Trauma versus Roy and Gage

[crotchitymedic1986]

Not to be sacreligous, and I admit I am not a Trauma fan, but is it really that far off the mark than what "Emergency" was in it's day ?

1. Obviously Emergency used Gage and Dixie for their sex appeal.

2. I imagine the high-tech Emergency was ridiculed by emergency workers who were still riding in hearses without cardiac monitors and two way radios.

3. I imagine there were some mistakes in treatment on Emergency. But then again, maybe not, the treatment was the same no matter what was wrong with you -- some intracardiac epi and some D5W tko.

4. Bad acting ? you have to admit, the best actor on Emergency was Chet, everyone else was a horrible actor.

You really didnt expect a tv show to realistically portray us ? After "The Shield" and "Rescue Me", you had to see this one coming.

[NickD]

I see what you're saying and I partially agree . . .

That said, the biggest difference in the two shows I see is Johnny, Roy, and the rest of the gang seemed genuinely caring and always did the best they could. And they were no where near as angst ridden as the characters on Trauma. But some of that can be chalked up to changing times. Dixie's humongous pointy rack was there for a reason, but it still seemed in line with the morays of the day. And Blondie's behavior, in some circles, will also be acceptable, except it isn't to us. All the EMS woman posters, and many men too, are deriding the depiction of females on Trauma while no one at the time ever called Dixie slutty.

On the subject of Chet. I actually found his character a distraction on Emergency. I felt like they were going for a cross between Lumpy and Eddie, from Leave it to Beaver, and they hit neither.

The bottom line difference, and again only to us, is Emergency was a positive look at EMS (medical inaccuracies aside) while Trauma is a negative look at EMS and the medical inaccuracies just seem like a further slap in the face. And while Johnny and Roy weren't above a small giggle when they encountered something out of the ordinary (the poor schmuck trapped in his folding bed/couch comes to mind) in the serious extraordinary cases they' huddle up and calmly figure out what to do. In Trauma, and on scene, most of the characters seem to be in panic mode. I think the very first lesson I learned in the field, and just from watching other providers, is no matter the gravity of the situation just act like you've been there before.

But the real truth of the difference between the shows is today Randolph Mantooth can sit behind a folding table at an EMS convention and be adored. If Wabbit tried the same thing, today or twenty years from today, I'd fear for his safety . . .

[Richard B the EMT]

Dixie McCall, RN, was never in conversations indicating either if, or who, she was sleeping with, on staff at Ramparts General, or at LACoFD Station 51. "Nancy" on the other hand, doesn't even seem to be upset that her colleagues are making cash bets as to when she'll sleep with the newbie EMT. I emphasize, WHEN, not IF!

"Chet" was intended as a part time comic relief, and when called on, always came through in a good "Fire Fighter assisting Paramedics" way. I have not yet decided if he has a counterpart on "Trauma".

Chet's only brush with pushing his own fame came when he attempted to photograph the Station 51 crew doing a rescue, but got beat out by another Fire Fighter from another station, who photographed the Station 51 crew doing a rescue, INCLUDING Chet in the picture!

[Chief1C]

I think Dixie was diddling Bracket.

[crotchitymedic1986]

Dixie was as sexy as 70's television would allow.

[Richard B the EMT]

Dixie was as sexy as 70's television would allow.

Wait one!

Have you forgotten the show "Police Woman", starring Angie Dickinson as Sgt. Suzanne "Pepper" Anderson? While not commenting on her acting, she was definitely more sexy than Julie London's Dixie McCall. This in no way says Dixie was a slouch in the "sexy" department, she held her own![url=http://www.imdb.com/character/ch0038620/]

http://www.imdb.com/media/rm3127744512/tt0071034

[CBEMT]

I think Dixie was diddling Bracket.

In the pilot, I think she was. Once the series got picked up they re-wrote them as amicable exes, or something like that.

[emtannie]

For clarification – Dixie and Dr Early were married – not on the show, but in real life.

Emergency was a completely different genre than Trauma. Emergency was a public service announcement worked into a 1 hour television show. Trauma is just nighttime soap opera with no basis in reality.

Emergency touched on topics of “drinking and driving is bad,” “drugs are bad,” and the politics of hospital and EMS/Fire. Emergency was based a lot on James O Page, one of the pioneers of EMS, and who the Johnny Gage character was supposedly patterned after. It was also based on actual events of the time, including touching how medics were trained, the legislation in California which allowed the paramedic program to be developed and implemented, and the hurdles they faced.

In comparison, Emergency and Trauma are two completely different creatures.

[NickD]

As much as I've always liked Jack Webb it is he, more than anyone else, that was the causation of fire based EMS.

In episode one of Emergency! Johnny's Chief tells him, "I'm supposed to encourage all our young rescue men to attend the next class for new paramedics." It would be interesting to know what the nexus of that line was? There is nothing in the original Wedworth-Townsend Paramedic Act that mentions the fire department. In fact the act supposes EMS would be purely hospital based. So either someone in the fire department got to Jack Webb or he came up with the notion on his own. Johnny's reply? "Well sir, I guess I'm just too stupid to take advantage of such an opportunity." But the Captain continues, "Yes, it's work, and no raise in pay, but it just might be worthwhile." And here's where Johnny delivered his most famous line, "That would be all right if I wanted to be an ambulance attendant, but I don't. Chief, I'm a rescue man, I trained to be a rescue man and I like being a rescue man, why should I strive for improvements?"

Wedworth-Townsend Paramedic Act

An act to add Article 3 (commencing with Section 1480) to Chapter 2.5, Division 2 of the Health and Safety Code, relating to paramedics, and declaring the urgency, to take effect immediately.

[Approved by Governor July 14, 1970. Filed with Secretary of State July 14, 1970.]

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

Section 1, Article 3 (commencing with Section 1480) is added to Chapter 2.5, Division 2 of the Health and Safety Code, to read:

Article 3. Mobile Intensive Care Paramedics

1480. Any hospital operated by, or contracting with, a county with a population of over 6,000,000 may conduct a pilot program utilizing mobile intensive care paramedics for the delivery of emergency medical care to the sick and injured at the scene of an emergency, and during transport to a hospital, while in the hospital emergency department, and until care responsibility is assumed by the regular hospital staff.

1481. (a) As used in this article "mobile intensive care paramedics" means personnel who have been specially trained in emergency cardiac and noncardiac care in a training program certified by the county health officer or the director of hospitals designated by the board of supervisors and who are certified by the officer as qualified to render the services enumerated in this article.

As used in this article "mobile intensive care nurse" means a registered nurse who has been certified by a county officer designated by the board of supervisors as qualified in emergency cardiac care.

1482. Notwithstanding any other provision of law mobile intensive care paramedics may do any of the following:

(1) Render rescue, first-aid and resuscitation services.

(2) During training at the hospital and while caring for patients in the hospital administer parenteral medications under the direct supervision of a registered nurse.

(3) Perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation and defibrillation in a pulseless, nonbreathing patient.

(4) Where voice contact or a telemetered electrocardiogram is monitored by a physician or a certified mobile intensive care nurse where authorized by a physician, and direct communication is maintained, may upon order of such physician or such nurse do any of the following:

(a)Administer intravenous saline or glucose solutions.

(b)Perform gastric suction by intubation.

Administer parenteral injections of any of the following classes of drugs:

(i)Antiarrhythmic agents.

(ii)Vagolytic agents.

(iii) Chronotropic agents.

(iv) Alkalinizing agents.

(v) Alkalinizing agents.

(vi) Vasopressor agents.

1483. No physician or nurse, who in good faith gives emergency instructions to a paramedic at the scene of an emergency, shall be liable for any civil damages as a result of issuing the instructions.

1484. This article shall remain in effect only until the 91^st day after final adjournment of the 1972 Regular Session of the Legislature and shall have no force or effect after that date.

1485. This article shall be known and may be cited as the Wedworth-Townsend Paramedic Act.

Sec. 2. This act is an urgency statute necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health or safety within the meaning of Article IV of the Constitution and shall go into immediate effect. The facts constituting such necessity are: There is a critical shortage of professionally trained medical and nursing personnel for the delivery of fast, efficient emergency medical care for the sick and injured at the scene and during transport to a health care facility. Improved emergency service is required to reduce the mortality rate during the first critical minutes immediately following an accident, or the onset of a serious physical condition such as an acute myocardial infarction. Pilot project of the type provided for in this act are required in order to develop and evaluate a program for the provision of the best and most economical delivery of emergency medical care.

Emergency! premiered in 1972 the year the above act expired and at a time when another vote was needed to extend or make it permanent. Senator Alan Cranston wrote to Jack Webb after Emergency! was on the air thanking him for giving the program so much public support. But he went on to say he envisioned EMS as a way to make use of the many returning Vietnam Nam vets who had some amount of medical training. But he didn't balk about fire getting involved either.

So the interesting part is how did EMS go from what was proposed as hospital based to being fire based? Jack Webb could have scripted the show as hospital based but he didn't. But I don't think there was any ulterior motive. I simply think Jack Webb thought the show would be flashier and more exciting with fire engines in it. And his close ties with the LA police department from his earlier show Dragnet meant getting fire cooperation probably wouldn't be an issue. In fact the two stars from another Jack Webb show Adam-12 appeared in the first episode of Emergency!. And I also believe the fire department didn't see EMS as a budget builder until some years later.

So it was the power of the television more than anything else that started fire based EMS. But I can't hold it against old Jack. I mean you just gotta love a guy who can deliver a speech like this:

[Richard B the EMT]

For clarification – Dixie and Dr Early were married – not on the show, but in real life.

This is true, however, before Julie London was married to Bobby Troup (Dr Early), she was married to Jack Webb, who created "EMERGENCY!", "Dragnet", and "Adam 12", and owned the production company that created them (Mark 7 Limited).

By the way, seeing that clip from Dragnet, here's as usual deadpan Jack Webb with Johnny Carson on the Tonight Show, in an interesting exchange.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F4RIBhQIkII&feature=player_embedded