GAmedic1506 Posted July 24, 2006 Author Share Posted July 24, 2006 Very good points, and i did not intend any blanket statements if I made them, but I sometimes type in haste as the alarm sounds. My point is that we as a generic industry, could do better in this area. I am not sure that there are any printed universal standards (nor do i know that there should be), but I believe the "Cleanliness Pendulum" swings widely in EMS. There are some extreme examples on both ends of the spectrum, and most of us are probably somewhere in the middle, or slightly above middle. And in some ways you are backing my argument, in that I agree that nosocomial and nail-bed infections are probably far more serious. But if we all tried to do our jobs a little cleaner than we have in the past, we will address 99% of the problems. If we washed our hands, and cleaned the surfaces of our workplace as often as we should, we would hit alot of problems with one big brush. Laryngoscopes were just the opening volley that I knew would be fairly universal, I am glad to see that the topic is now expanding as it should. Please continue on, and everyone should go back and read those posts that were just presented about nosocomial. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ace844 Posted July 24, 2006 Share Posted July 24, 2006 Ace, It seems that GAmedic lives rent free in your head, and others for that matter. Some of your replys to this thread are easier to read than others as your type face gets bigger and more colorful.........I almost feel as if you are shouting at us, the collective readers on this forum. You repeatedly ask GAmedic to answer your questions regarding documentation.............I dunno.....so "What procedures do you use to insure your blades are clean ? " If you answered all of his questions and I somehow missed it then please feel free to shout back at me! "PT," I wasn't shouting at the forum in general. I was using caps and colors to highlight certain points in my posts..that's it. "GAmedic," has yet to post viable evidence to back up any of his statements which then takes the thread-posts to a place where he is preaching whatever propaganda he thinks you'll listen to, and then later contradicts his own statements. He has done this repeatedly. I answered, although probably not enough to be satisfactory. We use disposable blades. The Hospitals that I spend alot of time in send the instruments off to be 'cleaned' chemically and then again via autoclave. Furthermore this thread was started by this individual as a rant about 'DIRTY-UNCLEAN LARYNGOSCOPE BLADES and infectious transmittal risk from them to patients'! He didn't make a general statement about how we need to be more cognizant of infection control and cleaning in EMS which i think we would all agree needs work. NO he repeatedly made this about the aforementioned issue and when asked to prevent facts to support those claims he couldn't produce them. That is the problem I have with this individual. He makes statements and purports them to be incontrovertiably true, then consistantly is unable to back them up with facts. Out Here, ACE844 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ace844 Posted July 24, 2006 Share Posted July 24, 2006 We are fortunate that we have not had to deal with many of the third-world diseases that are currently killing thousands on other continents. But with the illegal exotic pet trade on our continent, and all of the intercontinental airline flights, our day is coming. Are you kidding....what comes next... statements of THE END IS NEAR...YOUR ALL GOING TO DIE YOU SINNERS!!...[Ace shakes his head and waits in disbelief for whatever other drivel could possibly come next] If these statements aren't a trip to==> then what is? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rezq304 Posted July 24, 2006 Share Posted July 24, 2006 Breathe via laryngoscopy and ET tube, or DIE....I'll take breathe every time thank you.... ACE Yeah, I'm with Ace on this one. Our procedure is a mixture of above listed. We have a mix of disposables and conventional metal blades. The disposable replacement is obvious. For the traditional blades, we exchange them out at the hospital, at which point they soak them, then autoclave. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GAmedic1506 Posted July 24, 2006 Author Share Posted July 24, 2006 Well the quote of ACEs that you list presumes that there isn't any option but to have nasty blades. I dont think that is the case. Sure if i am dying, i will take my chances with any germ that might be on your blade, but again I ask why cant i have the cleanest blade possible (I didnt even ask for sterile - just properly cleaned) ? It sounds like that in your and ACE's service, I can expect to have a reasonably clean blade inserted into my mouth, but that is not the case country-wide. We have all reached into a jumpbag and grabbed a dirty blade at some point in our career, that couldve been used on a patient, had we not been so diligent in our morning inspection (and often times, it had been missed by 1 or 2 shifts). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ace844 Posted July 24, 2006 Share Posted July 24, 2006 Well the quote of ACEs that you list presumes that there isn't any option but to have nasty blades. I dont think that is the case. Sure if i am dying, i will take my chances with any germ that might be on your blade, but again I ask why cant i have the cleanest blade possible (I didnt even ask for sterile - just properly cleaned) ? It sounds like that in your and ACE's service, I can expect to have a reasonably clean blade inserted into my mouth, but that is not the case country-wide. We have all reached into a jumpbag and grabbed a dirty blade at some point in our career, that couldve been used on a patient, had we not been so diligent in our morning inspection (and often times, it had been missed by 1 or 2 shifts). Again your making statements for which you have no facts...prove this... I can expect to have a reasonably clean blade inserted into my mouth, but that is not the case country-wide. Also i find it interesting that you choose to continue your unsupported debate in this thread vs any of the others as well...But hey, keep trying... out here, ACE844 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TechMedic05 Posted July 24, 2006 Share Posted July 24, 2006 Okay. clean equipment, and don't use dirty things. That's easy enough. Just because providers wouldn't necessarily stick something in their mouth doesn't mean that it shouldn't go in someone else's. I mean, if I had a syringe filled with succs, I honestly wouldn't want to try it on myself first before my patient, y'know? With a clean or dirty needle :wink: . Does that mean that I shouldn't be able to administer medications? I don't honestly believe anyone out here is, or would admit to, using an unacceptably dirty blade for whatever reason. If there are isolated incidents, they're just that. It's an individual that did not complete their job. And if a dirty piece of equipment is missed by 1 or 2 shifts - shame on you. And shame on the crew before you. I'd suspect there's more damage done by EMS crews not effectively checking their equipment every shift before service than by dirty laryngoscope blades. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AZCEP Posted July 24, 2006 Share Posted July 24, 2006 GA, If you are going to ask for evidence, the least you can do when it is presented for you is to actually read it. Any time we break the skin, or make contact with a mucous membrane, we increase the risk of infection. I notice you aren't asking us to stop establishing vascular access, or is that next? You don't propose that we stop using direct pressure with non-sterile supplies to stop active bleeding, or is that coming? There are some topics you just have to accept as part and parcel of medical care. One of them is the possibility that when we invade the body, the body will fight the invasion, and illness may become worse. Can someone please give this thread some Botulinum toxin? In other words, KILL IT. Thank you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ace844 Posted July 24, 2006 Share Posted July 24, 2006 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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