Detroit Paramedic Won't be Suspended in 'Blanket Scandal'

[paramedicmike]

Do you mean by the sarcasm that a crew shouldn't expect a truck to be left in good order from the previous shift?

No. I meant that it must be a great place to work if they're so hard up they don't have blankets, that one could expect his/her coworkers to throw him under the bus (so to speak), that one's coworkers didn't have the professional courtesy to call him on being a blanket short.

It would not have looked good either if they didn't have a blanket to give someone who needed it either because someone else failed to restock and they failed to check.

They key being they failed to check. We've all had shifts, especially when there's a big fire involved, where we get back late to find our relief standing there. We've all had shifts where we've been hammered and in the process of restocking the truck forget an item or two. It happens. And if the relieving crew fails to catch that an item is missing, like a blanket, then that's on them and it's then their fault the item is missing.

To make this a little more personal, if I check my assigned ambulance and don't ensure it's properly stocked it is *my* fault. It is not the fault of the crew I'm relieving. Do most of us make the effort to restock our ambulances appropriately? My experience says yes. Do most of us make the effort to at least inform the oncoming crew if we were short an item or two because of whatever circumstance? My experience says yes. Do we all make an occaional mistake? My experience again says yes.

This may also not be the first time this has happened and they may have gotten tired of his shit. The department may have been well within their right to discipline the guy but with the other issues, things got turned on them. There is probably still much more to this story.

This is entirely possible. No mention of prior disciplinary actions were made. It's impossible to tell.

Or it could've simply been a mistake due to a busy shift. Is the negative publicity from punishing this guy for doing the right thing in handing out a donated blanket really worth it when the department is in such shambles anyway?

Anyone who knows this reporter expects to be entertained and shouldn't bother wading through the dramatics to see what the point is.

I thought the video was embarrassing for EMS to have a Paramedic in orange pajamas with the footies in bed with a reporter lying in his bed literally curled up next to him.

The headline said "suspended" but in bed it was stated the Paramedic called in sick on the day of the interview.

Agreed.

Also, the video actually makes a case for "inventory control" of donated property intended for the patients since it shows the blankets being used as drip cloths while painting a fire truck.

http://www.firehouse...m-of-house-fire

If you want to make a public statement, be professional. Get out of bed and put on clothes that make you look like a professional. Have a union rep with you or at least your statements should be reviewed by the union rep. Reporters like LeDuff don't really care what they make you look like as long as they can get a story to support their own agenda with liberties taken with whatever facts there are.

I can't disagree with this, either.

edit:

The guy got his blanket. It is the paperwork and follow through on seeing the restocking gets done. Even though the blankets are donated, that doesn't mean they should not be treated like any other property. For those living in cold weather, a warm blanket is valued especially if homeless. The example of the drip cloths is a good one for inventory control where the homeless won't see those blankets until they fish them out of the trash. I'm sure some here may have one or two in the trunk of their cars to protect the surface from tools or have grabbed a handful when moving furniture.

So punish the guys using it as a dropcloth instead of the guy handing it out to a homeless guy. The donated blanket, by all reports so far, was used appropriately in this case. It wasn't used as a dropcloth. It was used to help keep someone warm.

While it's true we don't know the specifics behind this particular incident, and I'm certainly not taking sides one way or another simply because the medic in question behaved like a moron with the video news story and what really happened is unknown, it seems the department is at the very least a little misguided in its decision to pursue disciplinary action against this medic when the video demonstrates clear evidence that misappropriation of resources is a pretty widespread problem within the department.

[island emt]

what we do know for a fact ::: Detroit as a whole really sucks the big one.

Note to newbies don't go there looking for employment.

[eb1040]

They key being they failed to check. We've all had shifts, especially when there's a big fire involved, where we get back late to find our relief standing there. We've all had shifts where we've been hammered and in the process of restocking the truck forget an item or two. It happens. And if the relieving crew fails to catch that an item is missing, like a blanket, then that's on them and it's then their fault the item is missing.

To make this a little more personal, if I check my assigned ambulance and don't ensure it's properly stocked it is *my* fault. It is not the fault of the crew I'm relieving. Do most of us make the effort to restock our ambulances appropriately? My experience says yes. Do most of us make the effort to at least inform the oncoming crew if we were short an item or two because of whatever circumstance? My experience says yes. Do we all make an occaional mistake? My experience again says yes.

This is entirely possible. No mention of prior disciplinary actions were made. It's impossible to tell.

But, the crew did check. We use a supply form also for what was used on our shift. Apparently all was asked of him was to do the paperwork for inventory. This has been from other sources now other than LeDuff. We also don't know how many times this Paramedic go off easy from others picking up after him or how many times his supervisor reminded him before this write up.

It was also mentioned that he has an administrative hearing which includes a union rep scheduled that is unrelated to this incident.

No one said the patient did not get a blanket nor was delayed in getting a blanket. The whole issue is after the fact with replacing what your used on the ambulance. If it was a busy day you just say "sorry, forgot" and do what need to be done rather than running to a hysterical reporter for dramatics.

It is fairly known that blankets are used for other purposes such as drop cloths and those using them might even have filled out the supply sheet for that purpose even if they did not go to a patient. Still it is all part of controlling the inventory just like it was a bandage.

Detroit might suck but when you use that as an excuse to distract from your own performance, it shows poor character. It is no secret this shockjock of a reporter will take something and put his own spin on it whether right or wrong and edit for his benefit. Then, it is "he told us" which essentially brings it all back to the Paramedic who came to him for this story.

http://www.myfoxdetr...tly-false-story

There also have not been an alot of co-worker or union support on this as of this time as there have been for the other incidents in Detroit.

Friday should be interesting if this reporter rallies a demonstration at city hall over this.

Edited October 18, 2012 by eb1040

[Chief1C]

There has been just the right amount of time since this began... Friday, there will probably be thousands of boxes of blankets in this guys office. Hopefully someone shows up and write it up as a fire code violation.