CodeBlueEMT

Good advice, comments, and observations. A deceased patient with horrific injuries is easy for me to deal with. They're dead. A patient with horrific injuries still maintaining homeostasis can rattle the best of us. Shayne

How could I live with myself if I developed six pack abs? Shayne

The fire department responsible for extrication is untrained? That's scary. I'd hate to be on a scene where a patient couldn't be extricated because of incompetence. Assuming your EMS agency doesn't do vehicle extrications, I suggest someone in your department have a meeting with your local emergency management folks and get this issue resolved ASAP. Hopefully, nobody will die while this inexcusable mess is corrected. Without knowing the dynamics of your agency, it's hard to comment on other options. My opinion is, if you're first on scene, be competent and capable of all aspects rescue. I can't imagine what it's like to stand around and wait for someone else to show up. Meanwhile, there's a patient(s) in trouble. Good luck. Shayne

Rural EMS. My training in rescue has been an asset. There is always room for specialized training in EMS. Take advantage of every opportunity to further your education. My experience in the fire service and EMS has served me well. Enjoy the upcoming training. Shayne

I don't think a drinking age matters whether it's 18 or 21. When I was a teenager it was 18 for beer and 21 for liquor. I certainly didn't wait until I was 18 to hit the bars. It was easy to buy alcohol at 16. In those days, we drank and drove. Never thought anything of it. There was no such thing as a designated driver. The least drunk person drove, sometimes. Nowadays, things are different. I doubt many kids wait until they're 21 to drink. There's more being done to curb drinking and driving (which is a good thing) and being responsible. People do have designated drivers. DUI/DWI laws are tougher and I think overall a good deterrent. We're always going to have the habitual drunk drivers on the roads. Teens are going to continue making bad choices. Some will drink and drive. Same as adults. I don't see any benefit lowering the drinking age. Kids are already drinking well before they're 18 and/or 21. Shayne

I display a flag at home. I don't take it in at night. So sue me. Is the new addition to your station finished? If so, I don't understand the big deal about remounting a light for the flag. Y'all should be flying the flag. There are 2 choices: 1. Fly 24/7 without the light. 2. Take the flag down until you get a light. Watch out for those VFW types, they might come over there and go Rambo on y'all. Shayne

The squmper isn't a useless piece of apparatus. I read all the negative comments and chose to disagree with the general consensus. It's not for me to second-guess what a department purchases to serve their needs. Obviously, they decided on these squmpers. Why do you care what a department in Ohio spent on a truck? It's the stretcher, isn't it? You can't get over the fact a fire truck has a stretcher onboard. Shayne

Let's see if I'm getting the 4-1-1 on this squmper business. Sycamore Township EMS and Fire has Class 2 ISO rating. Not too bad. Chief Jetter has a PhD. Why would he buy a fire truck with a stretcher inside? According to folks around here, that's retarded. I apologize to any actual retards. Most of the opinions expressed are incorrect. It's a real fire truck. 750 gallon water tank. 2,000 gpm pump. I bet it has some hose somewhere. Why the stretcher? It can't be an ambulance. I doubt many patients have been transported in these trucks. Uses for the stretcher are stated in my previous post. It's not a far fetched vehicle. Definitions of ambulance on the Web: wagon or boxcar used to transport wounded or ill soldiers from the field www.nps.gov/vick/eduguide/chp_7/cwterms.htm vehicle, but also boat or aircraft, equipped for carrying sick and wounded persons, abbreviation: AMB home.att.net/~steinert/united_states_army_general_medic2.htm means a ground or air vehicle which is licensed as required by law, as an Ambulance, and is equipped to transport sick or injured persons. www.culins.com/glossary.htm Vehicle (but also Boat or Aircraft) used for the conveyance of the sick and wounded, abbreviation Amb users.skynet.be/jeeper/Terms%20A.html a vehicle that takes people to and from hospitals wordnet.princeton.edu/perl/webwn An ambulance is a vehicle designated for the transport of sick or injured people. The first ambulances called by that name were horse ambulances used in the American Civil War. The first practical ambulances were created by Dominique Jean Larrey, a French surgeon (1766-1842), for use in the Napoleonic Wars. Modern-day ambulances are typically large automobiles on a van or light truck chassis. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ambulance Contempt prior to investigation is ignorance. Shayne

LOL. That 5" external spring punch looks like something out of the S&M ideas book... not that there's anything wrong with that. Never used my Smith and Wesson's window punch in the field. It busted plenty in the junkyard, first time, every time. Shayne

Personally, I hope she can stay. Everybody else does. The article cleared up a misconception I had. I thought marrying a US citizen, made you a US citizen. Especially since this guy is in the Army. Thought you still needed to get permission from Uncle Sam to marry. "Subject to deportation"? That sounds like, "You may have already won 200 million dollars". Hope it works out and her husband is found. Shayne

Imagine the wise old sages of EMT City thinking something is dumb. We use a 1998 Freighliner FL60 as a squad truck. Duke Life Flight sold it to us real cheap. Yes, it was a critical care transport vehicle. No, we don't transport patients. The truck is used as a first responder unit. It carries all of our medical gear, plus there's plenty of storage for extrication equipment. We kept the stretcher. Our EMS crews don't always get to our area promptly. My guess is they're too busy making smarta$$ comments on EMT City. Ain't it the dumbest thing you ever heard? A warm, dry place for the patient to wait for transport? It's also a nice place to rehab, especially if someone has a problem on a fire scene. Who gives a rat's a$$ about the patient? We're too busy trying to make EMS a "worthy" profession. Only thing missing here is a bitch slap emoticon. Shayne

I think there are already enough quality boots that meet the standards listed. Maybe Stryker can come up with something that's more economical than Haix boots. I can't afford almost $200 for boots. I don't think Stryker makes anything inexpensive. I would like to try some composite toe boots. The steel toes give me calluses on the inside of my big toes. FYI, turnout and bunker gear are the same thing. We don't require steel toe shoes/boots. We provide steel toe boots/shoes once a year at no cost. If you don't want to wear steel toes, then you have to pay for your own. Shayne

I had an inguinal hernia repaired back in 1990. Other than hurting like hell the first 3 days, I haven't had any problems since my surgery. Let yourself heal up completely. Whatever the doc recommends, follow it. Now that I'm 46 years old, my back can't keep up with the rest of me. Take care. Shayne

Next time you walk by a fire truck, f-e-e-l the hose. Why anyone would want pants made from fire hose is beyond me. Can you say "chafe"? Shayne

Here's my take. Turn on pager, open beer...beep beep beep !!! Shayne

Risk Takers equal a "freelancer" in my book. Have no use or need for folks like that. Too dangerous. Shayne

In North Carolina, this is what you're looking at to become a Paramedic: How to become an EMT… If interested in a career in Emergency Medical Services (EMS), you first need to take an Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) class. Most local community colleges offer EMT courses through their adult continuing education department. The average EMT class includes 130 hours didactic (classroom) material and 20 hours clinical. After successful completion of an EMT class, you are eligible to take the state administered exam for certification. Once certified, you may choose to move up through the EMT certification levels. The different certification levels and their training requirements are as follows. EMT-Intermediate: 225 hours didactic, 75 hours hospital clinical, 100 hours field clinical. Successful completion of a course allows you to take the state exam for certification. EMT-Paramedic: 400 hours didactic, 250 hours hospital clinical, 350 hours field clinical. Successful completion of a course allows you to take the state exam for certification. The classes are usually taught through community colleges. If North Carolina accepts your EMT-B certification, you can get into an intermediate class somewhere. Usually, you have to be affiliated with an EMS provider to even take the intermediate class. The other option is to enroll into a Paramedic program. It's typically a full time 2 year program. If you need any additional information, let me know. Shayne

There are courses designed to teach "protective interventions". These "theraputic interventions" do not involve physically striking a patient or causing pain from pressure points. It focuses on blocks, theraputic holds, and releases. This type of training is usually taught in psych hospitals. It is very effective in that setting. Rarely have I had to use this type of training. I agree with some of the earlier comments. Use your brain. Don't get yourself into sticky situations. The most valuable technique I've learned, is how to de-esculate a situation. If a patient or bystander were to attack me, I'd use whatever means available to protect myself. Shayne

I'd tell Doc to get his stuff out, then find a safe place to park. Shayne

This is an easy call, just blame all the lawyers. Shayne

Brock, thanks for posting. Good luck to you and Rusty. Shayne

Scene safety on 10-50 calls shouldn't be difficult. Maybe I'm lucky. Our department responds to 10-50's with a set minimum of apparatus. An engine and our squad truck. The squad truck is a Freightliner FL60. The engine is used to block traffic if necessary. The squad truck can be positioned within the safe zone the engine provides. Other vehicles can be utilized above and below the scene to control traffic without shutting down the road. If possible, we will leave one lane open for traffic. If not, we'll shut it down. Our EMS crews are left room within the safe zone to park and takeover patient care. When law enforcement arrives, they can take over traffic control. Most of the time they let us handle it. We haven't had any vehicles or personnel hit. The possibility is always there. Thankfully, law enforcement works well with our depatment.

Claims made on your insurance are different from points on your driving record. If you weren't issued a citation, there won't be anything on your driving record. If you file a claim, then it's possible (more like probable) your rates will be increased. Most employers want a copy of your driving record, criminal history, drug screen, etc. Never heard anyone ask about insurance claims. Don't offer up any information you're not asked to. Shayne

ReD, sometimes you can find a good deal on eBay. This site has decent prices for new stuff. http://www.strobesnmore.com/ I have corner stobes (front and rear) and a Whelen Talon dual LED dash light on my truck. At times, I respond directly to a scene. This light package is especially helpful when I use the truck to block traffic. Rarely do I use my lights. The fire department is less than a mile from my house. Shayne

Looks like the "light police" are a bit upset that someone would actually exceed what "they" deem is an excessive amount of vehicle safety equipment. Go figure. Shayne