DwayneEMTP

I think he was dinking with it trying to make it bleed. Pretty sure it's not a camera trick, though I'm not very sophisticated where that is concerned.

Yeah, went from bleeding freely to arcing.

I will try and find the link and post it here.

Dwayne

EDIT: Here is the link. http://www.uniquepeek.com/viewpage.php?page_id=188

I was watching a video with a bunch of bonehead backyard wrestlers and had a question about an injury.

One of the guys got a pretty good lac on his left arm about 2 1/2-3 inches below the inside of his elbow. It was bleeding freely, then suddenly a stream appeared. It arced from the injury about 6-8 inches in the air, perhaps slightly more (where of course he drank it). The stream was approximately 1/8 of an inch in diameter and steady for 3 or 4 seconds, maybe more but the vid ended.

As Basics we were taught the difference between capillary, venous, arterial bleeding. It seems it must have been venous as it didn't pulse, but it seemed to be under so much pressure for such a long time it made me wonder...

Venous right? Or is there some dynamic here I'm missing? Probably a silly question, but....there you have it.

Yeah, I'm in A&P and now the proud owner of the names of all the bone and their landmarks, (yeppers Dust, even the carpals and tarsals!) but haven't gotten into the circulatory system yet...

Thanks all, Have a great day!

Dwayne

My appologies to our friends from Illinois....Though you have to admit the testing snaffu makes them look terrible...you both seem to be top notch!

Have a great day!

Dwayne

Or being treated by a fireman in Illinois....

Dwayne

Tooth ache for 8 years... catfish "finned"..

R/r911

"If you've ever been 'finned', you might be a redneck"

Dwayne

Hey all,

I'm a month or so into A&P and doing ok (well, about 97-98% of possible so far) and was wondering about the posts I see regarding cadavers.

Are/have you guys dissected human cadavers in class? We start on cats this next week. I'm told they are anatomically very much like humans...(different posture of course).

I've talked to some nurses and medics that took A&P without labs....? It wasn't an option in my program, I didn't even know you could. (wouldn't have anyhow)

Anyhow, I wasn't sure if "cadaver" referred to anything dead you studied or if it only applied to humans, and if only humans, how many of you studied humans instead of animals. And if so is a cat still a valid subject to study to learn about humans?

This is all pretty daunting to me...I went into class thinking "I can't believe we have to learn all the bones of the human body in one semester!"....Of course that was our job in the first week! Yeah...I know...I can be a bonehead...I want to study something that has like....three vertebrae and a kidney...

Thanks all...Have a great day!

Dwayne

Emilea PA C,

I feel your pain! I was part way through my Basic class when it hit me...Nothing makes sense! My instructor told me to wait...it would all line up in time...and it did.

There were some things I felt were covered well, and in those situations it really isn't about me, but what I learned and how much I practiced it.

If I need to hold c-spine, do CPR etc...I know it will be there when I need it...and my instructor also reminded me that EMS is a team sport...you aren't likely to have much responsibility until you're ready. (I'm in school, not working so I could be way wrong...but others will fix it if I am)

But understand you WILL NOT learn all you need to know in Basic class. You are responsible for filling in the gaps...if you don't see them (the gaps), ask here and many people much smarter than I will point you in the right direction.

Now that I have a few semester of biology and am a ways into anatomy and physiology I feel dumber than ever!!! But take heart....some people I really respect here promise me that if I study hard, and honestly, and practice till I want to puke that everything will line up one day...and "it will be a beautiful thing".

Keep your chin up...practice till you puke...It will work out for you too!

(By the way...I am not an excellent student...So I bet you'll do great)

Dwayne

As a final thing. Just in case anyone hasn’t notice, you guys only pick on the young peoples spelling. I have read ova a few posts, were the ‘more experienced’ critical care paramedics or nurse or what ever have made mistakes. Everyone just reads over it and gets on with the question at hand, they don’t comments on there grammar errors. Ahhh to have a perfect world…..

There you have it Timmy. Your excuse to be as dumb as you want to be. If being held to a higher standard makes you so crazy, why do you beat your head against the wall here when there are a dozen other boards that love people that choose to be dumb?

Your posts we starting to come across smart and mature, I'm sorry you decided to take this path....

When you have 10,000 calls of experience to offer, people will ignore your grammar and spelling as well...

Pony up Timmy...Choose to be smart....or be happy at one of the 'wacker' sites...But please stop asking us to help you fail.

Dwayne

Punisher, perhaps you were reading a different thread....

Do a search for some of Students' posts and you'll see where you went wrong..

Dwayne

Becksdad: Thanks for that mate you made it really easy to understand!

It’s hard when your only learning and you have different people saying different things.

I'm with you Timmy, becksdad has a way of explaining issues up front and around all the corners...pretty cool!

I haven't given enough thought to blood pressure it seems...

I guess I will now...!

Dwayne

Hey Mark,

You are absolutely right about the way these threads go...though it didn't used to be this way.

I think most of the people that have been here more than a couple of months would disagree with your assumption that this is a place to come and 'shoot the breeze.' Most of us come here to learn, and being non-judgemental does not serve that purpose.

Timmy sounds like a dedicated young man, he's been doing this a long time, but he has habits that are absolutely going to hold him back. The way he speaks and writes. If he truly wants to succeed as a professional, these are issues he needs to deal with. Unfortunately he is following the advice of those that tell him not to worry about appearing ignorant and is starting to think his posts are cute. And that's a shame...He's too good for that.

Timmy I look forward to your posts! I think you have more experience than many people here but it gets lost in your lazy posting.

Keep posting! Keep working hard! But stop listening to the people that are telling you that the way you represent yourself is unimportant...It's much more than important, it's vital.

Dwayne

It seems like if you go back four or five months people used to be a little scared of posting nonsense or grammar and punctuation at a fourth grade level. Somewhere we've become much more politically correct...

For every "please post as an intelligent person" post there are now three or five or maybe ten "leave him alone, he's (young, having a bad day, sleepy, from another country) posts....

Yeah, I know this isn't very scientific, it's just my impression. In the same time period it seems we've lost a lot of the "smart" people that were staples here...Doczilla, chbare, ErDoc etc...etc. Of course we still have a bunch of smart people, but I wonder if we lost the others while dumbing down.

And it seems many of the smart people we have now (Dust, Rid, asys, scara, Becksdad, Michael and many others) spend their time defending their expectation that people represent themselves in at least a slightly intelligent manner instead of educating. Which is what they do best. (Besides being funny as hell I might add)

And yes, I do see the irony of me posting in a thread against people being boneheads.

Let's go back to being a little bit scared to post without thinking. It will raise the intelligence bar back up a bit I think.

Dwayne

You have got me Michael...I tried to find some clue that made the site a spoof or misdirected attempt at education....couldn't do it...

Either way they seem pretty freaky.....

With their claim that it's aimed at kids....it's gotta be a spoof...

Dwayne

Well, whoever is right...I'm just happy to see ERDoc is posting again!

Hey Doc!

Wow firefighter523, I'm glad you posted that....We were taught, like Rid said, in the Basic curriculum that you never cause, or allow bone ends to retract back into the body if it can be helped...because of the contamination...They pounded this into our heads...

I dug out my "Emergency Care. Brady, 10Th ed." to see what it said. I found a ton of stuff on traction splinting but nothing about retracting bone ends, but it showed the same contraindications you mentioned above.

Though I did find this..."Don't push protruding bone ends back into place. However, when you realign deformed open injuries, they may slip back into position under traction." (chapter 28, pg 646) I believe this is talking about manual traction and not traction splints specifically, though it would seem to be the same issue...

I can't wait to see what others have to say on this....

Dwayne

Did he say why in each case?

Dwayne

I agree with NREMT-Basic 100%...

My first right along I was focused on staying out of the way. The paramedic was under the impression I was there to learn and made me to jump in and get busy! That's one of those "man, I wish I could take back those two hours" times.

A different medic might have let me waste my whole day doing nothing....from other threads here it seems the majority of the people you'll ride with are on board with making you better than you were when you arrived...don't waste their time being timid...withing limits of course.

Take everything you can get out of your hospital time and ride alongs...your time is very limited...make it pay!

Good luck...

Dwayne

Thanks for the response guys...Thanks for making me look at the bigger picture.

You know what's funny...is the further I go in my education the more the simple questions start to grow teeth.

Basic academy: Mid-shaft femur fracture without contraindications = traction splint. Patient = leg.

Real life: Patient = whole person, vitals, moi, history, time to hospital, etc, etc, etc (all the etcs being stuff I'm sure I don't know yet).

I'm beginning to believe that my school did a disservice by convincing me I actually had a handle on some things...

I'm not bashing Basics. I went to the basic academy because I saw a woman get hit by a cab and didn't know what to do. I would be much more help to her now than before..(for instance I would now want to know if she was alive before freaking out over her broken arms and legs... :roll: )

It seems that each class I complete creates a bunch of "what ifs" for things that I was taught were pretty black and white. It's getting easier and easier to see the issues involved in giving 'simple' meds as a basic.

I felt much more competent after my first 3 weeks of basic training than I do now after bio-chem and a little A&P.

I'm not speaking for other basics...Even when both brain cells are firing I can't speak on the same level as most here....this is just my experience....

Perhaps the biggest benefit of my becoming a basic (me...no one else) is I'll be a much better source of information for 911 when calling for a paramedic.

Thanks again for your help!!

Dwayne

I wasn't sure which forum was most appropriate so decided maybe other basics could learn from this.

I have a feeling these are dorky questions...but couldn't find an answer elsewhere....so here goes.

Disclaimer (So we don't tie up the thread with how unfair it is to judge others, I don't have much info and will just post what I do have as it relates to the question. This is not meant to be a fair representaion of this call and I have no idea how this turned out!) Thank you.

Disclaimer II (Though disclaimers such as the one above seem to be becoming necessary, I think it sucks and am not going to do it again. I'm leaving this one in the hopes of making a point.) Thank you.

Man shot multiple times, hand, arm, femur. All on the right side. As they load him up his leg twists mid-femur (I'm not positive that mid-femur is the only injury to this area but am going to assume it is for the question) You can see the skin twist like taffy, I'm not sure how to describe it.

As this injury came from a gunshot and not a fall is there a greater possibility that it is not a clean break but perhaps the bone is shattered...?

If it is shattered, only in the mid-femur area, is this still called a fracture or is there another name for it?

Again assuming it is slightly shattered (restricted to a small area. I don't have the language I need for this) would a traction splint be useful? Is it still applicable if you don't have well defined bone ends or would this be a contraindication?

Both my brain cells are screaming that I should know these answers, or they should have been easily found...neither seems to be the case. So if I boneheaded this I'll take my beating...

Thanks all...Have a great day or night!

Dwayne

State moves to ease EMT shortage By Matt Adrian

matt.adrian@lee.net wrote:

SPRINGFIELD - Growing concerns about a shortage of first responders is forcing the state to fix problems with certifying paramedics.

The Illinois Department of Public Health promised earlier this month it will create a test for certifying entry-level emergency medical technicians by January 2007. The promise comes after groups like the Illinois Fire Chiefs Association complained they had been locked out of the process for two years.

"There may be times when we disagree on the strategy, but be assured we will only make decisions based on what are the best possible outcomes for the EMS community and most importantly the residents of Illinois," public health officials said in a memo.

The Illinois Fire Chiefs Association still believes more work is needed.

"It is a short-term fix," said Terry Mastandrea, the association's first vice president. "At least now we have a voice with the Department of Public Health and hope they understand that the fire service is a major stakeholder that needs to be part of the process."

The move to resolve the testing problems comes after a two-year period that saw emergency responders and lawmakers become increasingly concerned about the lack of direction from the state.

"We need a large pool of EMTs for our fire departments and ambulance services," said state Rep. Don Moffitt, R-Gilson, co-chairman of the Illinois Fire Service Legislative Caucus. "In these very troubled times, we want to be sure we have adequate numbers of EMTs."

The Department of Public Health required entry-level EMTs to be certified by the National Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians. Critics of the national registry test argue the exam asked many questions not applicable to Illinois, such as how to treat scorpion stings and coral snake bites.

The national registry also costs more and may not be offered in a convenient location, said Bloomington Fire Chief Keith Ranney.

"There is some inherent inflexibility with a national system," he said.

Creating a state exam for EMTs at the intermediate level also hit a snag after a pilot test led to a 100 percent failure rate. An interim test has been created until a permanent solution can be found. http://www.pantagraph.com/articles/2006/09...news/118749.txt

Hell...you all convinced me to get a two year degree instead of a cert....Turns out I should have just waited! Soon I should be able to become a Paramedic in a weekend....

This just frosts my boys....Who was brave enough to go public with the information that our people are so stupid they can't manage the NREMT/(P?) (it's not very clear) but we'd really like to hire them anyway...

When I get my AAS in Emergency Medicine will employers even notice?

Who wants to work with people that can't pass the NREMT? Who wants to be cared for by them? Is it just coincidence this is fire? Are hospitals and privates crying to lower standards as well, so they can find employees? (serious question)

Yikes...I've done a dozen posts about whiners...and here I am...this just makes me a little crazy...

Done with my rant...Now I see why you old timers are so stirred up about education....

Dwayne

+5 for not running away!

Good job...I think you have a lot to offer...

For someone like me that hasn't worked in the field yet I find this to be a great learning scenario....Had I given it some thought I might have viewed scene safety as being so dynamic....but I hadn't done so before...I tended to think of them as safe or not...I'll rethink it now.

You may get some folks screaming about the racial stereotypes...but that doesn't invalidate them....(I haven't spent enough time in such non diverse communities to have an opinion) take the comments you can learn from and and let the rest blow on by...

Glad you decided to stick around...

Dwayne

James_ffemt,

Just a few thoughts....

There are a ton of 'posers' on this and all the other EMS sites. One of the things that makes the City different is it's very uncomfortable to pretend to be something you're not and get caught. If you're here for a while I think you'll come to see the value in that. Other sites love embellished hero stories...here it's all about facts, education and common (and sometimes uncommon) sense.

You more or less got caught in the culling process.

I once posted a scenario from a book I read...Tons of "what an idiot. You'll believe anything!" posts. So I looked the book up on Amazon and posted the relevant chapters. Two things happened. First...some people I've come to respect said "ooops...I wish I would have handled that differently" (more or less) and second....I have been given the benefit of the doubt on many subsequent posts. Many seem to remember I was able to support my statements. Even if I had turned out to be wrong still, supporting my statements was required...and then accepted.

I'm glad you stepped up with your articles...the 'posers' tend to go and stay gone when someone calls bullshit on them.

I was embarrassed by some of the responses to your post. Someone in their first week of Basic class would see the scene safety issues, there was no need for the soapboxes...but you know what? It's a small price to pay in my opinion. I take the crap from the masses so I can benefit from the opinion of the 20 - 30 people I respect.

I come here to have my thoughts and opinions judged by others. It's not always fun...but it's rarely wasted time.

I hope you stick around. I'll bet you have a lot to offer. Your night would be a great scenario in the scenario section.

Dwayne

Oh my gosh Rid....If I didn't laugh at idiots I'd spend half my time mad or disgusted...

But I can see with your background where stupid people might not be as funny to you...I'm not there yet...so I gotta laugh at them...

On the bright side, perhaps games like this will make these guys less likely to reproduce!

Dwayne

http://www.yikers.com/video_japanese_show_...ong_answer.html

Who thinks these things up?

How come you never see girls doing this kind of stuff? (you know what I mean....)

What is it about human nature that makes me laugh my hind end off while watching it???

Dwayne

PRPGfirerescuetech I have nothing but respect for you, but I disagree with you that these posts are pointless and fruitless.

I my basic academy we reviewed dozens pics of accident scenes, trauma etc. an ran through "what ifs" and I would imagine we will do scads more in paramedic school.

I can't think of a single educational venue that doesn't use pics to educate. How do you replace them with text?

Viewing pics forces us to develop mental scenarios and resolve them. I believe it is an absolutely valid way of learning.

I don't believe it becomes invalid because a few people get their panties in a bunch...if we invalidated every thread that stirred someone up the City might as well close it's doors.

It seems to me the attitude in the City is shifting (yet I'm prepared to be proven wrong...again). People used to be wary of whining about things that hurt their feeling if they couldn't back up those feeling with valid facts. Now it seems that being politically correct is trumping education....

Are we to lose the wisdom of you, Dust, Rid, asys, and a few dozen others because they neglect to wrap their posts in velvet?

Perhaps I am just stumbling on threads that are not indicative of the City as a whole...I hope so...for putting education above all else is what separates the City from all the "wanna be's" out there.

I thank everyone for their thoughts....even if I don't like them...

Please...let's get back to focusing on facts...and education...even if it stings sometimes...

Dwayne