Arctickat

I was under the impression FLIR units were exclusively used in both LEO and military helicopters in Search and Rescue ops, or as hand held/helmet mounted devices by firefighters to locate fire in the walls, or locating potential victims in smoke filled rooms.

Nope, the trucking industry has been using these for years. BMW and Land Rover offer them as factory options.

Nice to see technology improving yet again. Although I'm betting it'll be years before this becomes an accepted practise, and longer than that for it to really make it's way to ambulances, it's defiantly another tool that's worth while. (while it's been possible to test for troponin prehospital for years the only place I've heard of it being done is Alaska)

We're using an invitro diagnostic device that provides qualitative results for cTnI, Myoglobin and CK-MB. They are 100% accurate and provide positive results if the trops are over 1.5mcg/ml. It takes about 4 drops of whole blood and gives a result in about 5 minutes. Each cassette costs about 13 bucks, this compared to 16 for the troponin cassette in the ISTAT and the $10,000 for the machine just to get a quantitative reading. Although it isn't as easy as a saliva test, it has come in as useful.

does the Istat magically detect a reliable troponin level far sooner than any other test ?

it has to be a system wide view which is where the 'evils' of socialised healthcare are extremely beneficial .

if the paramedics are able to interpret and communicate findings send a copy of the 12 lead to the recieving facility then forget door to needle for ither lytics or PPCI and start thinking 'call to needle' or 'pain to needle'

Why use an expensive machine like the Istat? I'm using an invitro diagnostic device that provides qualitative results for cTnI, Myoglobin and CK-MB. They are 100% accurate and provide positive results if the trops are over 1.5mcg/ml. It takes about 4 drops of whole blood and gives a result in about 5 minutes. Each cassette costs about 13 bucks, this compared to 16 for the troponin cassette in the ISTAT and the $10,000 for the machine just to get a quantitative reading.

OK, after reading another post, i have to change my answer. having an ISTAT machine (for those that do not know, it is a handheld lab machine that is accurate but expensive) on my truck so that i can get troponin levels, H&H, or a white count. That would definitely change the quality of care provided in the field.

Why use an expensive machine like the Istat? I'm using an invitro diagnostic device that provides qualitative results for cTnI, Myoglobin and CK-MB. They are 100% accurate and provide positive results if the trops are over 1.5mcg/ml. It takes about 4 drops of whole blood and gives a result in about 5 minutes.

Hey Paul, How are things with Faith and Terry? I used to work for he and his dad back in the late 80's. I've always considered Terry to be one of those who made a big impact on my career for the better. I haven't heard much about the Scheullers since the mid 90's now.

On a tour of Florida , the Pope took a couple of days off to visit the coast for some sightseeing.

He was cruising along the beach in the Pope mobile when there was a frantic commotion just off shore. A helpless man, wearing a fire department T-shirt, was struggling frantically to free himself from the jaws of a 25-foot shark.

As the Pope watched, horrified, a speedboat came racing up with three men wearing jackets emblazoned with the Star of Life aboard. One quickly fired a harpoon into the shark's side.

The other two reached out and pulled the bleeding, semi-conscious fire truck driver from the water. Then using semi automatic defibrillators, the three heroes beat the shark to death and hauled it into the boat.

Immediately the Pope shouted and summoned them to the beach. 'I give you my blessing for your brave actions,' he told them. 'I heard that there was some bitter hatred between fire truck drivers and paramedics, but now I have seen with my own eyes that this is not the truth.'

As the Pope drove off, one of the paramedics asked his buddies, 'Who was that?'

'It was the Pope,' another replied. 'He's in direct contact with God and has access to all of God's wisdom.'

'Well,' the third medic said, 'he may have access to all of God's wisdom, but he doesn't know much about shark fishing. How's the bait holding up?'

Very cool, I am assuming that you are going to NAIT then? That's where I took my training 17 years ago. lol

In addition to my usual prehospital job, I have been working per diem at a remote health clinic in Northern Canada for the past 4 years. When I first started it was like a fish out of water. How many have training that actually includes how to use an otoscope or orthoscope, or which antibiotic therapy works best for each bug. It was a long learning curve, usually self study but I now have a scope of practice within the facility that actually makes me feel like a member of the team rather than a liability.

It would be awesome if schools could provide training for medics in non-standard roles, such as a Clinical Care Paramedic. I suspect that with the ever growing need for medics outside of EMS, there will soon be expansions and more training options.

I came across this story on another website that shall remain un-named. I thought it was kinda neat that an EMS service would add this to their fleet. Especially a private one.

[web:eed3b5b07b]http://paramedic-network-news.com/index.php?s=kelvington[/web:eed3b5b07b]

An EMS service in Kelvington, Saskatchewan is using thermal imaging units to enhance driver safety. That is the word from a note put out by the organization (October 22) which said that the units from mobilesafety.net are being put onboard ambulances to assist in spotting wildlife and avoiding collisions during adverse conditions. Allowing drivers to see some 2,000 feet away, the The PathfindIR ™ forward looking infrared (FLIR) video system can offer drivers as much as 20 seconds to react in poor visibility conditions including fog, snow, rain, smoke, and nightime. In addition to aiding drivers in transit, the units also help at the scene. In one instance already encountered by the service, an ejected MVA patient was located in tall grass via the PathfindIR.