Sassafras

EMS transports 9 out of 10 psychiatric pts. to area hospitals (EDs) where I work, mainly for "medical clearance" before being transferred to the actual psychiatric hospital. If the pt. has any medical/physical complaint whatsoever (even a hangnail) the psych hospital ED will refuse to see them until they've been cleared medically, and will call 911 for us to come and pick them up. This also includes ETOH. On the rare occasions that we arrive and the pt. is not under the influence of drugs or alcohol, is denying physical complaint and states that they just want to be transported to the psych ED, then the police transport them for us (we are not allowed to transport pts. to the mental facility). For the most part it works out well.

My partner shaves his head everyday, but he does it because he's black (and part Italian) and has a lot of trouble maintaining his hair. Frankly, he'd look strange with hair to me now.

How many times have I done this? Absolutely never. I don't know where you're from, but the fact that you say you "hear about it quite often from ER docs" tells me you work with some sh!tty paramedics. However, don't lump us all into the same group just because you work with a handful of idiots. :wink:

Dude, you had me going for the first half of this post! The more I read, the closer my jaw got to the floor! :laughing5:

Exactly what I've been thinking. :roll:

Asysin, I feel your pain. Monday: Feeling weak but went into work anyway. 4 hours into shift, weakness getting worse so I head home. On the way home, stop at grocery store. Took everything I had to do this. Make it home. While climbing the staircase to my apartment for the second time with groceries, bust out crying due to increasing pain in hips and knees. Lay on couch for 10 mins. > sudden onset chills so I head to the shower in a desperate attempt to warm up. Stood under steaming hot water for 30 mins. and still had goosebumps. Rest of night spent on couch with chills and bodyaches, fever, sore throat, headache. Tuesday: Chills gone, but headache and sore throat back with a vengeance. Now add extremely dry cough and intense sinus pain. Mild nausea and lower GI issues. Also, blew out a huge bloody thing from right nostril. Was intrigued. Wednesday: Becoming bored but still nursing all symptoms noted above. I want to poke holes into my head to relieve sinus pressure. Also, not sleeping well. Really wanting my mom for comfort. Grown women can call for their moms when they're sick, right? :oops: Thursday: Sinus headache refuses to go away. Chest starting to hurt from constant dry coughing. Sore throat. REALLY BORED. I MUST work up energy to go to store for meds. I HAVE to get better cause my niece is having her first birthday party on Saturday and it'll kill me if I can't hold her.

43% Dixie. Barely in Yankeedom. And I was born and raised in the south. :laughing5:

We haven't had 24 hour shifts in a few years. I actually preferred them. We had a "home" so to speak and relations between fire and EMS were much more amicable since we worked together more closely. I now work 3 14 hour shifts per week (in a row) and have a 4 day weekend every week. My partner and I run a lot of calls but it's definitely worth it to me. It gives me plenty of time to rest up and get errands and chores done. Now, the majority of the other shifts are 12 hours, and there are a few 10 hour shifts as well. Please don't ask why, because I don't have a clue!

:shock:

....

See, I didn't read the entire thread. Heh. :oops:

As I said earlier, there are exceptions to the rule. Do I take the stretcher in on every call? Absolutely not. They are quite confident that I can perform the basic functions of my job but realize that I need my "equipment" (airway bag, monitor, drug box, O2) in order to do that.

Their explanation is that it makes no sense to enter a residence, public facility, etc. where there has been a request for EMS with no equipment. What good does it do for my partner and I to walk in with nothing else? If it turns out to be a diabetic pt., then everything I need is right there with me vs. my having to run back to the unit to fetch things. It's just easier, IMO. And at this point it's so second nature to me that even if it weren't policy, I'd still do it. :wink:

We're required to take the stretcher and all equipment in on every call. For the most part we do, but there are exceptions to the rule.

I couldn't figure it out. :oops:

That's funny as hell. :laughing5:

All I can say is that I would NEVER allow this kind of behavior. If I ask my partner to stop by the store, they better damn well do it. Who the hell does she think she is? I would have a talk with her first and determine what the problem is. Then, if you're unable to come to any kind of compromise, I'd most definitely go to my supervisor.

I haven't read through this thread (tired), but here's my personal opinion. Would I wear a helmet? If my job depended on it, I guess I'd bite the bullet. But I mean, damn come on! Strap me into my seatbelt, secure my helmet... hell, just stick some safety goggles on me for kicks. Might as well wrap me in bubble wrap for God's sake. Look, injuries are going to happen. I'm as safety conscious as the next person but the idea of having to wear a friggin helmet while I'm in the back of the ambulance is just absurd to me. If we crash and I die from a massive head injury then, by God, it was my time to go. Tell my parents I love 'em and pray that God has room for me.

I realize more and more everyday how lucky I've been. 8 years in EMS and I've never had the pleasure of smelling a decomposed body or a crispy critter. I've also never seen maggots (whew!). Damn, that makes me shudder! :shock: Yes sir, keep that white cloud directly over my head!

Good lord. I could vomit just reading this thread. *swallows*

Famous anus! :laughing5:

My partner is also allergic to cats. If I even see a cat hair on a pt. or a litter box when we're inside their home, I tell him to go on outside. I've even ridden his pts. in before so he doesn't have a reaction.

There's a gulf of difference between hard of hearing and deaf. I have a co-worker who wears a hearing aid and uses a special stethoscope, but she is still able to hear and communicate. Would I want to work with a deaf partner? No way, no how. Put aside for the moment (because it's already been brought up) the issue of auscultating BPs and breath sounds. How am I and our patients supposed to communicate with someone who is completely deaf? By writing? By making sure I'm in a position where they can read my lips? I don't think so. Honestly, I can't even begin to express the number of times I rely on my partner's ability to hear, speak, and otherwise communicate in a shift.

How do I handle the losses? By reminding myself that I (and my partner) did everything in our power to save them and that sometimes, all the skills, meds., and prayers in the world aren't going to stop the inevitable. You can't save them all. Many times, it's the elderly or chronically ill and I put it into perspective. Chances are they led a good, full life. Hopefully they have family that loved them beyond words and they passed knowing this. For those who are terminally/chronically ill, I just remember that they're no longer suffering. I usually have a feeling that I can't put into words that, out of all of the people that loved them, mine was the last face they saw, the last voice they heard. I consider it an absolute honor to be with these people at the end of their lives.