Sleeper

As I have had a full ACL reconstuction I can speak first hand. First she needs PT direction at least from a distance. Get her looked at and a game plan in place. First and foremost she has to get her full range of motion back and stretch that new ligament, there is a time limit on this or she may never get it back. Muscle mass must be built up around the new knee to support it. Quads and hamstrings, lower leg etc.. Balance must be returned to the knee so get here a wobble board and get a PT to show here how to use it. Therabands are great for the beginning. Rehab is the key for a good outcome. With proper exercises IT should hurt and hurt lots or you are not pushing enough wimps need not apply. If it was a good surgery and she rehabbed the crap out of it at her age she should get back to 95%+ with no need for a brace in sports. It will never be 100%. Sleep

Interesting situation. I am torn on the subject for now. It has/is working in other provinces to varying degrees. Will be interesting how this changes schooling, protocols, ACoP etc.... Should be entertaining to watch how they deal with the oilpatch medicine side of the issue as well. Time will tell. Sleep

To clarify, All the N.S. Advanced Care Paramedics I referred to earlier did challenge the exam and received EMT-P status and an ACoP Registration number. As only professionals would do. Practicing without registration is criminal, unprofessional let alone risking your patients life. Sorry for the confusion. Sleep

As was mentioned Canada recently adopted military to civilian reciprosity for medics serving. Their yr of schooling and clinical work gives them a PCP AKA EMT-A ticket immediately country wide. The medics faught long and hard for this and the military agreed for a reason. - It attracts more to that military trade. - Retention rate is higher. Canada pays its soldiers well. - Personnel know they can go to civilian work with some transition easily. When a military medic gets their civi ticket (while serving they are encouraged) they must meet a certain number of hours on civi bus to maintain that civilian qual. This allows them to experience the civi side of medicine and it helps augment local EMT shortages. I do agree however that a lessor trained medic with little street cred should not be fast tracked cart blanche, its just not safe for anyone. If the program is thought out and meets standards then I think its great these guys have something else to look forward to. My 3 cents your mileage may vary. Sleep

Ah agreed. Same page we are on mostly. :wink: Sleep

Great thread! I guess it all depends on your background. Working in NS at the PCP level for $14/hr when the cost of living is 40% more than AB is not constructive. AB is a much better option than out east, I know as I am living it. As for rig money, again its what you are used to. People from the east are used to being slaves to the master with no rights or future and for a peso wage with an increased cost of living. We are also willing to do what it takes to live, if that means home for 12 weeks a year till you get your feet on the ground then so be it. Git er done. As for FA'rs and EMR's being useless, well the same can be applied to all levels of health care its individual. I worked remote sites in the east on and offshore and witnessed MANY basic responders completely plug the drain for hrs until evac or advanced care showed so this dissing basic care providers does not wash with me in the least. ABC's are a basic skill and saves lives period. That said you are correct it depends on the provider and its a crap shoot to how they will react, this goes for all levels not just basics. The good the bad the ugly. At the end of the day dont get hurt, gain an IQ and live healthy. Sleeper Battling natural selection since 1996

[align=ri Pay the mortage etc.. you pick. I am not wanting to come, I am here. Sleep

Great ideas no argument here. I never said an EMR has a greater scope than OFA 3. With a centralized system you still do not have boots on the ground ON SITE providing possible life saving BLS skills to a trauma patient within an EMR scope of practice. All the ALS in the world will do little when the critical treatment window is 10 mins and ALS is 11 mins away. The variance between a standard first aider and an EMT-B level trained provider "could" be all the difference needed until ALS arrives on scene. Its not a perfect system by any means. In my opinion the more remote the more important it is to have advanced first aiders on scene to bridge the time and service gap to ALS. Its better to have some medical coverage in many places with less scope than to have ALS only in very short numbers. The economics wont allow it. This is currently the case in the patch. Sure its best to have ACP's at every job site with full scope and toys but its not going to happen. EMR's while limited in scope can, have and do provide a potential life saving level of service a mere 80 hr course or not. One that cannot be provided by a standard first aider alone. That said many times its the fellow patch workers that have provided the aid needed to plug the drain temporarily with their standard FA course. Pre hospital care starts with the first aider, we all forget this from time to time. As for patch medicine out of scope, sure most issues cannot be dealt with an EMR level of training. This goes for paramedics as well as its definitive care in most instances. Medical control can and is contacted for some of these cases as thats why its there. Some older patch workers have major health issues that do need to be attended to and to be frank many patch workers have no business being there medically. Until every rig has a paramedic on scene its a roll up of skill sets that makes the difference. I think regional medical centers are a great idea for efficiency sake and it may happen eventually. As for NS ACP's, they are ACoP licenced. My 2 cents your mileage may vary. Sleep

There are several NS ACP's making monthly trips to the patch on their own dime for a week or more at a time the money is that good. NS has a loong way to go. Its the reason I left home in the first place. $500 to $800 a day is serious scratch. Sleep

Sorry Dust should have qualified this. In Alberta the Alberta College of Paramedics (regulatory body) goes by ACP. It is dumb I know as many assume for good reason it means ACP level of qualification. General comment: As for EMR AKA EMT-B being an advanced first aider. Well I look at it as all levels are just progressive increases in scope and skill sets. EMR's are more than just advanced FA'rs. Their scope is bigger than this. They fill the gap in coverage on industrial sites that would go unfilled otherwise. I think having someone of this level looking out for oil workers is a good thing. Mainly I see the EMR as an assesment position that should be capable of making the critical call for ALS service quicker than someone with 2 day standard first aid course. Maybe even provide life saving intervention on scene until advanced services arrive. There are good and bad practitioners at all levels so this argument does not wash with me. the alternative for the oilfield is no medical coverage . EMT-A's and paramedics also float the oilfield but in lesser numbers. They are all paid well as they should for the isolation. In an ideal world every pre hospital care job would be a paramedic but this is not the world we live in. Professional snobbery and territorial pissing irritates me to no end. Sleep

The money is good. My bi weekly checks are between $2.5 and $3K CLEAR. You cannot work the patch unless you are ACP licenced, some BC people are the exception. Its not for everyone but its large coin fast and pays for further education. There are full time salaried positions for some people who prove themselves. Day rater EMR's get between $220 and $300 per day depending. Sleep