skibum

I whole-heartedly agree... very cool 8)

Thanks for all the feedback guys, appreciate it. -skibum

Hi all, For starters, I searched for an answer to my question already and haven't been able to find it discussed anywhere. So my apologies up front if this is a repost (call it "user-error"). I have recently been issued a small oxygen tank (and accessories) by my volunteer squad to be carried in my POV, to be used when responding directly to a scene prior to ambulance arrival. My question is, is it safe to leave the 02 tank in my un-sheltered vehicle? Thus exposing it to cold temperatures during winter, and hot during summer. I have put some thought into it, and haven't been able to convince myself one way or the other. On one hand, the tanks are designed for a large spectrum of use, including cold and hot weather rescues; and they are able to withstand high pressures. On this side of the coin, the tanks seem pretty rugged, and leaving it in its 'home' should be a walk in the park, right? On the other hand, I have read about regulator failure causing some serious problems/injuries, and I'd like to avoid this at all costs (as I'm certain everyone does). So to expand a bit on my question, it seems obvious for safety sake, the tank should be brought in every night when extreme temperatures are possible. Are the scenarios I depicted extreme enough to warrant this extra effort of bringing the equipment into the house and then back into the vehicle when necessary, or are these temperatures considered within the scope of the design of the equipment (or perhaps this varies based on tank manufacturer?) Thanks in advance for any suggestions/thoughts. -skibum

sounds "interesting", albeit they openly admit its far fetched from reality... It could be fun to play with for a bit; but it's not enough to incite me to go out and get a Wii

I second PRPGfirerescuetech... I have been very content teaching the ASHI program for the last few years. -skibum

Just my $.02... I agree with scaramedic, (many years ago) I took the farmedic, or perhaps a mock-farmedic course, and I thought the material in it was invaluable for the rural/agricultural incidents. The scenarios we practiced really made one think (for example: A farmer getting limbs stuck in various pieces of equipment, drive shafts, etc; treatment, extrication, scene safety...). All in all, something along these lines, I'd highly recommend. -skibum

Many years back my partner and I had to "retrieve" a large pt from a nursing home for transport to the ER... I estimate 600lbs. Fortunately, the nursing home had a hydraulic lift (think of a device similar to that of lifting a whale at an aquarium), which made this an easy pickup. But in the ER, we stood back and let the nurses handle it

That's great

Thanks for the background Phil, quite the "interesting" fellow. Entertaining nonetheless. -skibum

sorry

Didn't see this posted yet, but found it entertaining and thought i'd share: Child arrested after opening Christmas gift early Thoughts?

As Anthony said, where in NY? It's a pretty big state, are you headed to the City (I assume? Not too many people fly cross country to look at the mosquitoes in the adirondacks.) If you're not headed to the City, Niagara Falls is one of many other neat places; but the City will keep you busy for quite some time. -skibum

I am a member of a volly BLS (non-profit) ambulance agency in NY and we do precisely what has been discussed. We bill the insurance companies and take what we can get, if the pt. doesn't have insurance, we take the loss. To keep a long story short, I just wanted to bring up that we do it, and it seems to be working for us. So if there were any specific questions you had, I could talk with the people in my squad that know something about it and get your questions answered. -skibum

Just my $.02 for what it's worth about cardboard splints. As it seems the consensus, I also like cardboard splits for their simplicity, price, etc. (Personally I carry SAM splints in my jump bags). In addition to working on an ambulance, I also ski patrol and use the cardboard splits, but herein lies the only pitfall I have discovered with the cardboard splits. When working in such an environment the splints will sometimes become waterlogged/soggy and will need to be re-splinted when the pt. has been transported to the ambulance, or someplace else (first aid room) out of the elements. -skibum

I plead the fifth :-#

I teach the new protocol under ASHI, and I personally think the new protocols are harder to follow for "seasoned" healthcare providers, as some of the changes almost seem counter-intuitive. For the lay-rescuer this is new protocol must be a god-send, but I have yet to teach such a course, we are still trying to get all of our EMTs updated first. The other pain is getting all of our AEDs reprogrammed to match the new protocols. (end rant) -skibum

Where I ski patrol, we still use Thomas Irons... want to trade?

That applies to one of the FDs in our district, along with the PD and one of the mutual aid EMS agencies. :?

We have a haunted hayride in my district, and we had a pretty significant/severe/(insert adjective of your choice) CVA tonight. I can't say if it was the strobes, fright, or what that my have triggered it, but it just goes to show that you may need to be prepared for anything, from the smallest abrasions to life threats. Just my $.02 -skibum

Hi William (and Cliff), glad to see you made your way onto emtcity. Great tunes, keep 'em coming! -skibum

I did a quick search, and haven't seen anything posted about these guys yet: Sequoyah Rain A little about them (copied from their myspace): Sequoyah Rain was started in March of 2006. You see, Will and Cliff played guitars together while waiting for emergencies calls to come in while working at a local ambulance service. For months on end the other employee's of the ambulance service ask them to write a song about EMS, a song that would help everyday citizens understand what EMT's do for a living. A song that would maybe shed a little light into the eyes of people who just don't understand what EMT's have to take home everyday. The song that started "Sequoyah Rain" is "The Angel." They are currently working on more songs that will hopefully be recorded by January of 2007. I'm not going to comment on the song itself, you can listen and form your own opinion: Sequoyah Rain (myspace) -skibum

Downstate NY.... "Bus" or "Rig" -skibum