speedygodzilla

I highly doubt any of these items will ever effect my back, they all weigh very little. Small cell phone, small knife, small flash light, small ... They sure do come in handy from time to time.

Nope I don't think the job is awful, I love it. Where I live EMT and Paramedic pay is not quite as high as you originally posted but as a Paramedic it works fine for me. I guess a good transition is RN but I am not recommending a transition. There are quite a few EMS providers that seem rather burned out and at times seem to be the loud ones. There are days that are worse than others but at the end of the day go home and leave work at work when you can. The thing that works for me is keeping a positive attitude. Trust me it goes a long way.

Funny stuff but unfortunately I did the opposite of rule #5 5. The more equipment you see on a EMTs belt, the newer they are. I have added more equipment to my belt as the years go on but I think I have reach full capacity with cell phone, pager, radio, flashlight, and knife. I have to say I agree with the above edits.

I'd say go for it. I would start with the EMT-B as it is quicker to get. Than after working as an EMT-B and making sure the job is really what you want than go ahead and go for your paramedic if you want. Age is just a number, right? lol

Welcome and congrats on the new babies. Your gonna be a busy mommy.

Welcome, make your self at home and get involved. Good luck with medic class!

Seems stupid to me. Not really offensive, just stupid. The Burger King Ad

Sounds like you did fine. I see no reason for RSI or intubation with a drunk that is maintaining their airway. The antimetic would of been a good thing to add to your treatment. All and all sounds like you did great. Thanks for bringing it up and asking for our opinions. I give fluid bolus to pretty much all of my drunk patients. At least if their c/c calls for an IV. I have had nurses get rude and ask how I would like 8 glasses of water when I ask for a beer. I respond that is not my concern. Not like I am a bartender lol Please feel free to post more and welcome to the city.

Welcome, nice to have more active members!

Welcome to emtcity. One of the best tips I can give you is don't be shy here in the city. Get involved in the conversations and ask any questions you have. It never hurts to do a search first to see if it has already been discussed. None the less be sure to do your own research and use this site and the other resources to get a head start. If you don't already know your basics in A & P and medical terminology that would be a good place to start. Common meds are also important like stated above. "I have no idea why I take that."

Sounds like we agree on this being more political than about the patient. SAD but like you said politics is a deciding factor, and it appears many times THE deciding factor.

It is not about securing firefighter's role/job but taking care of our patients and offering them the best care possible.

The whole sue thing is hypothetical and even more so very unlikely to go anywhere. It is sad to think that even though someone has the training to improve a patient's outcome they are unable to due to politics. I am part of the problem? HA HA! I can tell you that having ALS first responders does work, and is beneficial to patient care. Where I work we work great together and I consider them (ALS Fire) an important part of the team. I don't have to guess what side I am on, I know, it's the patient's side. It is hindering in the growth of EMS profession to go from ALS to BLS. I am not saying BLS is not important, heck it is the backbone. How am I hindering the growth of EMS with the thought of ALS first responders being beneficial? I really hope this is not another bickering match abouts fire's role EMS. In order to be seen as a true profession we need to start being professional!

Interesting little case study. That was my initial thought on it. Giving narcan nebulize would allow a slower and more gradually onset thus preventing the all the sudden effects and the fighting patient. I have no desire to give patients narcan any route who are still maintaining airway and breathing adequately. That being said I don't see too many opportunities to give narcan nebulized but that case study in the above links brings up a good point. Nebulize should allow a more gradually onset thus preventing the sudden fighting patient. Still have to say IV would be my preferred route. But I am wondering if nebulize would be more effective than IM. And at least with nebulized you could stop administration when desired effects are reached.

Apparently I was wrong in my thought of ALS increasing CODES survival. After googling it and reading 3 different articles, apparently ALS interventions are not proven to benefit outcome. However I would like to think they are a standard and someone sue happy could go after the city/county due to the lack of care. None the less I still believe having ALS first responders (fire dept) is beneficial to our patients and community. Don't have anything to back it up other than personal experience.

Wow this makes no sense. The article didn't mention anything about AMR so I am not convinced they are even involved in this decision. It would make no sense for AMR, county, or whatever to drop ALS from their fire department response. I work in a system much like this one where the fire dept responds on our calls and is ALS and often times gets their before us. There are 10 fire stations (double the amount of ALS ambulances usually) and they receive the 911 call first. So often they get on scene first. For the most part transfer of care from fire to us goes on without any issues. Sure we are human and disagree on things from time to time but it is understood that the transporting paramedic is overall responsible for patient care once on scene, as they are the one writing the patient care report as well as transporting the patient. Usually the fire paramedic does not stay with the patient to the hospital except when the extra hands are needed for a critical patient. The biggest question I have is WHY? This sounds political. It is to bad, and someone is likely to be injured or die due to the inability of the fire department to intervene with ALS even though they have the training. The calls are rare where the few minutes the fire dept arrives first and ALS interventions will make a true difference but like the article mention CODES etc are great examples of when seconds and minutes can count. And as for the above comment of AMR sucks I gave a negative reputation due to the negative comment without need or support. We all have our opinions sometimes they arn't appropriate.

I was in math class, freshman year if I am counting back right. I remember wondering what are the WTC? And being in disbelief watching the 2nd tower get hit and both towers collapse. Along with disbeleif of the Pentagon attack and the 4th plane crash. I am sure I did not understand the gravity of everything but I still remember being in a state of disbelief. Every class that day we spent watching the news. We did not have to learn history that day as we were living it. God Bless America

Congrats and good work

What I don't get is why many are saying they would give Atropine while "setting" up pacing. For the patient in the survey sedation is contraindicated since patient is unstable. Also it takes longer to spike a bag, start an IV, push Atropine, etc than to start pacing. I have been taught not to give Atopine with 2nd Degree type two and 3rd Degree Heart Block due to increase work that it would place on the atria without helping the overall problems. In my understanding in a since Atropine increase P waves which is not going to help a 3rd degree block since the P and QRS are not married. As for the 2nd degree type two it makes more sense to possibly work but it is likely to increase number of blocks or "missed" beats.

Welcome, and don't be shy around here. Good luck with your new job.

Have to admit I didn't read the whole article but it did make me think of the possibilities. Like FireMedic65 said earlier "Do we 'need' it... no, probably not. Would it be nice? Yes it would." I agree. I could think of calls it would be nice for but they are far and few in between. I didn't see a cost but I am guessing it isn't cheap.

I was hoping to see one of those fail blog pictures with something funny. This isn't! Like the others said focus on your ABCs. Many times the questions are design to have more than one correct answer but you must determine the best possible answer. As for the NREMT review book I know Barron has great paramedic one it really help me prepare for my test. Never read the EMT one but I am sure it is great here take a look Barron's EMT Exam. As for Kansas having their own test I am 99.9% sure they don't I live in Missouri and have considered getting my Kansas license and they are a national registry state. Good Luck

Already donated. It let me set my own amount.

1. What aspects of being an EMT/Paramedic are you most passionate about? Are they the same things you THOUGHT you'd be passionate about when you started? I am most passionate about helping people many time in their worse state. These thoughts are the same for the most part since ~2 years ago as I stated my EMS career. Sometimes it is the same or even the same patient which can get to you. I know that they still called me and want my help. 2. If you changed careers- do you regret leaving your "stable" job for something more tumultuous? Was working in EMS as rewarding as you had hoped it would be? Well I never really changed career but I do find work in EMS decently rewarding. It is not the biggest $ maker but it pays the bills and people look up to you and expect your compassion and help. 3. Do a lot of people burn out? I personally have not seen too many get burned out. Mainly it comes down to attitude and keeping it positive even when you feel used, abused, and are getting the short end of the stick. If I no longer enjoy my career than I will be looking for another as you are. 4. For the married folk out there- how has working in EMS challenged or strengthened your marriage? My husband and I are not trying to have kids anytime soon, but I imagine things will still change if I'm switching into such a demanding line of work. Well I have been in EMS just as long as I have been married so we are quite use to it. One challenge it puts on us is less time together. I work nights due to seniority with the company being a tad bit low so I don't see the wife as much and she has to spend a lot of nights alone. She is a nurse so it helps with her understanding the jobs ups and downs. I don't find the career that demanding that you can't have kids however medic class would be. I would suggest if you are seriously thinking about EMS that you get your paramedic. I also work every other weekend and many holidays. 5. Am I crazy? See the above post I am not license to make this determination lol Good luck in whatever you decide. Getting your EMT-B isn't too difficult and really doesn't take long. The down side is that you don't make much $. But it is a great way to get your feet wet and see if you would like to continue and possibly further your career by considering paramedic.

I could be confused as I honestly have not kept up with all the healthcare debate. The federal government is just thinking about making insurance mandatory not telling you who you must have it with. Right? I have never had that experience with my healthcare premium being higher than my 40hours a week check it is more like another tax, maybe a little higher. That is where you the consumer look for better options. I can't talk to much because my healthcare isn't really costly for me or the insurance company. No pre-existing conditions, nonsmoker, etc.