runswithneedles Posted April 2, 2012 Share Posted April 2, 2012 after being in my paramedic program for two long semesters and completing the EMT before it. I have finally received my first cardiac arrest during a clinical. We were dispatched to a resp distress to find out the guy had OD'd on meth. Needless to say he didnt live and after the ordeal I was drenched in sweat and gagging from dry mouth, the smell of the vomit that shot out of a improperly placed ET tube, and doing chest compressions non stop for close to 10 minutes on this guy. For some reason i found it quite stress relieving to be pounding away at his chest. Is that normal?And along with that I felt no pity or compassion for this man because of the way he chose to leave this earth leaving behind two kids that watched us wheel him into the ambulance and drive away. Possibly witnessed him shoot up his last dose that did him in. Is that wrong of me? And the following thursday after I completed my first intubation on a moderately difficult woman. (also got to see her wake up and start moving on the OR table but thats a different story) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nypamedic43 Posted April 2, 2012 Share Posted April 2, 2012 Feeling pity or compassion or not really depends on you and the situation. A life is a life, no matter what and yes it can be a stress reliever pumping on someones chest. I think that saving the pity and compassion, in this case, should be reserved for the kids that witnessed this. It will stay with them for the rest of thier lives. Not such a good memory to have I think. Good job on the field tube! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
runswithneedles Posted April 2, 2012 Author Share Posted April 2, 2012 I didnt get to do a field tube (cant do them in the paramedic program im in. I did it in the OR. I did get to shove a combi tube in that guy after the failed ET attempt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ERDoc Posted April 2, 2012 Share Posted April 2, 2012 (edited) What a horrible thing for those kids to have to watch. If anything good comes from it, maybe the image of what drugs did to their father will stay with them and keep them away from drugs. As for your reaction, it is always cool to use skills we've learned and don't get to use too often but it will soon pass and become part of the job. I don't get too excited about tubes anymore but still get that tingly feeling when I put in a chest tube. Truth be told, I have a rejuvenated joy doing compressions since I never get to do them anymore. Edited April 2, 2012 by ERDoc Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
island emt Posted April 2, 2012 Share Posted April 2, 2012 (edited) . I did get to shove a combi tube in that guy after the failed ET attempt. I hope you didn't SHOVE the combi tube in! maybe you inserted a blind insertion airway adjunct. Pay attention as the dead guys lawyer will be. Feeling release while working a code can be a normal thing. Don't get too involved with the how or why of the pt's personal life. if you manage to survive more than a short time in this business , you will encounter ALL lifestyles and levels people from abject poverty to wealthy folks that all have the same problems and addictions in life. Working most codes you will find the same smells and fluids leaving the body One more question: why did you transport the body away from a crime scene? Edited April 2, 2012 by island emt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Just Plain Ruff Posted April 2, 2012 Share Posted April 2, 2012 This post is for everyone here, not just Runswithneedles - Runswithneedles, you need to be really careful what you are posting on this forum. this forum is the number one EMS forum in the nation, I think it is at least. Lawyers are looking at this forum. Meth patient, improperly placed ET tube, 2 children watching their father being placed in the ambulance a good lawyer might be able to put two and two together. Far fetched, maybe, Yes more than likely but let's be careful what we post. Your entire post about pounding on that guys chest really showed a lack of indiference to this person. I'll stop there and say it in a pm. Then you post that you shoved a airway down him, I hope you didn't shove it down there, did you cause post mortem trauma? Like posted above, His lawyer is looking and if that laywer is lookin online at these forums, he might just look and put two and two and two more together and subpoena our forum admin again and get your info and pull you in to court and where would you be. Of course you will already be in court due to you being on the run. I think we need to re-visit the What we put on the internet is there forever. It never goes away, it will stand the test of time and after we die it will probably still be there. Be cognizant of what we post and be considerate of what you post. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aussieaid Posted April 2, 2012 Share Posted April 2, 2012 An incorrectly placed ET is only a problem if it is not recognized immediately which it sounds like it was. Kudos to the crew for going to a supraglottic device after the failed attempt and not wasting time messing further with the airway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paramedicmike Posted April 2, 2012 Share Posted April 2, 2012 Runswithneedles, you need to be really careful what you are posting on this forum. this forum is the number one EMS forum in the nation, I think it is at least. Lawyers are looking at this forum. +10000000 Your entire post about pounding on that guys chest really showed a lack of indiference to this person. Based only on what you, RWN, have presented to us in this forum, which I'll admit is only a part of of the entire picture that portrays who you are, your indifference to many people leaves me wondering just how long you're going to last in this business as an effective provider. My impression is that you won't last long. Did you feel that same indifference towards this patient's kids? Did you think that it might be good to get them out of the room while you so indifferently pounded on this guy's chest? You're not there to judge. And perhaps you didn't. But what you wrote here makes it sound like you did. This all ties in to what Ruff is saying when he says to be careful what you post. I'll add to that by saying not only becareful of what you post but be careful of *how* you post. Because that lawyer that's reading your post will infer from what and how you've posted that you are an insensitive, uncaring, judgemental person who didn't work hard enough to save the life of the deceased. You will then have to prove you're not. That'll be hard to do based on much of how you've posted content here. Then you post that you shoved a airway down him, I hope you didn't shove it down there, did you cause post mortem trauma? Like posted above, His lawyer is looking and if that laywer is lookin online at these forums, he might just look and put two and two and two more together and subpoena our forum admin again and get your info and pull you in to court and where would you be. Of course you will already be in court due to you being on the run. As a paramedic student I, too, would hope you'd know better than to shove anything into a patient's airway. I think we need to re-visit the What we put on the internet is there forever. It never goes away, it will stand the test of time and after we die it will probably still be there. Be cognizant of what we post and be considerate of what you post. You're young. You're new to the business. There are some lessons that can be learned over a longer period of time than others. This is not one of those lessons. This is something you need to learn *now*. Learn it. Then demonstrate you've learned it. Consistently. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DFIB Posted April 2, 2012 Share Posted April 2, 2012 Amigo! Dude! Please take heed to the wise advice posted above. Returning to the OP and taking a different direction, A wise man once wrote: There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens: a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot, a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build, a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance, a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing, a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away, a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak, a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace. I think that in stressful life and death situations there is a time to concentrate on the science of what you are doing, protocols, signs and symptoms, interventions, making the correct critical decisions in your patients treatment not including scene safety, children in the room or the dog barking down the hall. Sometimes there is no time for feelings only action, the correct action. The time for commensurating and condoling for our patients and their family is just as important in our professional formation as the time for action. The effect of this balance is expressed I think by the same wise author when he wrote. “God will bring into judgment both the righteous and the wicked, for there will be a time for every activity, a time to judge every deed.” There were no internet or lawyers when this was written but I think he was on to something. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
runswithneedles Posted April 3, 2012 Author Share Posted April 3, 2012 One more question: why did you transport the body away from a crime scene? the guy I was riding along with thought he might have a little life left in him. it wasnt my call to make since I was only a student and am in no way connected with their department or medical director Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts