Have YOU actually done these? Does anyone?

[mycrofft]

Watching Radar and Father Mulcahy on M*A*S*H do a "crikey!thyrotomy" (thanks Dr Metcalf) with a Tom Mix penknife and a pen barrel plus a radio, I wonder how many procedures have we been taught that only a rare few of us have used, orf even know anyone who did (or claimed to have attempted) them?
NOTICE: I wrote a question over 100 characters and the poll was dumped. See next thread.

 

[Akulahawk]

Watching Radar and Father Mulcahy on M*A*S*H do a "crikey!thyrotomy" (thanks Dr Metcalf) with a Tom Mix penknife and a pen barrel plus a radio, I wonder how many procedures have we been taught that only a rare few of us have used, orf even know anyone who did (or claimed to have attempted) them?

I know a corpsman that had the fortune of placing bilat chest tubes (among other things)... and the guy lived...

 

[mycrofft]

With Poll: Done or Seen these done?

Let's try it again.
"Watching Radar and Father Mulcahy on M*A*S*H do a "crikey!thyrotomy" (thanks Dr Metcalf) with a Tom Mix penknife and a pen barrel plus a radio, I wonder how many procedures have we been taught that only a rare few of us have used, or even know anyone who did (or claimed to have attempted) them?"

 

[mycrofft]

Please use my post with the poll. Disregard this post.

That oughta draw 'em like moths...is this thing turned on?

 

[mycrofft]

Not chest tubes, crikes.

Still, impressive!

 

[Akulahawk]

I've seen MAST used... guy died... but the facility that took the MAST off didn't release it properly and didn't have the patient already in the OR... patient was doing OK until then. Might have survived had the MAST been removed properly AND he was in OR for damage control surgery as they did it...

I had an instructor that had to give several precordial thumps to a patient once... patient survived. This happened so quickly on scene... that the monitor was still being brought over to him. After the monitor was there...

 

[Aidey]

One of the medics I work with, who has been a medic for 12 years has done a precordial thump twice. We were just discussing it in a refresher class a couple of days ago, and she told us about it.

I have personally done a full and proper eye wash, but it was not in a 911/Ambulance setting. It was when I was working industrial medicine and running the on-site clinic.

 

[Seaglass]

MAST: one of my instructors claims to have used it. He's been in the field forever and doesn't make stuff up, so I believe him.

Eyewash: in highschool chem class, a classmate of mine conveniently got something in her eyes during a very challenging lab. She insisted on using the eyewash thing for the full 20 minutes, then insisted on doing it for 5 more. No idea how she stood it, but she'd gone to pretty extreme lengths to fake illness in the past. Just a few psych issues going on there...

 

[kittaypie]

my ex-boyfriend's older brother performed a precordial thump on a witnessed v-tach during his internship at medic school. lucky guy.

 

[Lifeguards For Life]

I saw an ER doc perform a precordial thump. the pt. was in and out of cardiac arrest, and each time the pt. lost a pulse and the doc administered a precordial thump, the pulse came back. many drugs were being administered, so i guess with the amount of variables, it is hard to gauge just how effective the precordial thump was.

 

[akflightmedic]

Cricothyrotomy resuscitation.
Yes, while the procedure is not all that common I have done it myself several times. I only had one successful resus out of the ones I did however.

Apply MAST trousers.
Yes but not for the reason intended...used them for splinting.

Perform a precordial thump
Yes, and has been successful. Even had it done to me when I was 17.

Do a proper, full 20 min eyewash.
Yes, several times.

Use a haemostat in the field to "stop a bleeder".
No and probably wont ever cause I tend not to have them clipped on my belt or in a nifty pouch.

Use 2 poles & blanket or 2 coats to move injured > 100ft?

No but it would be fun.

Know for a moral fact someone who did?
Someone who did what? Just the above or all of the above...regardless, read what I wrote.

Do you suspect any of these instances worked because it wasn't truly needed?
No I do not. I am not in the habit of performing procedures when they are not truly needed.

 

[Aidey]

*facepalm* I'm a space case.

I have personally done the poles and shirts litter, however, it was in a training situation, and I don't think we went more than 100 feet. It was actually a legit option in the situation we were training for (I was a Wildland fire medic).

 

[TransportJockey]

I saw a medic I was working with do the precordial thump on a witnessed v-fib arrest. Guy came back into an ST rhythym. I helped a doc do a crike on someone in the trauma room during medic clinicals.

 

[ffemt8978]

I've personally done the eyewash, and applied the MAST to a patient. I've seen and ER doc successfully use a precordial thump on a patient.

 

[Ridryder911]

Cricothyrotomy resuscitation. Yes, but the first time was after being a Paramedic for over 10 years then the second one was about 2 weeks later. Many of mine was while being a flight nurse/medic and from previously failed or intubation attempts that caused damage, others was due to severe facial trauma, tumors, etc .

Apply MAST trousers. Yes, literally thousand of times and YES they do work! When used appropriately and in conjunction with other modified treatment. They were never believed to "correct" shock; rather increase blood pressure for coronary and cerebral circulation. Studies never demonstrated that they did not; rather there were no difference in outcome. Ironically, some of the same trauma scored patients died with surgical intervention too and we still do that. It does not matter how fast or good the surgeon is if there is no cerebral or coronary blood flow.

Perform a precordial thump Yes, and still will until I can get defib charged. Yes, I have had conversions

Do a proper, full 20 min eyewash. Would not do anything less for a real eye wash!

Use a hemostat in the field to "stop a bleeder". Twice, on a bad bleeder that would not stop from a trach and on a bad femoral partial amputation, We carried sterile clamps in our surgical airway kit. On the latter clamp a physician was on the scene.

Use 2 poles & blanket or 2 coats to move injured > 100ft? Only in Boy Scout camp for emergency preparedness and first aid merit badge course

Know for a moral fact someone who did? A wilderness rescue (not mine)

Do you suspect any of these instances worked because it wasn't truly needed? Doubtful, I do know medicine. Anecdotal medicine is not being good for the patient or your professional career.

 

[FFMedic75]

Cricothyrotomy resuscitation- yes it was with the help of a doctor.
Apply MAST trousers- only inflated them on a pelvic fracture as a splint.
Perform a precordial thump- my partner's first arrest, he got the hands off pads stuck together.
Do a proper, full 20 min eyewash- pepper spray!!!!

 

[Jon]

I PARTICIPATED in a 20+ min eyewash post-OC spray. Nasty stuff.

2 poles and blanket - Sorta. In a drill - yes. It does work, as long as you fold the blanket right.

Oh - and I merged the 2 threads to reduce confusion.

 

[kittaypie]

Perform a precordial thump- my partner's first arrest, he got the hands off pads stuck together.

uh oh!!!!!!!

 

[WolfmanHarris]

Know a student on clinical that when a pt. arrested the Physician asked if anyone wanted to try. He did, got conversion for a few seconds.

 

[Canoeman]

Cricothyrotomy resuscitation- yes - only once serverely burnt airway
Apply MAST trousers- yes plenty of time
Perform a precordial thump- yes - and converted two
Do a proper, full 20 min eyewash- a bunch

no to the rest of this pretty much nonsense