Sorry I haven't posted in the past few days, but I have been relatively busy… First off was EMS duty from Sunday 1800 - Wednesday 0600. Yes, I violated the ambulance Corps' bylaws in a single shift. (Only supposed to volunteer 36 hours/week or less.) A number of calls, but I can only remember two right now:

• A 70 year old female, 1-Delta response for difficulty breathing. Upon arrival, obviously working, room air SpO2 of 73%. Hx of COPD, CHF, and Asthma. Multiple hits of inhaler without relief. SpO2 up to 93% on oxygen, and patient looking better. As the paramedic is on the radio with the doctor requesting solumedrol, I hear, "Please hold, I have to tend to the patient." The cardiac monitor was alarming, because the patient's pulse had dropped to 20. Amazingly she was still conscious, but became increasing confused and combative. Since she was barely breathing, this made it difficult to preform my assigned task, which was ventilating (breathing for) the patient using a BVM. The medic gave atropine and started pacing the patient (giving the patient small shocks to make the heart beat faster.) This worked fairly well, bringing the patient's heartbeat up into the mid 50's. Upon transfer to the ED, the patient was improved, but still in guarded condition. However, my hopes were not high for her continued improvement, since the ED to which we brought the pt is nicknamed "The Pearly Gates" by the local EMS community, but this is where the daughter wanted the pt transported, and the pt's family is always right.
• 1-Charlie response for 88 yo male, difficulty breathing: Upon our arrival, male in no acute distress. The patient's daughter lists off a laundry list of complaints (but not of them being SOB): an witnessed fall earlier in the evening with no injuries, low iron count, inability to urinate this evening, one episode of bloody sputum, and r/o gout of the right foot. Sensing the complete BLS'ness of this call, I took it in with my partner who just got his EMT card last week. All of a sudden, the first-responding fire department reports that we have to take the patient's daughter to the hospital for evaluation of "tachycardia." (Fast heart rate @ 106 - Tachycardia is defined by pulse rates over 100, so not terribly concerning.) She says "I just can't take care of him anymore, I just can't deal with it anymore." So we end up taking two patients to the hospital in the back of our ambulance because the patient's daughter is having an anxiety attack. Great deductive skills there, nozzleheads.

Then yesterday, I worked a shift in the ED… I spent half of it as a tech, starting off with a spinal tap on a 16 mo old. I ended up with working out in the "fish bowl," doing some secretarial work, and doing some triage of patients, the last of whom was a RN who worked upstairs who reported to the Emergency Department for cold symptoms. Did someone need the day off?

Well I will be getting ready to go back to Grenada tomorrow, and then off to the mountains over New Year's for some skiing. In case I don't get to post again, I hope everyone has a happy and healthy 2005.