What have you forgot?

[MagicTyler]

Yesterday I had my first mistake as a medic. I decided that we should run the backup unit for the day because it never gets used. My partner and I load up the equipment. We get a call to a rual clinic for a patient having a seizure and hypotensive. Get on scene pt is 40 yo F, gcs of 3, vag bleed, still szing (for last 30 min), and pressures in the 80s systolic. I get benzos onboard and get her on a backboard (she had a pretty hard headstrike per clinic staff when she started szing). After benzos she improves to a GCS of 9, we load her up, and I realize... I never put the monitor on the rig. I have an unresponsive, hypotensive, postical pt and no way to monitor spo2 or ecg, and have to do manual blood pressures. Oh yeah and at least a 45 minute transport time to the closest hospital... I felt pretty stupid.

What have you guys ever forgotten on a call?

 

[jwk]

Do you use a daily checklist that you have to sign?

 

[systemet]

Yesterday I had my first mistake as a medic. I decided that we should run the backup unit for the day because it never gets used. My partner and I load up the equipment. We get a call to a rual clinic for a patient having a seizure and hypotensive. Get on scene pt is 40 yo F, gcs of 3, vag bleed, still szing (for last 30 min), and pressures in the 80s systolic. I get benzos onboard and get her on a backboard (she had a pretty hard headstrike per clinic staff when she started szing). After benzos she improves to a GCS of 9, we load her up, and I realize... I never put the monitor on the rig. I have an unresponsive, hypotensive, postical pt and no way to monitor spo2 or ecg, and have to do manual blood pressures. Oh yeah and at least a 45 minute transport time to the closest hospital... I felt pretty stupid.

What have you guys ever forgotten on a call?

I will confess to having forgotten to sign out my narcs and benzos on one shift, but was lucky enough to realise before any harm happened. I also attempted to kill an LP12 that I'd managed to leave on the rear bumper. Despite a good left turn and some fair speed, it survived.

 

[Carlos Danger]

One time we were responding to a scene call and forgot the blood cooler and the narcs. (Well, in my defense, my parter should have gotten them and is really the one who forgot them...but obviously I should have noticed as we were doing our walk-around of the helicopter just before responding.)

The patient was an 18 year old girl with severe bilat leg fractures from an MVC. I told EMS that I left my drugs in the helicopter and asked if I could use their drugs. I give her some morphine out of their supply and later I had to email their medical director to tell him that I had administered the drugs, because they hadn't called for orders for the morphine.

 

[MagicTyler]

Do you use a daily checklist that you have to sign?

Yes, but like I said, we loaded stuff into our back uo unit. So the rig was checked off, and the monitor was tested/ checked off. The monitor was just never moved to the backup rig.

 

[usalsfyre]

Yes, but like I said, we loaded stuff into our back uo unit. So the rig was checked off, and the monitor was tested/ checked off. The monitor was just never moved to the backup rig.

It's a very, very wise thing to do a rig check every time you change trucks, regardless of when it was last done. (Ask me how I know this)

 

[mycrofft]

It's a very, very wise thing to do a rig check every time you change trucks, regardless of when it was last done. (Ask me how I know this)

Oh, HAYLE yes!

 

[Outbac1]

I took the truck pager home when I lived 2 hrs from the base. Forgot to sign my narcs, doesn't everyone at least once. Took the narcs home, saw them on my belt the next day. Left a bag on the bumper and drove to the hosp. It was still there. Everyone forgets something sometime. At least I didn't forget my stretcher and then drive 2 hrs back to my base without it.

 

[WolfmanHarris]

I arrived on a really crowded scene with multiple units. We were to be brought to the patient on a golf cart but we're cancelled as there'd been some duplicate dispatching. Took my bags off the cart, backed my partner out of the congested road and hopped in leaving my monitor and bags on scene. Noticed 15 minutes later when we got back to base. Thankfully the Sup had left an RRU on scene and they found my gear and held it until I rushed back for it.

The Sup's a great guy and I respect how he handled it when I called him. After I'd got my gear back he laughed a little and called the whole thing a good lesson learned for a new medic and left it at that; no harm no foul. He remains a Sup I'd gladly do a favour for or take a problem to. Leads not just manages.

 

[the_negro_puppy]

Once accidentally left the stretcher & Lifepak 12 at hospital. <_<

Didn't need them through for the call we went to thank god.

Everybody has left stuff behind at some stage.

Always check gear and equipment. The one time you don't you will need it.

 

[Handsome Robb]

Left my portable o2 tank in a patient's house the other day.

Got the airway bag, somehow the bottle didn't make it back into it though. Wouldn't have been a big deal except it had the only regulator on the truck on it and the next call was an arrest. Fire always has their own portables so it wasn't a huge deal, just didn't have the pig tail on their regulator so I couldn't use my vent and lost a set of hands to the BVM, no harm done though

My supervisor got a giggle out of it and made me sing a song and do a little dance in the ambulance bay later to get it back after they'd gone and picked it up from the house.

Definitely pay a lot more attention to where all my gear is before we leave scenes now.

 

[chillybreeze]

I left a stretcher at the hospital once.

 

[Trashtruck]

Once?
I wish I could say I've only had that happen once!

But yes, when we switch out trucks, I double and triple check the old truck to make sure we have everything. Especially narcs, WMD stuff, monitor, bag, radios, and MDT.

Oh, and stretcher.

 

[MSDeltaFlt]

Left my kit at the hospital. Left my kit on scene when off-line med control riding in with me. Left stretcher at hospital going to a call. Left monitor at hospital on a code. You name it. I've forgotten it.

 

[Tigger]

My dignity has been left on scene or at hospitals before.

As far as equipment, so far I've done ok. I've picked up a few bags and an AED left behind by other trucks. I'm sure it'll happen to me eventually.

 

[chillybreeze]

I agree with the dignity thing! The other day we were backing out of a driveway and i happen to notice the trauma bag wasnt there when i went to get the glucometer. I asked my partner if he was up front with him for some reason and all of a sudden i feel the truck go from reverse to drive again.....! At least we realized it before we left! haha

 

[SloEd]

I was an EMT for a month and the one driving when I pulled away from a MVC scene with the door to the backboard compartment open. A left hand turn pulling away scattered the 3-4 backboards in the compartment onto the street, for all the firefighters, the supervisor and the police to see. I was 2 blocks from the ER ramp so I didn't bother to stop to pick them up or close the compartment door. The supervisor on the scene of the MVC who collected the backboards and brought them to us at the ER.

 

[EMT B]

today we were brining one of the trucks into the ford dealership to get an oil change...we left the ez io and the nitronox on the truck. had to go back and get it. at least we realized it before we needed it.

 

[mycrofft]

Left a used 11 blade scalpel at a childbirth scene full of intoxicated adults and little kids running around. Or it was swiped. No one knew anything.