Richard B the EMT

The Guardian of Forever, "Classic" Star Trek episode, "The City On The Edge Of Forever".

Perhaps this should be in with the blond jokes, but here goes anyway. A blond was confronted by a vampire, who said "I vant to suck your blood!" The blond said, "Aw, have a heart!" The vampire thanked her, before he bit her chest.

In a separate string, there was a discussion going on what to do with minor aged children left at the scene, by their caretakers getting sick or injured. However, another string, in my view, is needed, for a different topic that came up. What are your views of bringing a minor aged child of a member of your department along with them, on a call? The classic movie image is the children of fire fighters riding along with "Dad" to a call. Most of us remember the scene, when the fire officer's helmet gets blown through the window from a "Backdraft" explosion, and the look of anguish on his son's face, as shown on the front page of the newspapers, from the opening of the movie "Backdraft". I have always been against bringing children along on calls, due to the dangers inherent to the job. Perhaps I am a bit prejudiced, as, at my old Volunteer Ambulance Corps, some members would bring along their children to, in essence, be baby-sat by the dispatcher. I never could get them (the children) to listen to me. Someone mentioned a mother and child killed when Mom lost control of the fire tanker she was driving at emergency status. The thought someone had a 3 year old, in any emergency vehicle, NOT AS A PATIENT, unrestrained, is so depressing to me, I almost cannot put it into words. I will allow the concept of having children in the hose bed of an engine/pumper company., as I have been told that they are almost buried under the hoses to hold them in. So, my brother and sister EMT City residents, what say you to the concept of children of members of the department, accompanying the adult department member on calls?

I propose severing the "Kids Left At The Scene" string, and now will create a "Kids Along For The Call" string. Watch for it, or search for it.

You are probably aware that Dracula (classic), Angel and Spike (Buffy the Vampire slayer), and Barnabas Collins (Dark Shadows) have been in a long time disagreement, actually for centuries. There is really some bad blood between them!

What movie was that?

Try the "Riddle of the Sphinx". In ancient Egypt, a traveller had to pass thru a valley guarded by the Sphinx, a creature with the body of a lion, the wings of an eagle, and the head of a woman. The traveller was told by the creature, "If you can answer my question, you can pass, if not, You are my dinner tonight. Otherwise, you may withdraw and return whence you came." The traveller said, "I accept your challenge." The Sphinx crouched down, ready to spring, and said," What walks on 4 legs at the dawn, then walks on 2 legs at mid day, and walks on 3 legs at the twilight?" (I was going to leave it unanswered until tomorrow, but I may not be able to get online, so I'll answer now) The traveller smiled, and answered, "A man. He crawls on all fours as an infant, in the dawn of his life. In the middle of his life, at his mid-day, he walks erect on his 2 legs, and in his twilight, as an elder, he uses a staff or cane, that he might be said to have 3 legs". The Sphinx growled her displeasure as to having been correctly answered, but let him pass.

Yes. "He's my brother, and only I am allowed to beat him up! Get your own brother!"

Super, all right, super weird!

I'll be the cheap person wearing the T-shirt that says, "This IS my costume"

At least we know SOMEBODY knows how to use the search function. I didn't recognize it, then I see 2 of my postings? As for the 2 year gap, has any body's agencies changed their standards, specifically as to arming non LEO medical personnel on an entry team, or even allowing a medical person entry until the scene is supposedly secure?

I have some peripheral knowledge of HAM Radio's ARES program, the Military Affiliate Radio System (MARS), and the REACT communications groups. Are any of them, or other radio emergency groups, mentioned in any CERT plans (addressed to those who were/are trained by CERT, or who trained (or are training) a CERT group)?

Not necessarily strictly EMS, a former partner told me of one night, while responding to a mutual aid call from a neighboring department's 3rd alarm, one of their engine companies, which had a stereo system built into their siren, was playing Wagner's "Ride of the Valkyrie" while coming over the bridge, at top volume!

1) December, 1980. At a fund raiser for my VAS, we had a "share the profits" afternoon at the local skating rink. While skating, in the work uniform, to pick up a couple of trinkets to hand out, I hit a flaw in a carpet, fell, and dislocated my left elbow. One of the off-duty EMTs got the EMT Crew-Chief, telling him, and I quote, "Richard just fell and f***ed up his arm". The rest of the crew (did I mention I was on duty ON this crew) joined in, put my arm into a so called "A-Frame" splinting, and transported me to the nearest hospital. Did I mention the skating rink tried to charge me for damaging their carpet? I was out of work for 4 months after this event. 2) January 1997. While taking a patient off the municipal ambulance, on the Ferno 30 stretcher (a lift in style), I somehow managed to hook my foot on the hard plastic edge of the outdoor carpeting, in the loading dock at the emergency room of the hospital, causing me to fall, taking the patient on the stretcher, and my partner, down with me. The stretcher landed on the wheels, at least, just not all 4 at the same time, so the patient was just shook up, my partner got a small scrape on his hand, but I landed on my left knee, and tore the Meniscus. Another crew and a long time security officer friend at the hospital witnessed this, and came to our assistance, helping my partner take the patient inside, then assisting me inside. The doctor who examined me thought I was faking an injury, and actually refused to "sign off" on my paperwork to allow me to get the rest of the shift off, but the lieutenant took us off service, and kept us at the station for the remainder of the tour. My corrective surgery was in July of that year, and didn't get medical clearance to resume regular duties until the following January. 3) May 2005. I am, unfortunately, overweight enough that I am a candidate for gastric bypass or banding surgery. In doing the battery of tests, the cardiologist didn't like what he saw, and had me go for an angiogram. This turned into an angioplasty, as I had a cardiac stent inserted into my heart, with the entry point for the procedure being the right femoral artery. My instructions had been to treat any discomfort or pain with Tylenol, which I was doing. However, at 2:30 in the morning, 8 days later, the discomfort in my right upper thigh had elevated to pain, level 9 of 10, and I decided it was time to call 9-1-1 on myself. I sleep sans clothing. The telephone on the second floor of my house is in my mother's room, and I am in the back room. I walked, or staggered would be a better description, down the hallway, woke up my mother, told her I needed to go back to the hospital, and just then, my right leg couldn't, or wouldn't support me, and I collapsed, backwards, against the door, and rode down it, to the floor. (That was lucky, as, had I been a few feet to the left, I would have fallen down the stairs, backwards, and head first!) Not the sort of thing one wants to do, clothed or otherwise, in front of an 80+ year old woman. Mom somehow managed to climb over me, to let in the responding crews, even as I called 9-1-1 for the help. Whoever the young lady at the EMD was, she recognized my voice from when I had worked there, and stayed on the line until the first emergency crew got to me. I told her to consider me, as I had the stent, as a cardiac patient, and to respond additional hands, precautionary due to my weight, to assist on the carry down. With assistance from FDNY Engine 329, FDNY EMS BLS unit 47 Boy 1, FDNY EMS ALS unit 47 Willie 1, the station supervisor Conditions 47 1, and, as he was in the neighborhood, the on-duty Haz-Tech supervising lieutenant (!), I got a quick EKG, and a clearance via the On-line Medical Control to move me to the hospital where the stent had been inserted instead of the local hospital, they got me into a pair of underpants, wrapped me in a sheet, and a carry chair, and got me downstairs and into the street, where they assisted me in getting onto the stretcher, and lifted me into the 47 Willie ambulance. Then, they assisted my mother up the high step into that type 1 modular, not an easy task, as mom is kind of short. Then, with the Haz-Tech lieutenant driving his truck as escort, we headed out to the hospital. I should mention I was either on a first name basis with everyone in the EMS response, having been partnered with, or dual level responded, or nodding acquaintance with the firefighters from being on calls with them. After I got home a week later, all the neighbors were asking me how Mom was, thinking she had been the patient, and with 5 pieces of apparatus in the street outside my house, it probably got someone's attention! Well, I did say she is 80+ years old.

Or less. For the folks who have not figured that one out, it is what Paramedic "Mother" Tucker, as played by Bill Cosby, says, each time he lights up the emergency lights on his ambulance, in the movie, "Mother, Jugs, and Speed." On the same movie..."You're not very religious, are you?" Spoken by "Mother" as he waits until almost being upon a line of habit-clad nuns in the crosswalk, and scatters them by suddenly blasting them with the siren.

I guess you do, too, that you read the commentary, and responded to it. LOL back atcha!

Addendum to previous posting: Take age into consideration. The scenario said under 5 year olds. They go. Over 13, I might take the chance of leaving them, but need to refer to state protocol, see what they say.

I would take the kids along, notifying dispatch I was doing so. I'd either request the LEOs meet us at hospital, or on arrival, tell the ED staff Social Services would be needed.

How do you shoot a blue elephant? With a Blue elephant gun. How do you shoot a pink elephant? No, not with a pink elephant gun. You force it to hold it's breath until it turns blue, then shoot it with the blue elephant gun.

Well, ain't that the bee's knees. I thought I was a hep cat! Actually, by the time I find out what is in (for non drug related nomenclature), it's already out, just as I was gettin' jiggy with it.

Not so much dumb, but ultimately scary... Unit: Forty Seven Boy! Queens East Dispatch: 47 Boy, stand by, 47 Charlie, update out of hospital? Unit: 47 Boy! Dispatch: 47 Boy, I'm tryin' to give jobs out, here! Unit: 47 BOOOYYY! Dispatch: 47 Boy, what is your problem? Unit: You don't understand, dispatch, we just saw a plane crash in Belle Harbor! (5 seconds of radio silence, which I figure was the dispatcher saying, off mike, "Holy ****, SUPERVISOR TO QUEENS EAST, FORTHWITH!" Dispatch: (3 alerting tones) ALL UNITS STAND BY! FOUR SEVEN BOY, STATE LOCATION! (This was how I found out that the mass of flames and smoke I was looking at, a half mile from me, was the crash of American Airlines Flight 587, Monday, November 12, 2001 . That voice from 47 Boy is now a lieutenant.)

Hot, Hawt, Phat, and bellow jigga-jigga-yeayaah? Are we speaking the common language of English, or have I been stuck into the wrong century?

Re the complaints against the paramedic, simply because he was gay...You fought dirty, but it was needed in that manner. One of my Volunteer Ambulance people answered the telephone one afternoon. A woman, who said she didn't like the way the service was, or was not, provided, wanted her donation back. My guy asked her for her social security number. Huh? "We have to report all donations and expenditures to the Internal Revenue Service, so we'll need your social security number, that we can report that you had been given back your donation." He was suddenly talking to a hung up phone line.

Terri? Isn't she the charge nurse at the ******* Hospital ED?

Despite my age, and extensive vocabulary, all I can respond with, is: [marq=left:89350276f0] EEEWWWWWWW![/marq:89350276f0]