What is a code sucess outcome?????????

[BushyFromOz]

A save is someone who had an arrest and survived to discharge. My opinion of a save is one who left the hospital with minimal function loss. Someone who leaves the hospital a Ventillator dependent person or someone with significant loss of function and a large decrease in Activities of daily living I don't classify as a save. Did we do them any good?

Spot on mate! =D> :D/ :thumbleft: :thumbright:

[Just Plain Ruff]

And did we really save them? I ask just what the heck did we SAVE them from?

I've always thought of death as something we all do. It's really the only thing we all get to do. It used to be death and taxes but some of us don't pay taxes so all we are left with is death.

I have been comfortable with my impending death, may it be tomorrow, next week or in 40 years but in the end I'm fully prepared to go and be with my maker.

I don't want to be saved if after working in this line of work, I've seen what some of my end results are. Up till about 6 years ago I transported on a routine basis what the end result of one of my "heroic" efforts was. We transported a ventillator dependent 28 year old who I "saved" from a trauma code. It did him no good to be saved.

I often wonder what we are saving these people from.

My family knows my wishes and they have said they will abide by them and if I ever code they say they will not resuscitate me but it might be different when it happens.

I have a living will that is very very specific to a good many things. I've taken my EMS Experience and put it in the living will.

I just wish everyone was as prepared.

I've decided that this is my Mantra from here on out

Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved

body. But rather to skid in sideways, chocolate in hand, body thoroughly

used up, totally worn out and screaming "WOO-HOO what a ride!"

[BushyFromOz]

Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved

body. But rather to skid in sideways, chocolate in hand, body thoroughly

used up, totally worn out and screaming "WOO-HOO what a ride!"

Thats top notch mate!

[Just Plain Ruff]

Yeah that's my new mantra but our signature block is not long enough to include it here. So I'll just continue to cut and paste it.

as a matter of fact I've got a chocolate bar in my hand now.

[whit72]

Ruff wrote:

Someone who leaves the hospital a Ventillator dependent person or someone with significant loss of function and a large decrease in Activities of daily living I don't classify as a save. Did we do them any good?

To me quality of life is more important than quantity.

Is that always the case? Some people may not feel that way. They might prefer significant loss of function or decrease in activities to the alternative.

Did we do them any good? Maybe not. It isn't at our discretion.

Ruff wrote:

Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved

body. But rather to skid in sideways, chocolate in hand, body thoroughly

used up, totally worn out and screaming "WOO-HOO what a ride!"

I just have one suggestion. I would like to have a Manhattan in my hand as opposed to the chocolate.

Will that be a problem?

[whit72]

Wrong thread

[Just Plain Ruff]

Ok for my mantra - you can all use it if you feel you want to

whit wants a manhattan

I'll take either Chocolate, or Gold Haribo Gummy Bears(8 ounce bags and lots of em) or Barbeque

Who else?

[aussiephil]

Interesting question. I am not personally convinced that the extra period of time to "say goodbye" is a positive thing. I have been in that position with loved ones in the past. Once it was a good thing. Another time it was not. And really, I'm not sure that it is really any easier to deal with the loss, given that extra little bit of time. If it helps somebody, then yes, it's a good thing. But is it worth risking lives for? I don't think so.

I agree Dust, a further question, is aiming for time to say goodbye an easy way out for those who dont want to tell the family?

[akflightmedic]

I think you are spot on Aussie, I was going to post along those lines and since you mentioned it, I will expand on it.

We have so many roles to fill as prehospital care givers: we are medical providers, counselors, healthy lifestyle advocates...you name it, at some point in your career you will fill one of these roles and many more.

I think one of the areas we lack in our intial training and then for several years afterwards is sympathy/empathy.

We get so focused on what to do and how to do it, we forget the human emotion aspect of our patients and their families. Not everyone does this mind you, as some people have this gift naturally and then some have waaay too much of it. It is a struggle to find the right balance but it is possible.

Inter personal communications es muy importante in our line of work. For some people, it is too easy to snatch and go thereby avoiding all family members. Whether it be they don't know what to say or they can not handle the stress of thinking through a call and dealing with family, whatever. This is a skill that should be worked on.

It is also important to use correct terminology when breaking news as such to these family members. Words of he has passed, has moved onto a better place, he is in gods hands....are all useless. The words to use are dead or died. This brings the family into reality and allows them to accept it and start the grieving process. This may sound harsh but it is the truth. It is not harsh as long as you soften your tone. I can not demonstarte adequately by typing words, as it is a tonal thing, but you have to use common sense. Those words do not sound as harsh when presented in the right fashion.

My own personal experience, I happen to be a dead baby magnet, I have yet to decide whether this is a positive or negative thing yet, but I always seem to get the pedi codes or SIDS cases. Because of this, I am quite proficient with pedi care. I do not get intimidated by it like many EMS people who only get one a year if that. After I recieved a few in a row, I decided to bone up on all things pedi. A few years ago I did 4 drownings in one summer, two of them in one week. I also like to think I get these types of calls because I am good with family members. I can be very calm and rational and keep them completely informed while either working the family member or breaking bad news to them.

Working the kids is the easy part. The hard calls are the ones where the baby/child is obviously dead. It became that much harder after having kids of my own as you seem to relate to that parental mindset much more at that point. My most recent dead baby was in Lousiana after the storms. I was there on contract for a large EMS provider and we were called out for a pedi code. Upon arrival, a FR FF was doing CPR as I walked in. One glance and I knew it was futile. He could not accept that so he was doing all he knew how to do, which is fine however it gave the family(and there was a lot present) false hope. The child was mottled and stiff just so you understand how far gone he was. Now I show up, "the medic" in an ambulance, the hero/savior whatever and all I do is say no, stop what you are doing. I am the bad guy, the asshole because I know better than to transport a dead baby and tie up precious resources. The parents were outside, crying/shrieking, both sets of grandparents on scene, obviously just as upset. It is now my duty to go tell them it is over with. What sane person would choose to face the family and break the news rather than just load and go and let the hospital deal with it? Not many in my experience.

Got off on a little tangent there, however my point is this: from personal experience only, I believe it is better to be up front with family members, use direct words they can immediately understand/comprehend so there is NO mis communication, and do not work someone for the heck of it. When you use vague references instead of dead, iin their distraught state of mind they could interpret that as something totally different than what you meant.

One final thought for now, take a moment to sit back and recall how many lives you have touched, changed, or made better. We have such an awesome job and awesome responsibility and we tend to overlook that way too much. If you spend any amount of time in this field, you will watch lives end and you will watch lives enter this world. I consider it to be one of the best priveliges on this earth. Since it is such a privlige, it is my responsibility to ensure that I do all I can to make it the best experience possible for those involved. Yeah death sucks, but something you say or do for the family which may seem so insignificant to you at the time may be the one thing they hold onto for years to come; it may be the one thing that gets them through the hard times, you just never know.

Hugs and tears are free and I have given my fair share to men, women and children of all backgrounds.

[Michael]

will expand on it

:thumbright: