how such responses can dissuade lukers not to post. We don't have to act like Care Bears with each other...but can we keep it fun?

We've talked about the power of suggestion before on this board. I'll be going to a workshop on Verbal First Aid later this week and will have access to the speaker for some time. For those of you interested in placebo, guided imagery, and hypnosis for pain control, respiratory problems, burns, bleeding, and calming patients....do you have any questions or topics of concern as it relates to EMS that I might bring up with her while I'm there. I wish I had more field experience to come up with better questions. Also, would there be resistance to learning and incorporating these techniques? A few reputable people have agreed that placebo in medicine does work, so I hope plausibility isn't too much of a factor. And remember for our uses, placebo wouldn't really mean witholding medicine. Say there's a tib-fib fracture and you start giving morphine 2mg at a time per protocol (or whatever yours is). You can do the placebo stuff AS you administer the medicine...if it works with that patient, you might not have to give the second dose. Or if there's active bleeding, you might give suggestions to reduce the bleeding while your partner unwraps a gauze pad (it's not that weird...if your body can release endorphins to reduce pain through placebo, it's understandable how it can also release other chemicals to constrict blood vessels). Anyway, I'm getting into this workshop for free, so I think it'd be a crime not to at least check it out. The workshop is meant for people therapists who work in the field of guided imagery and hypnosis, but I really want to see how it can be applied in the field. If you have suggestions on topics to bring up, please rely or PM me. Here's the workshop description: When people are in an emergency situation, or shocked by a life-threatening diagnosis, they go into an altered state in which their autonomic nervous system can accept suggestions that can set the course for healing and change the outcome. Words said at that time can help stop bleeding, prevent scarring from burns, provide pain relief, and begin the inner healing. In this workshop, Dr. Prager will detail the protocols from "The Worst Is Over: What To Say When Every Word Counts", the book she co-authored with Judith Acosta, LSSW, CHT, giving you powerful tools for helping others in times of great pain and stress. These tools can also be used with people suffering from chronic illness, emotional distress, impending death or loss of a loved one, suicide attempts, and surgery. Dr. Prager developed a series of before, during, and after surgery CDs, Guided Imagery for Surgery that use the Verbal First Aid techniques and were part of a pilot study done at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center with impressive results, including "dramatic reduction in pain and sleeping medicine requested," nearly 100% patient satisfaction, and fewer side effects from the anesthesia.

Is this like how that Gray's Anatomy episode supposedly tried to make paramedics look stupid (when in reality that paramedic was the hero)? Look, cops won't really chase you until your tires blow out, catch up to you, do an on-the-spot tire change, and give you a headstart so they can keep chasing you. Teachers won't really give you an A if you give them a really chocolatee caramel candy bar. And the Secret Service won't really start dancing if you play the Six Flags theme song. Let's not be insecure in our profession. It's not like they were saying to have a camera handy in case you spot EMTs stealing from a patient...it's 'wow, this Camera is so freaking cool, we're gonna take it"...it's just a dumb commercial like all the others. Besides, I don't think the public really has a bad impression of us...when I told my friends I was doing EMT school they acted like I was going to med school or something...rather than to a CC class that my 8th grade brother could pass without studying hard.

I'm not even working in the field yet, except for ride-alongs, but last night I found myself dreaming of being in a hospital with a nurse reviewing the six medications EMTs could administer. Of course there's always the little quirks in it, like them replacing the Epi-Pens with Advil, that you don't notice until you wake up. Do you guys find yourself going home after a long shift only to go back on duty in your sleep?

For ride-alongs here, you can call up local agencies (AMR or Fire Departments), say you're an EMT student would like to ride-along. I only did tow ride-alongs for my EMT class, but I've been trying to keep doing them independently. They'll still treat you as a trainee, teaching you things, and allowing you help with patient treatment.

AMR has a 6 month waiting list...they have the 911 contract in most parts. There's a smaller company in the East Bay that does 911, I've been told. There are a few other transport services that are hiring. A friend recently started with one last month. I'm not familiar with CCSF, but using the community college I took it in as a comparison, as a bio major EMTB should be a cakewalk. Here you could pass with an A without reading more than a chapter of your book by just listening in class and rarely taking notes (of course, you'll want to read the book anyway)...even it's stuff you haven't seen in your bio classes before (least that's how it was for me). Studying usually consisted of cramming 2-10 min before class skimming chapter summary page or as the test was passed out. Wish I could've afforded a more intense program, but that's all I could get.

Mr. Tazer and Mr. Tazer Junior ?

You know, you're right, let's get rid of ambulance L&S responses, too, because they're putting all those people at risk just for one person's emergency.

Great articles Ace. Thanks for posting. Bomb blasts isn't something seen to often, but we should be ready for it, especially when it happens in large scale. Something else to remember in terrorist bombing situations is to keep the possibility of a 2ndary device in the back of your mind, so get patients in and transported (or at least away) as fast as feasible.

Well, I've done CPR on my pillow a number of times. I keep my skills review packet in my car so I can re-read it if I ever find myself having to wait in the car for soemthing. Honestly, I'm still finishing reading the textbook because not all chapters were assigned in class.

Well, the fact you were rolling to an emergency call might have locked you up a little, but you still knew what to do. I know during scenarios in class that we did slowly step by step with the instructor guiding me through and asking what I would do next, I was indecisive, bumbly, and got stuff mixed up. BUT if you just left me to make do the scenario, I would do a much better job, not just at patient care but at directing the other people in my scenario to do their parts.

Dustdevil, I wasn't sure if I should post this. I gotta say you spit some pretty good rhymes, though.... http://www.yikers.com/video_hospital_emplo..._rap_video.html

The EMTB's I hung out with at the ambulance bay while the medics wrote their reports said they didn't have theirs and didn't make it sound like it was necessary. This was in Santa Clara, Calif for AMR.

I understand it as being a surgeon who on top of his or her routine elective surgeries is also on some kind of stand-by for emergency trauma surgeries brought into the E.D. They're job is to get the patient stablized long enough for an expert to come in and do repairs in their specialty. This might include surgery or ressucitations or other things along those lines. I suppose the specialist that comes in later once patient is stablized is also considered a trauma surgeon since he's fixing a trauma, but not usually what we think of when we refer to a trauma surgeon.

The topic is whether physicians should be allowed to respond to the HOSPITAL with lights & sirens, NOT responding to the scene.

I can't believe no one has posted LUPOSLIPOPHOBIA: Fear of being chased by wolves around a freshly waxed kitchen floor, while wearing only socks on your feet! *Shudder*

Just playing devil's advocate here, but could you have taken a little long on taking pulse and intro, so knowing you were in there for more than thirty seconds or so, he flipped out that lung sounds STILL hadn't been taken by the time he walked in, and expressed it a little too strongly as if it's LITERALLY the first thing that must be done...but really meaning just within the first few seconds. I just say this b/c I've seen medics/nurses get inpatient with their emts/ertechs like that and overexaggerate what should have been. Just a thought.

Agreed. Frightening this question was even asked? Not necassarily a slam on the person, but on the school/text book.

*Smile* Because it would be ridiculous to spend so much time surveying doctors and residents and hospital from Florida on such a minor side point that doesn't even have that much to do with the main argument, which in itself is not that important, b/c it's just our opinion on an issue that's happening outside my geographical area. Duh :roll:

If they planned to work in a position/place that doesn't require them to be on-call for the type of work they're doing (or even that they're already doing, for the ones finished with residencey & already hired there), then why would they be so sure that being on-call is what they were getting themselves into. Maybe they did, but if things are already being done a certain way and then change, maybe they were looking forward to the old way. You listed some specialties that ARE on-call...well then they obviously would expect to be on call for that specialty. My supposition was that there were more hospitals in Fla that had docs responding L/S. Could be wrong.