I am not a white cloud!
I’m whatever color cloud that reaps crappy calls all shift. My preceptor suggested I get a talisman of some sort and pray to it for better calls, either that, or never come back because I’m bad luck. If a Baltimore City police officer had to spell my night they would say: Bob, Uncle, Lincoln, Log, Charlie, Rash, Apple, Pencil.
You can get this great romantic feeling riding in the back of a Baltimore city medic unit. The BELIEVE sticker in the window, siren wailing at traffic, the lights reflecting off of store fronts and residences as you fly by on your way to heal and help people. I’ve learned that romantic feeling dissolves quickly when you realize you could get a buzz from your patients’ vodka flavored breath.
Last night was my first real experience with drunks (I’m a medium town girl). I hope that I never find them anything but amusing.
Envision pulling up behind a police car in an alley. The officer is standing on the sidewalk looking down at a guy who is half under the car, just behind the front tire. That's what we pulled up to. From any angle it looked like the guy had been run over by the police. But it turned out that the patient had put himself under the car for reasons unknown.
Another call was for a guy who had ‘cut his wrists’ although, it hardly amounted to anything. This guys inane ramblings about God knows what made me almost burst with laughter, but I managed to keep it in. This was mostly due to the fact that I could feel OGMs rage toward him from across the ambulance.
But, the night was not a complete lesson in drinking to excess. I did get my first field IV on a guy who had heart palpitations. I’ve never seen so many fantastic veins on one person, it was great. I love my preceptor and OGM, they practically forced the guy to go to the hospital so that I could get an IV and an EKG, awesome!
Well, I’m off to get ready for another shift tonight. I’ll bring my trolls, lighters, a rabbit's foot, lucky pennies, and the just plain luck of the Irish. Hopefully that will get me something fun. (disclaimer: EMS personnel do not wish death or injury on anyone, just for a good shift: )
You can get this great romantic feeling riding in the back of a Baltimore city medic unit. The BELIEVE sticker in the window, siren wailing at traffic, the lights reflecting off of store fronts and residences as you fly by on your way to heal and help people. I’ve learned that romantic feeling dissolves quickly when you realize you could get a buzz from your patients’ vodka flavored breath.
Last night was my first real experience with drunks (I’m a medium town girl). I hope that I never find them anything but amusing.
Envision pulling up behind a police car in an alley. The officer is standing on the sidewalk looking down at a guy who is half under the car, just behind the front tire. That's what we pulled up to. From any angle it looked like the guy had been run over by the police. But it turned out that the patient had put himself under the car for reasons unknown.
Another call was for a guy who had ‘cut his wrists’ although, it hardly amounted to anything. This guys inane ramblings about God knows what made me almost burst with laughter, but I managed to keep it in. This was mostly due to the fact that I could feel OGMs rage toward him from across the ambulance.
But, the night was not a complete lesson in drinking to excess. I did get my first field IV on a guy who had heart palpitations. I’ve never seen so many fantastic veins on one person, it was great. I love my preceptor and OGM, they practically forced the guy to go to the hospital so that I could get an IV and an EKG, awesome!
Well, I’m off to get ready for another shift tonight. I’ll bring my trolls, lighters, a rabbit's foot, lucky pennies, and the just plain luck of the Irish. Hopefully that will get me something fun. (disclaimer: EMS personnel do not wish death or injury on anyone, just for a good shift: )
Comments
"Old Grumpy Man?"
"Other guy medic?"
"Oscillating Gravity Measurements?"
"Oddly Graceful Midget?"
--maddog