MedicNorth

Must be a wanker if he has a "light package"

Too funny!

Sounds Dead-On to me! You are a Black Coffee At your best, you are: low maintenance, friendly, and adaptable At your worst, you are: cheap and angsty You drink coffee when: you can get your hands on it Your caffeine addiction level: high What Kind of Coffee Are You? http://www.blogthings.com/whatkindofcoffeeareyouquiz/

Absolutely incredible! - This is not a professional vs volunteer issue - I have seen many training videos with stuff nearly this stupid supplied by pro fire and ems. It truly is, however, an indication that some people should not be allowed near anything sharper than a butter knife or hotter than a piece of toast!

Nice! - and in deference to International Women's Day, I'll refrain from doing anything but laughing! New thread - Men vs Women jokes coming around here?

As a small town, we have a completely volunteer fire dept, which operates a medical co-respose team. This is a group of unpaid EMRs and EMTAs who respond to local calls until the ALS sevice from another town can arrive. This is important because the wait time for ALS can be up to 35 minutes. We respond from home / work, but usual page-to-enroute times are less than 4 minutes, as the majority of us live within 6 blocks of the station. The ALS service we work with is all paid.

Bravo, Hammer!

I surrender - too many unknown variables here to make a real stand on the issue. The bottom line is I hope you can find a solution. The job is hard enough without someone on your case and making life miserable. Good luck!

There is nothing that pisses me off more than people who have a problem and "shoot it upstairs" without attempting to solve it themselves first. I deal with it constantly, and my answer is always to talk to the person you have having problems with first. If it doesn't help, then by all means bring it up the ladder. Of course there will be exceptions, but interpersonal relationships isn't one of them. There can be other problems with dealing with management too, - you may not get the result you are looking for, for as we all know every conflict has 2 sides. You may earn a reputation as a whiner, or someone who is unable or unwilling to deal with his / her own issues. You got a problem with me? - deal with me. I can't tell how often the problem in question has risen - if its once or twice, there could be simple explanations - fought with spouse, kids sick, too many bills - ever had a crappy day, and taken it out on others? Take the bull by the horns, and solve it yourself if you can.

You know you're in rural ems when people call you directly at home instead of going through 911. When the address is "the old Johnson place" and Johnson has been dead for 30 years.

You can't possibly lose by speaking to this person. It sucks already - can she be more ignorant? Simply sit down and state your concerns - even if there is no improvement, she will know that you are not a pushover. Then , if necessary, you can discuss the issues with management knowing you have done the best you can to deal with the issues.

???? This goes from the sublime to the ridiculous to the totally retarded. If its a stupid post, don't respond. Simple, eh?

Ah Dust - mind out of the gutter! You should know that a prism lets you see all sorts of pretty colours, just like a smack in the side of the head! I know a whole bunch of other "ism" words too, and some even have more than 5 other letters! An example with a musical point of view would be "Folsomprism" a place made famous by Johnny Cash, whom I never did see in any colours other than black and white! There is also "Longdivism" which is essentially a cult that doesn't believe in using hi- tech things like calculators.

Can't honestly disagree with you. Yes - no seatbelts, and obviously too much speed. There is a tendency for us to be "heroes" and see ourselves as indestructible. Speed, seatbelts, helmets, even BSI - there are times when they don't seem as important as getting there and doing the job. Is not really smart. That does not, however, detract from the tragedy here.

Was going to post Another One bites the Dust, but thought he might take it for a compliment. Will settle for: Armageddon, by Prism (a fine Canuck band)

Dust - I hope you are not insinuating that this is a cause and effect relationship. If so, it is misuse of statistics. You make no mention of the rates in other states (increase, decrease, same), and have also not mentioned the number of children actually dropped off at these "safe" places. The increase may be due to a general increase of unwanted pregnancies, a downturn in the economy, or any number of other factors. Would the children who were turned in to hospitals or fire stations have ended out in dumpsters too? If so, the program has proven its worth.

A sad story, but... what choice would they have? The problem here is not the issue of ems intervention - it is the problem of the man's son who would not respect his wishes. A lawsuit is a real (read likely) result of withholding treatment from this patient, probably from that same son. Leaving the gentleman there without treatment would qualify as negligence. The bottom line is that we cannot make those choices for our patients. We can only do our job in a professional and caring manner, respecting the dignity of those we serve.

And I thought my mother was being silly when she stressed about clean underwear! Love it, Rid

Yes, good teaching is defined by the ability to engage students and pass on information. Good teaching is not, however, passing students on to the next level just to gain the acceptance of the institution and the public. If they can't do it, they can't do it, and every teacher has come across a group of students who quite simply is below par. It is not necessarily a reflection on your teaching. What is a negative reflection is passing a group of substandard students to inflict their inferior knowledge and ability upon the public. Nobody wins with mark padding. Nobody!

Will willingly give Milkman my avatar - even though I've had it longer. look for new one soon!

Just another indication of what happens when learning institutions need to "sell" themselves to continue operation. There are solutions - standardized testing on a regular basis will at least give an indication of whether or not the marks are being padded. Accrediting and monitoring the actually knowledge of a graduate will help to keep the marks valid. I would much rather attend a school that encourages instructors to be have high standards - if not, I might as well buy one of those email degrees that spam up my inbox. It will take a shift in thinking by schools and students. Evaluating an instructor by the marks they give their own students is ridiculous. There has to be some accountability. Hopefully this shift can happen before standards are hopelessly degraded.

Ah - Dust - Canuck bashing, yet can hardly wait to get up here and get paid in our "funny money"! Only Canadians and God are allow to complain about our country, and even then only about our weather and our politicians. Got some rules to learn, I see. I get paid about $250 / day, for up to twelve hours - OT after that. Some days are only 5 or so. This does include a $40 subsistence allowance (tax free). This is as an EMR - rates go up as qualifications do.

This is a tragedy. I feel for the families and co-workers of these men. Let's forget the fingerpointing and seatbelt issue for now - These were our own, and they deserve our mourning and respect for the job that they were doing.

Frequently I see in various threads people complaining that EMS does not get the respect and recognition it deserves from the public. This is an issue we need to face up to, and one of the best ways is to not "blow off" people who are willing to help. Polite is not difficult, and can go a long way towards creating a positive impression. Even if its "Can you help me out by keeping all these spectators back?", allowing people to be useful makes them feel part of the team, and they will become our best supporters. Yes, they can be a hindrance to a smooth operation, and yes, sometimes you need to tell them that their help is not needed. This can be usually be achieved with a polite but firm "Thanks, but we have this under control." If not, then the police or fire can intervene, but it never hurts to have people feel that their offer is appreciated. It is a lot better than having a population that ignores the plight of people in need because they simply don't care or might get blasted by the pros. Who cares if they are potential customers? Not me. I care because they are people who care too, and are willing to step into a stressful situation to offer help.

was he from nebraska?