Just started at a new service, minor gripes. Documentation.

[Bieber]

CHbare who? did he respond on this one?

Ack... sorry, Mike, I meant you!

[DwayneEMTP]

Yeah Brother, I use 'denie(s/ed)' a lot for pertinent negatives. It shows that I asked, they denied, it's been covered. And I'll visit it again as a sign instead of a symptom if necessary.

And also, I would have bit his fucking nose off and spit it back at him if he claimed that I had multiple spelling errors on a PCR in a room full of people when I knew I didn't. Ok, maybe not, but I would have handed it to the nearest literate looking person and asked them to point them out for me.

No worries Brother. You'll soon be rid of him but he'll have to live with his tiny penis forever...

[nypamedic43]

I use denies/ed all the time to cover my pertinent negatives and never had an issue. As for spelling, I had some co-workers whose spelling was so bad that a memo came out lol. Spell check is thier friend but it usually catches words that are spelled correctly, but doesnt recognize.

If the QA person has an issue with the denies/ed word then I would worry about it. Write your charts like you always have.

[Just Plain Ruff]

Yeah, write your reports like you always have. If the company you are working for has a specific format then you will need to adapt but unless they do then do not and I REPEAT do NOT DO NOT DO NOT DO NOT DO NOT adapt to(I can't recognize correctly spelled words) guys format.

If your report format has been working for you then don't change a thing.

Your FTO or trainer has his way of writing reports and you have yours. if he has a issue with how you write your reports then by all means get with your departments QI/QA people and have it out RIGHT NOW and have it out soon.

If you adapt to this guys way of writing and he's telling you that you have multiple spelling errors then you are the one who will be screwed not him when your new format get's called into court.

So you better nip that in the bud.

So if he is telling you to change your report writing to fit his style, that's a big red flag and you should take care of it quickly.

I went through 5 EMS systems with the same report format and each one the FTO tried to make me adapt to his format and each time I fought it tooth and nail because my report format was taught by a attorney who told us what report writing should look like. Each QA/QI team at the services in question approved my format.

So you better cut that off at the pass before it gets out of hand. Unless it's not an issue.

Edited May 29, 2012 by Captain ToHellWithItAll

[Eydawn]

Is that all you're getting ground on? Are you being allowed to practice appropriately? If that's all that is happening, let it roll off you like water offa the proverbial duck... and make a mental note that this particular coworker is a prick.

It's not bad to make conscious, subjective assessments of people. It's just... "information" that you file away in your head that you can refer to later in future interactions...

However, if he is saying things are misspelled, and something like this happens again, DO make him point out the "errors" specifically in front of others. If he won't, call him on it, in front of the others. My guess is that he saw you wrote an excellent trip sheet, realized you weren't someone he could mold, and got nervous that folks wouldn't think he was the "good" paramedic anymore...

Wendy

CO EMT-B

[Aprz]

I think sometimes people do inappropriately use the word "denies" like "denies having a broken finger" I think would be inappropriate. I would say that it should only be used on subjective things like feelings, and also objective things that you could not check e.g. "The patient is complaining of abdominal pain, denies having blood in his stool" sorta deal.

For some reason, I find a lot of people who are in charge of training don't really know a whole lot. I volunteer at concerts as an EMT occasionally, and I was put with one EMT who was in charge of my group and one CPR-trained person (who also had ECSI First Responder training, but it's useless in the area). I decided that I wanted us to go over box strapping (we don't use spider straps in the area) so if we have to do it that we'll be in synced with each other. He told me "I don't know how to box strap". I said "No problem! I'll show you how." I wanted to just show our group, but he insisted that everyone volunteering at the concert learned it too. As I start demonstrating it, he all of the sudden started narrating what I was I doing and criticizing me, and then he wanted to do it with me, he started messing up, and he started telling people the wrong things. 10 minutes ago you told me you didn't know how to box strap. Now you are criticizing me and telling everyone else how to do it. I can only imagine this guy doing the same.

Edited May 31, 2012 by Aprz

[ERDoc]

I wouldn't sweat the deny/denied/denies thing. According to Merriam-Webster online, the 3rd defintion of deny is, "to give a negative answer to." Sounds to me like you are using it correctly. You could even say that the pt denies having a broken finger, if that is what he said. It doen't make it true, it just means that the pt denies it.

[Aprz]

True that, lol, if he denied it, he denied it. I guess at that point I would say it's odd, and I think it wouldn't be useful if the patient hurt his finger, you asked him "do you think you broke it?", he replied "nope", and you wrote "patient denied breaking his finger", lol.

[emtdennis]

I have no problem using the word "denied". In the simplest explanation, it shows that you did question particular concerns that you had such as history or present problem.

With the hundreds of patients you see, and one gets called into court, you don't want to have to worry "did I ask about......". You know you did and the patient "denied" it. Ma'am is there any chance you are pregnant? No sir I am not, I'm sure it is just my stomach acting up! Two years later you are called into court because of your manner of care for a person who turned out to be pregnant.

Just a fleeting thought, or I am just bit by the litigious society we have here in the states..

[Bieber]

Mike, would you mind sending me an example of one of your PCR's? I really want to see your format now.