mobey

Mobey... I'm an Augustana '07 grad. What do you want to know about the program?

Welcome to the site Vein-T.

The usual questions...

Overall was the course laid out well? Was the material up to date? During the monkey skills parts was the equipment in good working order, or did you have to "Pretend" to intubate the doll because the blades were missing?

Also did you work ALS before starting? or did you go into the course cold?

Thanks for takin the time!!

pinned it to the back portion of the soft top on my heep. You have to be standing behind the jeep and looking close to see it.

Now that is funny

Hmmm... this one is hard to give a straight answer to. I believe if it is a standard granny run with no significant event occuring - Yes (e.g. I just feel a little dizzy and it burns to pee, hyperventilation, etc). i believer FR can make all the difference in these people.

However if it is a significant call like an MI , Anaphylaxis, CVA, There may be some brief anxiety reduction until the Pt figures out that holding hands does not break clots or reduce swelling.

Yes this mild relief is a positive thing....temporarily.

I do not use soap at all. In fact I'd never heared of it till I came to the city.

I have my own format:

HxCc (history of chief complaint)

PmHx (Past med history)

O/A (On arrival, includes scene info and first impression)

O/E (On exam - Broke into systems as below)

LOC, A&O, A,B,C, Skin, CNS, CVS, Resp, Gi, Gu, Extremeties, MSK.

If it is a trauma

LOC, A&O, A,B,C, Head, Neck, Chest, Abd....and so on.

This way I can write what I don't find as well as what I find. Ya It's alot of writing but I got used to it.

After being there five years, there were me and two others the highest paid $5.50/hr. But that was in 1989 also.

Ya looks like min wage was around $3.39 in '89, so you were paid about 2 dollars more/hr.

Pretty sad.

A house in Alberta is gonna run around $200,000 for a family sized decent home. Rent will be around $800-$1000/month.

So ya the $20/hr does not go far but you can make a living on it.

I would suggest calling thier supervisor and ask him/her. That would be a really good place to start. You have every right to do so if you wish.

Just a warning: When people reply check out the flag under thier name, every region has thier own "standard of care" and policies. That is why I believe it is important for you to ask them directly.

It is very easy to figure out who I am and where I am, so I will hold off on giving you any "Official" answers, but BASED ON WHAT YOU DESCRIBED I probably would have waited to remove clothing till we were in the rig. (And even then I dunno if i would have went right to the birthday suit)

But like I said every region is different. The hospital I used to bring trauma's to, always told me "Every patient on a board better be naked". The hospital I work with now would rather have underwear left on for Pt. comfort.

I'm thinking a "pressure dressing" on top of the obvious injury site as it is wrapped. I might improvise by putting 2 kling rolls on either side of the throat to prevent pressure on the windpipe

I would grab a firemonkey to keep manual pressure on the wound.

I am unsure about the above statement. Should we be worried about applying pressure to the carotid arteries or in/ex jugulars? I don't know I am not familiar enough with any problems that may come of this. (if there are any)

Occlusion?

Vagal responce?

I dunno just thinkin out loud.

If they don't want a basic to have the ability to push drugs or run anything other than saline that’s fine but there are times that a normal TKO saline will help the patient big time ....

Example??

Yes I smoke

No I never smoke on shift or in uniform

Yes I consider myself less of a professional because of it.

Yes I judge others by thier choices, therefore if they are overweight due to an illness i do not judge and will view them as a professional.

However if you choose to smoke in uniform, drink before your shift, and eat McDonalds every meal resulting in you becoming an overweight, out-of shape stinky slob, I will not even give you the time of day to say hello.

From my experience most obeise people who are actively working a job such as ours, have only a mild influence over thier weight, I try not to judge overweight people based on thier

weight.

BTW as my avatar clearly shows, I am 6'5 - 135IBS, can I be judged as unprofessional for being so skinny?

20$ in canada is last i checked pretty much 20$ in the U.S as far as exchange rates go. If thats not what you wanted to know, my apologies

Ya something like that...Maybe $19.25 US.

We get paid about the same as a manager of a fast food restaurant or gas station.

About a third of what a nurse gets.

http://www.demers-ambulances.com/index.php...mp;productId=48

I vote on these rigs. They are as smooth as a type 2 but as roomy as a type 3. Good fuel milage too. but we will have to order them with the roll cages offered by some other manufacturers.

Do we keep the emergency lights?

I vote we take them off the in-town units, and only use them for emergency transfers between cities (I assume we will be doing those?).

^ hehehe

If you want to make money in EMS as a basic you could come to Canada. Take your Primary Care Paramedic, make $20/hr while taking your 2 yr Advanced Care Paramedic program.

You will end up with about 3 yrs education, then do whatever you want.

Usually I will start off saying "Hi I am Mobey, this is my partner *****, what's your name?"

If they are freaking out, before i do anything I will say something like "The worst part is over, the ambulance is here and we are here to help you. Take a deep breath and tell me what is wrong"

I agree with not saying everything is going to be fine. I just took a 31 y/o male into the city a half hour away who was having an active MI. About half way he asked me "Just how bad is this?" I told him he was a critical patient, but he was able to talk to me, however I let him know he was in serious condition.

He elected to call his wife from my cell phone in the ambulance. When we arrived at the hospital he quickly coded and died.

If I would have told him "Everything is going to be fine" he probably would have never called his wife to tell her he loves her one last time.

.... alcohol in my pockets..

That's what those pants pockets are for ...Flasks

I think the duty slacks are much more professional and comfortable than any BDU or EMS pants I have had the "pleasure" or wearing. There is no realistic reason to have a pant with eight pockets in them for 911 ambulance use..none that I have been privi too.

IMHO the EMS pants look amateurish and...how you say?... Whackerish..

I agree. The uniform I have to wear includes pants with the reflective stripe and of course 6 pockets. In my pockets I carry a wallet and a cell phone. On my belt...Nothing, that's why I have pockets

I think they look stupid and too close to a security guard or cop.

If the standing order is for a fluid bolus via IV, its doesnt matter who starts it. Starting the IV line takes about as much skill as starting a 3.5 inch line on a fire hydrant. Its a technical skill that I have seen paragods botch time and time again. Why shouldnt we get the fun of screwing up the same things they screw up. I mean if I have seen a medic take five sticks, then there must not be much skill involved. Its must all be luck. Who's to say you are luckier than I am? Seriously, I have the basics of hemodynamics down, lets just move on. What i predicated would happen has happend which is medics whining about us taking away their toys.

Alright I am not a Paramedic let me ask.

You roll up on a car wreck, car vs pole @ 50mi/hr

76 y/o male pt approx 150Ib

Complains of Leg pain. Obvious deformity of L femur and open fracture of right tib.

Pt complains of crushing chest pain that caused him to veer off the road.

BP 92/50 P 88 R 22 some quiet crackles in bases of lungs.

Hx, MI x8mos ago, CHF, Smoker x 30 yrs, Enlarged heart, Hypertension.

He is not sure what meds he is on or what thier for.

So you have D5W, Lac Ringers, NaCl, and all sorts of needles.

What size cathlon you gonna use? with what solution? and what drip rate? does this guy even warrant an IV?

Please include 5 problems that may occur with this IV.

Don't see this as a negative post please. Take this opportunity to show how far the EMT-B course has come since these old Paramedics were in basic school!

(SORRY ADMIN I was writing this while you posted. Feel free to remove if you would like, but I am being sincere, not trying to degrade)

sounds like you dont know your own skills caus as an EMT-A ACP lets me use EPI and ECG IV therapy etc it all depends on what your medical director does and i think your taking toomuch offence to what i said im just saying who cares its about how you treat not what your title is i beleave you said it earlier how you have met paramedics you would not trust with your cat and you were refering to advanced care paramedics

I was making a point...I know my scope.

The point was if PCP's have advanced knowledge why would you not want to be called a PCP. That was the reason for the comparison to Sask.

Here in Alberta we are all PCP's now. We became that when we took our GAP training. On top of that schools have been teaching to the CMA standard for years now with the added Alberta stuff. So here in Alberta if you are hired as an EMT-A then they are hiring you as a PCP. But still here in Alberta just because you are hired as a PCP it doesnt mean that you get to use those skills right away. With some services you have to pass their exams to do the skills.

Are you in Alberta?

If you are what does ACP stand for in Alberta??

Advance Care Paramedic or does it stand for Alberta College of Paramedics??

So as i see it the College needs to eather change its name or stick with the titles it has

ACP= Advanced Care Paramedic

ACofP= Alberta college of paramedics

That was easy :roll:

Please read the first 4-5 posts to fully understand this thread.

Or at least let it die, I am getting tired of reapeating myself.

If EMT title offends you that much go get your EMT_P then truly no one would be able to harsh on you for calling your self a paramedic and you would damn well know you earned the title even more so than you do now

i as an EMT/PCP (took the course here in alberta ) really don't let my title affect me the public calls me a paramedic anyway and if i correct them i'm automatically demoted to EVO lol so really its all about do you do your job the best you can and do you feel good about what you do if yes great if no its probably because you know you could do more ie the EMT-P program i for one like the different titles feels like more of an acomplishment when you get that fancy little -p on your shoulder maybe thats just me or maybe that's just big bad alberta brainwashing who knows its not like i cant change my title right

ps sorry for the bad spelling

Did you read this whole thread??

First off I cannot obtain my EMT-P because that course is not offered in Canada anymore!

Secondly, as long as I have the $$ I will be starting my Advanced Care Paramedic in Sept.

And lastly, I think you missed the point of this thread all together. I do not want to be called a Paramedic due to the fact I wish I was an Advanced Care Paramedic (or what was EMT-P), it is to be recognized for the competencies that I have met (that EMT's never have) and to progress the profession.

Really, I mean really, are you happy with the same title as John-Bob down the street who took a 2 week course 12 years ago, and doesn't even know how to pronounce the word physiology?

In Sask PCP's can draw up Epy to administer IM, Cardiac monitoring, and Ventolin neb. EMT's cannot do any of those things because they are recognized as having lower education. So if you were applying for a job in Sask which are you? EMT or PCP?

If your answer is PCP then why would you not demand that recognition in AB?

correct me if I'm wrong but doesn't glucagon deplete the stored glucose in the liver and if not treated appropriately post administration this could cause significant problems in the diabetic patient.

I've not had the luxury of having glucagon as a med choice in a long time so I'm not up to speed on glucagon.

My thoughts exactly, it causes the liver to dump all of it's glycogen stores and inhibits glycogen synthesis. (Thats why sometimes it works and sometimes not. No stores no glucose).

You can't just give a mg of glucagon then have the patient sign the release form.

. Used MAST device. We continued CPR, knowing we could only keep him viable for organ donation. Had a carotid pulse twice enroute but for a very short time. They did harvest almost everything but the heart.

I didn't realize there were still services out there using them. When I took my PCP one of the students asked "What are MAST pants used for?" My instructor replied "Collecting dust in EMS museums".

I have never seen them, and if I did from what I have read (see Dr. Bledsoe's personal website) I would throw them out the back doors at a high rate of speed.

Although I have had people tell me how many lives they have saved using them (Again see anecdote based EMS by Bledsoe hehe).

http://medi-smart.com/tut-15.htm

this one is okay for 3 lead beginner.

Such as...

I have already debated this specific thing in an earlier thread but....

In Saskatchewan we were under protocol to lye the Pt. on thier side and swab thier cheek with Glucose. (Even if they were on a spine board)

And NO I would never do it.

Sorry to bug again but I am interested in the distance delivery Paramedic program out of Camrose. Anyone here taking/taken it?

Reasses pulse, resume CPR if not present, check rhythm