Some random things

In the chase car system, I get to work with a lot of different providers in a lot of different ambulances. This is probably the most strange part of the job for me. I am used to reaching for something and knowing it’s there when I need it. Now I have to work out of my bags and arrange stuff on the bench seat that I might need. I have had only a few complaints.

Me: I hate ambos without the center grab pole on the inside. (this one had two parallel ones) I am always reaching for it and then almost falling on the patient when it is not there.
EMT: You mean you’d like to have one right here (gestures to the middle of the ambulance.)
Me: Yeah, then I can do my routine better.
(you know, my routine)

On a not particularly cold day I went to listen to base lung sounds of a patient of mine while my partner put EKG leads. Suddenly, the man let out a mighty “Yeeeeawwww!!” causing all of us to jump out of our skin. I thought that it was my partner touching his belly but it was actually my seemingly fresh out of the freezer stethoscope on his back. Once we all recovered, and I warmed the bell in my hand, I tried again with similar results. “Yeeeeawwww!!” Again we all peed our pants in surprise. After we changed them, I resumed, although it was fruitless because at that point I was deaf. It was worse than when patients start to talk while I’m listening to their lungs.
For the rest of the day we shouted “Yeeeeawwww!!” at each other and giggled like fools.

Yesterday, after a series of stupid events, I had no power for about 7 hours. What fun. It was a good time to take stock of my candles and flashlights. Four and five respectively, plus one headlamp.

Last week at work I had a series of relatively uninteresting calls except for a guy in textbook atrial flutter. I thought that was cool in the nerdiest of nerdy ways. Fortunately for the patient, he denied, chest pain, shortness of breath, dizziness, lightheadedness, hunger, tiredness, headache, malaise, palpitations, coldness, thirst, fever, or any other symptom I could think of.
He was a nice guy though and liked my banter. I especially liked the bit when I asked him to take is outer shirt off and then introduced myself, assuring him that I usually get to know people before I ask them to take off their clothes.

My last diabetic had a sugar of six. Luckily he wasn’t naked, instead he was actually in his car, which, unbeknownst to him, he had driven into a pole. It was very strange scene as he was completely gorked, his foot was on the brake and he had a stack of 20s in his hand. We managed to wrestle his fairly large and completely limp frame from his car. An amp of D50 and he was back to normal. Although he was a little upset to discover that he had let his car drift into a pole. (Mostly because it wasn't actually his car.)

Other than that, I, with great satisfaction deleted old e-mails, put in my notice, caught a mouse, took a time out when an ambulance door shut on my thumb, and didn’t pull the wool over anyone’s eyes.