MedicNorth

Get used to it - this is the trend, and there is no sign of it reversing. According to the latest statistics, 80% of Americans over the age of 25 are overweight. The thing that concerns me the most is the dramatically increased chance of injury to EMS personnel trying to handle this increased poundage. Stair chairs help, but there is only so much room in the average residential stairwell- you can't simply increase the number of people supporting the weight. Moving a patient who weighs as much as a large refrigerator is risky! I would personally support the idea of an "obesity tax". You wanna eat until you can't walk, do it, but the additional costs for people and equipment to care for you are going to come out of your pocket.

Anything you put on your "personal" website is no longer personal. It is now in the public domain, and anyone, including prospective or present employers, can and will access it. It isn't a lot different than putting your diary up on the Jumbotron for all to read. If there is any information that a future or present employer (or the police, or the tax man) should not know, don't put it there! I have never really understood the need to create these spaces anyway. It looks to me like essential electronic exhibitionism. I can see sharing things with friends, but the net is full of "not friends" too.

Good advice - I know of a few who have had some problems as well. I have definitely seen some things here that I certainly would not have posted, but there also seem to be some employers out there who take a perverse pleasure in seeking out and disciplining posters.

With the chat room down I was just perusing the EMTCity newsfeed, when I noticed some really intriguing headlines. Being snoopy, I read some of them, and the headlines most definitely were misleading or could be misconstrued. Here they are: 1. Busted EMTs still working in flawed system Chuckle - Many of the EMTs I know are busted - after all, it IS an equal opportunity occupation, yes? The further suggestion made by the headline is that the system is flawed because we have feminine counterparts. 2. Despite a Patient's Death, He's Hired as an EMT This one really made me look twice. We know what the intention is, but it really sounds like they hire dead guys in California! Ok - the point for this thread- how many unintentionally weird headlines can we find? I know that there are some classics out there.

The moral of this story - gas should be pumped while naked and empty-handed! Especially if you are a femme, because nylons can be fatale!

Well, since a Redneck Fish Finder is usually stick of dynamite, I'd say there would be lots of incentive to stay "clear". It would also supply quite a shock!

[web]www.tursiops.cc/art/tubas/index.htm[/web] I managed to find this one - I would never ask you guys to do something impossible! There IS such a thing as a see-through tuba!

Umm.... Yeah!

Am REALLY glad that you don't plan to follow the trends and grow a goatee! I agree with Dust - shaved is good!

[web:177a8eb246]http://www.whale-web.com/dolphins/commerson.html[/web:177a8eb246] Not really sure if this counts, but LOOKS like it! Now find me a see-through tuba!

It would be cool - I have to admit that the concept got me thinking about all sorts of ways to achieve the same objective, but without the limitations placed on it by the installed ropes - I always wanted to be kinda like spiderman (without the neuroses). I think a rigid channel with some kind of portable gear-driven external elevator would be more appropriate, easier to maintain, and easier to "lock off" for security purposes, but this is kinda stodgy for the super-hero types.

Anyone with some emergency medical training, from First Aider to ER Doc, can be of some use, possibly life-saving, at a scene that has not yet been attended by EMS. Whether it is C-spine, controlling bleeding, or even preventing some well-meaning ignoramus from pushing the rolled vehicle back onto its wheels, some kind of BLS can be very helpful. The point here is that essentially all you can offer IS BLS, unless you happen to be travelling with a helluva wanker bag with you. BLS can save lives. As far as stopping at a scene that is already attended, I doubt that showing up in civvies and volunteering is going to do much. The crew should have a handle on their needs, and have resources on the way. Exceptions to this might be some sort of major MCI, but generally I have found that well-meaning bystanders and volunteers can be just in the way. Who has time to check someone's credentials when they are up to their elbows in patient care?

Cool idea, but I don't see a lot of value to the emergency services because the rope must be pre-installed on the buildings. First there is the matter of location - I would imagine larger buildings would neet multiple ropes in strategic locations. Next would be the natural deterioration - how often would they have to be changed, and would you trust a rope that had been out in the elements for several years? Then is the question of how much weight the thing would be able to lift, and how high. And finally - I would NOT want a rope hanging on the side of my building like that - sounds like an open invitation to thieves, because anybody would probably be able to get one of these neat devices. Not much practical use as far as I can see. I'll take the elevator or use the stairs, thanks.

I looked at my score and thought it was rather low - then I remembered all the things I am "supposed" to have done on the nights before I woke up and couldn't remember. Do the things other people said you have done count, or must there be an actual memory there?

Your foam system is a keg of beer on a paint shaker.

Damn - I've been know to strip for free - does that make me better, or worse?

I have always had a problem with people who are in certain professions/occupations being held up as "shining examples" of what people should aspire to be. If one is a doctor, he/she is a doctor, and the example you should expect to follow is a medical one, not a personal or private life one. Timmy - those people who have taught you so much are worthy or your respect, regardless of what they do in their personal lives. The things you learn are the things you need to know as an EMS practitioner. If you are looking for people who are good role models for your personal life, you would be just as likely to find them in so-called menial or non-public positions. Being in any medical profession does not necessarily mean that they are going to have their private lives completely under control to the point you might prefer. The point is - they ARE their private and personal lives, and should be left that way. As long as extra-curricular activities don't interfere with job activities, why would it matter?

or cheated!

Oops - deleted! - double post - site acting wierd

Only 8 hotdog buns in a standard pack? Wieners come in packs of 12. Lets see - that means you have to eat 2 dozen hot dogs to come out even! Now who would come up wth this clever idea? At the store down the road, buns come in bags of 12 too - guess I'm on the wrong side of the border as well! Oh yeah - my score was a screaming 18.

OMG! :oops: :oops:

OK! Maybe I don't really want to see hot weather either! It never gets that hot here, It would be interesting to hear from the manufacturers about the kinds of things they expect their equipment to deal with.

Wendy can change oil and tires? I think I'm in love!

I would be concerned about the cold much more than the heat. When the pressure reduces, it cools the O2 - if the outside temp is -30C or so, then you are sending super-cooled oxygen into a patient, and I doubt that that can be good for any system. Storing a tank on the outside of a winter vehicle would be risky unless there is a way to warm it before it is put through the system. I realize that I am speaking from a very northern point of view - there are not many people who have to deal with the extremes we do, but 35C sounds WONDERFUL right now! We treat hypothermia with warmed o2 - how would you do that if the stuff was stored outside? I'm sure the bottles will handle it - is the other issues to consider.