Are my pupils equal?

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When I got to work, I stepped up into the back of the ambulance and rammed the top of my head right into the doorway. I wasn’t sure which hurt worse, the top of my head, or my neck where it got hyperextended. Oh, it was throbbing. I stood there in the truck, blinded by my trauma, and thinking I had broken my neck. I wondered if my ear was leaking fluids, if my pupils were equal, and if I was bleeding. In a few minutes I could clear my own c-spine, but I continued to damn the tones, sirens, peoples voices, and any movement that caused me to feel my pulse in the growing goose egg on my head.
It’s better now, although I had to comb my hair very gingerly today.

Our first call was to assist the police with an unknown problem. They were trying to serve a warrant and the arrestee was claiming that her doctor told her not to leave the house. So, they called us to check it out. We walked in and a spry looking woman was sitting there, smoking a cigarette and yelling about going. She kindly showed me her most recent discharge papers which did say ‘no strenuous activity’, but nothing about leaving the house. I suggested that we call her doctor to confirm, and she immediately jumped up and became perfectly willing to go with the cops. Well, that was easy.

We later went to the same street to assist the police with the aftermath of a bat and pipe fight. Everyone involved was refusing care, so we left it as police business. A few hours later we had a call to the police department. Turns out one of those involved learned that after the beers wear off, it really hurts to get beat with a bat.

Another call led me to several fruitless conversations including this one:
me: what’s going on
firefighter: He’s got MRSA.
me: Okay, but what’s wrong with him?
firefighter: Oh, I don’t know, but he has MRSA.
me: (checks gloves and goes in search of answers)

It turned out that there wasn’t really anything wrong with the patient, but his wife insisted that he go. I got about as much information out of the home care nurse as I would have out of a stranger on the street.

We also had a chest pain, back pain, and I’m sure some other stuff mixed in there. It was a good day, we were only on station for about 30 min total. One of the most exciting calls of my career to be posted shortly (I hope.)

Comments

MedicChris said…
Ouch! If it makes you feel better, I banged my head like that on a call while hoping in the back to help a patient. Consensus is that I was very briefly KO'd..the guy behind me caught me and pushed me forward, I regained myself as I went in. That was about a month of Chiro visits after that. My Empathy! Chris
29 September, 2006
Slack said…
I had a steel fire truck compartment door fall on my head once at a call. It hurt like hell, but my pride was really sore. I didn't the crew would ever stop making fun of me.
02 October, 2006
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