HERBIE1

I'm with Dwayne. I don't know the names of the various brands of angiocaths, but I do know starting an EJ is easier WITHOUT a protective version. Problem is, in many places you have no choice. I'm old school- I simply do not like those protect catheters. That said, it's certainly not impossible, but often trickier simply because of the angle and surrounding anatomy and structures. One thing you should have is a longer catheter- it makes accessing the vein easier

Wow. Perfect season for something like this. Thanks for posting it.

Well, since most men are visually oriented when it comes to stimulation, I gues

So I have noticed one thing from the men in this forum all of the comment concerning the term GAY is towards gay men. Them kissing in public repulses me ect. them dressing as fairly repulses me. Now dont get me wrong I'm kinda on the side I dont want to see fat hairy assed men in fairy suits I want to see the "I will tap that" in fairy suits. Now my point NOT one guy in this forum seems to be grossed out or even commented with girl on girl. It has been very accepted in the straight world for a girl to do a girl and both sexes will watch that porn. So why is that? Only men need to answer that, Im pretty sure Crapmagnet and I are both pretty open minded on the subject since we are the only girly girls that have posted on the forum

I think it's a matter of men being more into the visual thing when it comes to arousal, while most women are more subtle, and obtain their arousal on a deeper level. To men, if we are attracted to the nekid female form, then the more, the better. That said, speaking for myself, I certainly would not want to see a porn video of 2 very butch looking women- simply does not do anything for me. Historically, the nude female form has always represented beauty, and there are many examples of it in the art world. I also think women are more evolved emotionally- at least in the sense that even straight women can appreciate the beauty of a nude woman, while having no sexual interest in them. The same cannot be said for most men watching men. Why? Different wiring, I guess. Insecurity? Both? To me- it's simply gross and I cannot watch it.

I know I'm generalizing, and I certainly have known a few women who can enjoy porn as much as a guy, but I honestly think it's pretty rare. To be perfectly candid, I do not like the ultra raunchy stuff- simply does nothing for me, and actually makes me uncomfortable.

I'm reading the same thing... and am about 60% into it. I want to shake the hero and say... look - Kill Oswald, take Sadie with you through the rabbit hole and fix her face already...

I am totally enjoying it.

LOL Yeah, somehow I'm thinking they will end up together in the end. We'll see...

I've always loved King-one of my favorite books of all time is The Stand- unabridged version, of course. I've read it at least a dozen times.

As for this new book- awesome.

Unless you're using a Thumper or an AutoPulse then I'm calling shenanigans on this. Health care providers can't do effective CPR in a stationary setting like an ER. Things don't magically change so that we can do them in a vehicle bouncing down the road at any speed.

ETA: With regards to causing harm, no. You can't harm a dead person. You can, however, cause harm to the crew, the family following, other people on the road by transporting a dead person lights and sirens. Every time we run L&S we increase the risk to ourselves and others on the road. If we can minimize that risk by not creating any for someone who's not viable then we're doing the right thing.

I don't have any data to back this up, but either you do effective CPR, or you do not- the location is irrelevant. I've seen lousy CPR on the street, in the back of an ambulance, and in an ER. I've also seen great CPR in these same places. There is nothing that says you cannot do effective CPR while moving in an apparatus. We generally have the person doing compressions being held by their belt, jacket, etc by another person, so they can concentrate on on doing a good job. Is it the ideal situation? Of course not, but it works.

OK- I'll add this to the string. I'm currently in the middle of Steven King's 11/22/63. It's a story about a guy who found a way to time travel back from 2011 and try to change the events of that day- in other words, stop the assassination of JFK. Along the way he also tries to change a couple other horrible events that happen in his hometown, and come back to the present day to see the impact of his actions. Interesting read-going from present day society to that of the late 50's and early 60's, and all that it entails. The story deals with how one simple change causes the butterflly effect, where many things can be impacted just by your presence.

So far there is no trademark King "horror" or ghoulish stuff in the book- just some odd turns, a provocative plot, and a couple graphically described killings. Time travel is not exactly a new concept, but nobody tells a story like this guy- rich details, he has the language and phrases of that era down pat, as well as many things we no longer see- gas station attendants that check your oil and wash your windows, and the prices of everyday items like cars, furniture, and food. He talks about the segregation of that era in the south, what folks were worried about, and the issues of the day.

Long book, but worth the read so far.

Jealous?

Just a partial list of what the straight community acts like in relationships:

Simple Assault

Dispute/Disturbance with Physical Abuse

Aggravated Assault

Threats

Harassing or Obscene Telephone Calls

Malicious Destruction of Property

Larceny

Rape

Theft

Kidnapping

Robbery

Stalking

Annoying & Accosting

Arson

Disorderly Conduct

Extortion/Blackmail

Indecent Assault

Trespassing

Peeping & Spying

And I don't mean to imply that gay people don't do this too.. far as I can see, we all pretty much act the same.

Jealous of what- walking down a public street, looking like I belong in some alternate universe's version of a porn show?

I don't think so.

Ever hear of a Leatherman's Convention? I'd like to see you try to equate that with something from the heterosexual community. At least those are events held in hotels, not out in public, parading down the street.

I thought this thread was about heterosexual vs gay pride events like parades, not the criminal behavior of every possible criminal act committed by anyone in society.

Dwayne is right on this. Around here, I guess they decided to rename the parade to pass it off as being something it is not. They dropped the "gay" part of the Gay Pride Parade title. They tried to claim it was "family friendly", it's all about inclusion and diversity. BULLSHIT. I don't know of any families who think it's OK to see guys walking around in ass-less leather chaps, or the other disgusting things going on that I have seen at these parades.

I have attended and marched in St Patricks Day parades, Irish Parades, Puerto Rican day parades, July 4th parades, Memorial Day parades, Mexican Independence Day parades, Christmas Parades, Thanksgiving Parades, Columbus Day Parades and have NEVER seen anything like what goes on in these gay pride parades. No, not every parade attendee, float or group is R or NC-17 rated, but a great many of them are- more than enough to say these are NOT family friendly events, nor do they promote diversity or acceptance, nor do they promote the idea that gays are just like everyone else.

So no, flaming- the straight community does NOT act the same way.

I am all for gay marriage. Every time two guys hook up, that means that there are two more women in the world whose

standards may have to drop enough to consider giving me a whirl.

Funny stuff...

Yet medicine takes a much less binary view on sex, as well as gender. Is medicine not reality?

More importantly, in my opinion, is gender, which is defined more by society's expectations. However, those expectations change. Constantly. It wasn't too long ago that females wearing pants would be completely taboo, yet it is now, based on those values, expected that females cross dress.

I could put on an NHL hockey uniform, but that does not make me a professional hockey player.

Yes- gender is subjective, and often deals with self identity. I could put on a dress and announce to the world that I think I am a woman(even though that would be a truly disturbing site), but that still does not make it true,

Sex and/or gender is determined by external genitalia?

Yes. As long as we keep this within the realm of reality and not bring in transgenederism or hermaphrodites into the discussion.

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sex

¹sex

noun ˈseks

Definition of SEX

1

: either of the two major forms of individuals that occur in many species and that are distinguished respectively as female or male especially on the basis of their reproductive organs and structures

Allegedly Gay pride parades are to help foster acceptance and celebrate "diversity". I say "allegedly" because in most pride parades I have seen on TV- and the many I have seen and worked at in person- they look more like freak shows. Guys dressed in drag, in outlandish/pornographic/cross dressing/ridiculous outfits. How exactly does that promote acceptance of a gay lifestyle? Yes, there are many "normal" floats and marchers for various groups and causes, but I'd guess 75% of the parade folks I have seen are out of their minds and their behavior makes Mardi Gras look like an Amish picnic. Whatever, but doesn't an event like this undermine the argument that there is essentially no difference between gays and straights? Do "straight people" have their share of degenerate/wild events? Sure- see the aforementioned Mardi Gras celebration-, but they also don't pretend they are representative of any particular group other than the lunatics who attend/sponsor that specific event.

So would a heterosexual pride day be a good idea? Probably not, because as evidenced by the responses here, "every day" is supposedly heterosexual pride day. Any attempt at such an event would be immediately be labeled as divisive, homophobic, and hateful.

I think anything less that passing constitutes failure in my opinion.

It's like saying, you nearly defibrillated the guy, you didn't defibrillate him but you nearly did.

Or like Miracle Max in Princess bride said about Welsey when he appeared dead. "He's not dead, he's only mostly dead"

Why am I having visions of a parrot and a Monty Python skit??

I think it's some Mongolian sport involving yaks and grease....

It actually sounds like something that might be illegal in a few states...

Part of the core curriculum at two of the colleges/universities I attended mandated a series of theology classes. The classes were taught by a mix of professors. Some were catholic priests. Some were nuns. Some were civilian.

This is a totally unscientific observation with a ridiculously small sample size, but every civilian theology professor I had was a professed atheist. Each one of them stated that their atheism grew out of the education they received in their pursuit of their PhD in theology.

This, of course, drove the priests/nuns out of their mind.

Interesting. In a way I guess it's kind of sad. It's almost like those long held childhood fantasies that are destroyed when we get older. I imagine it would be particularly devastating for someone who is very devout to learn things that make them doubt- or even reject those beliefs.

So are you saying that the less educated the more profession of faith or vice versa?

I think you are partly true if you are positing that it's the former rather than the latter.

You confused me here. Yes- the less educated, the more likely someone is to have a very high degree of faith. I would be interested to find out about religious scholars- ie in a university setting, not in the clergy. If someone is an expert on religion, what degree of faith would they have?

Solid Dwayne:

I agree on your point of view. It seems we as humans experience a special type of delight when we can crush a person's spirit. I see religious zealots and hard core atheists try to do this all the time.

Ruff:

At the end of the day, any faith based conclusion you make is still one based on, well...faith. You are ultimately trying to define things that are not defined. Personally, I am am good with whatever conclusion you reach so long as you don't berate me with your beliefs. Of course, the same should also be true for me.

Herbie:

It is quite possible. At a certain point, I think many people at least come to a realisation that the concept of an interventional, divine mechanism does not really fit into what we know of the physical world. This does not mean I lack faith per se however.

I recall reading this somewhere- it's not just something I pulled out of my arse. I think you are right- the more education you have, the harder it becomes to reconcile an unwavering, all encompassing faith with what you learn in school. Add an interesting twist- those who attend universities and colleges that are affiliated with a religious order. I actually teach part time at one, and religion is a required class for all undergrads- regardless of your field of study. I see nothing contradictory about believing in a God and being highly educated- it's just I think we become more skeptical as we amass more knowledge, and education is all about learning how to learn, which means there rarely can be absolutes in anything, right?

I'm going out on a limb here- and will probably get that branch sawed off beneath me, but...

I think there is an inversely proportional relationship between education and degree of faith. Yes, it's a generalization, but it seems very often to be the case in my experience.

And your last sentence is profound. If you are a person of faith then proof isn't necessary.

Don''t you find it ironic that in our profession- one of science, facts, and logic- folks would actually have blind faith? Yes, we see things that defy logic, but I'm sure that if you dug deep enough, we could probably explain away even the occasional "miracle" we may see. Whatever.

Well I put that question of heaven and hell solely on the back of AK. He made me think about it in more robust terms.

OK, please do not hammer me on this next thing. I"m actually in a crossroads of my faith as well, not a crisis of faith but merely a qeustioning.

Yes the bible specifically says that there is a heaven and a hell. I do believe that but I also know that the bible is a book that was written many many years ago. It was passed down and changed version to version. I know it's consistent in saying what it says over and over and across versions but what I was trying to actually say is to discuss what AK told me once when I asked what the City thought happened after you died.

AK said that he just would cease to exist. No heaven, no hell. No purgatory.

The bible makes heaven sound awesome and I do hope that there is a heaven but the bible also says that there is a hell and it's truly a bad place.

But these are words written over thousands of years and at times those words can be changed or their meanings changed.

No-one knows that there is a heaven or a hell, we only know that the bible which is the word of God per the religious and religious scholars says that there is a heaven and hell. No-one has been there, no one has come back and told me or anyone else that they have been to heaven or hell and they are real.

I only can go by what is written in the book called the bible and since i believe that the bible is Gods word then I must believe that there is a heaven and hell but until I get to either one of them or just cease to exist, then I nor anyone else truly knows, be they either Atheist, agnostic or Christian.

No hammering here. I honestly don't know what I believe anymore. After my nephew was killed last year, I actually went to my local church(for the first time in years) and sat in the back for awhile. I was looking for answers, a place for reflection, an epiphany- ANYTHING to help me cope. Didn't work.

Not sure what happens after we die, but if there IS a heaven, I think I'm OK- I'm not too horrible of a person. If there's nothing- well, I guess I become worm food like everyone else. It would be nice if we could have just one shred of proof of life after death, but for those with faith, by definition, proof is not necessary.

Yeah, but that takes too much self control!

It has that weird, funky, addicting taste...and then the pain kind of gets going...But it's too late! Only chicks can eat it with finesse I'm willing to bet. And that's just one of their freaky things..I mean, c'mon, anyone that can spend a friggin' week eating one chocolate bar is damaged in some basic, genetic way...

Every guy here I'm willing to bet has a fond memory of the creamy taste of Capt Crunch mixed with the coppery taste of blood..It's an evil, evil product.

Dwayne

In college, in our residence hall cafeteria, they had large dispensers with various types of cereal- the ole Capn being one of them. I recall grabbing large bowl fulls to start my day, washed down with about a gallon of lousy coffee. If memory serves, it was also a pretty good antidote for too much weekend fun. Ahh-the good old days...

Yes, there is such a thing as personal responsibility and taking responsibility for your actions. You have the will to do anything you want in life, turn to crime, your choice, turn to god, your choice.

But my belief is that God gave me free will and I act on that free will every day.

If something bad happens to me, I don't say "Curse you God, you did this to me" Nope, I say "I know not to make that mistake again"

Let me let you in on a little personal experience. My wife when pregnant with our "son" William the pregnancy was a rocky one. From no heartbeat at 6 weeks gestation and the OB doc then wanting to do a D&C on Jenny. Jennifer requested a 2nd ultrasound 1 week later and after the asshole doctor agreed we went to the ultrasound. At that ultrasound there was a heartbeat. Little light blipping on the screen of the Ultrasound monitor. There was also a small blood clot on the placenta.(ominous sign but we went with the flow though).

For the next 10 weeks we watched this little life grow inside my wife until my wife felt a funny feeling in her stomach. We called the new OB doc's (high risk perinatologists at a top notch hospital in KC MO). They had been her doctor for about 8 weeks and they scheduled the ultrasound that eventually was when we found out that our child had died in utero.

We scheduled a delivery for three days hence. Jennifer went through this with all the emotions you can expect. I was the stoic one of course. I've seen death, I've seen life, you know, the works.

Jennifer delivered a 17 week gestation baby boy. He was formed perfectly but just dead.

I'm a religious guy, many on here will attest to that. I did not blame god even though many people in my church asked me if I did. I know that death happens, I know that there are just some things that are not to be. Is that God's fault, no. Is it mine, no it isn't.

But what I did ask God was why. I know I would not get an answer. I didn't expect one. My wife did not either.

There are just some things not meant to be.

Do I blame God for that or anything else that befalls me, no I don't. It's not the way that I believe and not the way I look to religion.

do I believe that the baby is in heaven waiting for me? I'm not sure. I think so but since I don't know what happens after we die, if we just cease to exist like some of my atheist friends believe, or is there a definate place called heaven and hell? I don't know.

I do know what it says in the bible, and it says there is heaven and hell. I believe the book but until I make it to either place or just cease to exist I have to be skeptical. I hope that there is a heaven but it cannot be proven to me other than what a book says so I remain a skeptic.

It sounds like you have a healthy viewpoint on this, Ruff. One thing I do find as odd though is that you believe in God, yet are unsure if there is a heaven or hell. Not busting your balls here, just pointing out something that struck me as I read your post. I cannot imagine what you went through- my only personal exposure is from a close friend who delivered a full term still born baby boy. I almost felt guilty because we had 3 happy, healthy kids. This mom was from a die hard Italian catholic family and her 80+ year old mother still goes to church every day, but she herself did not blame or curse God for what happened either.

To me, having God grant us free will isn't really free will. I guess either you believe or you don't, but there are also many shades of "belief". Many(or dare I say MOST?) Catholics think nothing of using birth control, or having premarital sex, so I guess it's the cafeteria catholic- pick which parts of your religious doctrine you choose to abide by.

Me- well I am at a crossroads in my faith- or lack there of. Based on what's happened to me in the last couple years, I question EVERYTHING. I am even looking into alternative "faiths" to help me find some answers and gain my center. We'll see how that goes.

BTW-Holy thread derail, Batman- how the hell did this topic go from pro gay marriage to THIS? LOL

We send a bill to the pt. if we don't transport. If you call 911 and we respond just to "check you out" or treat your hypoglycemia and then you don't want to be transported, you get a bill. We just don't show up at your door, you called us. We provide a service and bill accordingly.

As for transporting codes, that would be a negative. If we can't get ROSC on scene, then we don't transport.

Sounds like a very reasonable- and rational- policy. Wish we had one that was similar.

Qwisp, Quake, and Captain Crunch were all the same manufacturer, and TV Ad agency in the mid 1960s . They all appeared to be made by the same folks who created the original Bullwinkle and Rocky cartoons, at least back then.

Dammit, Richard!

All this talk about Captain Crunch has me hankering for some- haven't had that stuff in years. Looks like I may be taking a trip to the grocery store in the near future...

Bush?

LOL

Like him or not, GWB was a business executive as well as a governor. Obama had ZERO executive experience, zero private sector experience, and barely had any legislative experience before he ran for POTUS. He technically fit the bare minimum requirements of age and birthplace(yes, I believe he was born here)- nothing more. This may come as a shock to some, but being a community organizer/activist does not appear to make one qualified to be the leader of the free world- and the last 3 years seems to be proof of that fact.

According to the people who did the billing at one place I worked, you can't bill for the call if you don't transport.

They didn't like me much. They couldn't bill for a good number of the codes I ran because I called them.

Otherwise, you need to talk to your medical director.

Excellent point. I completely looked past this. In our system, we cannot bill unless we transport, which means anyone who is treated and released- anything from giving out a bandaid to giving someone an amp of Dextrose- all the way up to a termination of resuscitation in a nursing home- we eat that bill. That is why we are considering implementing a charge for treat/nontransport calls- to capture all that missed revenue. Whether or not the insurance carriers will pay is another story- and I am not aware of those rules. If anyone thinks this is only about patient care and not $$$- they are sadly mistaken.

Then again, our system is also very archaic in many ways, so it is about being conservative as well.

Well, most of the set medics I know around here do not use a fraction of their skills. They don't have anywhere near the full range of supplies you would on rig- mostly BLS capabilities. Mostly it's bandaids, wraps, ice, OTC analgesics and antacids(self service since we cannot hand them out), etc. Yes, you would have an AED with first line meds, but generally you are there to know when to escalate the situation and transport someone so it's your knowledge base, and assessment skills they are looking for. This way there's no scope of practice issues to worry about. Yes, some sets also hire rigs to be on standby, but it depends on the budget and the type of film they are shooting.