Richard B the EMT

Come on! WE all know why they send the husband to boil all that water: To keep dad out of the way of the doctors, nurses, midwives, EMTs and Paramedics, and even the first responder fire fighters!

Timmy posted a string re coverage at a sporting event, specifically, a rodeo. Might I suggest you look at this older string? It has some things you might want to take into consideration. www.emtcity.com/index.php/topic/13920-my-rodeo-vent/page__hl__rodeo__fromsearch__1

I just remembered some details that should be considered, especially if the color guard is doing a funeral. Wether it's men or women on the team, they REALLY have to be able to lift high, as sometimes they will be the ones called on to lift large heavy corpses in equally heavy coffins on or off an engine company's hose bed, or an ambulance cabin floor, or a hearse. If military, there is also the possibility of a horse drawn gun carriage. Also, there is going to be the possible issue of steps at the house of worship, or funeral home.

I am not agreeing with destroying a seized vehicle. 20 years ago, I recall seeing a Ford Mustang/Shelby GT 500 Cobra, an obvious road muscle car, in NYPD colors. She was an impounded car, and was now being used to catch speeders, after being repainted as an RMP (Radio Motor Patrol) car, including the sign saying that it was an impounded speeder's car now recycled as a cop car. About the same time, under a "Zero Tolerance" drug seizure law, 2 suspected drug dealers had their Winnibago's seized. One became a mobile base for the NYPD Dive Team, the other became the "Field Com" (Field Communications/Command vehicle) for the pre-merger New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation EMS. The 3 or 4 times I drove it, she was a nice ride, that could, if needed, take over dispatching all 5 boro and Citywide frequencies, that make up NYC, and maintain communications with the NYPD and FDNY radios, as well as the Mutual Aid Radio System volunteer ambulance services.

Private service, patient prescheduled for admit to a local hospital. I'm working with a lady EMT, first time the two of us working together, but other EMTs in service like her skills. We pull up at a building that looks like a setting for a film about a mugging. I'm no fighter, but had the old fashioned concept of, "What am I going to do to protect her, if someone attacks us"? Just as I pushed the button to get the elevator, I hear the unmistakable sound of a "lockback" folding knife clicking into working position, from behind me. First I froze, then turned around, slowly. Lady EMT has the biggest damn folding knife I'd ever seen, and she is putting the knife, point end first, into her belt holster. I'm going to protect HER?

My answer is under the idea that you are in the United States. I saw nothing indicating this in the OP, but can probably be used in other countries as well. Hardware: 1) National flag 2) State/Province flag 3) County flag 4) City/municipal flag 5) Departmental flag 6) Parade "Flag Carrier Belts", enough for one per flag, and all of the same style. All flags are to be the same size, and flown from flagpoles of the same height. I'd suggest 3 x 5 foot flags on minimally 8 foot tall flagpoles. If no departmental flag per item #5, generic FD, Rescue, EMS, Star of Life, and Law Enforcement flags are available from numerous dealers or manufacturers you can locate, and purchase from, on line. They also sell the flag carrier belts. Consider items #2, 3, and 4 to be optional, in reverse order, if lacking personnel to carry them. Personnel to wear: 1) Departmental "Class A" type uniform, complete to cap, if part of the dress uniform 2) Patent leather or similar bright shine shoes (be advised, they can make feet feel quite hot, as in temperature) 3) Military style white "parade gloves" 4) Braided Shoulder Cord in contrasting color to uniform, worn over right shoulder (optional) 5) Ascot in contrasting color to uniform, or black for funeral details (optional instead of a tie. All in the Color Guard and/or Honor Guard Formation will wear the same item, either the tie or the same color ascot. There is NO mix and match of ties or ascots, or colors of ascots) 6) Badge, if required by department 7) Award ribbons, if the individual personnel has earned them, in placement by departmental rules and regulation Color Guard and/or Honor Guard Formations (from multiple information sources): 1)The flag, when carried in a procession with another flag, or flags, should be either on the marching right; that is, the flag's own right, or, if there is a line of other flags, in front of the center of that line. (If viewed from the front when marchers are approaching, the flag is to be on the left) 2) When flags of two or more nations are displayed, they are to be flown from separate staffs of the same height. The flags should be of approximately equal size. International usage forbids the display of the flag of one nation above that of another nation in time of peace. The order of precedence for flags generally is National flags (US first, then others in alphabetical order in English), State (host state first, then others in the order of admission) and territories (Washington DC, Puerto Rico, etc.), Military (in order of establishment: Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard), then other. 3) The U. S. Flag should not be dipped to any person or thing. Regimental colors, state, city, organizational or other flags are dipped as a mark of honor. Optional: 1) If a unit, in a parade, has a banner, they follow the flags by a distance of 20 to 30 feet, so the banner can be read, and folks will know who the unit is. (In some areas, tradition has the banner lead the flags. If this is the case in your area, the flags follow by the same 20 to 30 feet.) Whoever leads the unit should keep back from the unit proceeding them by 30 to 40 feet to separate the units. Follow the directions of the parade marshals on this. 2) Some suggest that there be 2 additional personnel, each to the outside of the flag bearers. If a military or scouting unit, they might carry matching ceremonial rifles, carried to the outside of the flag line, indicating that they are protecting the flags. I have seen several fire departments have these "outriders" carrying ceremonial fire axes in similar style, with blade edges low and to the front, but have no suggestion as to what an EMS unit would, or should, carry in similar formations. 3) Flag handlers should keep the right hand higher up on the flagpole than the left, with the thumb up. There is discussion as to reversing the right hand to a "thumbs down" position for saluting, but I have nothing solid to back that up. 4) If there are horses ahead of you in the parade, watch where you march!

I'll go you one better on that, Tom. Your 5 to 7 AM is when folks discover that they can't wake up Grandma or Grandpa, as they expired during the night. Also, and I wish I could recall my source of the information, due to the strain of elimination, many morning calls ending in finding a dead patient, are in the toilet. I'll qualify that it ain't just rural, nor New York State.

I am under the impression, per information supplied by my brother, who lives there, that in North Dakota, due to the harsh weather during the winter, ALL drivers are supposed to stop and render aid to any apparently disabled vehicles. There is no qualification mentioned as to any level of medical care, or mention of the disabled vehicle(s) being in an accident. BTW, most of you know I live in NYC. Per my lines at the end, follow your local protocols, as mine might be different from yours.

The highest medical authority on scene of the ambulance crew is supposed to be in charge, medically, of the patient, per everything I have been taught, and what I recall, off hand, of agency(s), county, and state rules and regs. That person is the one tells the person driving if they are to turn off the L&S and respond to the hospital as a regular vehicle, activate the lights and use the siren when necessary (understandably under discussion in many areas, including several EMT City strings), or running full out "Hot". In all instances, the person driving has not done their job if the ambulance either is in an accident, or causes one. As always, on that, I refer back to NYS Vehicle and Traffic Law #1104, operate the vehicle with due regard to all other traffic on the road. I tend to believe that all 50 states, and probably all other countries, have some rule or regulation on the books that says something to that effect. Also, concerning the siren usage, if the EMT or Paramedic in charge of the patient tells the patient that "things are under control", but suddenly the siren blares out, the patient might feel that their condition is worse than it is. This can raise the patient's BP, as "What is this person not telling me about my condition, that they are now using the siren?"

Rock On!

Another instance of Moral versus Legal Duty to Act. My most recent was, I lucked into a 10 car chain reaction collision. I was alone, and first in, in my POV. Thank goodness they were all minor injuries. (sidenote- second due Engine Company to the incident was not washing an elephant at the time. See http://www.emtcity.com/index.php/topic/16247-just-another-role-for-the-faithful-hose-monkey/page__hl__elephant__fromsearch__1 if not knowing what I am referring to)

From the article: As for not being able to post the article, open the link, copy, cut and paste it, as I did.

Unfortunately, we will always have bickering. Sometimes it can be quite intelligent on both sides of an issue, other times, it's annoying. We have had a lot of entertainment and education with some of our "epic battles". Shall we leave it at, whoever authorized and ordered the guys at Engine 245 to do the elephant wash, who was not, apparently, within the FDNY management chain of command, is at fault, not the engine company crew, the battalion chief, division commander, boro commander, or the citywide chiefs. Also, the fact that, while the engine company is a medical first responder, as it wasn't requested to respond in that capacity, or in a fire fighting capacity, either, during that half hour, it seems, IMHO, to be a moot point, now.

Does anyone know of any ambulances that carry a 1 and a half inch hoseline? Again, they were ordered to do it, and followed orders, even if it came from city hall, and not the FDNY chain of command. The crew from E-245 did their job!

As I have no access at work, just #2 and #3.

I am of 2 minds of this. The first is perhaps societal, that elder folks' adult children get embarrassed just thinking that their "parental units" are "gettin' it on" The other is

In a related history, a bit over a hundred years ago, an elephant escaped from a different circus, and SWAM across the Hudson River, at the Verrizano Narrows, to New Dorp, Staten Island. This is over a 5 mile swim, in a shipping channel! Link to 1904 New York Times Article: http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9801EFDC123AE733A25756C0A9609C946597D6CF

The FDNY Chief of Department didn't want them to do the publicity stunt, and neither did the Engine 245 crew, or the United Firefighters Association local's president (a rarity: Chief of Department and President of UFA in agreement!) The order, however, was from someone from City Hall. It was an order, they followed it, and thus, I, for one, say "Don't fault the crew for following an admittedly questionable order. While Engine 245 is supposed to be one of the busiest Certified First Responder-Defibrillator Engine companies in Brooklyn, from what I am told, no medical calls came in for their service district during the half hour of the photo-op. Ladder 161, and the Battalion Chief, which share the house with the engine, remained in service. As noted, originally, Suzie the elephant was supposed to get a hose rinse down (from the booster reel?)while walking by the firehouse, as opposed to the engine traveling the roughly one mile distance to the circus tent. Instead, she got scrubbed by the original Nathan's Famous hotdog "stand", in the area where they have the July 4th hot dog eating contest, on Nathan's eastern exposure. That is roughly halfway between the 2 sites.

OK, probably not based in laws and statewide regulations here in New York, but, on my now defunct VAS, the EMT designated "Crew Chief" was the "de facto" squad Sergent, and in overall command of the ambulance. The driver, who, under squad rules back in the day, didn't necessarily have to be an EMT (this was before Certified First Responder-Defibrillation was requested/required by the NYS DoH, and we didn't have any Paramedics in the organization), but was under the understanding that (s)he was to get the vehicle and crew where needed, and do so safely.

People coming into this string are going to be confused as to what is happening. .. .----. -- / .--- ..- ... - / --. --- .. -. --. / - --- / ..- ... . / - .... . / - .-. .- -. ... .-.. .- - --- .-. --..-- / .- ... / -.-. --- -.. . / .. ... / - .... . / .--. .-. .. -- .- .-. -.-- / .-. . .- ... --- -. / .. / -.. .. -.. -. .----. - / --. . - / -- -.-- / .... .- -- / .-..-. - .. -.-. -.- . - .-..-. .-.-.- / --- .-.. -.. / .... .- -. -.. ... / .- .-. . / --. .-.. .- -.. / - --- / -.. --- / -- --- .-. ... . --..-- / -... ..- - / .. - / .... .- ... / ..-. .- .-.. .-.. . -. / --- ..- - / --- ..-. / ..-. .- ...- --- .-. --..-- / .- -. -.. --..-- / .. -. -.. . . -.. --..-- / .. ... / -. --- - / ..- ... . -.. / --- -. / - .... . / .. -. - . .-. -. .- - .. --- -. .- .-.. / -.. .. ... - .-. . ... ... / ..-. .-. . --.- ..- . -. -.-. .. . ... / .- -. -.-- / -- --- .-. . .-.-.-

There are some FDNY EMS Command personnel, around, as I am, from before the merger, who openly state that.

Someone forgot one does not need morse code for a HAM radio license anymore. ... --- ... -.-. --.-

Please clarify if you are referring to the individual, or their employer.