MedicNorth

That is called orientation here - you get hired, and assigned to a specific crew on regular shifts to learn the local ropes. You get paid for that, and once you have completed the assigned tasks you are on your own. The students I am taking are people who have completed their classroom and lab training, but are not yet finished because we have a practicum requirement before you can register. The practicum is generally 4 to 6 weeks, and must be completed before writing ACP (our NREMT exam) is possible.

In two weeks my second student of the year is scheduled to arrive, and as always I am looking forward to it. I have been trying for 2 per year for a while. EMS preceptorship is an interesting animal - The way things are set up nobody can get in without a practicum, and there is no way to force practitioners to take a student, especially since it is a lot of unpaid work. I love doing this. To be honest, I usually learn as much from them as they do from me. I find that somehow it refreshes my outlook on this job and sometimes reminds me why I went into EMS in the first place. That being said, I know it is not for everybody. There can also be a lot of frustration, personality issues, and, quite frankly, failure - success is never guaranteed. My questions: Do you take students on a regular basis? Why or why not?

Haha, and you say we don't listen!

Well, we hit 6, which is an improvement. Going for 8 tomorrow night!

Welcome. Feel free to browse, ask questions, and mostly POST! New ideas and perspectives are always nice

Haha, I would have to write up an inventory sheet before every shift if I carried all that! Not to mention, I am old and feeble, the extra weight might make me fall over An extra pair of gloves or two usually get dropped in leaving the unit as well.

Those look interesting - am always looking for a tax-deductible holiday, so I will check them out a little closer this week. Thanks!

lol - My boss is two hours away, and doesn't share his cards - Not even Timmies cards

That looks spectacular! Pretty long flight, though, and no hope that I could get any help from admin. Are there some good things happening in Colorado too? That is a lot closer...

OK - Unless Dispatch has another idea, I will be in chat on Thursday at 1930 Mountain - I assume that makes 2130 east, 1830 Pacific, etc. Does that work? And everyone welcome, if you can stand the old farts reminiscing about "the old days"

I have a suggestion..... Lets book a chatroom reunion for as many of us fossils as possible. I am heading back to work for a week tomorrow and if things work out will be able to drop in during the evening. Any time Thursday evening through to the following Wednesday evening will be fine. Any takers? A dozen or two in chat would be great, but even a couple would be worthwhile. I know we are dealing with various time zones and such. If you are interested, let us all know on here.

Pants hold stethoscope and shears. Shirt pocket has a pen, a note pad, and a bank card in case I need something to eat on a long transfer. Agreed that everything else you need is in the kit or on the car. I refuse to wear those bulky duty belts with a dozen holsters full of crap.

No figment, never could be, Terri. Those days, the group of friends we became, has very much been a part of who I am now, both professionally and personally. Nothing would make me happier than to have those amazing discussions back. The camaraderie, the constant good-natured bickering, and the parties in chat were enough to keep me here for hours every day, and I miss that a great deal.

At a recent convention I had the opportunity to listen to two different sessions on IV therapy. Both were very well done, and informative, but had very different messages. The first extolled the value of traditional Normal Saline in various situations, from Ketoacidosis to trauma resuscitation. The other painted NS as an invention of the devil, with no redeeming qualities other than that it is liquid. He cited studies that seem to show that NS is not as effective as other alternatives such as Plasma-Lyte, and in some cases is actually harmful, causing kidney damage, exacerbating ketoacidosis and hyperchloremia, among other potentially devastating effects. His expectation was that NS would be gone from our kits very soon, and tomorrow was too late. Does anybody have any experience with alternative solutions who could add information to this? There is a fair amount of research out there, but much of it is in very small studies.

I kept in touch with Wilf for quite a while, but he disappeared from the radar, and I have not heard from him in a couple years. I know Things were pretty rough for a while. I would love to hear from him again.

Out of the woodwork

Don't get me wrong, Doc - the rush and the rectal pucker is still there for some calls. I work in a remote area with a very small hospital, and very often don't get to quit once I hand off my patient since the local docs are far less experienced with trauma than we are as EMS crews. We frequently work for several hours in the ER after the official handoff. There is nothing in my scope that I have not done, and I have probably pushed the envelope more than I will admit. My only real point is that being an MD in most north American services would be extremely frustrating because you would be unable to use the training and knowledge you have. It would be like being a paramedic in a service that didn't carry any meds... You know what needs to be done but simply are unable to do it. Some major changes would have to appear before it could be fulfilling as a career choice.

Hi Annie! Peer pressure can be a good thing on occasion!

Wow - obviously a few, at least. And yes, a mix of laziness and old-age forgetfulness prevented a much longer list Happy that you are doing ok, Carl, and nice to see a few names other than the ones I mentioned. J306, no, I have never worked for that outfit... though I should since they stole my handle, the buggers. I know a few people who have and they have mostly good to say about them, though. There are a couple others which do the same in the far north, and I can find you some info if you are interested. SO, does anybody here ever hang about in chat, or get together for beers, or enjoy verbal battles till all participants are battered and bloody but still friends? God I hope so!

It has been a long time since the glory days of "City" with Dust, Rid, Mike, AK, and a host of others I would list if there was room. I would love to hear from as many of you from the 10 years ago era who are still around, as well as meet the new crew. I do recognize some names, and will check in as much as I can.

Chances are that you could work on an ambulance, but would have to stay within the scope of practice for a paramedic, mostly because the company you are working for would stock the unit to that level, and would be insured to that level. That would be extremely frustrating for someone who had invested the years and money to get the MD. I don't understand why a busy ER would not suit you - So much more you can do with the skilled staff, the support, the tools to do the job. If it is the rush, believe me, it wears off after a while.

And once you have read the stuff, write it down. And then write it again, without looking at the book or previous notes. If you miss something. write it yet again, until you can write it down with nothing missing. If you are a verbal or auditory learner, say it as you write it. If you can create a pneumonic, like an acronym, so much the better. I agree with the posts above - it is a huge topic. You cant mush it all into one simple little trick. Break it into little bits, and work on them in manageable chunks.

hmmm - Waiting on info here. Would love to see what the vitals, History, and ECG show us

Pertinent question, Island. We all have ways we like to do things, and get set into a comfort zone that is often difficult to see beyond. If I was a betting man, I would wager that your advice would be to shut up, suck it up, and adjust. I have worked with people who had the attitude that it was their way or nothing. I have worked with people who don't care what process is used as long as the results are the same. Most of us would fall somewhere in between. Now, that being said, my question remains - What are some strategies that you use to come to terms with the situation?

Purely hypothetical, naturally!