EMS in top 5 worst jobs

I was watching CNN on the plane this morning (Go JetBlue!) and saw a report on the best and worst jobs. You'll be happy to know that EMS landed at number 5 in the top 10...WORST JOBS.

10 worst jobs

Well, at least we aren't lumberjacks...

EMS lost a friend

John Pryor, MD, a Major in the Army Reserve was killed in Iraq on Christmas day. His funeral service was yesterday in Philadelphia.

I don't call this out because we lost a soldier or because a family lost their father--although this is certainly and painfully the case. I call this out because EMS lost a true friend and advocate.

I first heard of this through the National Collegiate EMS Foundation. I lurk on their Facebook page because I feel it is an important organization. They sent out an email immediately after Dr. Pryor's death. It seems Dr. Pryor heard of the NCEMSF and "adopted" them.

I really can't begin to post a eulogy here but I'll provide a few links that do. Please take a moment to look these over and pay respect to a man who gave so much--even before he gave his life.

Philadelphia Inquirer
National Collegiate EMS Foundation
Dr. Pryor's faculty profile at Penn

And finally, An editorial in Dr. Pryor's own words.

Theodore Roosevelt, our 26th President, delivered a speech which became known as "The Man In The Arena"
at the Sorbonne in Paris, France on April 23, 1910. It is my favorite of all time. The part of this speech that many of us in the emergency services relate with is most appropriate at times such as this.

It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.

In Memoriam and Honor of
John P. Pryor, M.D. 1966-2008

Happy New Year!

I hope your holidays were happy and your New Year is filled with hope and opportunity.

No resolutions here--I'm going to continue my efforts to be more active in blogging.

A few bits and pieces for the New Year:

The New York Times agrees with my thought on California's recent interpretation of the Good Samaritan Laws:

I'll have to call my lawyer

There have been some changes to the NIMS. Nothing I would call sweeping but it might be helpful to take a look:

NIMS Changes 2008 (PDF download)

2008 was the big EMS social networking year with several sites popping up including two by the EMS magazines:

JEMS Connect
EMS United

And you can now find almost everyone (including me) on Facebook

Bryan Bledsoe posted his Top 10 EMS research papers on jems.com recently. These are definitely worth a look:
Bledsoe's Top Ten

Now, for those of you that know me, I have not only been in EMS for 31 years, I also spent quite a bit of time in police work. I am including this photo of yours truly as a rookie police officer in 1984 for the obvious laugh factor, to point out the benefit of Explorer Posts (I was a member of a police and fire post prior to getting on both jobs) and to remember the close friends and wonderful experiences I had as a police officer in Colonie, NY. Here I am with Neil Leach, a great friend for over 30 years.



I sincerely hope that your experiences in the emergency services are as rich and wonderful as mine have been over the past 31 years.

Happy New Year!

Emergency personnel should get drugs during pandemics

Reuters reported on a DHHS guidance memorandum advising hospitals and emergency services employers stock up on antiviral drugs for their workers.

Health, emergency staff get drugs 1st in pandemic

It seems Avian flu is the big concern. While according to the article there have only been 390 people infected worldwide--246 of those have died. The big question, and one not to figure out after it is too late: Are we a mutation or two away from trouble?

I am guessing that most employers will take some time to get this plan up and running--and that the antiviral drugs will have a significant cost attached. A quick check at drugstore.com shows a price of about $100 for a ten day supply (prophylactic dose) of the medication.

Has anyone seem preparedness efforts such as this in their agency or area?

So much for the Good Samaritan Law

California's Supreme Court just gave the concept of helping one another a slap in the face with their recent ruling (link from the LA Times):

California Supreme Court allows good Samaritans to be sued for nonmedical care

The article summarizes:

The California Supreme Court ruled Thursday that a young woman who pulled a co-worker from a crashed vehicle isn't immune from civil liability because the care she rendered wasn't medical.

The divided high court appeared to signal that rescue efforts are the responsibility of trained professionals. It was also thought to be the first ruling by the court that someone who intervened in an accident in good faith could be sued.

Of course the ruling has some significant legal and factual issues, mostly whether the action (allegedly pulling the woman from the wreck "like a rag doll") was negligent and the cause of the injuries. The fact that alcohol was involved certainly muddies the waters.

The dissenting opinion from the court seems reasonable to me:

Justice Marvin R. Baxter said the ruling was "illogical" because it recognizes legal immunity for nonprofessionals administering medical care while denying it for potentially life-saving actions like saving a person from drowning or carrying an injured hiker to safety.

"One who dives into swirling waters to retrieve a drowning swimmer can be sued for incidental injury he or she causes while bringing the victim to shore, but is immune for harm he or she produces while thereafter trying to revive the victim," Baxter wrote for the dissenters. "Here, the result is that defendant Torti has no immunity for her bravery in pulling her injured friend from a crashed vehicle, even if she reasonably believed it might be about to explode."

Yet the constitutional scholars believe the court ruling has merit:

Both opinions have merit, "but I think the majority has better arguments," said Michael Shapiro, professor of constitutional and bioethics law at USC.

Shapiro said the majority was correct in interpreting that the Legislature meant to shield doctors and other health care professionals from being sued for injuries they cause despite acting with "reasonable care," as the law requires.

Noting that he would be reluctant himself to step in to aid a crash victim with potential spinal injuries, Shapiro said the court's message was that emergency care "should be left to medical professionals."

While I agree that yanking someone from a car when there is no real hazard may cause injury, does this ruling keep people from stopping and helping those who really need it? In the bigger picture, does this ruling take us back a step in civilization by making well-meaning citizens reluctant to help another human being in a time of need and ignore the greater good? I think so on both counts.

I also think that the next time I need help on the side of the road I hope a constitutional scholar isn't the one driving by. I could be there for a while.

Florida sun charges ambulance batteries

Sunstar ambulance in Florida mounted solar panels on the roof of two ambulances to charge batteries in monitors, stretchers and other devices.

From an article on Tampabay.com

People looked at Terence Ramotar like he was crazy last spring, he said, when he suggested putting a solar panel on the roof of an ambulance.

The idea is now a reality. On Monday, Sunstar Emergency Medical Services will roll the first of its two solar-powered ambulances into service in what appears to be the first such project in the nation.

The solar panels do not power the vehicle, but rather supply power to recharge the batteries for various life-saving devices.

Whether this will work has yet to be determined. I have certainly seen crazier ideas. But when Sunstar has a full-time person assigned to shuttle batteries out to crews in the field, the $4,000 price tag doesn't seem so crazy--plus a hint of environmental responsibility is always a good thing.

Definitely worth keeping an eye on.

How can you tell if your patient is stable?

According to an article in the Canadian Press the ability to send a text message is a sign of stability. Apparently this is used at "packed to the max music concerts" in the UK as a method of determining whether a patient is ready to get back to the concert. From the article:

"The main point is when you've got, mainly at music festivals, a band playing that is very popular amongst teenagers, you have to expect a lot of them to faint, get panic attacks in the crowd, get stressed and want medical attention, when they're otherwise uninjured," Sinclair said Wednesday from a ski holiday in Chamonix, France.

"And when you get inundated with hundreds coming in in an hour, you need some means of getting them out and back to enjoying themselves quickly. And we found the texting sign is very useful for that."

Looking at it, texting shows fine motor function and mentation. Judging by the way younger people text it could also be said they have their sense of purpose back.

I wonder what would happen if we noted a "positive texting sign" on our run report here?