The Paramedic

Moving hosts

2008-04-14T13:24:00.001+08:00

OK folks

I've move this blog to http://the-paramedic.com

Jump across and let me know what you think

The medic

The First 6 months as an Ambulance Paramedic

2008-03-18T08:37:00.001+09:00

I received a comment from keeper of the chocolates and thought i'd reply with this post...

I quote her comment here...

"hi there adrian :) if you ever come back to this blog would you mind emailing or contacting me? my husband has decided just recently to become a paramedic and i would love to get more info on this career choice for our family and all that it involves. we have 4 kids, and i am just wondering what it will be like with him working the crazy nights/weekends and such :)

thanks for any input that you have!"

hi there "keeper of the chocolates" (cool name btw :-)

I will email you, but post a few comments here.

Not sure how the ambulance system works over there in the US, so can only refer to the service in Oz.

Firstly, its a GREAT job! Its one of those rare vocations where variety is the norm.
You literally just don't know what your next call is going to be.

In regards to what effects on your family are...

Unless you actually do the work, you just don't know what your emotions are going to be or more importantly, how you will cope with these emotions.

Its important to have someone to talk to when about your work.

Some people talk to their work partner or friends or Wives/Husbands, etc.

In my case, I talked to my Wife. She was my rock. In the beginning, I had a lot of self doubts about my chosen career. She just listened and steered me in the right direction without actually saying anything.

My first 6 - 12 months were hard. It was fun, exciting, emotionally draining and hard.

I've gone off topic a bit..sorry.

When I started I had 2 children (young) and worked a 4 on 4 off roster. That is 2 day shifts, then 2 night shifts followed by 4 days off.

The night shifts were the hardest for my Wife. It took a little while for her to get used to me not being there at night.

Then when I came off the night shift, she would try to keep the kids quiet during the day so I could sleep.

It was hard to organize outings, etc for the weekend as for some reason, I always seemed to be working when there was something really exciting that came up to do on the weekend!

Oh, and never, ever, ever organise something after your day shift.
You will ALWAYS have a shift extension on the day that need to get home on time!
Don't know why that happens, but it does.
If you do have something planned, don't tell anyone!

The good things are that you are often able to go to your kids school days (sports, etc).

Hope this helps.

Let me know if there is anything more you want to know.

As a side note, my days of working on the minesite are coming to a close...I'll be going back to the city and working on the Ambulance again.

Cheers all

Adrian

Ok Ok Now I Feel Guilty

2007-09-01T08:05:00.000+08:00

One post a year...woohoo! How pathetic is that!
Been working on a remote mine site for a while now. Boy, am I always learning.
This is nothing like working in the metropolitan area.
Let me explain......
On the road in the city, we transport a patient to the closest ( sometimes) hospital. Usually around 20 minutes max. We handover to the hospital staff, restock the ambulance and head back out for our next job.
No such thing in the area I'm in at the moment. The closest hospital is about two and a half hours away!
What does this mean? It means we are with the patient for a lot longer...a LOT longer.
Usually, we keep the patient's onsite...which means we have to follow up through the recuperation stage. Dressings, redressings, medications.
Granted, we now have a helicopter on site. But, the chopper can't fly at night and is not always available.
Not to mention, I HATE flying!

Recently, there was a truck rollover down an embankment. The driver was in the truck and word came down that he was 'not well', whatever that means!

We put the basket (like a scoop stretcher) into the chopper. Unfortunately, the front passenger seat needs to be removed to fit the basket in. I was in the passenger seat, so the basket was put in the back. It was too big.
The pilot said that it was ok as he would just remove the doors. Didn't he realize the panic that caused me! Now I was feeling nauseous.

I look on the dash of the cockpit and saw a sticky label. On it,it read "...deliberate stalling of the engine is prohibited whilst in flight..."

What the!!!!!!!!!

I'm not sure what was worse...the fact that someone would actually turn the engine off whilst flying, or, the fact that it happens so often that they needed to put a reminder sticker on the dash!

Now, I was close to vomiting.

We got to the patient. He was still in the truck (which was on its side) and the cabin was about 3 metres off the ground. I was a 50 ton dump truck.

He complained of pain in his neck and back, so it was decided to take him by helicopter to the hospital. No!!!!!! Why didn't he say everything was ok so I could DRIVE him there.

I actually improved on the trip in. In fact, by the time I got back, I was looking forward to my next trip!

The driver? No injuries. He was back at work within a week. Lucky fella!

I've had a few people ask how to become an Ambulance Paramedic and what qualities they need.

I'll try and answer these questions in my next post, bearing in mind that it is different in different countries/states. I'll do some research.

Until next time.....keep safe.

Where Have I Been??!!

2006-10-24T21:40:00.000+08:00

Note to self: Don't get lost in other stuff when your blog idly sits and waits!
OK, I've actually moved from my metropolitan ambulance station to a remote site.
Now that has been a big learning curve.
At first, I had no access to the internet, so I could only blog when I returned home. But to be honest, that was the last thing on my mind! I needed time with my family. Five kids you know, and the last two being twins! They've nearly reached the terrible two's. You can read about them at www.twins-info.blogspot.com. I may have been hanging out to get home to see my lovely Wife and kids, but don't worry...I've been to the vets. ;-)
I've got quite a few ambo stories to tell about my time in this remote area, so stick around.
My promise to you is that I'll blog a LOT more often.

A Belated Merry Xmas

2005-12-29T11:04:00.000+08:00

Hi folks...
Apologies for not posting in a little while.
I took a break over Christmas.
It was brilliant. My two girls opened their presents with gusto and were delighted.
My twin boys had there first Christmas.
They opened their presents (with a little help) and proceded to eat the wrapping paper!
I tried to convince my Wife that the boys were NOT too young (they're 10 months) to get a scalectrix set, train set and something that blows something up!
But I lost.

Anyway, 2 days after Christmas, I caught a plane to go to work.
Away form the family for three weeks. :-(
I'm currently doing a stint on a mine site as the site Paramedic. It gives me a break from working in the metro area in an ambulance. Things are quiet, but thats how I like it.

My New Years Resolution........to blog a lot more often.

Merry Xmas everyone.

This job sucks.

2005-12-13T06:05:00.000+08:00

I had just finished my initial training and was well on my way to becoming a Paramedic. It was time to go out on the road with my tutor.
My first day.
I had checked the ambulance to the 'n'th degree. The selcall (alarm) sounded. Prority one was the call (lights and siren).
We had been called to a house with a child who was 'post immersion'. My adrenaline started to flow. Pulse rate just about doubled.
On the way I kept thinking.."post immersion..was was that again. Ah yes, drowning."
Then it hit me. Noooo. I don't want to do a drowning on my first day. It must be a mistake. I was a student. Give me another job..anything..just not a drowning.
I must have turned a lighter shade of pale. My partner asked if I was ok.
I said "sure".
We arrived at the house with a frantic Father screaming at us.
We were led into the house where a little child was lying on the carpet.
They had got the kid out of the pool and brought him inside.
Not breathing, no pulse, pupils fixed and dilated.......this was not good.
We commenced CPR and continued with our cardiac arrest regime.
My mouth was dry and I felt like crap.
This was not supposed to happen on my first day.
Why not ease me into the job slowly.
We got the poor little child into the ambulance.
My partner said he would get in the back with the child.
Great, I thought. Now I wouldn't have to look at the Mother whilst I worked on her child.
I got in the drivers seat just as the Father jumped in the passenger side.
What do I say to him? What can I say?
I didn't need to say anything. He just kept grabbing at me and pleaded with me to save his son.
That was the longest 5 minutes of my life.
We arrived at the Hospital.
We rushed through to the 'resus' area and the Doctors' and Nurses started their work.
A nurse then asked me how long the child had been under water. A seemingly innocuous question, but it was enough to tip me over.
Tears welled in my eyes and I cried uncontrollably.
I hated this damn job. Being a Paramedic sucked!
I spoke with my partner and eventually calmed down.
The poor little tike didn't survive.
I went home that evening and my Wife asked how my first day went.
Here I go again. Tears, crying, hate the job.
I gave my kids slightly longer hugs that night.
I didn't sleep well.
I couldn't get the face of the little kid out of my mind.
I was very close to quitting my job.
That was years ago and I sometimes still see the boy's face.
I often wonder how the family is going.

Weekends and Alcohol

2005-12-05T00:28:00.000+08:00

Well another weekend is coming to an end.
I pulled two nightshifts.
Nightshifts and weekends mean one thing....alcohol and drugs.
I guess 75% of our work involves one or the other.
Its not just the "unconscious" (meaning very drunk) patients we have to deal with, but the intoxicated bystanders/friends.
They all have a story to tell you but unfortunately they all want to say it at the SAME time!
Don't get me wrong, there's nothing wrong with having a good time, but we need to draw the line somewhere. But getting legless and lying in your own vomit is probably stepping over that line. So I promise I won't do it again! :-)

Pot of Glue

2005-12-01T11:16:00.000+08:00

Someone had fallen off a horse...so off we went.
We arrived at our destination and were met by a young girl who said her father had fallen off his horse.
He was about 200metres away and as it was thick bush, we were unable to take the ambulance.
We got the equipment out of the ambulance that we thought we would need and started along a well worn track.
When we got to the patient, he was lying on the ground complaining of pain in his thoracic and lumbar areas.
A rather sheepish horse was "hiding" behind a tree about 10 metres away.
The patient told us that his horse had spooked and he had fallen off onto his back. His legs were flexed back so that his ankles were either side of his head. At that moment, his horse had fallen on top of him...yowch!
I checked the patient out. He didn't seem to have any neuro defecits (numbness,tingling, loss of senstaion, etc.), so we started to manoeuvre the scoop stretcher under him.
At this point, the patient insisted that he could walk.
I was adamant that he didn't move. After all, he had a horse fall on him while he had his legs flexed back. The chances of him having sustained some serious injury was pretty high.
He then asked where his horse was. "Its behind the tree" I said.
"No wonder he's bloody hiding" he said. "I would too, when it realizes what I'm going to do to it!"
As he looked at the horse, I'm sure he saw a large pot of glue.
Later we found that the paient had fractured several vertebrae in is back.
I feel sorry for the horse when the patient gets out of hospital.

Why is it..Part 1

2005-11-23T02:56:00.000+08:00

Why is that when we’re called to a job on priority one (lights and sirens), the patient is waiting on the front porch with there bag packed?
Why is it that when someone collapses on the front lawn, they are carried into the house by well intentioned neighbours/relatives and usually taken to a room up the stairs and last room on the left? We’ve got to carry them out again.
Why is it that when someone calls for an Ambulance because they’re in respiratory distress, they just have to have a cigarette before they leave?
Why is it that people think that by going to hospital in an Ambulance they jump the queue and are seen by the Doc immediately? Well, they don’t. They are triaged just the same as anyone else.
Why is it that when there’s a full moon, I know we’re going to have one of those nights?
Why is it that no-one says they’ve being going over the speed limit when they’ve been involved in an accident?
Why is it that patients deny any chest pain until they’re asked by a Doctor at the hospital?
Why is it that when I’ve got something to do straight after my shift I always cop a late call?
Why is it, the larger the person, the farther they are into a house?
….to be continued.

I can't sleep!

2005-11-14T14:39:00.000+08:00

I love my job as an Ambulance Paramedic....but sometimes it's hard..very hard. Not because of the trauma, and not because you see people at their lowest ebb, but because sometimes you get called out for the most ridiculous things.
Mr 'X' called 000 about three am one night. He told our communications centre that he wasn't well, but he refused to be more specific.
We took of and arrived at the house about 20 minutes later.
We were met at the door by a middle aged man. He looked fine so I asked him where the patient was.
"It's me" he said.
"Well what's wrong" I replied.
"I've had a nightmare".
I quickly looked around the room trying to see what may have caused his catastrophic event. But everything looked fine. No blood on floor/walls.
I asked him again what had happened and again he replied.
"I'VE HAD A NIGHTMARE!"
Then it dawned on me...he actualy had had a bad dream.
I was gob smacked.
I asked him why he needed to call an ambulance and he replied that he could't get back to sleep.
I thought he may have psychological problems so I took a punt and asked him if he had taken his medications.
"What medications?" he said.
I saw red.
"Come here" I yelled "What is that!"
"It's an Ambulance" he replied looking puzzled.
"That's right! It's an EMERGENCY vehicle! So where's the emergency here!"
He then said that we were a public service and when he calls us we are obliged to attend.
As you could imagine, the conversation went downhill from there.
Suffice it to say we left.
On the way back to our depot, my partner said that I forgot to tuck him in and give him a kiss goodnight.
Like I said previously...sometimes it's hard...very hard. Especially when you don't get a choice in which partner you are going to be working with!

Don't use BIG words .......

2005-11-09T22:27:00.000+08:00

During my training to become a Paramedic, one of my tutors offered me a bit of advice.
“Don’t use ‘big’ words unless you know exactly what they mean.
A number of years later I was working with a Paramedic who had been on the road for years.
We attended a young man who had been hit by a car. The poor fellow was critically injured.
My partner was checking the patient when I noticed that the patient’s hands were flexed back towards his head. I told my partner that the patient was coning (this is where the brain stem tissue is being forced through the opening in the base of the skull, causing spinal cord compression) and we had to go….now!
This boy is gravely ill.
The patients friend (another young man), requested to travel with us.
“No problem”

We arrived at the ER and went straight through to the ‘resus’ area.

A Doctor came up whom I new had a sharp sense of humour.

He asked my partner what was going on, and my partner replied…

“Well Doc, the patient was a pedestrian that was hit by a car travelling at about 60kpm. When we arrived the patient was cloning.”

I cringed, but without missing a beat, the Doctor asked..

“Ok, so where’s the other one?”

My partner look puzzled and the said “well, he’s … he’s outside (thinking the Doc meant the patients’ friend).”

Continuing on his evil humorous way, the Doc then said “ Do they look alike?”

A more puzzled partner replied “well, I suppose so”

“Its amazing what they can do with science these days.” Doc said

My partner was completely baffled by this stage and walked out of the ER.

He had no idea what he had said or what the Doc was going on about.

That was a few years ago, and I still don’t have the heart to explain to him his faux pas.

Man's...or Woman's...best friend!

2005-11-05T21:58:00.000+08:00

We were called to an MVA (motor vehicle accident) on a remote stretch of road.
An elderly woman had driven her car off the road and down an embankment into some trees.
A large tree had finished up lying across the roof of the car.
The driver was conscious but obviously in quite a bad way. She had bilateral fractures to her arms and legs and also chest pain. One of legs had an open fracture of her femur. The bone was protruding about 6cm. There was a lot of blood from a large laceration to her head.
We had called the fire brigade to help and due to the fact of the distance to the nearest hospital we also called our helicopter rescue.
We eventually extricated the patient onto our stretcher and she left in the helicopter.
It was then that a bystander came up and said that she was the one that had found the car.
She (the bystander) had been driving along the road when a small dog had run out in front of her. She was able to miss the dog without herself having an accident (this stretch of road has a 110kph sped limit). Instead of driving off, she noticed that the dog didn't 'look' right. When she went back to it, she realised that it was covered in blood.
She decided to have a look around and eventually found the wrecked car.
So dog's really are man's best friend. That dog almost certainly saved its owner's life. She probably wouldn't have been found for a long time due to where we were.
By the way...both dog and owner survived.

Two passengers...no driver?

2005-11-04T02:25:00.000+08:00

My partner and I were call to a "car versus tree" about midnight.
When we got there, we saw a car imbedded into a tree. As we approached the car we heard a few groans.
I opened the door and the first thing that struck me was the strong smell of alcohol. This is a common occurence unfortunately.
There were two middle age people on the front passenger seat. A male sitting on top of a female.
She was the one doing all the groaning......he was huge.
"You guys OK?"
"I'm OK but she's hurt" was the slurred response.
I checked out male rather quickly and established he was fine and moved him off of the woman.
She had suffered a fracture leg. I think she was glad to be rid of the heavy weight off of her.
We started treating her and I asked the driver why did he move from the drivers seat on to the woman.
"I wasn't driving.....she was!!"
This mental giant had obviously been rehearsing this response without thinking it through.
"C'mon mate, she wasn't driving" I said
"She was" he insisted "and I was in the passenger seat".
"OK" I said "so after the accident, she got out of the drivers seat, moved across to the passenger seat which you were in and then squeezed herself under you. Then she proceded to put on her seat belt. All this with a broken leg"
He thought about it for a while and then said "Well I moved forward a bit so she get the seatbelt on!"
I don't know what was worse....the fact that he had no problems with trying to drop his wife right in it or the fact that he drives a vehicle with only one functioning brain cell!

Dad, there's an Ambulance behind you...

2005-11-03T22:31:00.000+08:00

Ok, so you are travelling along in your car, look in your rear view mirror and lo and behold there is an ambulance screaming towards you with its lights flashing and siren wailing. What do you do?
Well, first thing...DON'T PANIC.
If you can (and we're talking about Australia here), move to your left. If you can't move to the left, try moving to the right. If you can't just continue the way you are....we'll go aroung you. Don't slam on your brakes. Its amazing how many times people do this. Due to better sound proofing and LOUDER sounds systems in cars, and the lack of times people actually use their rearview mirrors, we're often not seen to the last minute. So slamming on your brakes could create a dangerous situation.
Oh, if you are at traffic lights and we come up behind you (lights and sirens going), don't ease into the intersection against the red light. This is not only dangerous but illegal.
Yes, here in Australia you can get a ticket for doing just that.
The amount of times I've seen an accident occur for the above reason. This also means that we have to stop to render assistance to you, and the original job will have to be re-allocated to another ambulance. Bad all round really.
Again, I'll talk about situations here in Australia.
Laws may be different in other countries.
Let me know what occurs where you live.

The Medic

Why the Blog

2005-11-03T21:54:00.000+08:00

I've worked as an Ambulance Paramedic for the last 9 years. Probably the best job in the world.
A lot of stories of my life as a Paramedic have remained untold. Sometimes, I tell a few of these stories at social gatherings. People seem to generally be enthralled by them. Well, I thought other people would be interested in listening in. I have kept a diary of most of the more interesting jobs and situations that have occurred over the last 9 years.
Hope you enjoy.....

The Medic