Damned if you do, damned if you don't. Sometimes you get patients who are waiting for you at the front door, keys in hand, suitcase packed with their favorite pillow, their face pressed against the screen for fear of missing you drive by. And before you've even put the truck in park and put your gloves on, they're bolting the front door and walking down the driveway. Whoa, whoa, wait a minute Ms. Sweet Elderly Lady... lets check you out first. This kind of presentation, if you will, by our patient usually leads me to believe that this is in fact NOT a life threatening call. And because we have the option to call for a basic rescue to come transport and/or refuse transport at all if deemed appropriate.... I'm usually headed down that path. I've run a plethora of these... usually constipation or trying to get to a surgery appointment on time. Frustrating to say the least, but I have an affinity for older folks and don't mind taking the time to check em out, give them the "next time..." speech and help them lock their house up.
Then you have the calls where either the patient or the family calls and while from initial presentation its not a load and go.... after you hook them to the monitor, a few flags raise.... then the 12-lead... more flags... and you're like, "OK, lets get going, we'll do everything else enroute." That's when your patient keeps finding just one more thing that they just HAVE to have. Be it insurance card, meds, ... their favorite pillow.... and you're approaching the line of either snapping that, "Look, we can't stay here any longer, we really need to get going, now." vs. getting that one more thing that will help relax them and not cause any undue distress. Its that affinity for older folks that keeps me tottering on that line. Sometimes I just have to be the bad guy. But its only for their health and well-being.
Then there was the call at 0800 this morning for a 20-yr male with a cramp in his foot. Really son,.... really? The cabulance is here...
Sunday, June 21, 2009
Thursday, June 04, 2009
Stereotyping
How many times are you getting dispatched and before the address is complete you already know the patient you're responding to. You can already picture their face, their living room (or street corner), their presentation and even their vitals. You get tunnel-vision.
Other times you get dispatched for the chest pain or difficulty breathing and on arrival you greeted with someone who appears to be having an emotional breakdown. A para-suicide-threatening moment. A psychosomatic anxiety attack. And again... you get tunnel vision.
A dangerous place to be indeed.
So we get called for a 40-yr old woman with chest pain. She's sitting in a chair at the county courthouse after standing in line to pay a ticket, hiding her face behind her large mane of hair. She looks like a model. Tall, thin, dressed to the nines with 3" stilettos. Not saying much of anything, rather letting the first responders answer after long pauses to our questions. I'm getting some tunnel vision. I ask about history. She is as vague as she can be. She thinks she had an MI in the past but doesn't remember. She can't remember anything else she might have. She says she takes meds but can't remember a one. My suspicion of anything serious is diminishing.
I put her on the monitor. Whoa!!!!! Quadrigeminal PVC’s on a NSR with runs of V-Tach. Well darlin, lets get going. We secured a line enroute and was on the apron in just a few minutes. All her other vitals were normal. Come to find another tidbit of information that, I at least, never learned in medic class. Hyperthyroidism causes tachycardia. I had known about hypothyroidism causing bradycardia.... why a=b therefore -a=(-b) didn't connect with me I don't know. I do know. Tunnel vision!!! She had hyperthyroidism and was not taking her meds!
So watch your tunnel vision. From those patients that we'd love to just buy a bus pass for to the atypical presentation. Full assessments folks. It's patient care. You just may be the only person on this world that gives a flying flip enough to respond to their need. Whether it be just some human interaction, a friendly face in their world of despair, or a true call during a life-threatening emergency. Trust me... I need to be reminded of my own advice everyday. Stay safe out there.
Other times you get dispatched for the chest pain or difficulty breathing and on arrival you greeted with someone who appears to be having an emotional breakdown. A para-suicide-threatening moment. A psychosomatic anxiety attack. And again... you get tunnel vision.
A dangerous place to be indeed.
So we get called for a 40-yr old woman with chest pain. She's sitting in a chair at the county courthouse after standing in line to pay a ticket, hiding her face behind her large mane of hair. She looks like a model. Tall, thin, dressed to the nines with 3" stilettos. Not saying much of anything, rather letting the first responders answer after long pauses to our questions. I'm getting some tunnel vision. I ask about history. She is as vague as she can be. She thinks she had an MI in the past but doesn't remember. She can't remember anything else she might have. She says she takes meds but can't remember a one. My suspicion of anything serious is diminishing.
I put her on the monitor. Whoa!!!!! Quadrigeminal PVC’s on a NSR with runs of V-Tach. Well darlin, lets get going. We secured a line enroute and was on the apron in just a few minutes. All her other vitals were normal. Come to find another tidbit of information that, I at least, never learned in medic class. Hyperthyroidism causes tachycardia. I had known about hypothyroidism causing bradycardia.... why a=b therefore -a=(-b) didn't connect with me I don't know. I do know. Tunnel vision!!! She had hyperthyroidism and was not taking her meds!
So watch your tunnel vision. From those patients that we'd love to just buy a bus pass for to the atypical presentation. Full assessments folks. It's patient care. You just may be the only person on this world that gives a flying flip enough to respond to their need. Whether it be just some human interaction, a friendly face in their world of despair, or a true call during a life-threatening emergency. Trust me... I need to be reminded of my own advice everyday. Stay safe out there.
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Catching up
Well I haven't written in quite some time, but think its time to once again share my tales. I should have blogged several shifts over the last few months as some calls just defied the imagination. I so wish I could invest in a lapel camera on my radio strap as some things I just have no words for.
But for now the first thing that comes to mind to get on soapbox about is the upcoming changes to ACLS and what is in the pipeline. Just to state the obvious, no, I am NOT a doctor. But these changes just don't make sense to me. We go to these ACLS recert classes and they hand down what are the new guidelines and there is nothing to back up these new guidelines. Reminds me of the saying, "There's a reason they call it practicing medicine." For anyone in EMS longer than 1 year, think about how many things are different that when you first started. Heck, the new medics coming out now are reciting things that are 180 degrees from what I learned.
Granted, we're all doing the best we can for the patient at any given time, its just so frustrating when "powers that be" make changes that just dont always make sense.
But for now the first thing that comes to mind to get on soapbox about is the upcoming changes to ACLS and what is in the pipeline. Just to state the obvious, no, I am NOT a doctor. But these changes just don't make sense to me. We go to these ACLS recert classes and they hand down what are the new guidelines and there is nothing to back up these new guidelines. Reminds me of the saying, "There's a reason they call it practicing medicine." For anyone in EMS longer than 1 year, think about how many things are different that when you first started. Heck, the new medics coming out now are reciting things that are 180 degrees from what I learned.
Granted, we're all doing the best we can for the patient at any given time, its just so frustrating when "powers that be" make changes that just dont always make sense.
Sunday, January 04, 2009
1st of 2009
Hope you and your had a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! I had a great one. It was nice, relatively quiet and mellow. Spent with family and friends and celebrating the reason the for the season. I'm excited about what 2009 will bring me.
With the holidays and filling in at other stations and then my Kelly Day, it feels like I haven't been at my station in forever. So I have a bit of a renewed sense of "lets get it done". Our first call of the day slams me head-first into reality and the bread-n-butter calls we get everyday. Its a difficulty breathing call for a woman who I ran on just last week. She hates using her CPAP machine and is really wanting some attention from her family so she feigns, and hums and hoos. We get there and its really her belly. She says she has a hernia for the past few years but now its hurting when she moves. She wants an ambulance because she thinks she'll get seen faster. When the basic unit arrives she feigns some more and cries for her family to not leave her. We try and get her to the door to the stretcher. After a good 10-15min of trying to get her outside she says she has to pee. But in a not urgent kind of way. I say, "Ma'm, we need to get you to the hospital, do you think you can hold it, or do you need to go back inside?" Nope.... no answer.... just all of the sudden hear a drip, drip, dribble.... and yes... she is urinating on herself in the front yard. Of course we maintain our professional composure, but I am just perplexed at her non-chalant attitude as if of course thats what you do when you have to pee. Hhmmmmmmmm.
We ran a pediatric arrest on a 5-week old. It went textbook but did not end well. I need to call my hubby and check in on my own infant for a little reassurance. I say a prayer, one of many, for the family.
With the holidays and filling in at other stations and then my Kelly Day, it feels like I haven't been at my station in forever. So I have a bit of a renewed sense of "lets get it done". Our first call of the day slams me head-first into reality and the bread-n-butter calls we get everyday. Its a difficulty breathing call for a woman who I ran on just last week. She hates using her CPAP machine and is really wanting some attention from her family so she feigns, and hums and hoos. We get there and its really her belly. She says she has a hernia for the past few years but now its hurting when she moves. She wants an ambulance because she thinks she'll get seen faster. When the basic unit arrives she feigns some more and cries for her family to not leave her. We try and get her to the door to the stretcher. After a good 10-15min of trying to get her outside she says she has to pee. But in a not urgent kind of way. I say, "Ma'm, we need to get you to the hospital, do you think you can hold it, or do you need to go back inside?" Nope.... no answer.... just all of the sudden hear a drip, drip, dribble.... and yes... she is urinating on herself in the front yard. Of course we maintain our professional composure, but I am just perplexed at her non-chalant attitude as if of course thats what you do when you have to pee. Hhmmmmmmmm.
We ran a pediatric arrest on a 5-week old. It went textbook but did not end well. I need to call my hubby and check in on my own infant for a little reassurance. I say a prayer, one of many, for the family.
Saturday, December 20, 2008
You called for what??
So... I have some folks who read this blog and friends who scoff at my callousness at some of my patients. They don't seem to understand some of the ridiculous calls we get and the absurd abuse of Public Safety / Emergency Services. Well, let me give you two glaring examples of this abuse and then if you multiply it by the ballpark 9 calls per shift times every shift and hopefully you'll entertain my (albeit "our" aka public safety) frustration.
Now for those of you that are not in public safety, a little foundation. We treat every call when dispatched unless otherwise told (which these calls are not the root of this discussion) as a life or death emergency. By traveling lights and sirens the average 2-6 miles to your location, traveling at a higher rate of speed, weaving through traffic... most often with other drivers competing with us for the lane, the right of way, whatever which puts our lives and other drivers' lives in danger for your call. Now if its a true life or death I have absolutely NO problem at all with this risk. Its a weighed risk, a risk of helping someone who without our skills or equipment would otherwise be in more pain, more distress, whatever. Time of day shouldn't matter, and in a true emergency it doesn't matter at all. But these abuse calls, at 0300am tend to add insult to injury.
Ok.. now on to the 2 examples that just took place.
We get dispatched to a severe respiratory distress. Generally implies Asthma, COPD, CHF or a cardiac event. Any of these can be deadly so we are on the ball, out the door, and down the street. Imagine, at 12M, you get such a call. You pull up to the residence, grab your gear and head to the door when you see a gentleman in the driveway who says, "Whoa... hey, thanx for coming... I really just need a jump for my car." E....Ex....Excuse me?????? Your kidding right? "No, I just needed a jump for my car and called 911" So, you're not having any respiratory problems? "Well, I was about 15 min ago, but I'm fine now" AAGHH #^%&#&^!!!!
I want to know who raises folks to believe that 911 is the end all be all of anything you need whether it be shoe polish, a jump for your car or your pooch. Speaking of pooch.....
The next call, about 2 hours later... yes 0200am was from a guy who locked his dog in the car. Now, middle of summer, 12N, 100 degrees outside... fine, I'll grant some leeway. We're still just gonna break your window. But its 60 degrees and.... and.... there is a 1/4" opening in the window and his sister could be on her way with a spare key, but he didn't feel like waiting that long. So he calls 911. If only he could really grasp the thought that you,his neighbor down the street, who's just been shot or is having a heart attack is going to have to wait for responders from 2 territories away because we're on this call. But I doubt he ever will.
I, as well as any other public safety professional, could go on and on. I would love to create a PSA. To try and educate our general public and remind them what 911 (& an EMERGENCY room) is there for. And that there is now 311, 411, 511... the phone book and the Internet to get information that is not an emergency.
As for the calls we ran tonight... we ran an OB call in the local WalMart. We all talked about the movie where the girl gives birth in Walmart on the way there. Our pt's water had broken in a grocery aisle .... "clean up on aisle 11"... Anyways. Whew.... hhhmmmmm... she's 26 years old. 7th pregnancy. Yes, 7th. 28 weeks with no contractions, last pregnancy was 11 months ago. She's used to the drill. All vitals were good, so we helped load her into the rescue and off they went. I'm gonna try and get some sleep while I can. Stay safe out there.
Now for those of you that are not in public safety, a little foundation. We treat every call when dispatched unless otherwise told (which these calls are not the root of this discussion) as a life or death emergency. By traveling lights and sirens the average 2-6 miles to your location, traveling at a higher rate of speed, weaving through traffic... most often with other drivers competing with us for the lane, the right of way, whatever which puts our lives and other drivers' lives in danger for your call. Now if its a true life or death I have absolutely NO problem at all with this risk. Its a weighed risk, a risk of helping someone who without our skills or equipment would otherwise be in more pain, more distress, whatever. Time of day shouldn't matter, and in a true emergency it doesn't matter at all. But these abuse calls, at 0300am tend to add insult to injury.
Ok.. now on to the 2 examples that just took place.
We get dispatched to a severe respiratory distress. Generally implies Asthma, COPD, CHF or a cardiac event. Any of these can be deadly so we are on the ball, out the door, and down the street. Imagine, at 12M, you get such a call. You pull up to the residence, grab your gear and head to the door when you see a gentleman in the driveway who says, "Whoa... hey, thanx for coming... I really just need a jump for my car." E....Ex....Excuse me?????? Your kidding right? "No, I just needed a jump for my car and called 911" So, you're not having any respiratory problems? "Well, I was about 15 min ago, but I'm fine now" AAGHH #^%&#&^!!!!
I want to know who raises folks to believe that 911 is the end all be all of anything you need whether it be shoe polish, a jump for your car or your pooch. Speaking of pooch.....
The next call, about 2 hours later... yes 0200am was from a guy who locked his dog in the car. Now, middle of summer, 12N, 100 degrees outside... fine, I'll grant some leeway. We're still just gonna break your window. But its 60 degrees and.... and.... there is a 1/4" opening in the window and his sister could be on her way with a spare key, but he didn't feel like waiting that long. So he calls 911. If only he could really grasp the thought that you,his neighbor down the street, who's just been shot or is having a heart attack is going to have to wait for responders from 2 territories away because we're on this call. But I doubt he ever will.
I, as well as any other public safety professional, could go on and on. I would love to create a PSA. To try and educate our general public and remind them what 911 (& an EMERGENCY room) is there for. And that there is now 311, 411, 511... the phone book and the Internet to get information that is not an emergency.
As for the calls we ran tonight... we ran an OB call in the local WalMart. We all talked about the movie where the girl gives birth in Walmart on the way there. Our pt's water had broken in a grocery aisle .... "clean up on aisle 11"... Anyways. Whew.... hhhmmmmm... she's 26 years old. 7th pregnancy. Yes, 7th. 28 weeks with no contractions, last pregnancy was 11 months ago. She's used to the drill. All vitals were good, so we helped load her into the rescue and off they went. I'm gonna try and get some sleep while I can. Stay safe out there.
Friday, November 21, 2008
Attacked by a naked woman
Well I have finally caught the cold that my husband and son have been battling for the past 3 weeks. Its a nasty chest cold and this is probably the only day that I don't want to be on the engine and fighting fire. My chest hurts to breathe, and I'm taching away at 145. Yuck.... but when you love the job this much.... the second the bell rings with a structure fire... its all adrenaline and you cant wait to do the dance.
But no such luck. We started the day with a 3-alarm fire in progress on the opposite side of the county. And all day... we would get dispatched to an Alpha/Non-emergency/Butt-Ache call and the very next dispatch would be a working fire in our immediate or the next territory over. AARRGHH!!! We worked a call for a couple of hours on a gas leak. The guy operating the backhoe... next to the 3" gas line that was severed... it was his first time. He was trying, but he was making me nervous with all his second guessing his actions.
Then comes Dorothy. Dispatched for a diabetic problem, it could be either to high or to low. Well... she was a bit to low. So low that when we get to her home and her sister lets us in, we find an early-50's woman, butt-naked and running around the bounce bouncing off the walls... literally. You know how pinball machine ball bounces in a zig-zag fashion coming down the lane, yeah...that was her. I coaxed her to let us in her room and let me take her sugar. 41. The 2 guys on my engine crew are just around the corner to my side since she once she saw them she freaked again. Laughing in that psycho laugh that some people have. So I've now coaxed her into sitting on the bed so we can get her some D50. And in just a hair of a second, she has jumped up, slammed the door shut (blocking my exit) and is coming at me trying to hug me with this insane laugh and her tongue hanging out the side of her mouth. UGH!!!!!
I almost knee her to get he off when E comes in and pulls her off. She then literally falls onto the bed and bounces off the other side, head first, with naked butt and legs up in the air. Wow.... just wow. Her sugar must have dropped enough to mellow her out a bit and once she had the D50 in her she was as laid back and sweet as Aunt Jemimah.
We ran a little kitchen fire at 5am.... that's the only real fire we got. Oh well... just as well. Now I'm gonna Vicks up and try to fast forward this chest cold. Stay safe out there.
But no such luck. We started the day with a 3-alarm fire in progress on the opposite side of the county. And all day... we would get dispatched to an Alpha/Non-emergency/Butt-Ache call and the very next dispatch would be a working fire in our immediate or the next territory over. AARRGHH!!! We worked a call for a couple of hours on a gas leak. The guy operating the backhoe... next to the 3" gas line that was severed... it was his first time. He was trying, but he was making me nervous with all his second guessing his actions.
Then comes Dorothy. Dispatched for a diabetic problem, it could be either to high or to low. Well... she was a bit to low. So low that when we get to her home and her sister lets us in, we find an early-50's woman, butt-naked and running around the bounce bouncing off the walls... literally. You know how pinball machine ball bounces in a zig-zag fashion coming down the lane, yeah...that was her. I coaxed her to let us in her room and let me take her sugar. 41. The 2 guys on my engine crew are just around the corner to my side since she once she saw them she freaked again. Laughing in that psycho laugh that some people have. So I've now coaxed her into sitting on the bed so we can get her some D50. And in just a hair of a second, she has jumped up, slammed the door shut (blocking my exit) and is coming at me trying to hug me with this insane laugh and her tongue hanging out the side of her mouth. UGH!!!!!
I almost knee her to get he off when E comes in and pulls her off. She then literally falls onto the bed and bounces off the other side, head first, with naked butt and legs up in the air. Wow.... just wow. Her sugar must have dropped enough to mellow her out a bit and once she had the D50 in her she was as laid back and sweet as Aunt Jemimah.
We ran a little kitchen fire at 5am.... that's the only real fire we got. Oh well... just as well. Now I'm gonna Vicks up and try to fast forward this chest cold. Stay safe out there.
Friday, October 31, 2008
Know your meds
Perfect shift yesterday. Ran a full day with 2 fires and then slept all night. How much better can it get? Medically we ran a cardiac arrest then the typical sick kid calls. I have been running into a lot of Lisinopril reaction calls.
Lisinopril is an ACE-inhibitor medication used to treat hypertension, and post heart-attack patients. Some people, whether they've been on the medication for 5 days or 5 years will just one day have a severely swollen tongue. There are generally no other symptoms but it is considered life-threatening as their tongue can swell so much it can occlude their airway. While we treat it as an allergic reaction and admin Benadryl per protocol, Benadryl doesn't reverse the reaction as in normal allergic reaction patients. All we can do is manage their airway and admin fluids and wait til the residual Lisinopril filters from their system. It never ceases to amaze me how many MD's do NOT talk with their patients about this common and dangerous side effect. There have been many patients who have died because they couldn't breath. As am I'm always carrying on about... PLEASE.... question your doctors. About everything! Do some of your own research. While you may think your MD is great, he still may have only gotten a 70 on his final exam.
So, Halloween is here. We are heading over to a friends house for a Halloween party. Dont want to scare the baby so I'm making it easy. I'm dressing as a hippie and Aiden will be my hippie baby. Hope you have a safe and happy night tonight with your kids and families.
Lisinopril is an ACE-inhibitor medication used to treat hypertension, and post heart-attack patients. Some people, whether they've been on the medication for 5 days or 5 years will just one day have a severely swollen tongue. There are generally no other symptoms but it is considered life-threatening as their tongue can swell so much it can occlude their airway. While we treat it as an allergic reaction and admin Benadryl per protocol, Benadryl doesn't reverse the reaction as in normal allergic reaction patients. All we can do is manage their airway and admin fluids and wait til the residual Lisinopril filters from their system. It never ceases to amaze me how many MD's do NOT talk with their patients about this common and dangerous side effect. There have been many patients who have died because they couldn't breath. As am I'm always carrying on about... PLEASE.... question your doctors. About everything! Do some of your own research. While you may think your MD is great, he still may have only gotten a 70 on his final exam.
So, Halloween is here. We are heading over to a friends house for a Halloween party. Dont want to scare the baby so I'm making it easy. I'm dressing as a hippie and Aiden will be my hippie baby. Hope you have a safe and happy night tonight with your kids and families.
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Respond to a....
I had hoped to keep up with this thing a bit better since being back... but oh well. An 8-month old will do that to you.
I am now on the other side of the burn-out phase and most of the time can simply acknowledge that for the territory I work in.... it just is what it is. 80% of the time, its the stereotypical butt-ache call that if the person had an ounce of common sense or had been taking their meds as prescribed, we wouldn't have needed to have been called.
Ran a call for a possible broken arm on a 7-yr old. When we get there the Mom is on the belligerent side of making a scene. The kid had gotten hurt on the playground and was already wrapped in a sling by the school. I wont get into the conversation I had with Mom, lets just say it wasn't pretty. We call for a basic and dispatch tells us to stay in the area, we'll be waiting for PD to clear a scene for a person shot. It's 3 buildings away. We didn't hear any gunshots while we were with the angry mom outside.
PD clears the scene and we enter with 2 kids in custody and a third on the floor unresponsive. Its a crappy call. Anything that occurs where a kid gets hurt sucks. Lots of details I cant share here, right now, but lets just say it did not end well. After 3 1/2 hours of de-coning the truck and us, we were back in service. 2 minutes later we get called back to the SAME address for a..... 7-yr old with a broken arm. Yep... same woman as before. I am quite livid as we are enroute. (by the way.. its not broken, the poor little thing has a sprained arm that mom has no OTC meds to help relieve her child's pain, she just wants to make a scene about it)
We get there and I ask why she didn't go to the hospital with the other ambulance we called in for her. She says, "they said I didn't need to go". I'm thinking... I told you you didn't need to go. I call the basic unit and inquire as to what happened. They advised that the woman signed 2 refusal forms and didn't want to go then since there was a shooting happening in her apartment complex and wanted to know what was going on. GGGrRRrrrrrrrrr. So.... NOW she's ready for us to transport her daughter (who is in pain) to the hospital. Ma'am.... we are NOT your taxi service!!!!!
We ran a call on Arthur, a frequent caller who is homeless and when its just to cold or he's just tired of being chased from the front slabs at convenience stores, he calls 911 for a warm bed and a meal in the ER. This time he is complaining of difficulty breathing and chest pain, albeit from the coughing he's presenting to us. He says he was at the Er last month, diagnosed with pneumonia. I ask if he finished his antibiotics. He says no... he threw them in the bushes a few days ago because he started to feel better. As we're waiting for a basic transport to come get him, I ask him his history and how he got from someone who worked and supported themselves to this. He is a friendly soul who by his eyes longs for a simple purpose in life. He tells a tale of bad choices and big plans for the future as soon as he can get around to it. We help him into the other ambulance and make our way back for shift change.
I am now on the other side of the burn-out phase and most of the time can simply acknowledge that for the territory I work in.... it just is what it is. 80% of the time, its the stereotypical butt-ache call that if the person had an ounce of common sense or had been taking their meds as prescribed, we wouldn't have needed to have been called.
Ran a call for a possible broken arm on a 7-yr old. When we get there the Mom is on the belligerent side of making a scene. The kid had gotten hurt on the playground and was already wrapped in a sling by the school. I wont get into the conversation I had with Mom, lets just say it wasn't pretty. We call for a basic and dispatch tells us to stay in the area, we'll be waiting for PD to clear a scene for a person shot. It's 3 buildings away. We didn't hear any gunshots while we were with the angry mom outside.
PD clears the scene and we enter with 2 kids in custody and a third on the floor unresponsive. Its a crappy call. Anything that occurs where a kid gets hurt sucks. Lots of details I cant share here, right now, but lets just say it did not end well. After 3 1/2 hours of de-coning the truck and us, we were back in service. 2 minutes later we get called back to the SAME address for a..... 7-yr old with a broken arm. Yep... same woman as before. I am quite livid as we are enroute. (by the way.. its not broken, the poor little thing has a sprained arm that mom has no OTC meds to help relieve her child's pain, she just wants to make a scene about it)
We get there and I ask why she didn't go to the hospital with the other ambulance we called in for her. She says, "they said I didn't need to go". I'm thinking... I told you you didn't need to go. I call the basic unit and inquire as to what happened. They advised that the woman signed 2 refusal forms and didn't want to go then since there was a shooting happening in her apartment complex and wanted to know what was going on. GGGrRRrrrrrrrrr. So.... NOW she's ready for us to transport her daughter (who is in pain) to the hospital. Ma'am.... we are NOT your taxi service!!!!!
We ran a call on Arthur, a frequent caller who is homeless and when its just to cold or he's just tired of being chased from the front slabs at convenience stores, he calls 911 for a warm bed and a meal in the ER. This time he is complaining of difficulty breathing and chest pain, albeit from the coughing he's presenting to us. He says he was at the Er last month, diagnosed with pneumonia. I ask if he finished his antibiotics. He says no... he threw them in the bushes a few days ago because he started to feel better. As we're waiting for a basic transport to come get him, I ask him his history and how he got from someone who worked and supported themselves to this. He is a friendly soul who by his eyes longs for a simple purpose in life. He tells a tale of bad choices and big plans for the future as soon as he can get around to it. We help him into the other ambulance and make our way back for shift change.
Tuesday, September 02, 2008
Getting burned out
So... I'm in a valley that has high sides all around it named frustration, anger, weariness, and fatigue. But I still have a love for the job that I have never known in any other career. I fought hard for this career. Very hard. And the station I am at is everything that you'd want. Good people who truly love each other, who work hard on every scene, & who go out together outside of work.
Now normally we have a good rotation between the engine and the rescue, but lately due to people on vacation, or whatever I have had many...MANY shifts on the rescue. And we've been getting beat on almost every shift. A couple of shifts ago we ran 23 calls in 24 hours. We only transported 3 and only 1 of those *needed* transport. I would love to do a PSA campaign on why you do/don't call 911. A lot of our territory is just so uneducated and view 911 as their personal taxi to use the ER as their primary care physician. I was brought up that you call 911 when you are DYING or close to it. NOT because you have a toothache, a headache for the last 6 hours, a stubbed toe, your kid has had a fever for the last hour, or your drunk. (Just to name a few)
Now, call me bitter, call me whining... this is my blog and I can vent all I want or need to. I understand that probably 85% of my job in my territory that I work is public education. But it never ceases to amaze me the craziness that plagues our 911 system. I've joked at the notion of recording via a pin-hole camera on my radio belt the patients we encounter in a day's work. And then broadcast a PSA. Maybe then our hospitals who are failing and bankrupt due to the overwhelming demand of non-paying patients could catch a break and get back up on their feet.
This last shift has been a little bit of a breaker for me. I've really needed these 2 days off to veg out. We ran a call for a vehicle accident with entrapment. Enroute it was a car into a house. We were the 2nd rescue in with everyone else already there. By the time we pulled up they had the roof cut off and was pulling the 1st patient out the back (our patient). 3 16-yr olds in the back, one DOA, 2 front passengers A/O x3 on the front lawn. Our pt was A/O x4. Multiple punctures, lacs, and possible broken leg. Enroute everything went unremarkable. Our pt was able to give me their name but that's it. When asked their age... "I dont know" My pt was collared/backboarded prior to us on scene and mind you this was 2am... but after arriving at the hospital and giving report... we found out she had a probable broken pelvis, GSW to the back of the head and internal bleeding. Come to find out later that the vehicle was shot at several times prior to crashing. And this is what is comes to.... teenagers (who in my opinon shouldn't have even been out at that hour) out having a good time... were executed in the back of the car. While not verifiable at this point, we believe the DOA on scene was probably shot in the head too.
I have to admit I cried most of the way home. Generally I'm able to leave work at work.... but the inundation of stupid... and I mean STUPID calls along with the senseless waste of life responses we've been getting is overwhelming. Most people get into Fire/EMS cause "they want to help people"... or .... "they want to make a difference". I'm doing neither. Maybe that's just what I need to accept. I love my job.... in its theory. I certainly love the family I have at work and the firefighting. And if the calls we ran, even if they were 23 in 24 hours were true 911 calls, I could run them all night long and not miss a beat.
But imagine if you will (for any of my non-EMS readers)... you come into work at 0600 and run calls (no problem)... and you finally catch lunch at 3:30pm after you've had diarrhea smeared on you, a drunk homeless person swearing at you.... then after missing dinner completely cause you're still running calls at 0300am.... a 24 yr old healthy woman calls 911 with 6 cars in the driveway cause her head hurts. She's taken 4 Tylenol over 2 days and done nothing else to relieve the pain except lay in bed and moan. Seriously?!?!?! You want an ambulance to cart you to the ER for a flippin headache?!?! Yes... she seriously does. Its very hard to sympathetic.
Ok.... my rant is over. I love my job and cant wait to see what I might encounter tomorrow. Hopefully something challenging. Maybe I will have an easier shift for a change.... maybe. Until then I will serve the citizens that pay my paycheck.
Now normally we have a good rotation between the engine and the rescue, but lately due to people on vacation, or whatever I have had many...MANY shifts on the rescue. And we've been getting beat on almost every shift. A couple of shifts ago we ran 23 calls in 24 hours. We only transported 3 and only 1 of those *needed* transport. I would love to do a PSA campaign on why you do/don't call 911. A lot of our territory is just so uneducated and view 911 as their personal taxi to use the ER as their primary care physician. I was brought up that you call 911 when you are DYING or close to it. NOT because you have a toothache, a headache for the last 6 hours, a stubbed toe, your kid has had a fever for the last hour, or your drunk. (Just to name a few)
Now, call me bitter, call me whining... this is my blog and I can vent all I want or need to. I understand that probably 85% of my job in my territory that I work is public education. But it never ceases to amaze me the craziness that plagues our 911 system. I've joked at the notion of recording via a pin-hole camera on my radio belt the patients we encounter in a day's work. And then broadcast a PSA. Maybe then our hospitals who are failing and bankrupt due to the overwhelming demand of non-paying patients could catch a break and get back up on their feet.
This last shift has been a little bit of a breaker for me. I've really needed these 2 days off to veg out. We ran a call for a vehicle accident with entrapment. Enroute it was a car into a house. We were the 2nd rescue in with everyone else already there. By the time we pulled up they had the roof cut off and was pulling the 1st patient out the back (our patient). 3 16-yr olds in the back, one DOA, 2 front passengers A/O x3 on the front lawn. Our pt was A/O x4. Multiple punctures, lacs, and possible broken leg. Enroute everything went unremarkable. Our pt was able to give me their name but that's it. When asked their age... "I dont know" My pt was collared/backboarded prior to us on scene and mind you this was 2am... but after arriving at the hospital and giving report... we found out she had a probable broken pelvis, GSW to the back of the head and internal bleeding. Come to find out later that the vehicle was shot at several times prior to crashing. And this is what is comes to.... teenagers (who in my opinon shouldn't have even been out at that hour) out having a good time... were executed in the back of the car. While not verifiable at this point, we believe the DOA on scene was probably shot in the head too.
I have to admit I cried most of the way home. Generally I'm able to leave work at work.... but the inundation of stupid... and I mean STUPID calls along with the senseless waste of life responses we've been getting is overwhelming. Most people get into Fire/EMS cause "they want to help people"... or .... "they want to make a difference". I'm doing neither. Maybe that's just what I need to accept. I love my job.... in its theory. I certainly love the family I have at work and the firefighting. And if the calls we ran, even if they were 23 in 24 hours were true 911 calls, I could run them all night long and not miss a beat.
But imagine if you will (for any of my non-EMS readers)... you come into work at 0600 and run calls (no problem)... and you finally catch lunch at 3:30pm after you've had diarrhea smeared on you, a drunk homeless person swearing at you.... then after missing dinner completely cause you're still running calls at 0300am.... a 24 yr old healthy woman calls 911 with 6 cars in the driveway cause her head hurts. She's taken 4 Tylenol over 2 days and done nothing else to relieve the pain except lay in bed and moan. Seriously?!?!?! You want an ambulance to cart you to the ER for a flippin headache?!?! Yes... she seriously does. Its very hard to sympathetic.
Ok.... my rant is over. I love my job and cant wait to see what I might encounter tomorrow. Hopefully something challenging. Maybe I will have an easier shift for a change.... maybe. Until then I will serve the citizens that pay my paycheck.
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
Back in the saddle
I'm been back at work for a month now and everything is going well. Initially was on the box all the time, but I asked for that as I did not want to be a liability to my crew. We've had some good calls, but the meat and potatoes of the job is still there in full force. Doing the stretcher has been a little difficult but for the most part have figured out ways to get the job done when there is no extra help around. Threading an IV hasn't been a problem with my left hand and intubating has been fine. One of my first few shifts back I had a patient who needed some calcium. When was the last time you broke out the calcium? Yeah, me too. But I had a brain fart and when doing my calculation, I calculated twice in my head and thought I had OD'd the patient. I thought, oh great, just getting back at this and here I go. Turned out to be fine, I hadn't OD'd her, and her rhythm returned to normal.
Had a GSW the other day and he was a very lucky guy. Guy was shot at point blank range to the L-mid-axillary line at about the 3rd to 4th intercostal space and exit wound was mid-scapula, 4th to 5th intercostal space.... and it never hit his lung. I was pretty impressed.
Also ran a call on a woman short of breath. Asthma history, but stating at 99% and clear, and took her in. My partner who is getting her in the back turns to me and says, "She says her finger blew up". During the last 15 minutes of talking with the patient, she never mentioned her finger, but after looking over at it, I can't imagine how she couldn't have mentioned it. It was 3x its normal size, the skin splitting in several places and oozing pus all over the place. She mentioned that she had hit it on something earlier in the week and a few days ago the nail had fallen off. She was just putting neosporin on it. For as sick as it looked, I asked her, "Jeesh, did you slam it in a car door or what?".... no, she hadn't.... just hit it on a counter or something. It was a classic diabetic response injury. I looked under her haphazard bandaid and there was a definitive hole down through the middle of her finger. IV antibiotics were definitely on the menu in hopes to stave off an amputation.
All in a day's work.
Had a GSW the other day and he was a very lucky guy. Guy was shot at point blank range to the L-mid-axillary line at about the 3rd to 4th intercostal space and exit wound was mid-scapula, 4th to 5th intercostal space.... and it never hit his lung. I was pretty impressed.
Also ran a call on a woman short of breath. Asthma history, but stating at 99% and clear, and took her in. My partner who is getting her in the back turns to me and says, "She says her finger blew up". During the last 15 minutes of talking with the patient, she never mentioned her finger, but after looking over at it, I can't imagine how she couldn't have mentioned it. It was 3x its normal size, the skin splitting in several places and oozing pus all over the place. She mentioned that she had hit it on something earlier in the week and a few days ago the nail had fallen off. She was just putting neosporin on it. For as sick as it looked, I asked her, "Jeesh, did you slam it in a car door or what?".... no, she hadn't.... just hit it on a counter or something. It was a classic diabetic response injury. I looked under her haphazard bandaid and there was a definitive hole down through the middle of her finger. IV antibiotics were definitely on the menu in hopes to stave off an amputation.
All in a day's work.
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
Next step
I finally have it in ink! I've convinced my doctor to let me go back to work! I'm so excited I'm bouncing off the walls... its kinda like being put on parole. I still have a good 4 months of therapy and doc said surgery in the future is a possibility (I sure hope not, I'm SO done with surgeries)... but at this point, the fact that I can get out of this flippin house and get part of my life back is SO WONDERFUL!
I am a good 3-4 months ahead of schedule, and while I'd love to, wont be fighting fire anytime soon. Index finger is still broken, but I can still thump on a chest, push drugs, and granny tote.There will be a few things with a learning curve as I learn to adapt and figure out new ways to do things on the job, but it will be good occupational therapy to just get out there and do it!
So next Saturday is gonna be a good day! I know for all you guys who think I'm crazy just itching to get back to work... but then again, I just love my job and have the best crew you could ever ask for.
Tried riding this past weekend. 2 months to the day I got hurt, and while I have some mental blocks to get over, its the first baby step to get back out in the dirt!! Have a great holiday weekend. If you don't have plans and you live anywhere around north GA, Durhamtown is having an awesome Pro Freestyle Bike and Quad competition this weekend. I will be down there all weekend.... watching... ha ha ha, don't worry... this girl wont be trying any freestyling. Play hard... get dirty.
I am a good 3-4 months ahead of schedule, and while I'd love to, wont be fighting fire anytime soon. Index finger is still broken, but I can still thump on a chest, push drugs, and granny tote.There will be a few things with a learning curve as I learn to adapt and figure out new ways to do things on the job, but it will be good occupational therapy to just get out there and do it!
So next Saturday is gonna be a good day! I know for all you guys who think I'm crazy just itching to get back to work... but then again, I just love my job and have the best crew you could ever ask for.
Tried riding this past weekend. 2 months to the day I got hurt, and while I have some mental blocks to get over, its the first baby step to get back out in the dirt!! Have a great holiday weekend. If you don't have plans and you live anywhere around north GA, Durhamtown is having an awesome Pro Freestyle Bike and Quad competition this weekend. I will be down there all weekend.... watching... ha ha ha, don't worry... this girl wont be trying any freestyling. Play hard... get dirty.
Tuesday, May 22, 2007
More rehab
I know some people do sustain injuries that incapacitate them life long... but working where I do, I have encountered my fair share of people milking the system. Now, after me being laid up for 2 months... I just don't know how they do it. I am going flippin NUTS sitting here at home! I want to go back to work... NOW! My therapist jokes that when I'm 50, I'm gonna wish I had taken half a year off. I severely doubt it. I don't care if I shovel shit at this point, I just need to do SOMETHING!
I feel clumsy at everything I do. This past weekend I went out to Durhamtown since my accident. Hung out with some friends and we planned on riding the quad, the bike and doing some fishing... mmmm... and maybe a little drinking. LOL. Lets just say that I had a good time fishing. I need to learn patience with myself. But I guess I had talked myself up in my head so much and being back out there... it was not fun.
I feel like the part of my spirit that was so "balls to the wall" wasn't there. Granted, the quad I was riding is 4x bigger than what I'm used to riding, but I felt like it was taking ME for a ride. The next day I rode the dirt bike and really didn't have a good time. Falling just simply was NOT an option that day. I felt out of control. I know a lot of that comes from my index finger still being broken and everything else on my hand being hyper-sensitive... but... BUT... I want to ride! I want my life back, dammit!
I've been thinking a lot over the last couple of days about being so skittish this past weekend. Ya know, before this accident, broken bones, sprains, abrasions.. whatever... yeah they hurt... but they HEAL. And since I wasn't doing anything spectacular when I crashed, I feel like.... crap, what happens when I fall again? Falls are just a part of the sport, they happen. Its just a mental block that I need to work through. And I just don't want to give up something that I love so much. I know... baby steps. That's like telling the Tasmanian Devil to slow down. I need to find something to be good at again! SOON! Frustration, awkwardness and clumsiness is running rampant right now. Hell it takes me 15 minutes just to put my hair in a ponytail!
If I can get back to work, even as the medic on the box, I'll be ecstatic. I can at least use my noggin and feel useful again. I am trying to talk my doctor into letting me go back to work... if I can go back soon, I'd be a good 3-4 months ahead of schedule. Therapy has been going well and almost every visit I have Dan shaking his head. LOL. Every week he creates new splints for me to improve mobility in my joints and tendons. So, we'll see.... stay tuned...
I feel clumsy at everything I do. This past weekend I went out to Durhamtown since my accident. Hung out with some friends and we planned on riding the quad, the bike and doing some fishing... mmmm... and maybe a little drinking. LOL. Lets just say that I had a good time fishing. I need to learn patience with myself. But I guess I had talked myself up in my head so much and being back out there... it was not fun.
I feel like the part of my spirit that was so "balls to the wall" wasn't there. Granted, the quad I was riding is 4x bigger than what I'm used to riding, but I felt like it was taking ME for a ride. The next day I rode the dirt bike and really didn't have a good time. Falling just simply was NOT an option that day. I felt out of control. I know a lot of that comes from my index finger still being broken and everything else on my hand being hyper-sensitive... but... BUT... I want to ride! I want my life back, dammit!
I've been thinking a lot over the last couple of days about being so skittish this past weekend. Ya know, before this accident, broken bones, sprains, abrasions.. whatever... yeah they hurt... but they HEAL. And since I wasn't doing anything spectacular when I crashed, I feel like.... crap, what happens when I fall again? Falls are just a part of the sport, they happen. Its just a mental block that I need to work through. And I just don't want to give up something that I love so much. I know... baby steps. That's like telling the Tasmanian Devil to slow down. I need to find something to be good at again! SOON! Frustration, awkwardness and clumsiness is running rampant right now. Hell it takes me 15 minutes just to put my hair in a ponytail!
If I can get back to work, even as the medic on the box, I'll be ecstatic. I can at least use my noggin and feel useful again. I am trying to talk my doctor into letting me go back to work... if I can go back soon, I'd be a good 3-4 months ahead of schedule. Therapy has been going well and almost every visit I have Dan shaking his head. LOL. Every week he creates new splints for me to improve mobility in my joints and tendons. So, we'll see.... stay tuned...
Sunday, May 06, 2007
Rehab
I am well underway into therapy and I think I have encountered almost every emotion. Since my last posting, I've seen my hand unwrapped and lost it. I've stiffened my upper lip, taken account of what I've lost, what I still have, met people who've lost more than me and have learned about true friends and what they're willing to do.
Shortly after writing my last entry, and letting the wounds start to heal from the skin graft surgery, I had my appointment to see my hand as it would be. My legs were continuing to burn and feel as if someone were stabbing me, my skin graft was not healing well and I was an all-around wreck. We added vsits to a neurologist to figure out why you couldnt even blow on my skin on my legs without me having a meltdown. Pain meds were maxed out and eating a sweet-tart had the same effect. Time is passing slowly. I oscillate pretty frequently between being all gung-ho and being frustrated and bitter.
Shortly after writing my last entry, and letting the wounds start to heal from the skin graft surgery, I had my appointment to see my hand as it would be. My legs were continuing to burn and feel as if someone were stabbing me, my skin graft was not healing well and I was an all-around wreck. We added vsits to a neurologist to figure out why you couldnt even blow on my skin on my legs without me having a meltdown. Pain meds were maxed out and eating a sweet-tart had the same effect. Time is passing slowly. I oscillate pretty frequently between being all gung-ho and being frustrated and bitter.
Tuesday, April 03, 2007
Injured
Bet you thought I'd never update this thing did you? Well neither did I for a while. Pretty much all of February I felt like everything I was running was so run of the mill. We had a few moments here and there that I wanted to jot down and right about but never did. But now its the beginning of April and so much has happened the last 3 weeks.
I was at my part time job where I work as a medic at a sportsman resort. You've read about Durhamtown and its where I have raced and ride as much as possible. Well Mark and I were out patrolling the trails and on the "B" trail there are these 2 hills/jumps that are blind doubles. They're meant for bikes, but if you're on an ATV and you hit it fast enough, you'll fly right over the 2nd one. Well, since we weren't riding hard, and when working we're on utility quads, I came over the first part and hit nose heavy in between the 1st and 2nd jumps. Instead of rolling right over the 2nd part, the quad bounced and me and the quad went rolling. After rolling about 40', and kind of taking inventory of everything, I realized my right hand was hurting.... a lot!!! I pulled my helmet off with my left and saw from the tears in my glove that my right hand was really messed up. I was able to pull my glove off (later you'll see how I don't understand how I could do this), and once my brain acknowledged that it was MY hand that I was looking at the wave of pain that washed over me was indescribable. I prayed to pass out but it never came. Mark finally realized I wasn't behind him, listened to me scream and ramble as he packaged me up, and I was off to the closest hospital which is about 50 minutes away. Unfortunately, the medic that I was with couldn't get a line so I had no pain relief while en route. The lidocaine block once in the ER was SO wonderful. They realized I need both a hand and vascular surgeon specialist, so I was shipped over to Atlanta. Thank goodness!!! I have been blessed with an amazing doctor!! So.... the outcome?
After the first surgery, which ended up being 8 hours instead of the expected 4, due to the damage and amount of dirt in the wounds, my doc grafted about 8" of veins from my forearm into my fingers in an effort to save them. After 2.5 days, and watching my middle and ring fingers turn black, they amputated them just past the last knuckle. The tip of my pinkie was lost in the incident. We're not sure what exactly crushed my fingers, but it sure was a doozy of an injury. You'll see in the xray pics that all four fingers had significant injury. But there is much to be thankful for. Even though I now only have nubs for 2 fingers, which gives me a permanent "rock on" hand sign, my thumb was not injured, my index finger was able to be saved, and the rest of me only received road rash.
My mom was able to come up for the last 2 weeks, and I've had some awesome and amazing friends by my side since minute one. My doc is stating 6-8 months for full recovery, I'm setting a personal goal of 5 months. Now that I'm not AS doped up on narcotics, its been good being at home to start setting a schedule for myself for physical therapy. My fourth surgery was yesterday, which they took skin grafts to cover my fingers and other wounds. Hopefully this will be the last one for a while. I have included pictures of the xrays, and links to the pics that are more descriptive in case those of you with weak stomachs don't want to see them. Sine I now have lots of time, I will try and keep this updated, albeit with PT stories instead of field stories for now.
I was at my part time job where I work as a medic at a sportsman resort. You've read about Durhamtown and its where I have raced and ride as much as possible. Well Mark and I were out patrolling the trails and on the "B" trail there are these 2 hills/jumps that are blind doubles. They're meant for bikes, but if you're on an ATV and you hit it fast enough, you'll fly right over the 2nd one. Well, since we weren't riding hard, and when working we're on utility quads, I came over the first part and hit nose heavy in between the 1st and 2nd jumps. Instead of rolling right over the 2nd part, the quad bounced and me and the quad went rolling. After rolling about 40', and kind of taking inventory of everything, I realized my right hand was hurting.... a lot!!! I pulled my helmet off with my left and saw from the tears in my glove that my right hand was really messed up. I was able to pull my glove off (later you'll see how I don't understand how I could do this), and once my brain acknowledged that it was MY hand that I was looking at the wave of pain that washed over me was indescribable. I prayed to pass out but it never came. Mark finally realized I wasn't behind him, listened to me scream and ramble as he packaged me up, and I was off to the closest hospital which is about 50 minutes away. Unfortunately, the medic that I was with couldn't get a line so I had no pain relief while en route. The lidocaine block once in the ER was SO wonderful. They realized I need both a hand and vascular surgeon specialist, so I was shipped over to Atlanta. Thank goodness!!! I have been blessed with an amazing doctor!! So.... the outcome?
After the first surgery, which ended up being 8 hours instead of the expected 4, due to the damage and amount of dirt in the wounds, my doc grafted about 8" of veins from my forearm into my fingers in an effort to save them. After 2.5 days, and watching my middle and ring fingers turn black, they amputated them just past the last knuckle. The tip of my pinkie was lost in the incident. We're not sure what exactly crushed my fingers, but it sure was a doozy of an injury. You'll see in the xray pics that all four fingers had significant injury. But there is much to be thankful for. Even though I now only have nubs for 2 fingers, which gives me a permanent "rock on" hand sign, my thumb was not injured, my index finger was able to be saved, and the rest of me only received road rash.
My mom was able to come up for the last 2 weeks, and I've had some awesome and amazing friends by my side since minute one. My doc is stating 6-8 months for full recovery, I'm setting a personal goal of 5 months. Now that I'm not AS doped up on narcotics, its been good being at home to start setting a schedule for myself for physical therapy. My fourth surgery was yesterday, which they took skin grafts to cover my fingers and other wounds. Hopefully this will be the last one for a while. I have included pictures of the xrays, and links to the pics that are more descriptive in case those of you with weak stomachs don't want to see them. Sine I now have lots of time, I will try and keep this updated, albeit with PT stories instead of field stories for now.
Here are the links to some pictures that I took once I had the lidocaine block as well as some the medic took for on my way to Atlanta. *** WARNING *** they're graphic.
http://i64.photobucket.com/albums/h183/gaffmedic/injury015.jpg , http://i64.photobucket.com/albums/h183/gaffmedic/injury013.jpg , http://i64.photobucket.com/albums/h183/gaffmedic/injury014.jpg , http://i64.photobucket.com/albums/h183/gaffmedic/pre-surgery.jpg , http://i64.photobucket.com/albums/h183/gaffmedic/pre-surgery2.jpg , http://i64.photobucket.com/albums/h183/gaffmedic/pre-surgery3.jpg , http://i64.photobucket.com/albums/h183/gaffmedic/injury3003.jpg
So.... while this is definitely a challenge for me for the next few months, I'm up for it. So, play hard, and get dirty.
***** Update*****
Here are some pictures from the "now".... still getting used to it. Have good days and bad. Now that the weather is getting colder... you know how your extremities hurt when they're cold and you hit them on something. Yeah... it hurts even more when I hit my nubs on something. Have 2 more surgeries next year that we know for sure. Life has been busy with a baby on the way, so my concentration on my hand has been diverted, which is a good thing.
Monday, February 12, 2007
Allergic to... what?
Well if my goal of moving south was to be with a busier dept, I have certainly succeeded. Yesterday was madness, and my department certainly got its money's worth from us. Save for 45 minutes that I slept in the passenger seat of my rig, we ran a full 24 hours.
We ran a call for a woman in seizures. Apparently she was at a friends house and they witnessed 3 of them before calling us. No one could give any information on her and one woman sitting next to her would ramble on and on, but when asked a direct question, would just grin at us without saying a word. The patient was postictal to say the least, just staring at us.. and when trying to assess her, she grabs my fingers in one hand and my thumb in the other and starts pulling... hard! I get myself free and use the crew from th engine company to help get her out and in my rescue. It takes a good 10 minutes to get all the bystanders to back the heck off and once we get this very disoriented woman on the stretcher, she announces that she, "has to make a boo-boo." I'm hoping she can hold it til we get to the ER. While checking her into triage, we were repositioning her O2 mask and her wig comes flying off... she is still postictal and while getting her set-up on a hospital bed.. she starts informing me on her allergies... the last one.. the most emphatic... being K-Y Jelly. I dont expect the hospital to be using any of that on you ma'am.
Had a frustrating asthma call... couldnt get a line to save my life... was really wishing we had RSI.. and to top it off.. several of my judgements were questioned by chiefs in the field hearing radio traffic. Everything ended up fine... just glad when the shift was over
We ran a call for a woman in seizures. Apparently she was at a friends house and they witnessed 3 of them before calling us. No one could give any information on her and one woman sitting next to her would ramble on and on, but when asked a direct question, would just grin at us without saying a word. The patient was postictal to say the least, just staring at us.. and when trying to assess her, she grabs my fingers in one hand and my thumb in the other and starts pulling... hard! I get myself free and use the crew from th engine company to help get her out and in my rescue. It takes a good 10 minutes to get all the bystanders to back the heck off and once we get this very disoriented woman on the stretcher, she announces that she, "has to make a boo-boo." I'm hoping she can hold it til we get to the ER. While checking her into triage, we were repositioning her O2 mask and her wig comes flying off... she is still postictal and while getting her set-up on a hospital bed.. she starts informing me on her allergies... the last one.. the most emphatic... being K-Y Jelly. I dont expect the hospital to be using any of that on you ma'am.
Had a frustrating asthma call... couldnt get a line to save my life... was really wishing we had RSI.. and to top it off.. several of my judgements were questioned by chiefs in the field hearing radio traffic. Everything ended up fine... just glad when the shift was over
Wednesday, February 07, 2007
We've got orange!
Am finally getting back to work and am feeling better. Been staying busy. We've caught one if not 2-3 fires every shift lately. And the 2 other shifts have been just as busy as we have.
My partner and I were coming back from the hospital, waiting at a stop light, and watching one of those old VW vans starting to smoke. Looked like he was just burning some oil... then he's trying to start his engine... we pull on through the light and pull over to see if he's ok. I'm in the middle of texting someone on my phone and my partner hollers... "we've got orange on the
ground." The guy gets his dog out of the van and we use what we can with the water can and extinguisher. Its still starting to roll. We've already called for an engine, but it was funny only being able to stand there and watch it with our gear on.
Its been bitter cold here the last couple of days, makes the good calls that much more expeditious and the BS calls that much more frustrating.
Here are some pics from a fire we had recently along with some pics from
riding lately. Had two riders last weekend that won them trips to the ER with concussions. The first ride nailed a tree and couldn't tell us what day it was. He knew everything else but looked like he was still seeing lots of stars. Then his brother tells us its common for him to not know what day it is. Huh? Are you kidding? mmmm... ookkkkk. If you say so. 15 minutes later we get called to the big track for another rider who nose-dived after over jumping a tabletop. He definitely took a good hit. His brain was on a recorded loop. Helmets.. such wonderful things... it did its job. Told the guy I'd give him $20 towards a new jersey since I cut it off after 
only 3 hours of him buying it.
Yesterday seemed to be sweet old lady day. Had 3 patients in a row that were over the age of 95 and who all just seemed ready to pass. One had been taken in by her family, yet they let her lay in the same spot for over 4 days without moving her. The only time she uttered a sound was when we were moving her to the stretcher and the pain from her bedsores were to much for her to handle.
We ran a call for a woman down, called in by her 6-yr old son. Both us and the engine pulled up at the same time to also find Grandpa standing on the front porch with the boy and a 4-yr old girl. The little boy says he was playing in his room with with his sister while his mom was on the computer in the next room when they heard a pop. They go in to find mom laying on the floor. I was thinking a possible electrocution. We find her laying on the floor with a blood soaked chest. She is gone. We look but cant find a weapon. We then see a hole in the wall above the computer. We clear the house and call in PD to search the house for a possible assailant. We come to find out a neighbor was shooting a high-power rifle at branches... BRANCHES!!!... when a bullet hit her roof, richoceted through the walls and kills this woman doing nothing but sitting at a desk and working on a computer. It is tragic and heart-breaking. We find out later that not more than 5 minutes earlier the little girl had been sitting in her mothers lap. I cant stop thinking about these kids.
As for my incident that you guys know about, we are feeling better and getting healed up. As soon as I get pics from that fire, I'll post them.
My partner and I were coming back from the hospital, waiting at a stop light, and watching one of those old VW vans starting to smoke. Looked like he was just burning some oil... then he's trying to start his engine... we pull on through the light and pull over to see if he's ok. I'm in the middle of texting someone on my phone and my partner hollers... "we've got orange on the
ground." The guy gets his dog out of the van and we use what we can with the water can and extinguisher. Its still starting to roll. We've already called for an engine, but it was funny only being able to stand there and watch it with our gear on.Its been bitter cold here the last couple of days, makes the good calls that much more expeditious and the BS calls that much more frustrating.
Here are some pics from a fire we had recently along with some pics from
riding lately. Had two riders last weekend that won them trips to the ER with concussions. The first ride nailed a tree and couldn't tell us what day it was. He knew everything else but looked like he was still seeing lots of stars. Then his brother tells us its common for him to not know what day it is. Huh? Are you kidding? mmmm... ookkkkk. If you say so. 15 minutes later we get called to the big track for another rider who nose-dived after over jumping a tabletop. He definitely took a good hit. His brain was on a recorded loop. Helmets.. such wonderful things... it did its job. Told the guy I'd give him $20 towards a new jersey since I cut it off after 
only 3 hours of him buying it.Yesterday seemed to be sweet old lady day. Had 3 patients in a row that were over the age of 95 and who all just seemed ready to pass. One had been taken in by her family, yet they let her lay in the same spot for over 4 days without moving her. The only time she uttered a sound was when we were moving her to the stretcher and the pain from her bedsores were to much for her to handle.
We ran a call for a woman down, called in by her 6-yr old son. Both us and the engine pulled up at the same time to also find Grandpa standing on the front porch with the boy and a 4-yr old girl. The little boy says he was playing in his room with with his sister while his mom was on the computer in the next room when they heard a pop. They go in to find mom laying on the floor. I was thinking a possible electrocution. We find her laying on the floor with a blood soaked chest. She is gone. We look but cant find a weapon. We then see a hole in the wall above the computer. We clear the house and call in PD to search the house for a possible assailant. We come to find out a neighbor was shooting a high-power rifle at branches... BRANCHES!!!... when a bullet hit her roof, richoceted through the walls and kills this woman doing nothing but sitting at a desk and working on a computer. It is tragic and heart-breaking. We find out later that not more than 5 minutes earlier the little girl had been sitting in her mothers lap. I cant stop thinking about these kids.
As for my incident that you guys know about, we are feeling better and getting healed up. As soon as I get pics from that fire, I'll post them.
Friday, January 26, 2007
Eeewwww...
Ran a call late into the night for a person sick. Such a vague dispatch.. and to an address of an apartment tower of the geriatric age group. Enroute we get information that a grandson has something stuck in his ear. Hhmmm.. just what could we have here. To give you an accurate picture, most of the apartments in this tower are occupied by folks who have less than acceptable cleanliness standards. We walk in to find a 20-something young man in a chair with his head in his hands. He tells me he has a roach stuck in his ear. A roach!... stuck in his ear!!!! My partner and I cant see anything and at first I think.. no... please tell me no... maybe this kid has a crazy case of wax or something. Then I look at the dining room table and see a good 10-20 roaches crawling all over the place.. and as my eyes adjust to the low light... I see them all over the walls and ceiling. I want to bathe... NOW! We take him outside for better light and try to do our thing with no resolve. He says he can still feel it moving around. We take him on in and we use a potent lidocaine concoction to kill it and it floats out. ok... now I'm really ready for a bath.
Everything else was meat and potatoes... an arrest that should have been called in the field but since we couldn't get a line and dropped everything down the tube we transported. A bunch of basic calls where onset was 3-6 days earlier and now they were just "tired of feeling like this".
The next couple of days are set aside for chilling, working out, and doodling around the house. Next 2 weeks will be busy... see ya when I get back. Stay safe. Play hard. Get dirty.
Everything else was meat and potatoes... an arrest that should have been called in the field but since we couldn't get a line and dropped everything down the tube we transported. A bunch of basic calls where onset was 3-6 days earlier and now they were just "tired of feeling like this".
The next couple of days are set aside for chilling, working out, and doodling around the house. Next 2 weeks will be busy... see ya when I get back. Stay safe. Play hard. Get dirty.
Tuesday, January 23, 2007
Weather
The day started out pretty good... after musical driver for about an hour (seems every shift, after the roster has been made, we go through musical chair for about an hour while other stations call in needing an extra body)... it was me and the EMT I was assigned to for the day. I have had previous shifts with her before, but my day went from great to "oh shit" when she got moved over. I try not to gripe, but anyone can tell you.. you can handle practically anything on your shift if you have a good partner. But having a crappy partner can make even the most mundane calls a headache.
Definition of a crappy partner: someone who doesn't check off the truck efficiently, knowing that after you do your thing with drug checks and setting up your equipment the way you like it, you might as well go back and check the whole truck yourself cause your partner will only visually check the things that are in plain view. A crappy partner does only bare minimum, does a half-ass job at cleaning the back of the truck after a call and then sits in the front and plays solitaire while you do your thing and STILL SITS there while you are in the back putting everything back in order.
And for those of you who are saying, tell your partner to get off their lazy butt and do their job!, well... easier said than done. That's all I can say about it for now.
So we ran 2 calls in the morning and then got to catch up on some much needed sleep for a few hours. I had worked at my other job the day before and was sore and beat to hell and back. I rode my quad for a good 8 hours straight. I am certainly not complaining as its the BEST pt job out there. Lets see... I get paid almost what I'm getting at my full time job to ride my quad around the woods and my gas is paid for to boot! The weather was beautiful, the ground was perfect, and my baby was running good. So I rode hard... and so my body was hollering at me all day at work.
Watched the NFL playoffs for a bit before we caught a good house fire. Home owner apparently was cooking a mean fried fish meal and got a grease fire on the stove. Hint: what DON'T you use to put out a grease fire? Yeah.. guy brings in a garden hose to put it out. Ends up lighting up the whole kitchen and by the time we get called and get there, the roof, the garage, both cars are all lit up. We did some serious remodeling during overhaul. All the while it was 33 degrees and raining. Good times. 3 hours and fresh, dry clothes later, bed time.
Got up around 1am for a 24 yo woman with tingling in her arm which started up again while she was exercising. No other complaints, original onset was 2 months ago, no KNOWN history as she hasn't seen a doctor in over 10 yrs, and at 300 pounds exercising at 1am... I thought.. so we're your doctor, huh? Do you want to go the hospital or not? "I don't know.. what do you think?" What do I think?, Well I wouldn't have called 911 cause my finger tips were tingly. "Ok... well I'll go and get checked out, can you bring the stretcher to my front doorstep?" Are your legs tingly too? I ask. "No"..... well then... lets keep up your exercise regimen and WALK to the ambulance.
Until next time... stay safe, play hard... and get dirty.
Definition of a crappy partner: someone who doesn't check off the truck efficiently, knowing that after you do your thing with drug checks and setting up your equipment the way you like it, you might as well go back and check the whole truck yourself cause your partner will only visually check the things that are in plain view. A crappy partner does only bare minimum, does a half-ass job at cleaning the back of the truck after a call and then sits in the front and plays solitaire while you do your thing and STILL SITS there while you are in the back putting everything back in order.
And for those of you who are saying, tell your partner to get off their lazy butt and do their job!, well... easier said than done. That's all I can say about it for now.
So we ran 2 calls in the morning and then got to catch up on some much needed sleep for a few hours. I had worked at my other job the day before and was sore and beat to hell and back. I rode my quad for a good 8 hours straight. I am certainly not complaining as its the BEST pt job out there. Lets see... I get paid almost what I'm getting at my full time job to ride my quad around the woods and my gas is paid for to boot! The weather was beautiful, the ground was perfect, and my baby was running good. So I rode hard... and so my body was hollering at me all day at work.
Watched the NFL playoffs for a bit before we caught a good house fire. Home owner apparently was cooking a mean fried fish meal and got a grease fire on the stove. Hint: what DON'T you use to put out a grease fire? Yeah.. guy brings in a garden hose to put it out. Ends up lighting up the whole kitchen and by the time we get called and get there, the roof, the garage, both cars are all lit up. We did some serious remodeling during overhaul. All the while it was 33 degrees and raining. Good times. 3 hours and fresh, dry clothes later, bed time.
Got up around 1am for a 24 yo woman with tingling in her arm which started up again while she was exercising. No other complaints, original onset was 2 months ago, no KNOWN history as she hasn't seen a doctor in over 10 yrs, and at 300 pounds exercising at 1am... I thought.. so we're your doctor, huh? Do you want to go the hospital or not? "I don't know.. what do you think?" What do I think?, Well I wouldn't have called 911 cause my finger tips were tingly. "Ok... well I'll go and get checked out, can you bring the stretcher to my front doorstep?" Are your legs tingly too? I ask. "No"..... well then... lets keep up your exercise regimen and WALK to the ambulance.
Until next time... stay safe, play hard... and get dirty.
Friday, January 19, 2007
Cougar Bar
Another insanely long day on the box. Started about 45 minutes into our shift and we didn't get a breather at the station til about 4pm. And that only lasted about 15 minutes. Seems every time I have our rook on the box with me, we get slammed all day. Our rook is new to the fire service, but has been an EMT for about 4 yrs. But she is eager to learn and willing to work hard. We were cleaning up the box at the hospital and we were trading near miss stories. She's telling me how she almost lost a finger when someone threw a hydrant wrench at her while catching the plug and she starts talking about the cougar bar. I do a head tilt wondering what the heck a cougar bar is... I'm trying to figure out what she is talking about... and then she does an .. "oh.. I mean cheetah bar!".... and I start laughing so hard cause she's confident she really meant a cheetah bar... Its a CHEATER bar goofball! We get a good laugh and she's a good sport about it but begging me not to tell our senior guy. Are you kidding? Some of the best nicknames come about from doing silly rookie things. So now "Rook"... she is now "Cheetah".
We ran a woman in labor which I'm not sure what exactly it was... but lets just say that I was envious that my partner was stopped up and couldn't smell what I was smelling. She was in her early 50's giving birth to her 4th child. Ambitious woman.
Ran a call on an ALOC with significant ETOH history. When starting the line on him, went through 6 alcohol prep pads to get the area clean. His wife sitting up front was intent on trying to have a conversation with him while he was out of it in the back. While my partner drove we laughed the whole way since she was hard of hearing, but rambling on to him.. we're trying to get information from her on him.. and all he would do was just stare at me. Older couple who both seemed like they hadn't bathed in over a month. I wonder if this is because of old age our their situation. We weren't laughing at them... I really wish at times I had more power to help people in this environment... but that there were 2-3 conversations all going on at the same time and none of them meshed was candid camera-ish.
Had a call on the other side of the county from PD.. they found a guy laying in the woods on the opposite side of the guardrail, very... let me emphasize... very combative when approached. But would just lay there if left alone. By the time we got there, the engine company was on scene as well as the pt's mom. In the course of a few minutes, he tried to bite his mother, bite me, took a swing at one of the engine company guys... he was a workout. Restraints, Narcan, and Valium later... he was peacefully sleeping with an artificially induced SVT. The frustrating part was mom on scene. She refused... and not even by saying she refused.. she simply ignored any request for information or assistance regarding her son! "Name?... ma'am... what is his name?" Nothing. "Ma'am.. your son wants to be able to see you, can you stand over here?" Nothing. She would just look over my shoulder at him and start to walk away. Gggrrrrrr.... I wanted to shake a knot in her! It was a nice little bout of chaos.
We got back to the station between 4 and 5am. I just stayed in the passenger seat and slept. No point in going to bed. Oncoming crew woke me @ 0630, took my keys and radio and THEN I went to bed for a bit before heading home. Now I am home, got the laundry done and I'm taking the quad out to ride. It's cold but its at least not raining. Gonna get some good practice time in before working out there tomorrow. Its not as busy during the week and can play on the track easier. Stay safe... play hard... get dirty.
We ran a woman in labor which I'm not sure what exactly it was... but lets just say that I was envious that my partner was stopped up and couldn't smell what I was smelling. She was in her early 50's giving birth to her 4th child. Ambitious woman.
Ran a call on an ALOC with significant ETOH history. When starting the line on him, went through 6 alcohol prep pads to get the area clean. His wife sitting up front was intent on trying to have a conversation with him while he was out of it in the back. While my partner drove we laughed the whole way since she was hard of hearing, but rambling on to him.. we're trying to get information from her on him.. and all he would do was just stare at me. Older couple who both seemed like they hadn't bathed in over a month. I wonder if this is because of old age our their situation. We weren't laughing at them... I really wish at times I had more power to help people in this environment... but that there were 2-3 conversations all going on at the same time and none of them meshed was candid camera-ish.
Had a call on the other side of the county from PD.. they found a guy laying in the woods on the opposite side of the guardrail, very... let me emphasize... very combative when approached. But would just lay there if left alone. By the time we got there, the engine company was on scene as well as the pt's mom. In the course of a few minutes, he tried to bite his mother, bite me, took a swing at one of the engine company guys... he was a workout. Restraints, Narcan, and Valium later... he was peacefully sleeping with an artificially induced SVT. The frustrating part was mom on scene. She refused... and not even by saying she refused.. she simply ignored any request for information or assistance regarding her son! "Name?... ma'am... what is his name?" Nothing. "Ma'am.. your son wants to be able to see you, can you stand over here?" Nothing. She would just look over my shoulder at him and start to walk away. Gggrrrrrr.... I wanted to shake a knot in her! It was a nice little bout of chaos.
We got back to the station between 4 and 5am. I just stayed in the passenger seat and slept. No point in going to bed. Oncoming crew woke me @ 0630, took my keys and radio and THEN I went to bed for a bit before heading home. Now I am home, got the laundry done and I'm taking the quad out to ride. It's cold but its at least not raining. Gonna get some good practice time in before working out there tomorrow. Its not as busy during the week and can play on the track easier. Stay safe... play hard... get dirty.
Tuesday, January 16, 2007
Good day
Yesterday made for a good day on the engine. Much unlike last shift, the whole company got to get chores done and relax for the first part of the day. It was a welcome relief. Nothing much to speak of.. a car fire, a full arrest, a couple of MVA's with all the rain and a few others.
It was crazy unseasonably warm but I am certainly not complaining. It was a beautiful day. But as usual that is coming to an abrupt end. The cold weather has moved in overnight and I am gonna try and get in a couple hours of riding practice before it gets really bad today. Heard that by next shift we're gonna have a day of sleet and cold crappy weather. Guess winter finally decided to arrive. Well, off to do some riding and hopefully stretch out my back from last time.
It was crazy unseasonably warm but I am certainly not complaining. It was a beautiful day. But as usual that is coming to an abrupt end. The cold weather has moved in overnight and I am gonna try and get in a couple hours of riding practice before it gets really bad today. Heard that by next shift we're gonna have a day of sleet and cold crappy weather. Guess winter finally decided to arrive. Well, off to do some riding and hopefully stretch out my back from last time.
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