When your husband needed chemo three times a week, I was the one that took care of him during the four hour trips.

I am more than just an ambulance driver

When your 13 your old son decided to drive his four wheeler into a barbed wire fence, I was the one that came to his aid and kept him alive until he reached a hospital.

When you were chasing a fugitive for two hours through the country, I was the one that was following you, and then saved your life after being shot and crashing your cruiser.

I am more than just an ambulance driver

When your 16 year old son crashed his car on the interstate, I was the one that was immediately there to stop his bleeding and keep him from dying.

When your wife developed a blood clot in her lungs, I was the one that began to breathe for her. I was the one that helped to give you and her a longer future together.

I am more than just an ambulance driver

When your 15 year old daughter decided to give birth to her breech baby in her bedroom, I was the one that came and finished the delivery and saved your grandchild from suffocating before it could have a chance to live.

When your father decided to stab your mother, I was the one that was there to keep her alive. I was the one that got her to the hospital in time to have emergency surgery done.

I am not just an ambulance driver

When your wife and her friends were struck by a semi truck, I was the one that tried to save them, and I am the one that still wonders if I could have done something different to save them all.

When you decided to drive drunk and flipped your Volkswagen: I was the one that was there, holding your four year old daughters hand until the fire department could lift the car off of her chest. I was the one that she last asked for help, and I was the one that saw her take her last breath.

I am not just an ambulance driver

When you are sick, or injured, or even just frightened, I will be the one to come to your aid. To comfort you, to treat your injuries, and to do everything in my ability to save your life.

When you are old and lonely, and just want a friendly face to talk to in the middle of the night, I will be the one that will come to reassure you. I will be the one that will hold your hand and tell you that everything is alright.

When your loved ones leave the house, I will be the one that is ready to respond at a moment’s notice. I will be the one willing to drop anything I am doing, and come to your aid. I will be the one to risk my own life, so that you or your loved one can live to see another day.

I am much more than just an ambulance driver. I am an EMT.

“I went to nursing school due to my desire to move forward and be more productive with my knowledge and skills. I love being a medic, but I also enjoy both ends of the spectrum. Both positions keep me sharper in regards to the other; they are a good mixture for me.”

John chose a bridge program from paramedic to ADN through a local campus, but for his BSN, John is going to school online. Having weighed all of his options against a grueling schedule, John found the convenience of online education too perfect to pass up.

“Online courses have allowed me to continue my education. With the combination of my busy life and lack of time or ability to attend the brick and mortar (conventional) setting, my education would have been stalled.”

Andy Wiegand is another firefighter-paramedic, 31 years young, and considering nursing school. Andy was my paramedic student protégé nine years ago in a Detroit Trauma Center. I shared my best tips and secrets, and Andy’s older sister Tracy, a RN in the same ER, reinforced the value of education. Andy wants to expand his knowledge base and proficiency, but is also concerned about two things we all ponder at one point or another: more money, and better job security. The median nursing salary last year was $62, 450.

“There are budget cuts happening in the township where I work. They are laying-off nine people. I’m not one of the nine, but if they lay off more, I could be in line to be cut.”

Paul Sorrell, a paramedic for 25 years, is preparing for a medic to RN transition program. Working several years for a private ambulance company in Southfield, Michigan, Paul completed 2.5 years of a traditional nursing program 20 years ago before leaving due to professional conflict.

“The clinical coordinator was a lady who felt that men did not have a place in society as nurses, and I was getting sub-par evaluations on clinical rotations. I would do the exact same stuff as other students, the same way, and get much poorer marks.”

A man in emergency medicine does not translate exclusively to either paramedic or doctor anymore; more men these days are nurses. These changes have encouraged those who have served many years as paramedics, like Paul, to continue to do what they love in a related branch of medicine.

“I want to get into an ER and get back to some real patient care, and Online courses have allowed me to continue my education…with the combination of my busy life and lack of ability/time to attend the brick/mortar setting my education would have been stallethen complete my BE (bachelor’s in education).”

Being an educator has been part of Paul’s life for almost as many years as he has been a medic. As we spoke, Paul was conducting a paramedic refresher course. The dual-licensure of paramedic and RN opens up a world of opportunities for educators with a strong background in emergency medicine.

There is a growing trend for paramedics to expand their knowledge and level of licensure. When I completed that path 15 years ago, paramedics whispered among themselves about going to nursing school. Now more paramedics view nursing as a logical next step.

“We have had two other FF go to nursing school after me; seems as though a trend is emerging. Though the online transition from paramedic to RN can certainly present challenges, the rewards of furthering your education can only benefit you as a professional, and those you care for and serve.”

There is never a convenient time to fit school into one’s schedule. Nobody knows what tomorrow may bring, so working toward a better future, and becoming more marketable while enhancing skills and professionalism now as opposed to later, is imperative.

John’s last words to me prove my point. Ending the interview, John said, “Gotta go: CPR in progress.”

We responded to a local convenience store for a person being disruptive. Upon arrival, law enforcement was there, and advised that we needed to check the patient out. After an exam, the only thing we could conclude was the possibility of some sort of brain injury or even more possibly it was some sort of illicit drug reaction.

The patient presentation was:

He was walking and talking at the scene, but was confused. Although the patient could readily say his correct name, address, and d.o.b, he could not tell us the correct year, the city he was currently in, or why he was at the convenience store. His speech was slurred, but he did not show any other signs indicating a possible stroke. He was also somewhat combative, in that he tried numerous times to walk away, and became aggressive when we tried to stop him for further evaluation. The patient’s vitals were normal, given the current circumstances, and the slightly elevated heart rate and blood pressure did not alarm us.

We eventually managed to convince the patient to allow us to transport to the ER, so we placed him on oxygen, started an IV and loaded him up. During transport, the patient had a period of unresponsiveness. The heart monitor was applied showing a sinus rhythm with an occasional pvc. It was only about a 10 minute transport time, so no further treatment was given.

Later at the station

A couple of other Paramedics, EMTs, and me were sitting around station. We had not given a lot of thought about the patient we transported earlier, as it did not seem like anything really out of the ordinary for a Friday evening.

The phone rings, and it is the emergency room. It was the charge nurse giving us an update on the patient we had brought in. Apparently, very soon after we dropped the patient off, he suffered a cardiac arrest. Despite efforts by the emergency room staff, they could not resuscitate him and he was pronounced dead. The diagnosis was Water Intoxication!

I had a hard time comprehending how someone could have died of this, so I did some reading, and a background check on our patient. From the reports of the family, the patient had recently become obsessed with drinking water as part of a diet plan. They claimed he was drinking several gallons daily, but they had never given much thought about it being dangerous. Now, I may not have been taught what water intoxication is, but with my training and some common sense, I did understand how that much water could be harmful. It dilutes just about every electrolyte in the body. Working especially against sodium levels, it causes hyponatremia. While it certainly can be dangerous, it is rarely fatal. However, in the case of our patient, untreated for weeks, this was a fatal mistake.

Along with learning about water intoxication, I also learned another important thing that night. It does not matter how long we have been doing what we do, or how many runs we see, we have NEVER “seen and done it all”.

To summarize, a husband, who is also an emergency medic, noticed his wife displaying stroke like symptoms. Since his wife is a cancer patient, the medic knew the potential seriousness of her symptoms. Deciding that he could be at the hospital 20 minutes before an ambulance could have them there; he loaded the wife into the car and took her in. He used his flashers, but did not heed normal traffic regulations. According to the officer in question, the man ran a couple of stop lights, and nearly caused the officer to crash. Upon arrival at the ER, the husband carried the wife into the ER, and did not stop when the officer requested. In fact, claims the officer tried to physically stop the man, yet the man shrugged him off and went in anyway. So, now several felony charges have been filed by the officer against the husband.

To Call or Not to Call an Ambulance?

I think that it is safe to say that all of us in EMS have asked ourselves, or talked among our crew mates, did that person really need an ambulance and couldn’t they have gotten there quicker on their own?

I myself have been guilty of these same questions. One example is a call I received right across the street from the hospital. It was for a boy who had cut his arm pretty severely. When we arrived, the wife, who was a nurse, had the bleeding contained, and the boy was somewhat calm. We loaded him up and took him for the 30 second ride across the street. Basically, he needed absolutely zero care from us, and all we did was provide the ride. Afterward, my crew and I talked among each other and wondered why. We all know an ambulance is not a cheap ride, and to inflict those cost, take a truck out of service, and waste the time of waiting while the boy could have been receiving care, is something we all debated.

The story in the CNN article raises the question again for me. At which point should it be most wise for a family member to simply take the patient in themselves?

We all know that a family member will almost always perceive an emergency as more severe than a trained professional that has probably seen the injury or illness a hundred times. Should those “panicked” family members be behind the wheel of a car? Should they face criminal charges if they do?

According to the CNN story, the husband was an “emergency medic”. Does that mean he is trained to drive differently in an emergency? Is it ok that he does not yield to traffic laws? How can we expect a panicked family member to remain calm enough and to not disobey those laws?

I wonder what I would do in the same situation. As I sit here now, I feel as though I would keep a level head. However, I also know that if I come to an intersection and it looks clear, I would probably proceed. What happens if I make a mistake during my moment of panic and hurt someone else? Should I be charged criminally?

Should we require that all emergencies be transported by ambulance? Think of the costs that would incur, and how many more ambulances would be needed across the country.
I guess there probably is no clear answer. In my opinion, the safest thing would be for everyone to call an ambulance during a medical emergency. However, does the end justify the means?

On a hot September morning at about 3 am, I was awakened from sleep at our station from the dispatch tones with information of “Woman in labor”. Of course we got moving as quickly as possible, but we also knew in our minds that this run is probably going to turn out like the majority of others similar to this. Dispatch information was that this patient was in a home that was located about 25 miles from our station, so we had the local volunteer fire department also enroute.

About 10 minutes from the scene I received a phone call on our cell phone from one of the firemen at the scene. I knew instantly that there was a problem by the absolutely frightened tone in his voice. I still remember his words, as if it were only yesterday. “Jamey, all I see is feet!!” Having a good idea what he meant, but trying to lighten the situation a bit, as well as make sure I heard him right, I replied “Who’s feet? Mine, the patients, yours, the neighbor next door, can you be a bit more specific?” He quickly replied, “The baby’s, and he is still not delivered!” This was the point at which I became wide awake.

My driver and I arrived on the scene a few minutes later to find several firemen outside the house. They all pointed us to a very small bedroom inside the rural home. I will never forget what I saw when I entered the bedroom. What stands out the most was the cowboy hat. The young woman was lying on her back, and the volunteer fireman was at her feet. He was wearing a large wide brimmed cowboy hat, and it struck me as a very funny scene.

My exam of the patient revealed a 16 year old patient at full term pregnancy. She had been hiding this fact from her parents, and had tried to deliver the baby by herself during the night, while her parents slept. The baby was coming breach, and upon my first exam, I could see the infant’s lower legs to about the knee joints. A quick phone call to our local ER doc, and I had permission to finish the delivery there, in the home.

Delivering the baby up until the neck area went very smoothly. The patient, although young and small build, handled the delivery very well. However, upon seeing the baby’s neck, I noticed the umbilical cord wrapped around the neck. Since I still had the ER doc on the phone, I was able to take his advice on how to move the cord, which I did and continued the delivery. The rest of the delivery went smoothly, and we were presented with a very healthy baby girl.

During the ride into the hospital, the mother seemed very distant. Knowing that she was young and scared, my female partner tried to comfort her, to no avail. The father of the child was also present and was very much interested in holding and crying over his new daughter. We later found out that this young mother had given her baby to the father, and wished to not have contact with them any further. As it turns out, she did not want the child from the beginning, and had broken up with her boyfriend long before.

As a greenhorn Paramedic, this was one of my first runs and I will always remember it. I was scared but with the help of a great partner, calm and collective ER doc in my ear, and an outstanding Paramedic education, I managed to get through the situation.

By Jamey C. EMT-P

We had been running non stop during the 72 hour shift and a little sleep deprivation was creeping into our brains. But true to our calling as EMT’s, we kept going for the sake of “our community” and self preservation! One of the last calls we received that day was a “man down” call on a farm about five miles from where we were at the time. I cinched the seat belt down and my partner hit the gas. We made record time getting to the scene, thank God traffic was light! As we pulled up to the scene, we saw the man lying on the ground with a younger lady holding his head. We marked out on the scene and I jumped from my rig with my O2, kit and defibrillator pack. I checked for pulses and found none, secured and airway, hooked up the defib. The machine showed a “course v-fib”, so I proceeded to deliver a shock to the older, pale lifeless man, and prayed for the best. I had done this so many times in the past, it was like second nature. At this point I thought something had gone wrong with my defibrillator. I checked everything and found nothing wrong. “What is going on”, I asked myself. I have done this many times in the past and never had a “regular” heart rhythm show up on the machine. I checked…wow…”I’ve got a pulse”, I exclaimed to my partner. She checked and just smiled. We continued to deliver oxygen to the man throughout the transport and turned him over to the emergency department staff with no problems.

I went to write my report and got all my information gathered up. My partner walked in with times from the run and looked at me. She said, “one minute”. I asked, “One minute, what”? She told me it was one minute from the time we marked on scene until the time I delivered the first “shock” on my patient. I sat there and thought, man that was quick. I smiled to myself thinking about our “competition “, and had to ask her if she had any quicker ones. She looked at me and told me she didn’t think the defibrillator turned on that quick. “Looks like I win that one, huh”? She smiled and said, “Yup, you won, but the competition wasn’t between you and me”. I asked her what she was talking about. She looked at me and told me. “He is alive”. Wow, I never thought of it like that. We got there, did what we were supposed to do and it worked!

I saw that man later, once he got out of the hospital. It made me thank God that I was able to help him and his family continue on with their lives. He continued to farm and live a productive life for several more years. I read later he passed away at the ripe old age of 88. I have since left the Emergency Medical Technician behind for a career in law enforcement, but I never will forget the time I took on my biggest competition and beat it!

By Richard, EMT

We arrived at the scene where local fire personnel were all ready there. We looked out at the corn field, which had recently been harvested and was wide open to view, and what we saw as pure devastation. The only way we even knew this was a helicopter was because we were able to see one of the rotor blades that was mostly intact and sticking up out of the ground. The rest of the chopper was scattered around a large area in pieces no bigger than a kitchen sink.

We began talking to the fireman that approached us at our truck and I asked him, “Where are the bodies located?” He stated back to me, “they are smoking on the other side of the building.” Well, this was definitely a time when I was not looking forward to viewing those bodies. My partner and I took off walking and rounded the edge of a large barn. As we came around the corner, we see two people sitting on a small hill and they were each “smoking” a cigarette. My partner and I were both astonished to say the least.

We began checking both patients out, and discovered that neither one had any injuries at all. They told us the chopper was a ‘glass bubble chopper’. The kind that looks like a big bubble around the front, though this was impossible to tell from the wreckage.  They stated they were in flight when the motor hitched once and failed completely. The chopper fell straight down from there and crashed into the field, breaking apart immediately.

When I asked them how it was possible they walked away, neither could answer and they were both just as amazed as we were. I explained that I was not a religious person, but they definitely had someone riding with them that day.

As an EMS worker, one of the most amazing things I’ve seen is the fact that a very minor accident can take a life, and yet sometimes people walk away from things that should have killed them. When it’s your time, it’s your time. It’s runs like this one that really make you think and really make you love your career in EMS.

By Tabatha P.

I was 20 years old, had a newborn infant and a wife of 1 year. We lived in a very small house in rural Indiana, and had been there for about 6 months. My wife and I both worked at a local factory creating automotive seats. Like many others, we both wanted much more out of life, but hardly had an idea how to achieve it. Until, our neighbors invited us over for dinner one night.

Little did I know, but our next door neighbor was an EMT and Fireman. While enjoying dinner with our new friends, I heard alert tones going off from a scanner in the house. Immediately, our dinner host jumped up and started putting on his gear. My wife and I were both a bit confused and asked what was going on. After a brief explanation, Randal, the host, asked if I could come along. While en route in his POV (Personal Owned Vehicle), he explained that there was a car accident a few miles from our house, and he was first responding.

Upon arriving at the scene, we found a full sized pickup truck over a large embankment. A couple of firemen arrived on the scene and used ropes to repel down the steep slope. They secured the patient into a Stokes Basket and moved him up the bank.

Randal began to treat the patient, and I offered any bit of assistance I could. Soon, an ambulance arrived and took over care of the patient. After stabilizing him, they loaded the patient and transported him to the local hospital.

It took hours for my adrenaline to settle back to normal. I had just experienced something that truly moved me. It was right then that I knew what I wanted out of life. It was the thrill of the experience, the feeling of adrenaline during a super tense situation, and most of all, it was doing something with my life that would actually feel like it was making a difference.

17 years later, I was an accomplished EMT that had also completed Paramedic training. I had a great deal of respect from my co-workers, and most of all, I still had a career that I truly loved. One that I could still wake up and be excited to get to work early and get the shift started.

Many things in EMS have changed over the years. The room for advancement has grown to such a wide selection of options, and many EMS workers are transitioning into other fields and accomplishing great things. Courses such as the Paramedic to RN, EMT to EMS Management, and of course the great many opportunities available in Fire Services, Police, and Dispatcher positions are all options now. I would highly recommend that anyone considering EMS as a career to go for it. Job satisfaction, personal accomplishment, and unlimited areas of advancement are all available.

When we arrived on the scene, a two story home was fully engulfed in flames and the numerous fire trucks and personnel were attempting to put out the fire. The water was freezing on the ground and making for a hazardous situation for all involved.

The firefighters lead a family consisting of a mother, father and 3 children to our ambulance. All of them were barefoot and in pajama’s with just a thin blanket around them. We turned up the heat and sat them all in the patient compartment of our ambulance. We began talking and the mother started crying. They had no insurance on the home; they were blue collar workers who lived paycheck to paycheck. They had no money, no clothes, no home and all the toys they had bought for the small children for Christmas had just burned up. They were devastated and had no idea what they were going to do. Finally some family members showed up and took the family with them, but not before I asked where they would be staying and how to contact them.

Over the next few days, I contacted the local radio station and asked them to request donations for this family and to have them brought to the ambulance station. I also asked dispatch to alert local agencies of the dire need of this family. Within 2 days, our ambulance bay was completely full of new and used items for this family. We collected clothes, toiletries, furniture, cash and even new Christmas presents for them all. The family… had no idea this was all going on.

A few days later on Christmas Eve, we loaded all the things we had collected for this family (along with over $2,000 cash) into an ambulance and two fire trucks and headed to where they were staying. We arrived with Santa Claus riding on top of the fire truck with a bag of gifts in his hand.

The family was shocked to say the least. The mother and father were both crying and thanking everyone in sight. The children were thrilled to see Santa on a fire truck, and they even got to sit in the fire truck and ambulance and play with the lights and sirens.

This was one of the best gifts I have ever received for Christmas. It truly is the gift of giving that makes the holidays worthwhile. I will never forget the gratitude the family showed that morning, and the smiles on the faces of their children. The outpouring of support from the community and other emergency agencies in the county was amazing.

Many jobs in EMS are thankless and hazardous jobs. When things like this occur and you see something great come out of something awful like this… It truly makes a career in EMS worth it all!

By Tabatha P.