Divemedic

I once ran a call to a local church for “diabetic problem.” When we arrived, we were met by a pleasant woman who stated that she was in the area on vacation, and her husband forgot to pack his diabetic medication. They had been kneeling in prayer when her husband stated that he felt like he was going to pass out, and wanted to sit down. I asked my EMT to get a blood sugar and some vitals, and started getting information from the wife for the report. The patient looked a little tired, his color was off a bit, and he was sweating, but being a tourist from the north during the month of July in Florida will do that to you. As I was filling out the report, my EMT yelled over that the blood sugar was 166, BP 92/54, and his heart rate was 42.

Oh crap.

The monitor revealed a third degree AV block. I placed the pads on him and began pacing immediately. We tried to get an IV for some medication access, but his veins were flat. I was finally able to get an 18 in his right EJ, and we began giving fluids. He complained that the pacing was painful, and so I gave him 2mg of valium to take the edge off. His BP was now 100/62, and I thought we had done OK.

Then he went into respiratory arrest.

I tubed him, and his EtCO2 looked good, and over the next few minutes, his O2 sats went from the 70’s into the upper 90s. His lungs sounded wet, but the clinical signs were there. CHF, maybe? We delivered him to the ED with vitals of: HR 80(paced), Resp 12(BVM via ETT), BP 110/70, SaO2 96, EtCO2 42.

The ER doc listened to the lungs, and consulted with the RT. They decided to extubate. I pointed them to the EtCO2, and the Doc said “That stuff isn’t accurate. You are in the stomach.” He then ordered the nurse to discontinue the pacing, and give 0.5mg epinephrine and 0.5mg atropine. I showed him the original strip and pointed out the original rhythm.

I went out to see the wife, and told her we were leaving. I wished her luck. As I was leaving, the doctor came out and informed her that her husband had passed away. He then told her, right in my presence, that if the paramedic had not placed the tube incorrectly, her husband may have lived. I felt about three inches tall.

A complaint was filed against me with the state department of health, both by the doctor and by the patient’s family. The investigation eventually found my treatment to be correct.

That was over 5 years ago. I still have copies of the report, the strips, and the findings of the state locked away in my safe.(redacted, of course) Even today, I can look at the waveform and see that my tube was correct. Through all of that, I still sometimes wonder what would have happened if I had made a different decision that day. Maybe I should not have given the valium (did that cause the resp arrest?) Paced earlier? Gone to a different hospital?

I still see that doctor from time to time, wandering through the hospital. Funny thing is, he doesn’t even recognize me or remember who I am.

If I read this right:

The report says police officers ‘may, very occasionally in extreme cases, decide to put themselves at risk in acts of true heroism’.

In these ‘rare circumstances’, the HSE adds, ‘it would not be in the public interest to take action against the individual’.

So a cop, who can be prosecuted (in the name of safety) under the law for risking his or her own life can make a “personal choice” not to violate the law and attempt to stop a crime? So, faced with one of two choices:
1 Do nothing
2 Risk life to prevent a crime, thus leaving oneself open to possible criminal prosecution

Which do you think a cop would choose? Why does the UK even BOTHER to have police? All of this in the country where weapons are illegal, as is self defense, and crime is skyrocketing.

I can hear Churchill now:

We shall defend our island, whatever the cost may be, we shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender, unless of course, fighting was unsafe. Each soldier and citizen may have to decide at some point not to risk his life, and we support that.

If, however, the soldier feels the risk is justified, then we would certainly look at the facts and decide whether or not to be lenient and not prosecute.

I posted earlier on Obama setting a record, in that he borrowed $1 trillion in a shorter period of time than any other President. Well, he has set a new one.

In Afghanistan, 229 soldiers have died during the first 9 months of his Presidency, more than were killed in 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, and most of 2005 COMBINED. In fact, those 229 soldiers represent 27% of all soldiers killed in Afghanistan in the last 8 years. Where are the press reports about this? Why aren’t we hearing what a big mistake this is? About how this is all the President’s fault?

There is one thing that I see more and more often that is really bugging me. The confusion of “your” and “you’re”

“Your” is the possessive case of the word YOU: “Is that your car?”

“You’re” is the contraction of the word “you are”: “You’re driving me to the store in your car.”

Please do not confuse the two, it makes you look stupid.

Every time I get into or read a discussion on gun control, someone always trots out the old argument about how the UK has restrictive gun laws, and they have less crime as a result. The Wikipedia article points out that firearms crime is rare in the UK, but leaves out the fact that UK crime rates are on the rise. In fact, you are six times more likely to be mugged in London than you are in New York City. Violent crime in the UK jumped by two-thirds between 1998 and 2003. Crime is higher in the UK than the U.S. in every category except rape and murder. UK householders who injure a home invader are often hauled up on charges. A new study suggests the use of handguns in crime rose by 40% in the two years after the weapons were banned.

People who oppose gun laws here in the US point out that the Second Amendment is there to prevent the Government from becoming tyrannical, and safeguards liberty. Countries which ban their citizens from owning the means to resist government force always degrade into dictatorship and tyranny. The UK is no exception. As I have said in the past, the UK began allowing private contractors to enter private homes to enforce the repayment of debts, and this latest scheme is horrific, but par for the gun banning course.

The UK has begin placing closed circuit video cameras into private homes to ensure that the occupants are not breaking the law. So far 2,000 homes have had cameras put in place, with another 20,000 on the to do list. Private security guards will also be sent round to carry out home checks, while parents will be given help to combat drug and alcohol addiction. Children’s Secretary Ed Balls said: “This is pretty tough and non-negotiable support for families to get to the root of the problem. There should be Family Intervention Projects in every local authority area because every area has families that need support.” (Now that takes Balls)

It looks like Orwel was accurate in the details, but was just off by a few years on the date.

In a news article this morning, it is announced that the Obamacare plan will pay for elective abortions, meaning abortions that are not performed for medical reasons, or in the case of rape and incest. My problem with this is not abortion per se, but that private funds are being used to pay for the health benefits of others, and I have a problem with all welfare programs for the same reason.

The question that comes to mind here is what other elective procedures will be covered? Vasectomies? Sex changes? Face lifts? Will we be buying women bigger tits? As much as I enjoy looking at women’s tits, it is not my respnsibility to buy them for other people.

The good news is that, according to the current talking heads, the recession has bottomed, and we are on our way to recovery. Even the President says so.

Of course, they said that in December, after the bailout, with this expert calling for a March bottom.

WSJ called it months ago. The British Chamber of Commerce called it in July. In fact, we have been told we were nearing the bottom nearly every week since this all began.

Have we hit the bottom? Who knows? After all, the GDP still dropped by 1%. Dropping is still dropping, and it seems to me that you cannot be at the bottom when you are still dropping. For quite awhile when all of this started, we were told that we weren’t in an official recession until the economy contracted for two consecutive quarters, even though we all knew the economy was in the toilet.

Sooner or later, the economy will rebound, and the talking heads will all try to point out to us that they were the ones who called it, and politicians will all credit themselves with ending it, when in reality the economy just ran its own course.

The rest is spin.