brentoli

Pataki?

I'd really hate to compare you to Spitzer, because then I'd have to face the wrath of Lady J!

Maybe she would turn a blind eye and thought you meant Paterson.

Brent, first off hows the baby?

Second, if we put Washington, Jefferson, Franklin, Adams and the others in a room they would drink the Jones flavored Kool Aid and go back to heaven.

If they didn't drink the kool aid, then I could see them just locking the door and waiting till this roller coaster ride was over. They'd be dead by then too.

I think the founding fathers are rolling over, vomiting and hoping that they don't get reincarnated.

She's doing great Ruff, a tiny booger for 5 months though.

I tend to agree with you on your statements too. I am not sure if I am getting more conservative as I grow up, or if everyone around me is getting more liberal.

If Dylan needs life altering healthcare, or any type of necessary care whatsoever, he will receive it and we will add the expense to the financial burden we carry now, and I won't complain for a moment. It will take a while to pay, but I won't go to jail, they won't kidnap my boy, life will go on. Will it go on without the discomfort that sometimes comes with the freedom of being responsible for our own decisions? Of course not, and it shouldn't.

Its also safe to say Dwayne, that there are Hospital Based "charity programs" which will forgive portions of you bill when you show hardship. Also some states (Indiana is one but they are ending the program due to the new "reforms") offer programs to help get insurance for children and state ran COBRA plans for high risk. This is part of the reason I understand many states are suing under the 10th Amendment.(Wiki on 10th Amendment for the non-Americans)

We are not hanging our population out on the cross when they get injured or ill. We are just trying promote individual responsibility.

I really like the line I bolded from Dewayne. America stands on the basis of freedom. It's not true freedom when its only allowed when convenient.

Freedom: the power to exercise choice and make decisions without constraint from within or without; autonomy; self-determination.

I would love to have the mind trust of Washington, Jefferson, Franklin, Adams, and the rest here today, to look at the nation, and see what their true reaction is.

I wasn't trying to take the thread on a tangent. Really I was just trying to get Kiwi to think out his examples more.

Its my opinion that those examples are something EMS should handle. We don't have the follow up resources, but it is our job to document them and begin the course. As I stated, EMS is the only social service some people will ever see. Many people that NEED the intervention in their lives will never get it.

I was reading an article tonight about a woman who had 2 children die in a drowning last year. There were 4 documented calls to child protective services where they investigated, found problems, and never intervened. There are hundreds of those every year in the states, and thousands not documented.

We are medical workers first. We arrive to treat the emergency. Treating ther person is what pulls you away from the pack.

Attention to detail, understanding the person and the cause, and working to resolve the issues are all traits of a professional.

This may become worthy of its own thread, because we are getting pretty far off base from the original questions.

So, if I understand right, these are the reasons people don’t like this bill:

- it costs a lot, and the USA is already in debt bigger than the average person can fathom

- it will not insure those who truly need insurance

- it won’t solve the problem of those who are parasites to the system

- it was voted in without public support

Am I understanding this right?

Thats pretty close.

Why should I be required to hold health insurance? Why should I be penalized if I choose not to?

From the Explainer on Slate.

There's a fine for not having insurance. How does the government know whether you have insurance or not?

Through the tax system. The legislation doesn't explicitly say how the individual mandate for health insurance will be enforced, but taxpayers will probably be required to prove that they own insurance when filing their taxes each year. (If you get insurance through your employer, they'll help take care of it. If you're self-employed, your insurer will probably send you a document to submit with your other tax forms.) If a taxpayer doesn't have insurance, the IRS will notify him of his nonenrollment and show him how to sign up through their state's insurance exchange. If he still refuses to enroll, the IRS will levy a fine that shows up on his tax forms. The fee starts small in 2014—$95 or 1 percent of income—but edges up incrementally until 2016, when uninsured individuals will have to pay $695 a year, with a family maximum of $2,085 or 2.5 percent of household income.

Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness.

We have laws on the books already that emergency care can not be denied to someone in need. Why, do I need to finance a liver transplant for someone who has drank all of their life and their longest full time job was line cook at the truck stop for 4 months? I have been working my ASS off for 2 years now trying to get in a position to buy a house. You know what? I make too much for ANY assistance from the federal government, but I make too little for a decent enough credit report to get approved with out a substansial down payment. How is that fair?

America is giving the big middle finger to the working class.

Are you rich? Well here are enough tax deductions/credits/write offs/shelters that the taxes will only be a pin prick to your bank account.

Are you poor? Well here are all the hand outs you need. Keep having kids, and apply for one job a month and youll be A-OK.

Do you make $40-80K a year? Well by all means step right up and finance those who aren't succesful enought to get a job, get a basic education (even though the gov't would pay for that as well) and become productive members of this nation.

Thats why Americans are pissed off.

Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness

Life is a given for the most part by laws on the books now.

My liberty is slowly being eroded by these supposed "reforms."

Pursuit of Happiness? Maybe in Texas.

- You give O2, GTN, ASA, CPAP and a bit of morf to a CHF patient who has CHF because of his poor lifestyle and eating McDs 24/7; is it our job to give him a lecture about his lifestyle and diet, no, and don't think I don't feel like it sometimes!

- An old lday who lives alone has trouble remembering when to take her insulin and becomes acutely hyperglyceamic; is it my place to make sure she complies or to deal with her her more pressing problem is massive dehydration?

- Some dude tried to scale a retaining wall on his BMX after 12 beers and broke his foot; should I counsel him on not doing dumb shit when drunk?

So, should EMS not have any role in social services? When you have an elderly who breaks a bone on a throw rug on the wood floor, are you just going to ignore that situation? When you are in a house on a public service call, and hear a smoke detector with the low battery chirp, are you ignoring that too?

EMS is the closest to social services many people see, that are in need of it. While that is off the topic at hand, at the same time I think your examples are a little off and not relevant.

I understand requiring auto insurance for driving. You are putting other people at risk, and should carry liability for your actions.

From what I understand though doesn't this bill require health insurance for living? With sanctions if you don't carry it? This stuff never helps the people that need it, it only helps the free loaders. So not the "American-Way" of 1776.

OUCH! Richard (I assume) negatived me even! Ohhh I struck a nerve!

In all fairness, his book is a good read, if you haven't.

I don't know, to be honest.

I'm actually taking a semester off from school and clinicals in order to complete this course, and I don't think I could do intermediate and paramedic along with my other studies.

I assume you are taking an EMT-B course?

Not trying to start anything here, but for what you are looking for, you will be much better served going to advanced levels, if you are looking for a better EMS understanding. The EMT-B course is pretty close to the Boy Scout Handbook. (You might pick one of those up and take with you, seriously. Really good resource.)

Anyway, glad to have you aboard. I think maternity is one area where many EMS providers lack. Hopefully you can shed some light on some topics here as you learn as well.

I think Richard is Rudy Guilliani.

No worries! Lots of my friends are amazingly capable midwives who're quite committed to staying put.

What is your ultimate education goal, EMS-wise?

That is true. Have you ever read the glass at the local stop and rob it says usually in a corner bullet resistant glass.

They don't glass them up around here. They don't mind being robbed I guess. LOL.

I haven't read most of the posts by others, so I apologize if I echo anyone elses statements.

We aren't fixing the root of the problem. If you have a leaky pipe you can duct tape it, and it will stop for a while, until the water wears down the tape. But its a better, and in the long run easier, fix to fix the whole system isn't it?

My household income is considered probably right in the middle of the middle class, I won't see one damn benefit from this "reform." I will see more taxes, more problems with my insurance company, more problems at the doctors office.

Why is it that we PROMOTE a society, where if you are uneducated it is just fine for you to lay back, pop out 5 kids and live off of MY earnings? Anyone in EMS sees the abuse of Medicare every stinking day. People call 911 for am Ambulance (~$300 BLS bill), stay in an ER (~$500 in fees at least), and a couple tyenol (~$20 a pill in the ER?) because they DONT WANT TO SPEND THEIR $10 IN CASH TO GO BUY A BOTTLE OF ASPRIN AT WAL-GREENS! I promise you however they will have that free taxi they got on a voucher make a quick stop at a gas station for a pop and candy bar. All while they laugh about spending $900 for their "primary care ER" visit.

The Police have outer vests here which are stab and bulletproof.

They need to sell that technology! Theres alot of people who are trying to find that! Just like fireproof bunker gear.

Ill say it again like a broken record....

We need a journal that follows up and commissions ems lodd reports like niosh does for the fire service. So much more coujld be learned that way.

I am all about discussing incidents in order to grow ourselves. Monday morning QB'ing is the best way to learn mistakes not to make. However, when death is involved, like it was yesterday maybe sometimes it is best to wait. Just a little bit.

Imagine being this medic's wife, or mother, and coming across our board talking about how wrong he was in his choices. We need to learn from others mistakes, yes, but we also should show compassion in doing so. This is a great example of how you can't trust the media either. First report was a stabbing, then a confrontation, then head injuries, now an MI.

Just some things to think about, ya'll.

I'm going to presume that most of you exercise early in the day, before your body figures out what you're trying to do to it?

(LOL)

(PS: I'm trying the "ALLI" pills. I'll keep youze guyz posted.)

Are you using diapers or feminine hygine pads for the rear end, and the posible.... undesireable... results?

I seriously think this is the oldest thread revival to date!!! Over 3 years....

Thanks for pointing out I still haven't made it to school.

They do. We have these on all of our cots. It's just a hard plastic case that fits over the buckles and has a narrow slit in it. You can't push the button to release the belt because it's covered by the plastic, and the slit. When you need it off you push a key, or anything thin, through the slit and it pushes the button. Works awesome.

Dwayne

Lil'Wayne....

Can you find out the maker, or distributor of this?

As far as I know, no. Just some alternative I thought of. I could go from reclined in gurney to out the doors in under 2 seconds. If it took a little longer to get out of the seatbelt, that'd be good "pull over the ambulance" time. And it wouldn't be quite as insulting/humiliating to willing psych patients.

Patent it Anth. It sounds like a great idea to me. I think it would work that way as well. It would give the provider enough time to get distance and shield from the combative patient.

One alternative method might be a partial restraint system. Gurney seat belts that require a key to unlock. The patient could still slip out of them, but it couldn't be done in a split second. This would allow the ambulance time to pull over and eliminate the 65 MPH factor.

*cue dumb face* Do they make those, or did you just invent it in thought?

I'm really surprised nobody else is going, and that this hasn't even been mentioned. Whats the deal? No interest? No money? No time?

Yes, and yes.

I only get 12 days off a year, have to pick and choose wisely, with 6 of them already scheduled for a vay-cay to Gatlinburg in May.

Emt-b jobs available for an emt-b under 21 that pays decently,enough to support myself perferablly in northern cali,but I wouldnt mind moving,even far, as of now i work at a grocery store during the week and on weekends work for an event medical company which i just started and I am sure I will enjoy but i want a ems job for the week,not just event medical thats only when events come up,so if you know anywhere thats hiring please let me know .Thank you.

That.. is the longest sentence ever.

I just have one thing....

(This is an old picture if you look at the layout of the page!)

Just wake me up when the EMS vs FD wars are over...

100 points.