Arkymedic

Part of the reason is that we ranked 50/50 in the US for healthcare and nobody real cares to fix that. Part of the reason is that we are about 10-15 years behind the curve and still carry drugs like Mannitol on our truck. Hell, my paramedic refresher application had a spot where the medical director had to sign off that I was certified in skills including MAST trousers. I haven't seen a pair on a truck in this part of AR since I graduated EMT-B in 2001. Part of it may also be the fact that some medical directors do not trust a service to perform skills or is not too impressed with what the service is doing. Most of the doctors are pissed when you bring them in anyway and as to a specific law, I need to do some research and will get back with you shortly.

If it was obvious signs (ie decapitation, shooting, pulseless, apneic, decomp, etc) you did not start working them and called the coroner. If you started working them, you had to transport and work them until it was called. In some places the fight over stopping cpr and pronouncing is one and the same. In one ALS service I worked, we were double medic and were deputy coroners so we could pronounce someone. If it all appeared natural, we filled out the coroner's office report, called the funeral home, and signed the certificate later. If it was suspicious, we called the coroner and death investigator. At another "progressive" service in another state, if the 1st responders started CPR you must continue it until asystole was confirmed then you could stop. We would confirm death and notify LEOs that would in turn call the ME. If we started to work them, then we had to continue to work them and transport. Again, I agree that dead is dead and we should not be transporting without ROSC.

That's ok but thanks Kat. I wanted to help out in Salt Lake in 2002 but they did not want anyone not in UT or with DMAT.

Oh yeah man 10.00 an hour woohoo! I'm raking in the fucking dough now! :roll: :roll: :roll:

Crotchity, In Arkansas a lot of the county coroners refuse to sign EMS off as Deputy Coroners so most counties here do not have death in the field protocols and for the record I agree with absolutely everything you said and questioned it frequently.

Kat I seen that but I wasn't sure how the EMS system up there is and how much involvement they were going to play. I did not know if there was any restrictions on providing aid in Canada without being licensed there.

same here Doug. The greatness of rural EMS.

I have had a code that took us 55 minutes to get there running L/S at 0300 and then we had to transport back to the hospital due to no death in the field protocol being approved and the single first responder not being able to ride .

Michael, I lived in Alaska for a few years and many of the wolves, bear, moose, wolverines I seen and were close to would not be affected by merely a flashlight. I could be wrong though and was just trying to offer some advice as most things we buy for personal use wind up going to work when we have something better. If you want something to stop attackers buy a loud high pitched high decibel personal alarm.

I have had to run several codes by myself in the back and no protocols allowing for pronouncing in the field. One service I worked for had thumpers, but there was no training provided on them, so it took forever to set them up.

If you have a $110 + S/H and want it get it. What do you really need something like that for in EMS? I have a penlight for use and the truck has a flashlight. Why should you provide your own stuff to get torn up? If it's for off duty use a cheap LED light such as a LED maglight works just as well.

Kat I could not find if you have to be Canadian or not to help. Do you know if it is a requirement for the first aid team?

Don't hold your breath waiting for a trauma center here in Arkansas...

LMFAO

Well put Rid. I was trying to word my response so it wasn't offensive or derogitory to stretmediq or EMSA employees. I realize that I may not run as many runs as they do per shift, but I would like to think that the extra time I spend with my patients (most often more than 15 min) or on LDTs to Tulsa, OKC, and around the state helps to make me a better medic. improve and practice using my skills, and improve my rapport with patients. There are some good services outside of EMSA here in OK. As you mentioned, Muskogee EMS does have good strong guidelines and protocols for their medics. I also thank God every day that its not always a gun and knife club here, though we do run a number of weapon related calls each month.

I agree Except I dunno about the new digitals...something about velcro when you are suppose to be quiet...lol. My brother tells me every time I get to talk to him from Basara how glad he is to wear a flight suit or ghilie suit.

No they don't line up for inspection, or wear camo. Guess that wasn't the best analogy Dust. Sorry. I guess I was kinda refering more to their attitude and the attitude of the admin about the status and image of their service and people Dust. They have a structure of EMT. Intermediate, Medic, supervisors and FTOs, assistant director, and director. Their uniforms are squared away, boots shined, trucks washed and inspected, equipment maintained, etc. The things that we bitch about when we mention the lack of professionalism in our profession. Sorry for the miswording. For this part of OK professionalism is very lacking...

Dust, They have very aggressive protocols including the use of thrombolytics, their attitude and discipline is all about professionalism and about the patient. They expect their employees to do their job, know their job, and do it very well. MCEMS always has ongoing CEUs and as Rid said many have gone above the minimum requirements and received their CC as well. They are regarded as one of the better and more professional services in OK. Check out their website and just by the wording and orientation process you can see they do not want just anybody. I don't work for them but do know several that do and they are about the patient and their job. I would say more like the army because its not like the marines and the AF...come on lol. I come from a military family and definately would not say AF...unless maybe the CCs or PJs. Several have military backgrounds.

Muskogee is a pretty great service with a lot of good medics. They are very rigid and structured in their organization just like the military. You do your job and you do it right the first time. They also have a detailed orientation process and lately have been in a hiring freeze. If you want to play with Muskogee you must have your shit in order.

I-Incident C-Chief Complaint H- Hx and Allergies A- Assessment R- Rx and Rx T- Transportation Incident- How and what I was dispatched on, agencies on scene, what I found. C/C- What pt and bystanders say is going on Hx and Allergies- Med Hx and recent hx of illness or injury, allergies Assessment- head to toe physical Rx and Tx- self explainatory Transport- How pt was moved, where the pt was taken emergent or non, if condition changed enroute, arrival @ facility, how pt was moved, who took report and that care was transferred, and that pt was without further complaint or pain upon transfer of care. Name Title State EMS #

OMG LMFAO!! That made my day Scaramedic

Hey now others chimed in first reigniting the post so I just added something I seen...

That is why I require any students that ride with me to fill out all of their stuff before I sign. I too feel character is an absolutely important part of our job and one of the most lacking traits that we see too often. In my class we had some that were like that and I would ask them if they were going to cheat and lie in school, what happens when someone's life is in your hands? Something I was taught a long time ago was that you can lose everything you own and hold dear but if you maintain your integrity, you still have everything.

I think it was great that you learned from the exercise and glad you did not take the grade. We have had a few removed from programs due to academic dishonesty from turing in preceptors reports. This was fixed when we were required to write a run report on every pt during our truck internship and the preceptor had to sign off on the accuracy of every report we wrote.

Not trying to bust on you because you do seem to be smart and actually try to learn; however, is your instructor aware of your "experiment"? If not you just admitted to plagerism and unethical behavior. Just a kind of friendly reminder to be careful of your actions and words.