Sassafras

Yeah, the old 2 man.. (non-folding legs) that you actually both had to lift and lower.. however when you got good, you could drop the legs/wheels while the patient on the stretcher in the air... you also noticed that the medics was not as "scrawny" then as well.. most could lift at least 150-200 pounds easily.. yes even the small women.

Also did not have the Fire Squads there either, so actually most medics were in better shape... had to be...

Be safe,

R/R 911

We still use these. I do admit it helps my upper body stay in shape. :wink:

Buncha damn druggies! (j/k)

I was killed by:

1) a drunk driver

2) my stepgrandfather

3) a stray bullet in New Orleans French quarter

4) a falling tree

5) the apaches

6) fighting apartheid

and finally, my favorite:

by my Stallion (Irish sporthorse), going into his stall at my

home In Kamloops.

Wow, there are more people than I thought that share my fear of clowns. I went with a friend one year at halloween to the costume store and they had a really nice mask of the clown in Stephen King's "It". I refused to go down the aisle because it scared me so bad. I was off somewhere else when she came around the corner a little while later wielding that damn mask. I almost peed my pants. :shock: :oops:

Some people have strange phobias (cats, mushrooms, midgets). So come on, share your phobia. I'll start.

1) arachaphobia (duh, I'm a girl)

2) claustrophobia (common enough)

3) coulrophobia (fear of clowns) 8-[

Here's a great website that lists every known phobia. Some are beyond odd. :shock:

http://www.phobialist.com/#A-

Ours just say 'PARAMEDICS'.

The person below me likes to antagonize frequent pshyc Pt's just to see the reaction of the Doc in the ER!!!!

I wasn't really antagonizing him, just having a little fun. I transported an extremely drunk pt. one night. He was so nice and happy, just thoroughly drunk out of his gourd. En route I told him that 'puta' was Spanish, meaning "beautiful lady" and that if he wanted to impress his RN at the hospital, he should call her that. I practiced with him the entire way. "Now Leroy, what are you going to call your nurse at the hospital?" He replied, "Puta, baby!" Once we got there, I dropped him off and went to give report to his nurse. I told her he was a really nice guy but had taken to calling me 'puta' from the beginning and that she should expect the same. I doubt he had a hard time because of it. He was just too sweet and happy to stay mad at. :angel12:

Okay, the person below me has taken a ruler to his member and was disappointed at the final result.

Sorry, I love lime jello.

The person below me is on numerous psych meds.

Um, spray it on them, not on your lip. :roll:

I think some patients may take offense to my spraying deodorizer on them. It's probably best to stick with vapo rub during the call, then spray everything down afterwards. :wink:

Could just bust out with some glade spray.

I think Glade spray would irritate my skin. OUCH! :shock:

Never vomited on a call but I have gagged on a few. I'm super sensitive to smells, namely sh*t. :shock: The second I smell it, I gag. *shudders* I carry Vicks with me, just in case.

Most management, frown upon personal relationship(s) at place of employment. If there becomes a problem in relationship, there is a problem at work. This does not make good working relations with other crew members & patronization can soon be indicated. I have worked in EMS for over 25+ yrs, & I have seen nothing but trouble with on-crew relationships (married or other wise) resentments build among crew members very fast & some consider unprofessional ism can be accused.

Be safe,

Ridryder 911

You took the words right out of my mouth. Beautifully stated. =D>

Please read post above yours. That is the post where I agreed with you.

Regards,

PRPG

Oh, sorry! I guess this is why it's a good idea to read the *entire* thread first.

Lets remember, 3 ALS trucks doesnt mean 6 medics in many systems, it means three medics.

Under the guise of three medics, patient #1 and patient #2 are dead.

If three als units means 6 medics, I could see the arguement you make.

I respectfully disagree. Even if there are only 3 medics, there is still adequate personnel available to treat and transport every patient. Broken ankles can wait.

*Ask for the helicopter. If they're unavailable, have dispatch send a fourth unit. I want fire/rescue working to extricate patient #1. Transport as soon as she's freed.

*The first patient I want to send out is the 3 year old in the backseat of the Civic, but if patient 6 is ready to go first then so be it. Pts. 3 and 5 can be placed in FSP and secured to the bench seat on any unit (as a 2nd pt.) and transported. BLS is capable of providing medical care to these patients (obviously, I would have someone drive us in). Worst case scenario (meaning 3 medics, 3 EMTs) this is 4 patients off of the scene already. The helicopter/4th unit gets one of the priority patients (preferably pt. 2 goes via air) and the other (3rd) unit gets pt. 4.

Obviously, I'm working under the guise of having plenty of available resources. I understand that this is not always the case. In any case, there is no way in hell I'm leaving pt. 2 on scene with a blanket over her. My medical director would have my patch before the unit was even cleaned.

How long do you guys think it's safe for a pregnant paramedic to be working in the field? Ladies, if you've been in this situation before, how long did you stay on the ambulance? Guys, if it were your wife/fiance/gf, does there come a point where you *insist* she take it easy (i.e. get off the ambulance) for safety's sake? I'm just curious as to other people's opinions on this subject. I have a co-worker that just had her baby last month, but stayed on the ambulance until her 35th week (and she was huuuuuuge) :shock: . It just seemed dangerous to me (only paramedic on the ambulance and a busy system). Opinions?

Doesn't sound like a very progressive medical control. Better medical controls will be more concerned with the patient getting the care they need at the earliest possible time than with how long it takes to get them to the hospital. The point of ALS EMS is to take the hospital to the patient. And if the patient immediately requires something we have within our capability, any overriding concern for scene time is grossly misplaced.

I absolutely agree. The only time our on scene times are scrutinized are when we have a priority 1 (immediately life threatening) trauma. On these calls we are ideallyrequired to be off scene within 10 mins. In these pts. we obtain an airway, place them in FSP, etc. and then load them into the unit. (Most) everything else can be done en route. These are the pts. that will likely require immediate surgery, so there is no need to be dicking around on the scene playing. On most other calls, we begin the appropriate care on scene (asthma, CP, diabetics, etc.). Once we have the pt. in a stable condition then we proceed with transport.