Janmarie3

It really doesn't matter if there is a Helmet law or not. Just like seat belts, even tho there is a mandatory seat belt law there are still people who choose not to wear them. The same would be for the Helmets. I personally voted yes. I wear one, I make my kids wear one. But there are so many who could care less. "It makes my hair flat!" Here we do not have a Helmet law, the police officer's sometimes don't wear them when off duty. But I think that if there were, more people would wear them just to save themselves a ticket, thus possibly save thier hide.

This is just a blurb about a city that I can pick up on my scanner and listen to their call. I roll my eye's everytime I hear them go out. This agency has no set schedule for any of thier crew. When a call comes in anyone who has their radio's on responds. Usually about 6-10 people responding on one call and they are all going POV. So all this time they are responding POV they are tieing up the radio with BS talk to each other. They all get onscene and then you hear, "Who's bringing the Ambulance?" Hehehe this goes on every single call they have.

I'm not a volunteer, I'm paid. The rest of the crew is volly. If I need them to run more then 20 hours a week (which is rare) then they get compensated. Like a thank you for putting in more time when we needed them.

I do the schedules at my service and each shift is a 4 hour slot. We have our vollies put in 20 hours a week. So they sometimes either pick 4 hours a day for 5 days or they put in the whole day for their volley time. Depending on how they work it around their regular jobs. Some put in more hours and they get compensated for running over their volley time. The weekends each tech gets paid more to run it. The only problem we have is that no one wants to run the weekends. Which is understandable because that is their days off from their regular jobs. Sooooooo I get the weekends from Thursday 12am straight threw Sunday 4pm. But I get paid a salary to do this. I did have it where I had every other Saturday after 4pm off and every other Sunday off. But the EMT that was alternating with me just got fired so I'm stuck with it for awhile until someone steps in.

Would to much potassium cause an internal defib to continually shock? An old guy here had that happen to him.

If you are going to eaves drop on my conversations ...listen...I don't want to have to repeat it.

I did :roll:

Hehehe Size does matter

So that you will let us have it

Because we are extremely thoughtful and want to make you think that you had a part in whatever we actually decide to buy

Yes I'am right but you know I love you MEN anyway lol....hmm I wonder if the "I love you" part works on men as well?

Ewwwwww!!! LMAO

MAN'S ANSWERS TO EVERY QUESTION A WOMAN EVER ASKS 1. WHY ARE MEN SUCH JERKS? It's a testosterone thing. Much similar to your PMS thing, we men suffer from testosterone poisoning. Why do you think the average life span of a male is typically 10 years shorter (and it's not just from all the bitching and nagging we have to endure)? Hormone modifies behavior. We're just misunderstood. 2. WHY DO MEN ALWAYS HAVE TO OGLE AT OTHER WOMEN? Again, this is a testosterone thing. Do you honestly think that all the testosterone just fell out of our bodies the moment we met you? Besides, women do it as well. Women are just much better at not getting caught. I'm fairly certain it's some sort of photographic memory deal. Women take one quick look and memorize it for later reference. Since men lack this ability, we try to burn it into our memory by staring as much as we can. 3. WHY DO MEN ALWAYS TOUCH THEMSELVES, ESPECIALLY IN PUBLIC? We occasionally need to adjust our little friend and make him happy. It's much like adjusting your bra. Being in public is just an added bonus. 4. WHY DO MEN ALWAYS SAY SUCH STUPID THINGS? We like to. It's actually a whole lot of fun to see our partner frustrated by a few simple (and well-chosen) words. 5. WHY ARE MEN SO UNCOMMUNICATIVE? You'd learn to keep your big mouth shut too if every time you open it you get into trouble with your partner. 6. WHY DO MEN HAVE TO ACT LIKE SUCH RETARDS? Well, we don't actually have to; we do it because we enjoy it. It's the old fashioned pride in a job well done that's missing in so much of the world nowadays. 7. WHY CAN'T MEN JUST SHARE THEIR FEELINGS? Do we look like women to you? Why is it so hard to understand that men and women are different? How are we supposed to share how we feel when we have no idea how we feel? Unless we're experiencing some extreme emotion like rage, hatred, disgust, or a brick on our foot, we have no idea how we feel. Personally, I get a headache whenever I try to figure out how I feel. 8. WHY CAN'T MEN CUDDLE MORE (I.E. LIE DOWN AND HUG)? Please... How many hours do you think there is in a day? We oblige you as much as we can, but who the hell (besides women) can stand lying around for hours on end? We men... Men hunters... Need go roam... Starve in cave... Must go find wildebeest... Now sitting on our asses for hours on end on the other hand is a whole other story. 9. HOW CAN MEN SIT ON THEIR ASSES ALL DAY WITHOUT MOVING? Men have very powerful sets of sitting muscles developed by evolution that enable us to sit for extended periods of time without getting tired. In prehistoric times, it was often necessary to sit in one spot for extended periods of time while hunting for prey. The more successful hunters were able to sit very still for very extended periods of time thereby passing on this ability to their progeny. The fidgety types were all gobbled up by saber toothed tigers etc. The end result is that almost all modern men are born with this innate ability. 10. WHY CAN'T MEN JUST SAY, "I LOVE YOU?" Men are taught from a tender young age to be self-sufficient. To say that we love you is equivalent to saying that we need you. Most men consider that a character fault. It's not easy to admit to one's own character faults. 11. WHY DO MEN SAY "I LOVE YOU" WHEN THEY HARDLY KNOW ME? Ho, Ho, Ho... Aren't you special? Well, some men think it's a sure-fire way to get into your pants. Surprisingly, it actually still works quite well. 12. WHY DOESN'T MY PARTNER EVER ANSWER ME? We just simply don't have the energy to answer every single one of your questions. If we think we do not have the answer, or that you will not like the answer, we simply remain quiet and save the energy for other things. 13. WHY WON'T MEN EVER PICK UP AFTER THEMSELVES? Why should we? It doesn't really bother us that much. Besides, we know damn well you'll pick it up. 14. WHAT'S WITH ALL THE BELCHING AND FARTING? This usually only occurs after months of courting. It's our way to let you know that we're comfortable with you. Believe it or not, it's actually a sign of affection. Besides, holding it for extended periods of time gives us stomach cramps. 15. WHY DO MEN HATE SHOPPING? It's an evolutionary thing. Men hunt. Women gather. We just want to go out, kill it, and bring it back. Who wants to spend hours and hours to look at things we have no intention of killing? Err... buying?

I work for a private ambulance company and the only thing I can think of that would be a pitfall for you in a private agency is that most of them are volunteer based and without county support it is almost impossible for a private company to pay you ALS wages. We count on grant money and whatever we can get from insurance companies. And there is only one of us who is paid a salary, the rest are volunteer and only compensated for extra volunteer time. You should probably do the research, visit with county, fire, private ems services, etc and see what they have to offer you and then make your decission.

lol Ak you really should get those ovaries of yours looked at. Damn!! I'am not offended just realized you all are right...and thanks again.

ok maybe this isn't the place to discuss this, though the advice given is very helpful...thanks you guys. I was just hopeing someone would say this is a fluke thing and will go away. Though today has been great, no incident. You know how we EMT's are, deny that we may be having a problem. Sorry for bringing it here.

This has been bugging me because it has never happened to me before. I'am generally a strong person and have handled everything that life has thrown at me so far. Maybe you can give me an idea as to what may be going on. First of all I have no HX, I have no Allergies and I take no RX except my multi vitamin and calcium which I have for years. I'am normally a happy outgoing person, I don't have flares of anxiety or depression and I don't ever feel stressed which I probably should. I am the type of person who is like "whatever" and goes on. I make really good money, I have really good kids and life is good. So I'am totally stumped. I was working at my city job last monday. I was scheduled to drive the city truck out and dump the contents. Its about a half our drive to the site. I had just gotten off a 114 hour work week for the Ambulance, my normal is 96 but we had 2 EMT's who didn't show up for their shift. All our other emt's don't give a crap about anyone so had a nasty attitude when asked to help out. I ended up working extra. Ok so that morning I felt a little i'll, nothing real bad just kinda upset to my stomach, the truck was warming up and the air was filling the cylinder, that takes about 20 minutes. So I went into the office and BS'd a bit with my supervisor. Then I headed out. As I was driving I started to feel worse, like I needed to puke...then I started to feel my heart pounding and I heard it pounding....it started going faster and faster to the point where I felt I was passing out. I didn't want to cause an accident so I pulled the truck over, layed my head over the steering wheel, felt my pulse and it was like out of control. My head began to ache but not like a headache. It wasn't a hot day, in fact it was really nice so I knew it wasn't heat related. I hadn't eaten anything yet but had 3 cups of coffee. Anyway I opened the door and jumped out...kinda paced back and forth for a few....felt like maybe I could finish the job....jumped back in and headed off again. Then it happened again....sick to my stomach, heart racing, pass out mode...so I pulled over again, waited a bit....felt like I was gonna die...my whole body felt extemely heavy like trying to push to the ground (if that makes sense) I didn't have SOB but both arms tingled and around my lips like something someone would experience when they have SOB. Then I decided to get to the site and call for help. I made it out to the destination point, went in the office and called my boss, told them what was going on. They sent someone out to get me....but while I was waiting...I started to feel worse. I asked one of the guys to feel my pulse and he was like OMG its going 200. Anyway the person arrived to take me back and I felt like I wasn't going to make it. They took me straight to the ambulance, took my BP it was 188/111, pulse was 130, I was diaphretic. (spell check not working)They made me go to the hospital. By the time I got to the hospital I was feeling way better, BP was back down to 115/20, pulse was 60. EKG was normal, Go figure. They didn't do any blood work but said I was probably having an anxiety attack...I don't have anxiety attacks. They gave me drugs and sent me home. I was major stoned!!!! Slept for 12 hours and I felt just fine. Yesterday as I was driving to the store it started to happen again....I tried to take my mind off it, did ok. It only lasted a few minutes. So is it anxiety? Or should I go in for blood work? The only stress beside's working EMS I can figure is that I have someone new living in my house for the past month who is moving out on the 1st. I let a friend stay here so he could save money to get his own place. Other then that everything else I deal with is normal.

You can try private funding but you have to be really creative when asking for the money. It may be easier going after a student loan for paramedic. Good luck though.

Since this is officially EMS Week, I just wanted to honor all of you who serve on the front lines..... We are the front line in emergency care, we are first to respond, we are the first on scene, and we are the first to save a life if a life needs to be saved. I also want to honor all those who have dedicated their lives to emergency services and who have lost their lives in the line of duty. Cheers to all of you and a damn good job you all are doing.

That is good advise Ridryder, The reason I called PD to handle the bus patient is because I did assess his complaints. But I found nothing wrong with him. When I first arrived on scene he was sitting outside very agitated and all he wanted to do was get in the ambulance and roll. I was reluctant to put him in the ambulance. I asked the questions and while he was answering me he told me how he ran from the cops and stepped in a mound of spiders and he was bitten a bunch of times on his feet and he couldn't even walk. I had him remove his shoes and socks and what I found were old blisters. No spider bites. He complained of feeling sick and faint. As my partner was taking his vitals the security personnel told me that he had been kicked off the bus, broke into one of the hotel rooms and was taking a shower when they caught him. The pt didn't want to be arrested so he began complaining of being sick. Because I didn't find anything to warrent an ambulance ride to a hospital 45 minutes away, and being the only personnel on duty that day. I felt that PD should be called in to handle it so we wouldn't be tide up when a real emergency happened. When we returned and I returned to my home. I was outside watering the lawn when I looked up and saw that same guy walking past my house. He was walking just fine.

Drunks are weird cases, they like the drama, they want the attention. Most drunks drink because they are drowning one sorrow after another, so they are going to play you and think, Sweet! finally someone cares about me. Once they get that...they know where to go for more. I give them some sympathy even though I know they fake it sometimes, but I don't care. Deep down I feel a little pity for them. What really bugs me is the ones who come over on a bus...gets kicked off the bus...and then conjures up some emergency and calls us for transport back to the town he came from. I have gotten to where I can usually pick them out and I call for PD to come deal with them.

P.S Bring me back a T-shirt

Praying for the Devil? You have my prayers, I've known you for awhile and have come to respect you and your idea's. Hey remember that night we stayed up till wee hours in the morning talking about my Gibson guitar and your web sites? hehehe I saved that to my favorites and its been there every since. It's nice to see that you have found your place and doing what you have always talked about doing.....I see you accomplishing all those things and that is awesome. Be safe in Iraq, stop by and say hello when you can and come home to accomplish those other dreams and idea's of yours. Besides...what would "20 questions" be like without your dirty laundry LOL Talk to you soon

Thanks Ridryder, We do have someone working or was working on the tribe for help, I am not sure if they had given up because I haven't heard anything yet. I'am thinking of having a pow wow with them myself. I want to see something done quickly. I will look for that book and do whatever research I have to. Thanks for the great information.

I've been doing research on the available grants for EMS. I have come across a lot grant money for just about everything except what I was searching for. Recovery cost grants. I'm still researching but I thought maybe someone else out here might know a little more about it then I do and could point me in the right direction. I work with a private rural Ambulance service, we run two counties, almost 3 at times. The county we are stationed in provides grant money to us to service our own county and up until last year they also gave us a grant to cover costs of running the other county. This year they cut us $25,000. The neighboring county gives us nothing for the care and transport of their citizens. Mostly these two counties are tribal lands and we are currently trying to work with the tribe for grant monies but have hit a brick wall. The neighboring county is only 6 miles from us and we do have an ambulance stationed there, it is 45 miles from the hospital. Majority of the people we service are uninsured or on Indian health. Trying to recover costs has been an uphill battle. Durring my search I looked up what types of money available in that county for ems through H & W. I found that hundreds of thousands of money goes toward food stamps, paychecks and WIC programs but only 6,000 was given to ems in its own county. There has been talk about pulling our Ambulance out and closing the doors to that county. It's not something that we want to do because we know and care about those people, its just getting to the point where we can't afford to service it without their help. This town is 20 miles from its own county ambulance service which makes its even more difficult for these people to get the emergency care they need. So if anyone has any experience in researching grant money for EMS please help me out. This has become a mission of mine and I have learned a great deal about how little important EMS is. Thanks in advance