Mateo_1387

Wouldn't the QRS width be determined if the AV Node is blocked at the node, or just inferior to the node? For my interpretation, I am seeing... 3rd Degree heart block LBBB and LAFB. LBBB is seen with LAD, - deflection S wave in V1, and LAFB with the - deflections of II, III, and aVF.

First off, let me say that I am not a flight medic. What I am going to say though hopefully will make you think about your path to working on a helicopter. (If I am giving out bad advise, someone, please correct me !) You may want to consider going to nursing school. You already took a 10-hour credit course for EMT-B. I hope this means that you are thinking in terms of getting a good education. If your goal is to be working in a helicopter, then I believe nursing school would be the better way to go. As a nurse working on a helicopter, you will usually have more responsibilities, perform more skills, and get paid more. Also, after being a nurse, getting an EMT-P cert will be a piece of cake. The nursing school and hospital environment will offer you a great education and experience base. I think the same would apply to a Respiratory Therapist, as some HEMS services utilize a combination of RT and RN. Just something to think about... G'day Matt

Kokomo- The Beach Boys Who's your daddy?

For a serious reply though... A series like this will always be overboard, because they are out for ratings. As a result, it will probably give people the wrong idea about what the EMS profession is about. Showing viewers the world of EMS is not really their job, entertainment is. Some aspect of the series may be good for the EMS, other aspects will not be good. Most of it is just going to be entertainment anyways. Until I see more of the series (which I probably will not watch) I am going with 'Could Be Both'. G'day Matt

I do not know if I would enjoy the show, but I would not mind waking up to the blond chick smiling over top of me.

Congratulations to you and Mr. Riblett ! Now I have a friend to stay with when I go to Fl. JK I have no advise for ya, as you know where I am located. Please, do not be a stranger, and let me know if I can help you any. Good Luck Ol' Friend ! (and Mr. Riblett too)

I know of no places in NC that have just ambulance drivers. Every service I know has a minimum requirement for EMT-B. Reading the article though, if she was working and volunteering at the same agency, that is illegal. Anyways...I do wish strength for the family and colleagues she leaves behind...This from a neighbor, just down the road.

EMS is not going to be a fix to your problems in dealing with other people. Being walked all over (and over generous) is not dependent upon you being an EMT. I fail to see the association. Would you please explain it?

It was never said that living and learning means that you will be walked all over. Living life is going to develop your sense of individuality, shape your personality, mold your morals, and understand your personal standards. You are just entering the gray area between teenager and adult. I think this is what people mean when they say you get experience with age. My point is that you should be focusing on this stage of your development with openness to learning and improving upon yourself. EMS, IMO, will drag you away from that important goal/vital time in your development. What I am trying to get across to you is deeper than 'I want to help everyone'. This is about your transition into adulthood. This is not about answering the next adrenaline pumping call. Those calls will always be there. Your time right now, spent doing EMS will not be given back to you.

First, I think you have some great posts. They are so far very easy to read because you possess grammar skills. Second, my opinion is that you should ditch the EMS thing. At 17 years old, and even at my age of 22, this is not a job for young people. These years should be the times of our lives, learning to enjoy life, think for ourselves, have fun, and soak in as much as we can to improve ourselves. Not spending countless nights at EMS stations, answering calls in a stringent and strict environment that keeps our mentality confined to the attitudes around us. You seem like a very intelligent 17-year-old. I give you that. I have learned though, that even at the age of 22, I do not belong in this business at this point in my life. Quite honestly, my opinion is that others my age do not belong in this line of work. This is time for you to shine, not wipe puke off of some old person who fell on the floor at 3am. There is so much to learn in this world. EMS will distract you from that. I believed 22 years was old enough for me to be a paramedic. Sure, I can do the job, and I do it well, but I should not be wiping puke off some old person that fell at 3am. This is the time for me to keep exploring my boundaries, build my own life standards, gain life experience, and become the best damn person I can be. I feel at 17, your goals should be similar. You should be focused on your life of a 17 year old, having friends your age, learning to build your own values and standards, and living life to the fullest. There will be plenty of time down the road that you can spend doing EMS. EMS is not all that bad. I would not trade what has been taught to me, and the experience gained from being a young paramedic. It definitely has shaped my life. The only thing is that I should be doing this at a later point in life. Being young is a special time. Becoming an adult and learning the idiosyncrasies of adulthood is much more important than EMS. To you, what I posted may seem like a bunch of bullshyte, but I honestly believe you are intelligent enough to comprehend what I am saying. Hopefully, you will take this information and think upon it. I realized it way too late. Please do not make the same mistake. It took a dear friend of mine to point this out to me, and I thank him immensely (you know who you are). There is still much to comprehend and learn about life. Just one young paramedic’s opinion… Matt(y)

WOW, that was quite impressive !!! Thanks for sharing Wendy.

I disagree. Leave student behind where your patient was shot in a ghetto. Makes good sense eh? Crew before patient, and that includes student, because we have a duty to go home safe.

Where did I say it should be otherwise? This is nothing new. But in fact, you are in essence a babysitter. You have to baby-sit the student to make sure they do not screw up. It is added responsibility on your part as a preceptor. You have to make sure your students to not get into dangerous situations, do not get you or your partner or your ambulance into dangerous situations, and make sure they do not perform poor medical skills that could harm your patients. I think you are a babysitter when you are a preceptor. Students should have high standards. I agree with that. But they are students and a lot of times new to the EMS environment, mentalities, and scenes. Many times, students must take in and assimilate a vast amount of information. The students are constantly having to adapt to new people and situations. Do not expect them to be perfect. When your agency agrees to have students within their system there can be many benefits. Leaving students behind on scenes just puts a sour taste into your agency's mouth, the student's mouth, and the College/University's mouth. For starters, your agency may be allowing students from a certain college to participate in your EMS system to promote EMS standards, to provide a good learning environment, and to view potential employees. Leaving a student behind on a scene while they are in a learning phase may deplete your system of a soon-to-be awesome paramedics. You screw up for your system, and the student. At the college level, your actions may cause tension between the agency in question and the college. The college may not with to send students to your agency to ride because your agency is not responsible with students. This could be a potential hurt for your agency as well as the college. Lets not forget the student who is left behind at a scene. Many times, the student may be required to leave their cell phones at home while at clinical. They may be hours away from being 'picked up' by friends or family. This puts the student in a very difficult situation when they are alone in a neighborhood that may not be safe. Leaving students behind just because they are an 'adult' is bogus. Would you leave a 16-year-old rider behind just because they got lost? A 16 year old can be expected to be able to pay attention and be at the right places at the right time. But there is the potential that they are separated from the EMS crew, are you going to leave them behind? Same expectations? Why one and not the other? So, whatever needs to be done? You send them down the elevator to go get a piece of equipment you desperately need. While the student is retrieving your equipment you decide you must leave the scene because the patient needs to be transported to the hospital. So while you go down the elevator the student is coming up another elevator. The student gets lost, they are not used to the building. They cannot find you. Are you just going to leave them because they 'could not keep up'? I doubt it. What is BFD?

You should not be a preceptor. Sure students should not get lost or disappear but you should be the responsible one. You would not leave a patient behind that was 'taking their time.' Students should be expected to be on best behavior and to keep up, but things happen. As bad as it looks for a student to disappear from the EMS crew, it looks just as bad if not worse for your crew and agency when you leave students behind, ya know, the ones you are supposed to be helping and guiding... Leave precepting students for the professionals, you should not be handling the learning situation.

Orange County Protocols I 'hear' this system can refuse transport and refer patients to appropriate medical facilities. I could not find within their protocols that they could refuse transport. I posted the link though if anyone wants to take a look.

Store them and use them at a later date if there is 'pain' again. Or, he could just go ahead and take them, like a reward for going through surgery, pain, and cancer.... Just sayin'

With hypothermia, more cardiac arrest patients are surviving nuerologically intact.

The large percentages are used to allocate funding and judging the EMS system's effectiveness, which is utter bull. So many services base the quality of their system on a very small percentage of calls (save rates). Better statistics to figure out the effectiveness of an EMS system would be to look at what interventions are performed by EMS that save money for the overall healthcare system (EMS + hospital + specialty resources) and provides a good outcome for patient (example. Using CPAP to treat pulmonary edema possibly preventing ICU stays).

Thanks for quoting the greatest work of fiction in the midst of a logical discussion. The irony brought a smile to my face.

Or any surgery for that matter. I guess we can remove the appendix too ! Or any surgery for that matter. I guess we can remove the appendix too ! I knew it ! I took xanax before reading your posts. So Ha !

That is faulty logic Spenac. By your standards, parents should be able to chop of their children's arms if the children steal from the parents. Since the parents can decide, eh? Besides, children are programmed to learn, just as males are born with foreskin. Why not go with the program?

That is outrageous Spenac. I never said someone should not raise and provide for their child. The comment was very specific to altering the penis of a male child.

It is just as wrong to circumcise an African boy, as it is an American boy. It is still the basic concept of altering the body of a non-consenting infant. The decision should be that of the male when they become an adult. I just do not follow the logic where it is ok to alter the penis of one group of males, but not other males, as infants, based on geographical location. Like I have said, I have no problem with circumcision if consented by the adult getting snipped. Could they have not made that choice when they got older? You took something away that would require lots of work to get back. Even if they do get it back, it would never be quite the same. Just sayin'

Happy Birthday Love !

Sure the whole penis is not being removed, but part of it is. Sensitivity and functionality are affected also. Again, condoms were just an example. I also do not think poverty status is a good indication for circumcision. Haha. Funny.