kencayton

Why are the heavy ones always at the top..

To begin with I'd like to apologize about my comment regarding nationalism, it wasn't meant to be seen in that light and it was poorly phrased. I agree that there is nothing wrong with nationalism at all, and to be honest its heartening to see you two gentlemen with so much passion and care for your country. In the UK, I don't really have that sense of pride regarding my country, quite possibly as a direct result of all this multi-cultural sentiment.

In regards to this matter I've been having a think, and I'm not sure where the heart of the issue is to be honest. On one hand I feel everyone has genuine concerns with the hygiene issue, as I do, which I quite agree is something that needs to be fixed sooner rather than later as Dustdevil has said. However on the other hand I'm not sure wether some of this is rooted in a nationalist point of view. The issue of the veil and covering up of extremities is discussed almost every time it comes on the telly at work, and the general voicing of opinion is that people should leave their religion at the door. The force of that opinion seems to differ with the generations. In general I find my generation don't get as heated when talking about it, but people who have maybe 20 years on me get very, um, passionate. Also if anybody wants wood for the fire have a look at what the Archbishop of Canterbury has been saying... :evil: :shock:

Right. This seems to have strayed a bit from topic.. In regards to what I've seen in UK hospitals: 1. Muslim women that wear the veil & practice are a very small minority. 2. Instead of focusing on this tiny minority of people, it would be nice to see the rest of the medical profession wash their hands as often as they should, be they Christian, Jew, Hindu or whatever. Trying to scapegoat a small group of people in a large profession regarding a problem that effects everyone smacks of lunacy. I think this can apply to everyone.

Hi Fluffpaw how's it going? Before I start I'm working in London so things obviously aren't the same, but I think I have some empathy. I finished school at 18, and went on to apply to Uni to do a Paramedic science degree. I got straight rejections from several Unis (almost certainly due to my age/lack of experience) until one decided to take me on (idiots :roll: ). The selection process involved interviews by both the sponsoring service & academic institution. I'm now in year 2 of a 3 year course, currently working 2 weeks on & 2 weeks studying. Thinking back now I probably should have waited and not let the enthusiasm get to me, you never seem to realise how crucial the "life experience" thing is until you do the job for real. However on the other hand, I can't think of a better way to get life experience than doing this job, so its a bit of a catch 22 situation. When I do work people are shocked when I tell them I'm only 20, and to be honest it scares me to think I'll be a Paramedic at 21. emt019's post is excellent advice mate, so I'll chip in too with advice along a similar vein (having been in the same situation): Don't be afraid to wait a bit before going head long into the mad house known as pre-hospital care.. Sorry if any of this seems patronising, good luck with whatever you decide to do 8)

Over our way "across the pond", I think ours is "Zebra Zebra", said after hitting the big red emergency button. Although we don't have portable radios, only the one in the cab, which is a pain. To be honest though nine times out of ten most people just say "urgent police required" or something similar if its dangerous. It's interesting reading how you guys deal with RT procedure, ours is pretty informal, none of these 10 codes or such like. I've heard that in the future we're supposed to be getting the digital system with the emergency button (as mentioned above) which clears the channel for 15-30 seconds so you can say your piece, but it'll come when it comes. As for the response you get once you've made the call it depends what time of day it is :roll: Sometimes you can get every crew & FRU who are free in the area along with the police and fire brigade, or if its a Friday night you might be lucky to get a single policeman.