The stress of EMS

The view from my seat in the back of the ambulance

Well, I have another 4 shifts under my belt. I am now running all the calls. I am so grateful to be here. I am truly learning what it is like in big city EMS. I get home anywhere from 9-9:30 every night and try to go to bed as a soon as possible. I wake up at about 6:45. By the end of the day I am DEAD tired. That is why I don't post each day. It is easier for me to post on my days off.

First of all, I will be getting done a few days sooner than scheduled because my preceptor is switching to nights. Wednesdays through Saturdays. I had the option to go to nights with him and I figured it would be a great opportunity, plus I really like my preceptor and I don't want to take the chance of getting a new one. My new schedule starts next Wednesday and I will run 12 hours 8pm to 8am. Now, I will get all the drunks and the good traumas. I am excited for that :) Hopefully I will be able to readjust my sleep schedule. I had the day off today but tomorrow night I am going in because my preceptor is doing an overtime shift. That means another extra shift under my belt :) I will have Thursday off and then back to work on Friday at 8 am. I will work until Monday and then have Tuesday off and then switch to my new schedule. This next week is going to be CRAZY!!!!

Everyone asks me how John is doing......well, we have GREAT NEWS!!! John got offered a job as a 3/4 employee of the school! (REAL JOB, NOT A STUDENT EMPLOYEE) :) John's current employer and the landscape company called the school and begged them not to take John. John is a wanted employee! This means he works 30 hours/week and makes double what he used to make! Our tuition is paid for and we get REAL benefits! He gets paid sick/vacation days. His job description is Groundskeepr/Substitute Garbage Truck Driver. He got his Commercial Driver's License a few months ago and that is why he can drive the garbage truck. We feel so blessed and grateful for this opportunity. This is truly an answer to our prayers. We needed this great news to keep us sane while we are apart. I am so proud of him. He always tells me that he will always take care of me. I trust him more than anyone in this world. He works so hard for our family. I am so lucky to have such a hard working husband who is always trying to do better.

On to PARAMEDIC STUFF!!! These last four shits have been very interesting. I had that "one" call that changes your life. I finally knew what it meant when they say that this job is stressful. On Sunday morning, after picking up a lady from the nursing home and taking her to the hospital, I was thinking to myself....."this is going to be just another one of those days" meaning no "real" calls just a bunch of nursing home and panic attacks. The dispatcher comes over the radio and tells us to head towards an address. My preceptor Drew, leans back and says, "pediatric cardiac arrest." These are the three words that you never want to hear. He then said. "2 month old male." I immediately started writing down drug doses for a baby that size and what size tube I would need to intubate him with. I said a pray that I would be able to remember everything I had been taught. I told Drew that I was nervous and he said, "Don't worry we got this." When we arrived at the apartment building I noticed that it was government housing and didn't look like a safe area of town. I jumped out of the back of the ambulance, we grabbed the cot and started for the door. I immediately saw a fireman walk out of the front door and put his bags and monitor on the front porch. I thought to myself well maybe it wasn't a true cardiac arrest if he didn't need his bags. When we got closer I saw another fireman standing at the front door giving us the "cut it" sign. You know the one where wave your hand across your neck. I wasn't sure what he meant by that until we got closer and all I could hear were blood curdling screams. I knew it wasn't good. A mother and father walked out of the house in tears and the mom proceeded to throw up on the porch. I walked in a saw a two month old little boy in a blue onsie lying dead on the couch. Rigor mortise had set in as well as color drained from his face. I just stood there and looked at him. His hand was held up by his face. Immediately a feeling came over me. It was a feeling of peace. As I looked at this precious child it was obvious that I was looking at a body but I knew his spirit wasn't there. I knew that his spirit was with our Heavenly Father. It was truly a spiritual experience for me. I will never forget that child's face or the feeling that I had when I left that house. It made me grateful for the plan of salvation and the knowledge that I have from the gospel of Jesus Christ. My first DOA (dead on arrival) was a baby. I left out a lot of details because this is a crime scene but I just wanted to share that experience with you.

A few hours later, I had a massive trauma. (my first one) It was a 3 car MVA and my patient was unconscious. I have never seen a car wreck with more damage. I never panicked and I knew what needed to be done. We used the jaws of life to get him out. He was unrestrained and people all I have to say is WHERE YOUR SEAT BELTS!!!! Drew said I did a fantastic job! There were SOOOO many people there. Tons of ambulances, fire truck and even a police helicopter. Turns out, he had been running from the police when he ran a red light and hit 2 cars. We ran him into the trauma hospital and yelled report as a huge trauma team was assessing him. It was just like T.V! I loved every minute of it! On the way to the hospital I thought to myself, "this is what EMS is all about" He is considered my first trauma save. After I got cleaned up (lots of blood) Drew said, "well, your first trauma save was a drunk Mexican fugitive. How do you feel about that?" I just laughed. It would have been harder if he had killed someone because of his stupidity, but everyone survived. Truly a miracle. The wreck was on the news and here is the link. Sunday was a very eventful day for me. I love this job and I know it is what I am supposed to be doing!
Love you all!!!

Car wreck: http://www.koco.com/video/25076480/detail.html