Ambulance Ranger

Sunday, June 22, 2014

Weekly EMS roundup - 06/21/2014

Thursday, June 12, 2014

Weekly EMS Roundup - 06/13/2014 Triskaidekaphobiacs need not apply

Full Moon, Friday the 13th, what could happen, really?

Stroke diagnosis - more than just Cincinnati
http://www.neuroems.com/2014/06/04/heart-attack-has-the-ekg-stroke-has-the-physical-exam/

NAEMT Code of Ethics - changes (didn't know there was a Code of Ethics? There's an Oath, too...Read on)
http://www.jems.com/article/administration-and-leadership/review-updated-naemt-code-ethics
http://www.naemt.org/about_us/emtoath.aspx

Code Green - tough story to read:
http://codegreencampaign.org/2014/06/story-14-34/

EMS Masters Case #02 - the conclusion
http://www.ems12lead.com/2014/05/23/masters-case-02/
http://www.ems12lead.com/2014/06/11/conclusion-to-masters-case-02/

Fun with Dopamine:
http://paramedicine101.blogspot.com/2009/10/dopamine-nice-packaging.html

And more fun with drug calculations:
http://ww4.mgh.org/emt/Paramedic%20Student%20Library/IV.Drug.Calculations.pdf
http://www.americannursetoday.com/assets/0/434/436/440/6182/6184/6190/6208/0d39b2a0e79043daa93d29d73cf4681a.pdf

(non-EMS) What emotions erupt with your font choice?
http://www.fastcodesign.com/3031622/evidence/the-science-of-comic-sans

Friday, June 6, 2014

Weekly roundup -- 06/06/2014 (Holey smokes, it's June already!)

Firstly, I need to send a shout-out to some of my favorite podcasts, NOW AVAILABLE ON ITUNES!!!! Yay. No more weird 3rd party only when there's wireless listening!

Inside EMS -- Kelly Grayson and Chris Cebellero
https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/fr1-and-ems1-podcasts/id884385830?mt=2

New podcast on my radar -- EMS Leadership (more info on why this is a THING for me later, promise):
http://www.emsleadership.com/

Video: NHS gets their new ambulances -- love those Sprinters!
http://www.emsworld.com/video/11502389/from-workshop-to-first-patient-the-journey-of-a-new-ambulance

FALTER mnemonic for calling a helicopter. I know quite a few people who hit the "F" button:
http://www.ems1.com/air-medical-transport/articles/1589630-Why-we-F-A-L-T-E-R-on-helicopter-response

Interesting, non-EMS, but on brainstorming and idea generation:
http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/234238

Zoll Summit 2014 - Community Paramedicine, Out-of-hospital Care, whatever you want to call it:
http://www.ems1.com/newsletters/ZOLL-Coverage-EMS1-May-2014

Just bought the ePub edition -- useful for explaining issues in the ambo? Maybe. Will review:
http://ecg-interpretation.blogspot.com/2014/06/ecg-blog-90-basic-concepts-3.html

I would say a mobile stroke unit is cool, but it is so far beyond that:
http://www.emsworld.com/news/11502649/first-patient-successfully-transported-by-first-us-mobile-stroke-unit

Trusting your spidey-senses (well said):
http://www.ems1.com/ems-education/articles/1326663-How-to-start-trusting-your-gut/

another great article on teaching - how to answer the question "can we leave early..."
http://www.ems1.com/education/articles/1921613-3-ways-to-nip-the-Will-we-finish-early-question-in-the-bud/

Motorcycle accidents, not just another MVA:
http://www.emsworld.com/article/10706462/ems-training-for-motorcycle-trauma
http://roadguardians.org/

Wednesday, June 4, 2014

Weekly Roundup -- 5/30/2014

Get the 12-Lead...but make sure other stuff is cared for!
http://www.ems1.com/cardiac-care/articles/1237577-Why-we-capture-a-12-lead-ECG-with-the-first-set-of-vital-signs/

Regrets
http://topinfopost.com/2014/05/12/top-5-regrets-people-make-on-their-deathbed

Things that make you go...huh?
https://wausaunews.wordpress.com/2014/01/18/big-hospital-finally-telling-the-truth-about-cancer-johns-hopkins/

Change is good? Really?
http://www.ems1.com/education/articles/1920697-Lack-of-change-not-increased-training-is-causing-volunteer-shortage/

Back off! We are in charge...
http://www.ems1.com/ems-advocacy/articles/1476128-Police-and-EMS-Who-s-the-boss/

EKG Masters case #02
http://www.ems12lead.com/2014/05/23/masters-case-02/

REALLY would like something like this in our area (similar issues...)
http://www.emsworld.com/article/11490678/ems-simulation

Kelly, thank you:
http://www.ems1.com/ems-jobs/articles/444853-top-ten-questions-you-re-better-off-not-asking/''how/

Just one more reason to avoid the bumper sticker graffiti
http://1079ishot.com/police-stick-family-decals/?trackback=fbshare_top

Friday, May 23, 2014

Weekly Roundup 5/23/2014 Enjoy your long weekend after EMS WEEK!

Friday, May 16, 2014

Weekly Roundup 5/16/2014

Not much this week - but all interesting!

Plasma in the field
http://wtvr.com/2014/05/13/richmond-ambulances-to-carry-plasma-a-first-for-the-nation/

"Externally cross-clamp the abdominal aorta and vena cava" Works on axillae and groin area as well, and CPR adjunct? -- WOW -- this may be a game-changer..
http://www.emsworld.com/video/11458324/application-of-an-abdominal-aortic-and-junctional-tourniquet

Good idea -- maybe some of these people will let us intubate in their hospitals?
http://www.emsworld.com/article/11386677/emt-training-for-medical-students

Inventory Management - always fun
http://www.ems1.com/ems-products/ems-data-management/articles/1876952-4-ways-to-better-manage-EMS-inventory/

http://www.ems1.com/ems-products/ems-data-management/articles/1876955-Big-or-small-manage-EMS-inventory-by-thinking-lean/

Blast from the past - SLC Fire Paramedic program intro video - ca. 1970
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0AR0-rEZ9dc&feature=youtu.be

Chris & Kelly podcasting again - community paramedicine (or whatever we're calling it today), helmet cams in EMS, and more - always entertaining and informative!
http://www.ems1.com/camera/articles/1899007-Inside-EMS-Podcast-Community-paramedicine-helmet-cam-usage-in-EMS/

Friday, May 9, 2014

Weekly Roundup - 05/09/2014

Kelly Grayson -- My Hero:
http://www.ems1.com/community-awareness/articles/1899153-True-confessions-of-a-clinically-depressed-medic/

Kelly & Chris' most recent podcast:
http://www.ems1.com/ems-education/articles/1895959-Inside-EMS-Podcast-Dogma-in-EMS-how-to-escape-violent-encounters/

Joules & Amps and that whole electricity thing I just cannot wrap my mitts around:
http://broomedocs.com/2014/05/reader-question/

Polio - it was never gone, and it's coming back:
http://www.jems.com/article/news/world-health-organization-declares-polio

Is your equipment neonate-friendly? A baby with WPW, I would have needed a uniform change:
http://www.jems.com/article/case-month/infant-girl-s-struggle-breathe-isn-t-res

To nitro, or not -- EKG fun:
http://www.ems1.com/ems-products/Patient-Monitoring/articles/1405197-ECG-Solution-Nitroglycerin-right/

UAV's (aka "drones") used for safety. Get used to it.
http://washington.cbslocal.com/2014/05/05/montgomery-county-fire-department-using-drones/
(I work with a remote sensing committee and this field is changing by the day...)

Bag of chips, Hershey bar, and an IV setup, please! Modified vending machine for supply tracking:
http://www.emsworld.com/product/11436430/vendtek-wholesale-equipment-medic-machine

Concussion or not? App quantifies balance measurements for potential brain injury:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMaSZz2Ycdo&feature=youtu.be
http://swaymedical.com/

Wow. And you think you work in a tough system?
http://www.vice.com/read/riding-shotgun-with-guatemala-citys-overworked-volunteer-paramedics
http://www.gilesnclarke.com/

Very powerful - Israeli Medic working to save the fallout in Syria:
http://www.jems.com/video/news/profile-israeli-medic-syrian-border

Reality TV (my not-so-secret favorite genre) NY Med:
http://www.emsworld.com/press_release/11447251/hit-tv-show-ny-med-returns-to-newyork-presbyterian-hospital

Assume you are on camera:
http://www.emsworld.com/article/11386393/video-recording-cardiac-arrest-resuscitation-scenes

Nasal Cannula Pre-Oxygenation, putting the science to what Mr. Medic always taught us:
http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/823961?nlid=56604_1521%3Fsrc%3Dstfb

Monday, May 5, 2014

There's sadness and loss in our professions. We see it every day and we deal with it. Some better than others.

Then there's personal sadness. The loss that wrenches at your heart and catches in your throat when you dare to let your memories picture the person, the grief, the tears.

I grew up lucky. Total tomboy, I would much rather be out playing in the dirt, riding bikes, playing legos than inside with the "ladies" being domestic. I had a best friend, had the term been coined then I would have called him my "brother from another mother" because we did absolutely everything together. His family took me on vacation with them, and they sculpted my life in ways I cannot even understand. They are the reason I learned German, met the love of my life, moved to Germany, and to some extent they are why I am going down this road to Paramedicine. His grandmother was my grandmother. We grew up together. Jay will always be my friend.

Jay and Gretchen married right out of high school and had two lovely daughters. Both love soccer as much as their dad they are beautiful children.

Gracie Snider, 10, was killed on Saturday in a car accident on I-90 in Washington State, returning from a soccer match.

Her 10-year old friend is in the ICU.

I haven't talked to Jay. I don't know what to say.
So, for now, I am posting this at his sister's request. Please help if you can.

http://www.gofundme.com/8wd7q4

Friday, May 2, 2014

Weekly Roundup - 05/02/2014

Forever fun with my love of ambulances:
http://www.emsworld.com/video/11313705/how-our-ambulances-are-built-the-richmond-ambulance-authority-experience

OK Medictests.com - I am going to give you a try!
http://medictests.com/

Wow...really?
http://www.ems1.com/education/articles/1895189-Instructor-sets-off-grenade-in-drill-blows-ear-drum-of-EMT-student/

Yup, love EMS1
http://www.ems1.com/top-5/articles/1894831-Top-5-EMS-videos-of-April-2014/

Neuro exams/trauma, continued
part 2
http://www.emsworld.com/article/11282199/neurologic-exams-and-selective-spinal-immobilization
part 3
http://www.emsworld.com/article/11296299/dermatomes-and-spinal-cord-injuries

Ambulance Wars (sounds like another bad reality TV series...)
http://www.jems.com/video/news/differing-views-las-vegas-response-times

Diagnosis - a good argument
http://www.jems.com/article/patient-care/ems-doesn-t-diagnose-or-do-we

Friday, April 18, 2014

Weekly Roundup - Tax Week 4/18/2014

My apologies to you, gentle reader, (I'm sure there is at least one person who reads this blog, surely?) and I apologize for the "Weekly Roundup" being the only thing you hear from the Ambulance Ranger these days. More content to come, I promise.
The short update?
Lots of calls, then none.
Still plodding through Paramedic internship.
Still studying.
Still working.
yep, that's pretty much it. Hope you enjoy this week's finds:

I think I will link to the NEW Ferno iNX stretcher every week. Forever. Or until we get a grant to buy them for our service. Then I will post videos of us using them. Or at least a picture of me sleeping on one.
http://www.jemseditorblog.com/2014/04/17/ferno-introduces-revolutionary-patient-transport-loading-system-at-the-fdic-conference-in-indianapolis/

Teaching tips - that awful moment when you realize everyone's asleep...
http://www.ems1.com/education/articles/1878798-6-training-tips-to-reach-unengaged-EMTs/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=exclusiveBlock1&nlid=1881013

Blood pressure - how to do it the right way
http://www.ems1.com/blood-pressure/articles/1882581-5-errors-that-are-giving-you-incorrect-blood-pressure-readings/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=exclusiveBlock4&nlid=1882308

I know a couple people who would be great at motorcycle medicine...
http://www.emsworld.com/article/11393194/motorcycle-paramedics-provide-faster-ems-response-at-special-events

Strokes, under-diagnosed:
"Analyzing federal health care data, a team of researchers led by a Johns Hopkins specialist concluded that doctors overlook or discount the early signs of potentially disabling strokes in tens of thousands of American each year, a large number of them visitors to emergency rooms complaining of dizziness or headaches."
http://www.emsworld.com/news/11398693/stroke-assessment

Furosemide - No, No, and No
http://www.emlitofnote.com/2014/04/pre-hospital-furosemide-no-no-also-no.html

Specifically targeting abdominal pain, another sacred cow gets slain:
"In this era of iPods and digital media, EMS pain management seems stuck in the days of boom boxes and cassette tapes. It’s time we tossed the old attitudes about pain management, like those old boom boxes, into the dustbin of history."
http://www.emsworld.com/article/10862823/ems-relief-of-abdominal-pain

$40 that might save your life, via Kelly Grayson - LET RESPONDERS FIND YOU!
The porch lights flashing switch is very cool, and something I had not seen:
http://www.ambulancedriverfiles.com/2014/04/16/when-you-need-the-good-guys-can-they-reach-you/

Kelly has been busy this week! Great podcast discussion with Chris Cebollero on hot topics, clinical issues, and operational leadership lessons:
http://www.ems1.com/fire-ems/articles/1882760-Inside-EMS-Podcast-Reducing-spine-board-usage-EMS-leadership-styles/

And finally, a shout-out to our awesome dispatchers (you know who they are, the ones when you hear their voice on the line you KNOW you will be taken care of for your shift)
http://psc.apcointl.org/2013/03/21/so-you-want-to-be-a-dispatcher/

Friday, April 11, 2014

Weekly Roundup 4/11/2014

Important, for many reasons. Not a "how-to" but more of a "how we got here"
http://www.jems.com/article/history-ems/how-heal-after-responding-tough-call

Active shooter EMS -- Discussion
"During an active shooter/active killing response, the first-arriving Fire/EMS responders, not special operations or tactical medical teams, must accept the responsibility for life rescue and medical operations and must work with first-responding law enforcement assets to rapidly deploy into the areas that have been cleared but not secured (warm/indirect threat zones) to initiate treatment and rescue injured victims."
http://www.jems.com/article/supporting-paradigm-change-ems-operation

Wake County EMS Evacuation pre-plan (outline) and A.J. Heightman's freaky night in a hotel:
http://www.jemseditorblog.com/2014/04/08/twas-the-night-before-mci-class/

Simple thoracostomy - a case for incision rather than needle decompression
(will be interesting to see what the study yields)
"To avoid the complications associated with needle decompression, a number of services in Europe have adopted simple thoracostomy as an option for chest decompression. Simple thoracostomy is a technique similar to the placement of a chest tube, traditionally done in the ED. It utilizes an incision with a scalpel and penetration directly into the thoracic cavity with forceps and a gloved finger to relieve the tension pneumothorax. The only major difference is that the chest tube isn’t inserted."
http://www.jems.com/article/patient-care/simple-thoracostomy-moving-beyond-needle

Ferno's new cot. If it works, it's a game-changer for EMS:
http://www.fernoems.com/inx/
VERY similar to one we played with at EMS World, but this is all auto and will load into our tall 4wd ambulances. I might be in love.

AND A little video crazed this week

How an EMT gets ready for work:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ahCuA6DsSGE#t=155

Forget the egg in a skillet "this is your brain on drugs" commercial.
Just show this to the kids, and they will stay away.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UePInKAKgTA

It's so funny, because it's true...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V9G5CfrQN4w#t=55

Friday, April 4, 2014

Weekly Roundup 4/4/2014

CHECK! Checklists to reduce deaths...quite the concept.
http://www.jems.com/article/administration-and-leadership/ems-checklists

Because we're all nerds
http://www.ijreview.com/2014/04/126134-girl-asked-wil-wheaton-respond-bullies-call-nerd-perfect-answer/

Ambulance safety and design, one of my geeky passions:
http://www.emsworld.com/article/11325292/ambulance-safety

Emergency Medicine (as in MD) Literature of Note - University of TX, Houston
http://www.emlitofnote.com/

NeuroEMS -- Strokes and Hearts, what can we learn?
http://www.neuroems.com/2014/03/24/12-lead-ecg-and-stroke-pt-1-overview-lit-review/
http://www.neuroems.com/2014/03/29/12-lead-ecg-stroke-pt-2-culprits-in-the-brain/
http://www.neuroems.com/2014/03/31/12-lead-ecg-stroke-pt-3-case-studies-conclusion/

more, because I'm falling in love with NeuroEMS...
http://www.neuroems.com/2014/03/15/blood-flow-through-the-brain-pt-1-overview/

Trauma Triad of Death - more understanding
http://www.emsworld.com/article/10565011/hypothermia-acidosis-coagulopathy