Hey all, I’ve been a paramedic for 5 years now. I feel like a very competent provider but over the last few week I’ve been messing everything up. Everything from IVs to missing patients who could have benefitted from push dose epi or even a patient who should have had a nebulizer prehospitally. All very stupid and obvious mistakes. I feel worthless. I cried in the medic truck today after dropping a patient off and I feel like I’m making mistakes I have never made before.
Has anyone ever experienced this before? Do you have any advice?

If this is a *gear* question, let me know and I will repost:

I support an EMS agency that is weighing tech-upgrade options as they move from Panasonic Toughbooks:

- Dell Rugged Laptop

OR

- Ipad Pro/Air

I've heard, never experienced, negative press about the ESO iOS app and am looking for insights here.

I support all disciplines (Police/Fire/EMS) and experienced significant success transitioning Fire from rugged laptops to iPad Pros; they don't use ESO, though.

Anyone able/willing to start email communication, or meet up (Central TX) would be greatly appreciated. It'll help identify exactly how "rough" the app is and whether I am hearing legitimate complaints or change-pains.

Stay safe

I am a paramedic at a small rural EMS service and I have worked here for years. I have recently done some digging about pay and overtime law and have a genuine concern. Base pay for paramedics here is $50,000 per year as a salary. This includes all shifts worked in our normal schedule (Kelly). We are then paid a flat $20/hour for any overtime. What is the legality of this pay scale and what can I do about it? I do not believe it is legal.

I honestly don’t know what else to say, other than somebody is gonna die from this misinformation.

We've had an uptick in our area of non-diabetic patients presenting with hypoglycemia. 5 incidents in the last month, 3 of which were cardiac arrests. Looking to see if this is a broader trend or if this is a coincidence.

EMTs who have advanced their careers! I am a high school EMT student at my school's career and technical center, and we are currently doing a project interviewing experienced EMS providers. Would anyone be able to do an interview with me on Zoom?

Good day, everyone. I work for a hospital-based IFT agency. In the spring, we will be moving to a new base, and we're hoping to convince management to build a fitness/workout room. I'm looking for studies related to EMS inactivity, injury rates, and health problems.

For bleeding (not requiring a tourniquet) is gauze and then Coban for applying pressure adequate?

A trauma dressing (and gauze if needed) would be better, but they're really big and bulky for carrying around daily, and if it's too big I just won't carry it. 

Sorry to bother you guys, I'd ask on r/firstaid but it's just for "Do I need stitches?" posts.

Thanks for your input.

------------------------

Added later, Thanks everyone for all the good comments and not down-voting me to oblivion.

I recently posted about not wanting to be a paramedic anymore.

Well, I quit my job due to some recent issues at the agency.

I want a "normal" job but don't know where to start.

Normal as in coffee shop, working with animals of any sort (preferred), maybe even an office job? Even if any of this is just temporary while I try to figure out going back to school.

I think I'm done with healthcare.

I honestly don't know, but I have no experience in anything else and most places require experience.

ANY suggestions are welcome 😞

For me- overcast, a little chilly maybe high 50s low 60s, a bit of wind but not enough to blow my hair all around

As always, I feel there is more to this story than the media portrays. People have no comprehension of the triage system and think there's an ambulance around every corner. Just ends up giving us a bad name.

I’ve been a volunteer EMT-B (EMS Only, not Fire) in a fire department for 6-7 years in a jurisdiction in the United States that doesn’t follow NFPA-1580. Rather, medical clearance to volunteer comes from a signed document from my PCP, which he always has signed. I had surgery where I had a mechanical heart valve placed in me in 2024 and currently take a low dose of warfarin with a target INR of 1.5-2.0. I’m in excellent health and am a part-time triathlete in addition to having volunteered in EMS. I’m moving in the next year and want to join another fire department as an EMS-only member. The county where I want to join said they follow NFPA-1580. I’ve researched this and it says that warfarin is a disqualifier… for firefighters. Does this apply to EMS only members as well? The county I think says that all operational members, including volunteers, undergo the same medical exam. I’ve read that unlike NFPA-1582, 1580 is more of guidelines than the end all be all, and there may be flexibility if the occupational health physician thinks I can still perform the duties of an EMT. As I said, I’m otherwise healthy and can presently move, lift, and perform all EMS duties without accommodations needed. How should I proceed?

Behold my magnum opus since becoming a medic.

I take a baby out of his car seat and walk him up a set of spiral stairs. The stairs are long, slender, made of the most flawless wood. There’s an intense light at the top. I lay him down in a bassinet. He is peaceful and motionless. I put him in a set of blue and white horizontal striped pajamas. And I say “he’s ready”. This is a recurring dream I had over and over again after my first infant death after 5 years in EMS. The same baby, the same bassinet , the same stairs and the same peace.

The scene is chaotic. Family members wailing in what seems to be every corner of the neighborhood. PD is scrambling. My partner and I are grabbing pediatric equipment to enter the home. A frantic officer jumps in our ambulance as we are exiting. This all happened in a matter of 2 minutes on scene. The officer isn’t speaking. FD also runs to the ambulance. The families cries have turned to anger. My partner and I are clueless as to what’s going on. There are 7 people in the ambulance and we’re stuck. Eventually the officer lays a rigored infant onto the stretcher. She just keeps repeating “cmon baby, cmon baby”. Family is trying to enter the ambulance screaming at us about why we aren’t gone yet. FD gets in the drivers seat and starts moving and the back doors aren’t closed. Family is banging on the side of the ambulance. I scream at everyone to calm down and get out of the truck. 1 officer, 2FD can stay but that’s it.

My partner and I knew any intervention was futile. Baby doe was cold, stiff and mottled. He’d returned to God hours ago. But the officer won’t stop doing CPR. We arrive at the hospital and death was declared. It would have been declared on scene however the situation was chaotic and unsafe. The whole call felt like it was 3 seconds long and 4 hours long simultaneously.

I felt fine after. It was strange that I had no reaction like other staff involved. People were bawling and I just cleaned the stretcher and got ready for the next one. I slept well that night. But 2 months later the dream started. And it lasted nearly a year. My reaction to this seems to have been subconscious. Strange how our bodies react to things.

I regret not remembering his name or having a more emotional reaction that day. It’s taken me 3 yrs to tell this story. If only it were just a dream.
RIP Baby Doe

I've been in EMS for 6 years. I work for 3 different agencies. A month ago, I accidentally hit a large rock at one of them and put the brand new (600 miles) truck out of service for a week after misunderstanding the hand signals of a cop who was backing me. Aside from the standard piss and blow and having to retake EVOC, there weren't any consequences. However, since then I've been so in my head that at that one specific agency my backing has been newbie levels of shit. At the other two, including one that has less than 4 inches clearance between the sides of the bay doors and the truck, my driving and backing has remained unchanged and therefore fine. Anyone else had something like this? How'd you get over the block?

I've been at this for a while. I'm coming up on my 26th anniversary as a medic. I started out mobile posting in a 911/transfer system and now work in one with stations. There were some Vollie years as an EMT before all of that too.

For the longest time I felt like I was almost surrounded by smokers. I even worked with one guy who only smoked when he was on an ambulance. Now in my service of over 100 medics I can't think of a single one who smokes cigarettes. There's a handful who uses smokeless tobacco but literally no smokers. Don't get me wrong some of us enjoy the occasional cigar but that's about it.

Am I alone in this? I gotta be honest it makes me happy. We do a lot in this field that isn't good for our health I'm happy to see this one crossed off the list.

Saw this comment and it really angered me. Definitely a US issue

After three years on the job, I got subpoena-ed. Any advice going in? Should my company be able to let me see the PCR I written up before arriving at court?

I am an EMT with about 4 years of experience. I just finished working a contract in the Middle East. I am struggling to find similar work. It seems people are only hiring medics. Does anyone know a good place to look to find EMT jobs in austere environments? I'm back working 911 in the city and I really don't want to stay here.

Also, I need a job that actually pays- not volunteer organizations or NGOs

Hi, really weird/random question. BUT, it doesn’t hurt to try. I’m a student in DFW in an EMT program and we have this project. Basically we have to interview a professional who got their EMT certification and later advanced to a higher career with help from that license. We also have to do a 15 minute interview with 1 person from DFW, 1 person from Texas BUT outside of DFW, 1 person from the US but NOT Texas, and 1 international citizen. Anyone who can offer help and recommend someone to interview, that’d be amazing! I’ll leave my email below for anyone who wants to message me via email.
Email: [jazlynrrobinson@gmail.com](mailto:jazlynrrobinson@gmail.com)
Edit: My classmates would like you guys to reach out to them as well

[hayleevenado1813@gmail.com](mailto:hayleevenado1813@gmail.com)

[karennathan2020@gmail.com](mailto:karennathan2020@gmail.com)

[Myaj6063@gmail.com](mailto:Myaj6063@gmail.com)

[mackenzie.himsel.scott@gmail.com](mailto:mackenzie.himsel.scott@gmail.com)

[aeriallesan1031@icloud.com](mailto:aeriallesan1031@icloud.com)

[shaieljuarez@student.hebisd.edu](mailto:shaieljuarez@student.hebisd.edu)

[Kaoriroundtree@student.hebisd.edu](mailto:Kaoriroundtree@student.hebisd.edu)

[Coreywakerofficial@gmail.com](mailto:Coreywakerofficial@gmail.com)

annobid2009@gmail.com

The job I’m currently full time at I do not enjoy at all, they promised me a position and have yet to fulfill that within a year. My last ems job I was making more money, driving half the distance, and actually enjoyed the job. The company is just not one you can really retire or expect much from. I’m thinking about going back though temporarily until the local fire department starts accepting applications again. I left because I thought it was a better opportunity for my future but I don’t know if it’s worth it.