Hey Whippersnappers, old fuckhead here looking to be able to IV Fent as indicated. Guess I'll take the jump. Took the EMT exam in the early 1900's (back then we just had to slap a horse on the ass with a patient in the buggy and hope to God it headed to a doctor)

Any recommendations?

Long story short EMT said a mechanism of action incorrectly to our Medic and that earned him a "watch out watch out watch out!" SUPLEX!! onto the floor.

Here's the problem. It was in front of a patient. This is problematic because it might have taught the patient that that's okay to do to EMTs. Big EMS advocate here. Not okay.

What are your thoughts on this? Can you relate?

And how can we create change to make pilots drive the ambulance instead, and we get to be the pilots

I'm interested in becoming a paramedic. I have loved the years I've spent as a HCA and I have tried going into nursing in the past however I have noticed that if the team you are working under don't like you, they will look for reasons to fail you if not making your placement as difficult as they can.

I love helping people and making a difference. I am able to remain calm and navigate difficult situations. I fear that I will expereicne a near identical work culture if I go into paramedic science. Is this something other students have experienced and how did you deal with it?

Meds on the ambulance would be Coke for pressor and candycanes with Fent in them for analgesia

You always have to start patient conversations with an unnecessarily loud "HO HO HO!!!" (Especially if youre conversationally interrupting them) and the radio tones sounds like Christmas jingles

Is it worth the $30/hr, if you had the opportunity to do something else, would you take it , what would you have done (like be a lawyer). i can't decide between this and being a lawyer. I love both things a lot. I wanna hear someone else's perspective.

Two scenarios…

1

You get dispatched to a frail, elderly female who has passed out in her home. She lives alone so you have limited info.

When you arrive, she has snoring respirations, which quickly resolves with an adjustment of her head position. She has a very weak pulse at 120. EKG shows sinus tachycardia. BP 58/20. You notice dry skin signs and mucous membranes. You establish IV access, start fluids, check a glucose, load her up, start towards the hospital, and after 1 liter of fluids she starts to come around and you learn that she has had a week of frequent diarrhea. Once in the hospital, she is treated for dehydration and electrolyte imbalance, and eventually is discharged home.

2

A gardener notices his client, a frail elderly woman, lying unconscious on the floor of her livingroom and calls 911.

When he speaks with the dispatcher, he describes snoring respirations and is unsure if he can feel a pulse. Chest compressions are recommended by dispatch.

When you arrive, bystander CPR is in progress. You assess the patient, find snoring respirations, which resolve with head positioning, although breathing seems shallow and erratic. Oral airway inserted. Eventually the pt is intubated. A weak pulse of 120 is felt, EKG shows sinus tachycardia with an occasional PVC and a BP of 58/20. You notice dry mucous membranes and poor skin signs. IV is started, fluids administered, blood sugar checked, patient is transported to the ER, later admitted to the ICU, is found to be hypovolemic, have electrolyte imbalance, have rib fractures, as well as pulmonary/cardiac contusions (most likely from aggressive chest compressions), the patient eventually develops pneumonia and dies 10 days later.

My point is this… CPR on frail and/or medically compromised individuals is not benign.

I believe there are three main types of patients receiving CPR.

1. Those at end of life where CPR will not help.

2. Those suffering a sudden cardiac event where rapid recognition and Interventions, including CPR will be the difference between life and death.

3. Those with conditions where CPR is not needed, and potentially harmful… but lay people cannot differentiate between this group, and group #2… so CPR instructions are always given.

A frail elderly person in good health who undergoes traumatic chest trauma has a higher morbidity than a younger person experiencing the same type of event.

Now add to the equation that the frail elderly person is actually having a medical problem and you add chest trauma (in the form of CPR) on top of that.

Don’t get me wrong… I am not entirely sure what the solution is to this problem. If you are slower to recommend CPR, you miss more of the survivable cardiac events. If you are quick to recommend CPR, you risk pushing frail/medically compromised individuals over the edge by adding thoracic trauma to their list of acute problems.

I wonder if there have been any studies on the effects of CPR on frail/medically compromised patients who didn’t need it 🤨?

Just curious because I feel like every EMT has at least one story that makes you laugh no matter how many times you tell it.

Is there a high demand for paramedics in NSW or for nurses? I originally thought paramedics would be more in demand just as nursing but according to what I’ve read on reddit, nurses are more in demand and there’s hardly any jobs for paramedics? Why’s that though? And how is there hardly any degrees for paramedicine?

Hi everyone, I’m seeking advice on leadership and navigating the challenges of my first leadership post.

For a bit of background, I am a 36 year old male and am working as a paramedic in the UK. I have recently taken part in a round of recruitment for the post of Senior Paramedic Team Leader and was successful.

The team/workforce I am expected to lead is made up of EMTs and paramedics. Within each group there is a wide range of ages and levels of experience with some paramedics being very young and inexperienced and some technicians being been in the field for about as long as I’ve been alive. I have been told by a number of people prior to even applying for the role that they think I’d be a good leader and hope I one day go for the role. I always found this awkward as in my head, I’ve never been a team leader so you have no idea whether I’d be good at it or not. It’s also one thing to be a good leader on a job dealing with immediate local issues to that scene. But entirely different to being a good leader when managing policy, workplace discipline, welfare, performance management etc..

I would really appreciate advice (specific or general) from anybody on how to be a good leader for my team.

If you nail

I've been looking into travel medic contracts and have some questions. Basically:

• what it's like going into a system in a completely different area?
• how difficult is it to get certifications for each state you work in, does the company help you get these or does working contract let you get around needing every state cert?
• how easy is it to get the contract length you want in a place you want?
• is the pay as good as it seems on paper?

And others. I would be interested in talking to anyone with experience doing these contracts and if that would be a good decision for more pay and better overall experience compared to what I'm currently doing, which is hospital based EMS (of which I have my own qualms with)

Good evening everyone like the title post says I’m a current ER tech working my way to become a PA. I have my EMTB cert and have thought about joining my cities FD for multiple reasons.

I see online that it isn’t uncommon for paramedics to go on and become PAs especially great ones from what I’ve read.

So my questions today to former paramedics who became PAs are the following.

How did you guys balance being a paramedic and doing classes?

Does being a paramedic help you stand out when applying for PA schools?

How did being a paramedic help you out on your journey to being a PA? (Application process, PA school, job as a PA)

Thanks for taking time out of your day to answer my questions it’s greatly appreciated.

Hello! I'm currently planning to start a Primary Care Paramedic (PCP) career here in Alberta (Canada). I was just wondering if I could hear more about this from people who have experience with this. Do you like it? If I'm planning to have a family still a good option? How did you get a job after graduating? Would you mind sharing some experiences? How do you learn the first steps when stepping into an emergency?

For the past year and a half I have worked towards this, and I keep failing. I did very well in my program and never made below a B on a test, I was in the top of my class. I studied constantly and still do. I did well in EMT school, and passed the NREMT on the first try then. I’ve been an EMT for 3 years and do well at my job.

I just found out I failed the medic exam for the second time today and I feel so stupid. I scored 894 on my first attempt and 915 on my second. I study constantly, read the textbook, use MedicTests, Pocket Prep, the Kaplan book, Paramedic Coach. I’ve done well with all that material. I just don’t know what I’m doing wrong.

Several others in my class have all passed, even ones who did worse than me in school. I don’t even know what I don’t know. I’m scheduled to take the test a third time in about 3 weeks, but I’m feeling like if I don’t pass this time, I’m gonna give up afterwards. I don’t want all this hard work to go to waste, but it feels hopeless. Idk even what to do anymore.

just wondering what its like working there and if any tips for the interview process

Just went through something very rough and need to talk to someone I don’t know how to feel. Please message me.

I appreciate all the comments I talked to a few people in direct message and got some advice/help. Thank you all for the comments and concern

I am scheduled to take the New Mexico reciprocal paramedic license exam next week. Has anyone taken this exam? Is it difficult? What is on it?

I did the application paid the fee im just waiting to take the test. Did anyone else do this how long did it take for them verify your stuff so you can take the test? I did this 2 weeks ago. I need to take the test before December.

not sure if this is the best place to ask this but i’m a BSN student who graduates in 11 months and i’m interested in getting my paramedic certification afterwards. I live in Indiana. I’ve always been interested in working on an ambulance out in the field and it’s something I think about often. Is it possible to do both/work both jobs? thanks in advance :)

I am currently a Canadian Citizen, and with the way life is my future is most likely going to put me in California. I am currently attending a Fire Academy that will certify me for my local area but is not recognized in Cali. I am curious if anyone has gotten a work visa through local departments and how that process can work. From research I see that it is hard to get a work visa for this stuff and will be challenging process but I don't have many other options. Any advice or things to look into would be greatly appreciated

Hey guys,

Just wondering what the recruitment process is for WFA Graduate Paramedics. If anyone has any experiences they want to share, I greatly appreciate it! I've submitted my application and received an email to complete an Online Assessment, would love to know if its similar to the NSWA Aptitude Test.

Thanks everyone! All the best :)