Stewart1990
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I'm sorry for the hubbub. I'm having trouble figuring out how to edit my posts. if you can help, how do i do it? im non the newer side here.
Are You Prepared or Just a Wacker?
- Thread starter Mountain Res-Q
- Start date
No one is going to think negatively of you especially since you did good followup posts. Some of us just want you to know the consequences of your actions and the actions of others as they reflect on the EMS community. A few of us actually have some wisdom and knowledge to pass on to the newbies.
BtW, welcome to the forum!
medic417
The Truth Provider
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Can not edit after a few minutes. You would have to message the moderator and see if they would delete for you.
I hope you don't edit your posts. They do offer information that the others responded to. Even if it does not directly pertain to you, others will hopefully get the message about how their actions, although they may seem innocent enough to them, can get them into serious trouble and reflect poorly on the profession.
You have explained yourself sufficiently and have probably learned something.
Don't stop learning now that you have started.
Stewart1990
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Thanks, been dodging the rocks being hurled at me here. I think the fact that I work so hard to make up for the undeniable 'female tech' scarlet letter i have been handed down, that I'm eesentially a kiss-*** and would, assuredly, never do these things. I have been gone from that company for over a year and a half, and no longer associate with said techs and medics. My biggest curiosity is that whether or not this will still be happening when joining the EMS company they work for, and finding ways to resist the behavior i will undoubtedly be roped into somehow. Thanks.
OP
OP
Mountain Res-Q
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Not in my book. Most of us got into this to help other people (and the cool lights and sirens^_^). Schooling and experience tells us not to put ourselves oout there like that, legally speaking. How could anyone walk past something like this without exercising your humanity, EMS aside? Example (and this may be viewed as wacker-ish):
In addition to my volunteer time with SAR, I am the EMT Supervisor for a larger Snow Park. In winter I drive 30-45 minutes to work. I know how to drive in mountains with snow and ice, but people from the Valley and Bay Area come up to play in the snow and can't drive worth crap! One mornig I am heading up the hill and come across a Subaru Outback 20 feet over the embankment on a really nasty curve. It is on it's top and snapped an 8 inch ppin in the way down (BAD DRIVER). I know all the EMS and Fire boys up in this area and know that the Closest BLS Volunteer Fire Crew is 30 minutes out and the closest ALS Ambulance rig is 45 minutes out. hell, the LEO's are closer to 1 hour out. What do I do? Legally speaking: Keep on driving and don't open yourself up that way! But what if I had kept on going and latter found out that there was a small child in that vehicle that died post-crash? how would I feel? I may not have had a legal reason to stop, but I had a moral one (which outranks all else). I stop and check to make sure everyone was okay - one 20-ish girl, shaken, but declining any help from me and the Ambulance. I recalled my Dispatchers to make sure LE was enroute, and left her with some friends who had driven up moments latter. Wacker-ish or upholding my personal standard to help when I can?
So, I carry gloves, if nothing else, for those reasons only. Any other gear I have in my POV is specificly SAR related, and not so that I can sit at home with a scanner and try and beat EMS or Fire to calls. Who has time for that?
fortsmithman
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The only items we take after a call are one flat sheet one pillow case and pillow and one blanket. This is with the hospital's approval this is to replace the bedding we used in transporting the pt. In Fort Smith we have only one hospital and when not in use our two ambulances are kept there. Three of our members are also nurses at the hospital.
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OP
OP
Mountain Res-Q
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To back that up, there are bad EMS people out there who give the profesion a bad reputation. It is your resonsibility (and all of ours) to build it up so that one day we all get the respect that we deserve. We do things right and no one notices. We do one thing wrong and we loss any respect for everyone that calls themselves EMS. Thise fellas need to be shot!!!
BossyCow
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In our waaaaaaa-aaaaaay off the beaten track rural EMS district, we often respond directly from home. Our district is 52 Sq miles of goat tracks and unmarked driveways. When the tones go out, depending on where the call is, I'm not going to drive 5 miles east to the closest station so I can drive a half mile from my house to the pt.
I often go directly to the scene with my abbreviated non-whacker pack. If I need to start CPR, or control a big bleed I can. I can also get the baseline vitals and most of the pt info (doc, allergies, meds etc) a SAMPLE hx, so that when the ambulance arrives, the on scene time is much less. The pt is ready to load and go.
This may not be necessary in those areas where EMS is only a few minutes away but it works for us.
I often go directly to the scene with my abbreviated non-whacker pack. If I need to start CPR, or control a big bleed I can. I can also get the baseline vitals and most of the pt info (doc, allergies, meds etc) a SAMPLE hx, so that when the ambulance arrives, the on scene time is much less. The pt is ready to load and go.
This may not be necessary in those areas where EMS is only a few minutes away but it works for us.
DrankTheKoolaid
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re
Trauma shears in the glove compartment and thats it.
No need for anything else. If their bleeding i'll cut some of there clothes off and make a bandage and tie with it. Got a Fx? Cool ill cut a couple stick and some more of their clothes for a splint. Other then that if im not on duty the likelyhood of me performing any ALS is none.
Trauma shears in the glove compartment and thats it.
No need for anything else. If their bleeding i'll cut some of there clothes off and make a bandage and tie with it. Got a Fx? Cool ill cut a couple stick and some more of their clothes for a splint. Other then that if im not on duty the likelyhood of me performing any ALS is none.
Stewart1990
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yeah, trauma shears tend to show up everywhere around here. always where they are not supposed to be.
HotelCo
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I can never seem to hang onto a pair of shears. They always "disappear" whenever I set them down even for a moment.
Stewart1990
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Congradulations, we have discovered a wormhole. I think your shears are dissappearing and reappearing in my utility drawer in my kitchen. Black handles? Scissor-y looking? Yup, thats them.
You and me both.
I have a cellphone, opposable thumbs, and the ability to do compression only CPR should the need arise.
Stewart1990
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bare minimum there, huh?
medic417
The Truth Provider
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You do know bunker gear deteriorates in sun light? And that the standard bag used by most FF's does not stop the UV rays that destroy them don't you? Just not good practice to have bunker gear with you in POV as hard to store properly.
Don't fully agree with everything he says but good start.
http://www.ppe101.com/Columnists/Je...per-Care-and-Maintenance-of-Turnout-Clothing/
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BossyCow
Forum Deputy Chief
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We are forbidden to carry our bunker gear in our POVs. The toxins imbedded in the gear from previous fires combined with the heat and enclosed space of the car combines to make a nasty cancer cocktail.
reaper
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What doesn't make a nasty cancer cocktail?
Tincanfireman
Airfield Operations
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Do what you wish to yourself, but think of your kids, grandkids, S.O.'s, etc...