Informed field guide

[Dustdevil]

That makes sense. Knowledge and skills both deteriorate if you don't get enough exposure and practice, so I can see where you might be in more of a need for such a thing than a full-timer. But what is your level of practice? I mean, if you are practising at the level of an American EMT, then there really isn't much to remember or forget. If, however, you are practising at an advanced level, administering drugs and fluids, then I can see the need.

[mcmikeguy]

I usually use mine to find medicines I am not familiar with but I have used it occasionally on runs help me remember a point or two. I don’t regularly use all my skills. The longer I do this less reminding I need. Crutch is an awful harsh way of saying: putting your ego aside for accuracy. I participate in CE and audits, I ask questions, and bone up on topics during down time. I do, however, think it arrogant and foolish to expect I will remember everything all the time. I’m a not FDNY medic who sees everything there is to see twice a week, so at 3am I might find something obscure, just plain uncommon, or maybe I can’t recite all the H’s & T’s in the asystole algorithm at the moment. I have been around for about 8 years (medic about 3yrs) and have seen every imaginable position a car can be in but I don’t hang a drip more than once a year so I might double check my work. When I have down time and nothing to read, I have a book it my pocket. Finally, if you are a lousy medic there is no field guide in world that will help that. You have to decent to get use out of the book, and you have to be smart enough to know when you’re beat and not at 100%.

[brentoli]

I see nothing wrong in having a guide with you somewhere in the truck.

How many OB calls do you go on in a year? Wouldn't it be nice to have something when you get dispatched on a maternity, to just look over and refresh your memory. There is lots to learn and know in EMS. You learn by repeating it over and over the right way. My service doesn't run OB calls very often at all. So yes, its a weak spot of mine. I could sit and study it once a week or something, but with out the practice will I retain it all?

Use the field guide as your pre-flight checklist.

[scparamedic98]

I use mine field guide for spelling, there is a list of commonly misspelled words in the back of the one I use. There are some words that just don't look right no matter how I spell it and I will check my spelling on them. Besides some rare meds, that's what I use mine for. Being in the military right out of high school/ college and reading message traffic in the early 90's killed my spelling ability and it still sucks. Also another reason I use firefox browser, built in spell checker without having to hit the spell check button.

[spenac]

How many OB calls do you go on in a year? .

Over 100 active labor a year.

[brentoli]

Over 100 active labor a year.

We've also see the kind of people that come from rural TX....

You're not near Waco are you?

[brentoli]

Question....

I am looking at the website for this company...

Which one are you all using? I see several diffrent ALS guides.

EDIT:

For some reason it shows them all twice, so I only see 2 ALS guides... The "ALS GUIDE" and the "Emergency & Critical Care Pocket Guide"

[mrmeaner]

The emergency and critical care version is the one I use. Just realized it's a couple years old though.