A novel approach to EMS

J

JoeBear

Forum Ride Along
Messages
5
Reaction score
0
Points
1
Hello, all.
I'm writing a novel (had other works published) and am looking for some help with my research into the world of EMS in order to keep the story details authentic. I don't know NYC, much less Queens, except for the research I've done, so please pardon any stupid questions.

My protagonist and main character (MC) is a paramedic and the setting is mostly Queens, NYC. I have no idea why that's the setting - many times, characters tell the author what to write. Freaky sometimes, huh? I don't know much about the EMS field but I've already learned here that some of you folks follow up on a patient to see how things turned out. My MC did that but I didn't know if it was realistic. He has taken many/most? patients to New York Hospital Queens (Booth Memorial Avenue and Main St.) and I don't know if that's realistic. Also, I'm working on a scene where he and the EMT-B are called to Jamaica, Queens, 10600 block of 160th St. near Faith Tabernacle Baptist Church. Is it authentic/realistic to have him transport the patient (diabetic shock) to Queens General Hospital (Grand Central Pkwy and 164th St.)? Does NYHQ have its own EMS service or is it covered by NYFD? I have so many questions.

I also have questions about dispatch communications since I want to keep things authentic but they can wait. I would appreciate any comments or observations about EMS work within Queens. Thank you to anyone who has the time to help.
 
Well, for starters, it's FDNY, not NYFD.
I'm not from New York, but if you want to know about dispatch communications, you can listen to FDNY dispatch online if you search for the scanners and hear the real thing.
 
rescue1 said:
Well, for starters, it's FDNY, not NYFD.
I'm not from New York, but if you want to know about dispatch communications, you can listen to FDNY e cigarette dispatch online if you search for the scanners and hear the real thing.
Click to expand...

I wanna take a training about this communication strategy. i wanna be a successful marketer. so what can i do and what procedure will help this term?
 
rescue1 said:
Well, for starters, it's FDNY, not NYFD.
I'm not from New York, but if you want to know about dispatch communications, you can listen to FDNY dispatch online if you search for the scanners and hear the real thing.
Click to expand...
Thanks. Dyslexia is a terrible thing. And thanks for the lead on dispatch online.
 
Joe, you may want to start out with your local area 911 center, in many smaller areas one center handles the calls for all fire/ems/police in the county (with different freqs of course) and it may be easier to understand what is happening with a slower pace. FDNY EMS has a large call volume (that city has more residents than some states...lol) and you may miss 99% of the dispatch if you are not familiar with the terminology, and short hand that is used. I am in a pretty quiet county in PA and our 911 center had over 900,000 calls just for fire/ems last year, that does not include the police calls. Just saying don't try to jump in the deep end if you do not know how to swim!! :D
 
RescueRider724 said:
Joe, you may want to start out with your local area 911 center, in many smaller areas one center handles the calls for all fire/ems/police in the county (with different freqs of course) and it may be easier to understand what is happening with a slower pace. FDNY EMS has a large call volume (that city has more residents than some states...lol) and you may miss 99% of the dispatch if you are not familiar with the terminology, and short hand that is used. I am in a pretty quiet county in PA and our 911 center had over 900,000 calls just for fire/ems last year, that does not include the police calls. Just saying don't try to jump in the deep end if you do not know how to swim!! :D
Click to expand...
Thanks, RR. Good thought. I listened to dispatch com online, per rescue1's suggestion, the other day for hours, looking for patterns in the communications, cues, etc. My time in the military and experience communicating with towers at various civilian airports since then also helped me pick up the cadence and understand what was being said. I'll look at the local, slower 911 center as well. I appreciate your time and thoughts very much.
 
Honestly if you want to do a book with EMS folks being your primary characters why don't you write about someplace other than New York? Every book or crappy movie or TV show is either about NY, LA, or Chicago and it's getting old! I'm not a writer but I enjoy a good book and I'd rather read about someplace far away and exotic. How about a guy from Queens working in another country or Alaska or something. No offense, good luck.
 
KingCountyMedic said:
Honestly if you want to do a book with EMS folks being your primary characters why don't you write about someplace other than New York? Every book or crappy movie or TV show is either about NY, LA, or Chicago and it's getting old! I'm not a writer but I enjoy a good book and I'd rather read about someplace far away and exotic. How about a guy from Queens working in another country or Alaska or something. No offense, good luck.
Click to expand...
No offense taken, King. It's interesting that you'd make that observation because I've entertained the idea of setting the story in western Virginia or eastern Kentucky. NYC became a personal challenge due to all the research required for authenticity, given that I don't possess little familiarity with the NYC burroughs. At 11,000 words out of maybe 80,000 when it's finished, I have time to change the setting and consider your thoughts. Thanks.
 
JoeBear said:
No offense taken, King. It's interesting that you'd make that observation because I've entertained the idea of setting the story in western Virginia or eastern Kentucky. NYC became a personal challenge due to all the research required for authenticity, given that I don't possess little familiarity with the NYC burroughs. At 11,000 words out of maybe 80,000 when it's finished, I have time to change the setting and consider your thoughts. Thanks.
Click to expand...
Fwiw, I think a rural would be awesome. City is quick transport, from my understanding rural is a lot more hectic and stressful
Disclaimer is that I haven't done a rural transport.
 
9D4 said:
Fwiw, I think a rural would be awesome. City is quick transport, from my understanding rural is a lot more hectic and stressful
Disclaimer is that I haven't done a rural transport.
Click to expand...

We are in that interface area between rural and city, big city is Pittsburgh, PA about 30 miles away, our level 1 trauma hospitals (4 in the area) are either 20 miles or 30 miles away. Life flight and Stat Medivac are kept pretty busy around here.

:ph34r:
 
It's very common for EMS personnel to follow up on patients they've had. Many ALS projects even require pt. dispositions be included in the run report.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top