When to cut

[Crazyemt4life]

When do you cut clothing off and when do you try to save the clothing? Does anyone worry about cutting clothing off thinking this may be someones only jacket or there favorite shirt? Do you not worry about it and just do your job and what's best for the patient? I heard it's pointless to cut jackets off even if there really hard to get off.

[EMTDenny]

I haven't had much experience when it comes down to cutting. I do know when it's time to cut, CUT THE DAMN THING OFF. If it's in the way cut it off. It should not matter if its "My favorite shirt and color". Plus it's fun.

[mobey]

Shirley you can't be serious?

Welcome to the site.

Thank you for the punctuation, spelling, and grammar!

[DFIB]

I do consider these things and try not to cut clothes off if I can get a visual without it. If the patient is politraumatized I check them out and the clothes have to do.

I had a state trooper tell me once that if we ever had to work on him we could cut everything off but his boots that he purchased himself.

If they have a broken arm I usually leave the pants alone.

Edited February 29, 2012 by DFIB

[JakeEMTP]

Saving clothing is not a consideration when I need to assess for injuries regarding the trauma patient. It's true when you have a "true" trauma patient that you can not assess with clothing on. If they are unresponsive they cannot tell you where it hurts or where the injuries may be. We had a patient last shift who was involved in an MVC/rollover with a head wound, combative, with copious amounts of bleeding. We placed the pt. in the ambulance and removed the clothing. Upon further assessment, we found a closed tibia fx, ankle fx and abdominal evisceration. W/o removing clothing we wouldn't have found these injuries and trated them appropriately.

I don't understand why removing a pt.'s jacket is pointless? How do you get a B/P? Assess lung sounds etc?

[EMTDenny]

I don't understand why removing a pt.'s jacket is pointless? How do you get a B/P? Assess lung sounds etc?

I was going to say that next.

I was told, if I have to cut the PT sweater to get a good B/P, do it.

I sometime see people take B/P with the sweater and jacket on.....

I mean seriously B/P is never accurate if it's not on the PT arm properly.

[b.anderson]

I'd ask myself, "Will this article of clothing prevent me from assessing this pt?" and "Will this article of clothing prevent me from rendering proper care and treatment?" If the answer is yes to either of those, then the clothing in question should come off.

[Chief1C]

If I can take it off, before laying the patient down; or immobilizing.. without causing pain or movement when movement is bad.. I take it off. If they says it's their only one, I tell them to send us a bill, and we'll pay for it. And we WILL pay for it. It's not fun to strip someone nude, it makes them feel vulnerable, stressed and insecure. A comfortable patient, you will be able to see, by their vitals unless they're truly sick. Those are the patients that don't care. Sometimes, it just has to happen. You don't know what's behind the door, unless you open it. Not just for traumas either.

Shirley you can't be serious?

Don't call me Shirley, Roger. Over.

[Just Plain Ruff]

I once cut a Sturgis(sic) shirt off a biker who fubar'd himself on a wreck. He came back 3 months later wanting his shirt back.

We told him that we kept it just in case he came back.

He wasn't happy that we cut it off but we didn't cut through the design but up the seams.

I also once cut through a gangsters shirt and again didn't go through his colors. He didn't come back for his shirt but his buddies did, they wanted to bury him in that shirt.

It's all in respect.

Don't cut through the bullet hole or knife hole.

Plus do you know how much movement it causes to remove someone's shirt, coat and sweater in the ER if we don't do it on scene? Think of it this way. You have the patient not on a back board but on the ground many times. you are able to cut off the clothes and them put them on the board. Why not cut off the clothes, remove them and then put the patient on the board. Once they get to the ER they don't require several people to remove the clothing by pulling and tugging the clothes out from the patient and the board. With limited resources in the ER it can manipulate and jostle the patient. I know that there are also limited resources in the field but removing the clothing in the field makes the ED work easier. Just food for thought.

[Chief1C]

Ah shit. Lost the content.. We're having a snowy-ice storm, and there seems to be a delay between lights out and generator take over. Anyhoo.. Nawt directing this at Ruffticles. The noob with the eager shears. Cut with a purpose.

If you cut some old lady's coat off to take a BP, because she has leg pain, and is stable.. You have no business in the back of an ambulance. I've lobbed clothing off patients for various reasons, unrelated to trauma. Unresponsive diabetics, profusely diaphoretic. What do wet patients do? Cool off quickly. The best and only way to warm with my new, favorite tool, the Ready Heat; is if they're pretty damn near naked. But stewing in wet clothing won't help. But if the patient was alert, I'd pull the clothing off. Again.. Nawt directed at Ruffticles. My auto spell check isn't working, so forgive any accident mistakes. Some things I spelled wrong on purpose.

And I'm tired. So you'll have to throw me a bone today.