bandaidpatrol

Ambulance operating instructions: Living: Get them to the hospital or doctors home as quickly as possible, worry about payment later. Deceased: Carefully speak to the family, inquire as to the faith, if they would like the preacher notified, do they want an open or closed casket funeral (even if there was trauma disfiguration, my grandfather could take a photo and make that person look just as they did before the incident), and what cemetery they will be using. We gave them a small metal box that contained a silk hankerchief, that had our telephone number on it "Phone 3-71", names of our business partners, and related info. More for advertising than informative. You have to understand what EMS began as, to not be offended by me. It was a christening to bring in a dead one. So after I brought in my first deceased victim, at the age of 14, my grandfather poured me a shot of sipping whiskey, and said that I was officially in 'the service'. I have never touched Tenn. Sipping Whiskey since then. It reminds me of the young man I brought in that morning. I suppose the haunting of seeing a good friend dead, and actually taking him to the parlor, then to his place of burial was only out weighed by the hundreds of deaths I witnessed at war. That's how we made the money to afford to give a last ditch effort to save lives in rural america. Only to get told we were failing by the government, who was against ambulance services ran by funeral directors. They wanted paid and regulated volunteers, well, they didn't have either of those in 90% of the towns in the country. So we did what we could, stocking our rigs from a welding supply store (oxygen), Rexall Drugs (first aid), an army warehouse (blankets, folding cots, bandages) and Superior Funeral Supplies (everything else). We were lucky to rake in five bucks on an ambulance, call even though we had a set rate. Nobody could afford it in the places we went. So when we ran an automobile crash, a man having a heart attack, and a slew of resuscitator or oxygen tent calls every week, we may use 25 or 30.00 in first aid supplies, and 20.00 in oxygen and only make seven or ten bucks that week. It was a huge loss to the funeral industry. But when we brought in a DOA, we would get paid for sure. Either by the family, insurance estate, or by the county health board - because people had to be embalmed and buried. It cost us $15.00 to embalm someone, $25 to $200 for a casket, $5.00 in fuel for the hearse and limo for a funeral. We charged anywhere from $250.00 to $1,700.00 for a funeral. The prior being a "state funeral" in which someone had a large family, or wanted a nice casket, etc. When we rolled on a known DOA, we would dress in our Sunday best suit and hat, cover the ambulance windows with conneau panels, and place a maroon velvet blanket on the gurney, the sheets had hospital corners, the siren was covered on the front by a bolt on cast iron panel that had funeral exgraved on it. We took the utmost care in removing the deceased, it was an honor to the person to be removed in such a fine way.

Commie Girl

I retired with in 90 days, I wasn't overly concerned. But they haven't done drug testing since the early 80's, and that was a blood test, looking for personnel with AIDS. Mainly because most rigs didn't carry gloves until that point. Even with hepatitis being a threat, I guess they were more concerned about cost saving methods. Were we less expensive to lose than a few million pairs of gloves each year? I guess so.

I have a half dozen of these GMRS radios, and a base unit for hunting out west. I paid 85 for the base, and 45 per set of two radios... The FCC will have to come and slap my fingers before I pay $75 bucks for a license. The package doesn't say anything about it, and you can buy them anywhere... I don't see how it would be possible for them to enforce any of the FRS or GMRS laws. Especially when some of the older FRS models go for less than 20 bucks. Aren't going to find many people who are willing to pay 75 bucks. If it's that big of a deal, the fee should be included when the radio is purchased, and it should also come with prefiled paperwork.

If these details are in place, your patient is DOA. Feel for a pulse, while listening with a scope for 60 seconds. If you don't get anything. They are dead. You're not declaring them dead, you're just writting down the time that you found them with out pulse or breath. Good article in last months JEMS on this matter.

That right there is the aspirator collector. It is actually a "paste" jar. Remember that glue that smelled like pepperment they probably gave to you in Kindergarden? The jar was just a little bigger than a jar of gerber baby food. Fit perfectly, which was great, because they broke so easily.

Thanks to my son for getting a picture of it online. Funny. I can scan it, email it, and see it, but not get a url address for it. And I thought I was technology-friendly.

I doubt that would be sprayed into the nares. http://www.shomer-tec.com "Odor Screen" for your nose.. and "Mirazyme" for your clothes and equipment. Best products on the market to kill odors, burns less than vapor rub. If you do use Vapo-rub, make sure it is the old stuff, not this new odorless and greaseless stuff. I used to get Odor Screen special ordered at Rexall Drugs, but of course they've been out of business for years. :roll:

People used to ask me this all the time, so I have a rythmn to to answers now. "And in the beginning, someone invented Artificial Respiration, and the asshole was too dumb to think of methods of mechanical respiration, so he put his mouth upon the dead, and bloweth away." While I only began on the ambulance about one year before the Ambu Bag was invented, we didn't have one until the 60's. They cost $235.00. But we did have the big resuscitators. Only problem was, the mask only came in two sizes child (teenager), and adult (much bigger). With only positive pressure resuscitators available for under $500.00, it was useless if it did not seal. So Mouth to Mouth was the key to what we had to do. We taped a rubber hose the the patients face ( used the same one for 10 years), set the oxygen to "One Quarter Key" or about 6LPM. and did M2M. About the same as using a face mask w/ an oxygen port, only there was no mask. This was beyond the books technology back then, Oxygenation wasn't necessary in resuscitation prehospital. Only because Prehospital care was virtually non existant, or at least under educated until after the Korean conflict. We had three large enamel basins, much like dish washing bowls. One for the patients vomit when the suction bottle was full (They were about as big a as jar of Gerber baby food). One for the second patient, and one for the attendant. When the patient vomitted, it was usually before you could get your mouth away from theirs. Most of the time, it was a very horrible expirence, doing M2M that is. That is something I never miss. I probably vomitted at least a dozen or more times before we stopped doing M2M. The Vietnam Conflict taught us of diseases, so we began to wise up after that, most ambulances began to carry gloves at that point.

According to old billing records in my cellar, 70 cases of them, have to keep them for 30 years (life time of a casket is 30 years) :? ... We covered 17 villages or boros, 23 Townships in 6 counties, for a total area of 2,174 Sq. Miles. And had only two hospitals available in that whole region that had Emergency Rooms. We also had the choice to take the victims to seven doctors home offices. The main highlight of our service was that we were the only funeral home with an oxygen equipped ambulance. 80% of our call volume was to set up an oxygen tent, or to respond with the resuscitator. I recall a 150 mile trip to take a premature infant to a hospital, just because the local ambulance didn't have a big enough oxygen tank.

Horton has had major electrical problems for the past 36 years, in other words, since they began making ambulances. Always malfunctions on the electrical boards w/ the warning lights, siren, interior lights, head lights, backup alarm, etc. We were on I 80 in 70 in our 69 Horton van, 2am, severe snow storm, wipers quit. Then, the headlights went out. Had to call for a backup rig, which was a 69 Miller Meteor Cadillac. Never had problems w/ the Caddy's.

If you are literally driving an ambulance, reguardless of your training, then you are an ambulance driver. I liked the old days better. We had an MVO and an EMT. The MVO always drove, and didn't treat the patient.. and the EMT never drove and was in charge of patient care. Pre-Paramedic era. If a brain surgeon is driving a Taxi... He's a Taxi Driver.

I'm talking 1920's. Or is that before your time? I was born about 18 years afterward.

I thought they used to give a liquid syrup of coccaine to people with respiratory problems. This was before my time, but I remember coccaine bottles on the vintage medicine shelf in our pharmacy/soda shop/general store.

In 1964 we were one of only two actual ambulance services in a three county region. Don't know the size. Sure there were other funeral homes, but none operated a unit as just an ambulance. I'll have to check on the square mileage.

I really don't see what the big deal is. Even medics are called ambulance drivers. It's not that the public is uneducated, it's just that they really don't care. As long as we show up and help them. My partner and I, both medics, did a call by call deal. We took turns driving... If you are driving and ambulance, then you are an ambulance driver... Mother, Jugs & Speed was about Shaeffer, Gold Cross, Good Hew, and a bunch of other Los Angeles Ambulance services that would fight to take each others calls. It wasn't fiction, rather making a mockery. Ambulance Attendants were EMT's... The EMT-AA, one of the first EMS certifications in the country. Penna. still has a scope of practice for Ambulance Attendants who have been grandfathered into modern EMS.

House? Why not sell the station using your supervisors name and telephone number, and bill the ad to the city?? New, concrete two story house, built like a bomb shelter, six car garage, fifteen bedrooms, two kitchens, large closets, ten washrooms, ten showers, attic, electric heat, gas fire place, fallout shelter in the cellar, 500HP Federal Signal Alarm clock- set to any hour of the day, public address system.. $100,000.00 CASH. Call 000-000-0000 for info Campers! For Sale.. Six of them, identical, two beds, one has wheels, heat & AC, siren for entertainment, white in color. $500.00 CASH. Call 000-000-0000 for info Fake ads ran in the local paper. Telephone number was the home phone of the EMS Supervisor that we all disliked. Sometimes we would run personal ads for him looking for some man on man action, renting his wife or willing his oldest born child to someone.

Have you been using the narcotics like candy? I certainly hope he doesn't talk that way around patients. Afterall, patient assisted suicide is not our job. get it?

We keep track of how many ATV crashes we have in our coverage. Not one single local citizen has ever activated EMS in this area for an ATV accident... HOWEVER.. Every single injury or death due to proper or improper use of an ATV in the are has been at the hands of a "Flatlander". City folks migrate north from Philly, Maryland & Jersey to hunt and vacation in North East, Central and Western Pennsylvania. These folks seem to over come the most impossible measures in order to injure themselves or a hunting buddy; or get themselves killed. In the past ten years we've had 6 Deaths due to 3-Wheeled ATV's, 2 Deaths due to 2-Wheeled ATV's, and 17 Deaths due to 4-Wheeled ATV's. Youngest victim was 6, oldest victim was 42. 2-Wheeled ATV's lead to 12 Injuries 3-Wheeled ATV's lead to 3 Injuries 4-Wheeled ATV's lead to 51 Injuries 6-Wheeled ATV's lead to 3 Injuries (A 6-Wheeled Gator flipped w/ 3 people on it) Most of the patient were between the ages of 12 and 25. Less than half were using safety devices such as helmets.

I can't see the small letters either... if I take my glasses off and close my eyes.

I've sat in one at a trade show.. It has less room than a cadillac. It may have more headroom, but it is more narrow, and the compartments aren't very deep at all. The 74& 75 Criterions had more compartment space.

HA HA HA... A Probie! :roll: First.. It's HAVOC. Second.. I've seen very few EMS teams that were Medic/Medic. That's a waste of manpower. My whole career, I was the medic, and my EMT drove. In fact all of the units were Medic/EMT, unless they were EMT/EMT.

I don't know if they still have them, but it used to be like every five years after Emergency! was cancelled, there was a reunion somewhere. I've been to three or four of them. I have photos of alot of the actors, autographed, they were always willing. Alot of the ones I had signed from the 80's have passed away, mostly the people who worked on the side, and some of the Rampart staff. The last one I went to I got Randy Mantooth & Jim Page to sign a couple photos I had. I usually keep the best ones, and then donate the others to local VFC auctions, they sell into the 200's w/ the firemen bidding. I bought the DVD, but I haven't even opened it yet. Maybe I'll save it for the winter. Any word on when the next season will come out?

Would I do 50:1? Depends, the best thing to do, in my opinion, is keep cardiac massage at a constant rate. Maybe give them 2 seconds every 20 or so for oxygen. But as long as you keep the resuscitator bag on their mouth, and nose and constantly squeeze it slightly (not forcefull, but enough to allow air movement) then they are getting oxygen. You would still get air movement enough to keep the O2 sat up if you just had an NRB on them and did not stop compressions. This is what we tell providers that do not have a CPR mask or BVM, yet do not wish to do M2M. Of course, if you are buying an oxygen kit.. whay not spring for a resuscitator of some sort? :idea: Feckin Old Guy Fact #30: When Dr. Safar taught use resuscitation at the UofPitt Medical School's Paramedic Class; it was called CPCR (Cardio-Pulmonary Cerebral Resuscitation). We were still taught to Resuscitate drowning victims by man handling them, placing them in a prone position, and forcefully thrusting our hands across the flanks of their ribs. Personally, I'd never seen that work, maybe because they all died from broken necks and being flung onto their stomach? :!: