Sometimes people give you words of wisdom, words to live by, even though they make think it is nothing, its something that will forever stick in your mind, and present itself at the most needed times.
Some of those words of wisdom that came back to me recently were those said by Chief Russell Stevens during my firefighter 1 academy...
"What are you gonna do if you get in a house, you get trapped, you dont know where to go...
You gonna give up???
Or are you gonna try to get out???
NEVER EVER EVER GIVE UP!
If you give up your DEAD,
END OF STORY!"
I think these words of wisdom can be applied to almost anything in life, and i have found that these words have popped into my head alot lately, No matter how hard it gets you stick by those you care about, just as it relates to the fire service, you never ever leave your partner, many of us have certian "rituals" or sayings before we enter a fire, one utilized by my partner and i, was "going in alive, coming out the same way" or "you go, i go" and that same attitude so be applied to things outside of work, such as the ones you care about.
Ive learned firsthand lately how things like that work, and its mind blowing because it completely defies my character and everything ive ever done before, and im sure there is a reason for that. Things may not be working out perfectly just yet, but i have faith that they will.
Just like another great piece of wisdom to live by, as spoken by Winston Churchill,
"Victory at all costs, victory in spite of all terror, victory however long and hard the road may be; for without victory, there is no happiness. "
The phrase ...victory however long and hard the road may be... thats the one that hits home the hardest, because as we all know, nothing worth having in life comes easy, so that is why im prepared to sit..and wait.. just like my favorite song
I've made a commitment
I'm willing to bleed for you
I needed fulfillment
I found what I need in you
But you always find a way
To keep me right here waiting
And thats what i intend to do.....
12.28.2007
12.26.2007
My tooth hurts
So the saturday night shift started fairly normally, as normal as things can get working ems in a city, we had just cleared from a bls call (basic life support) meaning anybody and their mother could have done what we did, and sure enough as i look down at the computer screen i see my worst fears brought to my eyes....
WE ARE THE LAST AVAILABLE MEDIC IN THE CITY!!!
As i look over at my partner and he looks down at the screen we both look at each other and say SHIT! and sure enough before the "T" gets out of our mouths, "BEEEEPPPPPPP BEEP" the radio comes to life "Medic 9 Engine 5, Rescue 1, Battalion 2," before the rest of the sentance leaves the dispatcher's mouth i know what we have just gotten, a mva with entrapment, and sure enough the dispatcher says, " Respond for a 2 vehicle mva with multiple p.i. and entrapment." I dont waste any time and pick up the radio mic and say "Medic 9 to LynComm, enroute!" the dispatcher then comes back and says " Medic 9, be advised that we are getting multiple calls about this mva and callers are stating multiple p.i's some walking some entraped." I quickly process the information in my head and quickly reply with, "Go ahead and see if you can get another 2 engines sent this way and get as many medic's as possible sent this way." and the she replies "..roger.." as if to say im sorry, your on your own...
Its John Wayne time
Luck was on our side and shortly after that radio traffic i hear 2 more medic units clear fromthe hospital and mark enroute, now i know that we will beat them to the scene by a long shot, but at least we have someone else coming to our aid.
I see the cars in the distance, and just from looking at them i know that we are in for it, we arrive and i jump out of the unit with trauma and airway bag in hand and head for the car that looks the worst, and there i see it, my patient. She is laying in the backseat of a car, except the backseat is where the trunk should be. (i later find out that they were struck by a car doing 50mph, and they were going 30) She looks up at me and says "mister... help...." and thats when you realize that this person needs you, So i begin my rapid assesment of her as i thought to myself, thank God i paid attention to this part of the EMT classm and almost immediately my eyes fixate to her lower left leg, where i see a laceration about 6 in long and i see clean down to her bone and thats when i tell me partner, get the stryker (our automatic lift assisted stretcher in the unit), because she needs to go now! Luckily, for her sake and my own, she wasnt pinned, she slid out flawlessly. We load her into the unit and my partner asks how do i want it, meaning how do i want him to proceed to the hospital, and i tell him without hesistation, code 3. Code 3 meaning, her injuries are serious and life threatning, and he looks at me like a kid right before he gets on a roller coaster and says never a problem. I think to myself, what in the hell did i just sign myself up for. But i have no time to think about that right now, i have a patient that needs me, and right off the bat i yank the gauze tray out from its storage compartment and take two 4x4 pieces and roll them up and stick them into the laceration, the patient lets out a scream of discontentment, which was to be expected, but at least i know she still has nerve feeling there and shes got an airway, 2 things im all to happy to know. I then proceed to take a gauze roll and secure my dressings in place, now that i stopped her from potentially bleeding to death its now on to a more detailed assesment, but as luck would have it, i didnt make it that far either becuase she looks at me and says my tooth hurts, i think to myself you have a hole in your leg that can swallow my hand and your tooth hurts?
By then we had arrived at the ER and my work was done, i passed her off to a waiting trauma team, and later i found out, her little toothache was a jaw that was broken in 6 places, and had to have pins placed through it. And her blackhole in her leg required surgury also and 394 stitches..
Later on that evening while still sitting in the EMS room, i had found out, that a total of 5 patients were transported but i had gotten the worst, score 1 for me, my decision was the correct one, this time.
"Medic 9 LynComm"
"Medic 9?"
"Medic 9 Clear, Ready!"
WE ARE THE LAST AVAILABLE MEDIC IN THE CITY!!!
As i look over at my partner and he looks down at the screen we both look at each other and say SHIT! and sure enough before the "T" gets out of our mouths, "BEEEEPPPPPPP BEEP" the radio comes to life "Medic 9 Engine 5, Rescue 1, Battalion 2," before the rest of the sentance leaves the dispatcher's mouth i know what we have just gotten, a mva with entrapment, and sure enough the dispatcher says, " Respond for a 2 vehicle mva with multiple p.i. and entrapment." I dont waste any time and pick up the radio mic and say "Medic 9 to LynComm, enroute!" the dispatcher then comes back and says " Medic 9, be advised that we are getting multiple calls about this mva and callers are stating multiple p.i's some walking some entraped." I quickly process the information in my head and quickly reply with, "Go ahead and see if you can get another 2 engines sent this way and get as many medic's as possible sent this way." and the she replies "..roger.." as if to say im sorry, your on your own...
Its John Wayne time
Luck was on our side and shortly after that radio traffic i hear 2 more medic units clear fromthe hospital and mark enroute, now i know that we will beat them to the scene by a long shot, but at least we have someone else coming to our aid.
I see the cars in the distance, and just from looking at them i know that we are in for it, we arrive and i jump out of the unit with trauma and airway bag in hand and head for the car that looks the worst, and there i see it, my patient. She is laying in the backseat of a car, except the backseat is where the trunk should be. (i later find out that they were struck by a car doing 50mph, and they were going 30) She looks up at me and says "mister... help...." and thats when you realize that this person needs you, So i begin my rapid assesment of her as i thought to myself, thank God i paid attention to this part of the EMT classm and almost immediately my eyes fixate to her lower left leg, where i see a laceration about 6 in long and i see clean down to her bone and thats when i tell me partner, get the stryker (our automatic lift assisted stretcher in the unit), because she needs to go now! Luckily, for her sake and my own, she wasnt pinned, she slid out flawlessly. We load her into the unit and my partner asks how do i want it, meaning how do i want him to proceed to the hospital, and i tell him without hesistation, code 3. Code 3 meaning, her injuries are serious and life threatning, and he looks at me like a kid right before he gets on a roller coaster and says never a problem. I think to myself, what in the hell did i just sign myself up for. But i have no time to think about that right now, i have a patient that needs me, and right off the bat i yank the gauze tray out from its storage compartment and take two 4x4 pieces and roll them up and stick them into the laceration, the patient lets out a scream of discontentment, which was to be expected, but at least i know she still has nerve feeling there and shes got an airway, 2 things im all to happy to know. I then proceed to take a gauze roll and secure my dressings in place, now that i stopped her from potentially bleeding to death its now on to a more detailed assesment, but as luck would have it, i didnt make it that far either becuase she looks at me and says my tooth hurts, i think to myself you have a hole in your leg that can swallow my hand and your tooth hurts?
By then we had arrived at the ER and my work was done, i passed her off to a waiting trauma team, and later i found out, her little toothache was a jaw that was broken in 6 places, and had to have pins placed through it. And her blackhole in her leg required surgury also and 394 stitches..
Later on that evening while still sitting in the EMS room, i had found out, that a total of 5 patients were transported but i had gotten the worst, score 1 for me, my decision was the correct one, this time.
"Medic 9 LynComm"
"Medic 9?"
"Medic 9 Clear, Ready!"
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