Best pranks

[Vorenus]

Ok if yall haven't figured it out i work in the middle of no where, I'm still in trouble for going to Walmart buying a kiddie pool and setting it up in his front yard....guess the boss didn't like the mass pool party invite I sent out.

His being my boss

LOL!

[Herbie]

Wow. I could go on for hours about some good ones, but many folks here take themselves WAY too seriously. I would hate to be accused of being "unprofessional".

Let's just say a few of my favorites involve a fake battery operated rat, a fart machine, an intercom between the cab and the patient compartment area(yes, it was a LONG time ago), the dispatcher and the radio, body bags...

Use your imagination.

[paramedicmike]

This topic is known to come up every once in a while. It always brings the same responses. The lines seem split between those who look at this professionally versus those who think that a little bit of humour on the job is ok.

The downside is that what is humour to one isn't to someone else. What's more, many of the so called jokes that have been outlined here have involved theft, assault, battery and additional potentially criminal behaviour.

If people want to joke and play pranks on one another do it off duty and away from the station. Engaging in such activity on duty or at the station just opens up a can of worms that can involve criminal and civil court proceedings. Never mind that it's just plain unprofessional and runs the risk of affecting job performance by those on duty.

[island emt]

What Mike said!

Also remember that a prank gone bad can get you fired or charged with harassment.

[spenac]

Use of any medication on another person for other than it's intended purpose and w/o doctors orders is a criminal offense. Guess what that includes the IV solutions so many like to make drip on others, the nitro which only a stupid person would use on someone w/o an IV and a HX, the lasix that can cause cardiac issues besides the dehydration, and also the fact that many people have allergies known and perhaps even unknown to themselves that you do not know about. Yes that KY can trigger allergic reactions in some people so that so called harmless lubing the door handle can be dangerous immediately, hell could cause a wreck if they do still attempt to drive away. The list of risks far outweighs the limited fun enjoyed. If you want to play games at work bring monopoly or cards. Or download game apps on your phone and play games with people that want to play a game.

[HERBIE1]

All I have to say is that I thank gawd I work in a place where folks have a sense of humor. Do these pranks happen every day, 24/7? Of course not. Are they such that they are criminal or potentially harmful? No. Worry about a KY allergy because a door handle was lubed? REALLY?

If it weren't for the occasional gag- usually when things are at their worst to lighten the mood- we would all end up in a nuthouse. (Oops- that term was probably unprofessional, too.)

Doing 25-30 runs a day, if you cannot take a couple minutes to have some fun, you will end up in an early grave. This is about a little harmless fun between coworkers during downtime- nothing more. How does that make you "unprofessional" or diminish what you do when the bells go off?

Lighten up, folks- you'll live longer. Some folks are just wound WAY too tight.

[Richard B the EMT]

Capt. K, we have had the reports of Lasix in beverages before. It is an assault, and I hope you went for prosecution on your assailant. It is more legal than a blanket party, anyway.

As for Armor-All on the seats, thank goodness for me insisting on using the seat belts, then spilling cola for temporary stickiness until we could get back to the base to clean all the seats properly.

[Just Plain Ruff]

Richard, that ship was boarded and all actions that could have been taken were taken.

[CPhT]

I think there's a rather thick line between harmless pranks and outright cruelty/ criminality. In my mind, a prank is something that causes temporary embarrassment for one/ a few people, without causing any permanent danger to person, place, or job. To me, that means NOT using medication (while funny, it is a risk to the person, and to the job), NOT using anything that can't be cleaned up in minutes, and NOT "airing out laundry" to the public. If a prank is done among coworkers, that's where it stays.

In this age of litigious citizens and social media, the last thing that a company needs is to have video of a prank gone viral on youtube. For reference, look at the "shooting" at the fire house from last year. Look at all of the videos of soldier in Iraq/ Afghanistan doing "MRE bombs" to each other. That kind of publicity makes those involved (and worse, those who aren't involved) look bad.

Now... sending a newbie around the station to ask supervisors where we keep the extra oxygen to put in the tanks? Funny. Telling them to ask the station mechanic if you can borrow a left-handed screwdriver, for loosening things? Still funny. Having them ask the HR department for the ID-10-T form? Hilarious. Having them do something that endangers their safety or their job? Not funny.

[paramedicmike]

Herbie, if you're doing 25-30 runs a day then the couple minutes taken to prank a coworker could probably be better spent catching up on paperwork, grabbing some food or restocking the ambulance. I worked at a squad that routinely ran that many calls for one ambulance over a 24 hour shift. There wasn't time for pranking a coworker. Any pranks attempted wound up delaying a response.

To me, that means NOT using medication (while funny, it is a risk to the person, and to the job)...

Could you please describe a scenario where stealing meds and using them on your coworker as a practical joke would be funny?

Now... sending a newbie around the station to ask supervisors where we keep the extra oxygen to put in the tanks? Funny. Telling them to ask the station mechanic if you can borrow a left-handed screwdriver, for loosening things? Still funny. Having them ask the HR department for the ID-10-T form? Hilarious. Having them do something that endangers their safety or their job? Not funny.

So, what you're saying, is that it's ok to take advantage of someone's ignorance, or worse, exploit that ignorance in an effort to make fun of them? Do you routinely enjoy making people feel stupid? Because what I read in your statements here is that you think it's funny to get people to do something that impossible and publicly humiliating when they don't know any better and then laugh at them for it afterwards.

Off duty and away from the station is one thing. On duty and at the station, or out and about while on duty is something else entirely. That's why it's called work.