Sometimes I wish the hospital would not sedate my psych patients before

[Hockey]

my 150 mile transfer


You become bored and have no one to talk to except your partner and yourself


Only 1.5 more hours left before we get there! Woohoo!

I was hoping for a crazy crazy. Not annoying lets ask the EMT 500000 questions of "why"



That is all

 

[Sasha]

my 150 mile transfer


You become bored and have no one to talk to except your partner and yourself


Only 1.5 more hours left before we get there! Woohoo!

I was hoping for a crazy crazy. Not annoying lets ask the EMT 500000 questions of "why"



That is all

Oh yes.. Long distances with a violent psych patient is LOADS of fun.

I've done the long distance transfer with an unsedated "crazy crazy" person. It's NOT entertaining, it's actually quite scary when they start hitting the seats and talking about hurting people and you're not sure if you and your partner are strong enough to posy this guy down.

It's also quite sad. I feel bad for them.

 

[Hockey]

Oh yes.. Long distances with a violent psych patient is LOADS of fun.

I've done the long distance transfer with an unsedated "crazy crazy" person. It's NOT entertaining, it's actually quite scary when they start hitting the seats and talking about hurting people and you're not sure if you and your partner are strong enough to posy this guy down.

It's also quite sad. I feel bad for them.

One of the lowlife "psychs" , found my Xbox 360 that was under the seat, and decided to steal it last night. Locked car, they pried the new car door open.

I can't feel bad for anyone today

But yes. once they start throwing a fit, it makes things "interesting" to say in the least

 

[Sasha]

But yes. once they start throwing a fit, it makes things "interesting" to say in the least

Interesting? These people are NOT your entertainment, they're your patients!

lowlife "psychs"

I can't feel bad for anyone today

Perhaps your lack of empathy is better suited for another career where you're not in charge of taking care of people.

 

[triemal04]

Sasha...I think the quote marks around interesting are there for a reason.

Anyway, I prefer to talk to myself on trips like that. Of course, I'm usually the one on the gurney but oh well...

 

[downunderwunda]

One thing I have noticed in my time in EMS is the prevailing attitude to psych patients.

Psychiatric Illness is like an illness to any other part of the body. Never forget that. Statistics prove that 20% of us will suffer from some sort of mental illness at some point in our lives.

Let me ask you to reflect on this, would you speak of patients with Renal Failure, Chronic Heart Disease, Cancer, COPD or multiple fractures in the same way you talk about your mentally ill patients?

People do not choose Heart Disease, in the same way they do not choose Mental Illness.

One of the lowlife "psychs" , found my Xbox 360 that was under the seat, and decided to steal it last night. Locked car, they pried the new car door open.

Lowlife? or doing what they need to do to survive?

I can't feel bad for anyone today

If this is because of an Xbox, GET OVER IT. One is a human being, the other is a games console. Please, if your life is so pathetic that you have to prioritise an Xbox over a human life, maybe you need psychiatric help.

But yes. once they start throwing a fit, it makes things "interesting" to say in the least

Or pattients are not her for our amusement. We are hear to help them. There is not reason for our patients to be treated like a toy. Seizures (the proper name for what you called fits) are dangerous causing Hypoxia to the brain. How is this interesting?

I think you might need to seek help yourself. You sound like you will be in the 20%.

 

[JPINFV]

 

[daedalus]

A non medicated and non restrained pysch patient got out of the back of another crew's unit on the 405 freeway and ended up dodging cars until CHP got their.

I do not think I am supposed to talk about that...

 

[raisingkahne9]

There are some cases, when Psych patients need to be sedated. However, there are times when they do not need to be. I guess it all depends on patient history. I've been on transfer's where the patient has been sedated. And I've also been on ones where the patient hasn't been sedated, when they should have been. Clearly a poor judgement.

 

[JPINFV]

A non medicated and non restrained pysch patient got out of the back of another crew's unit on the 405 freeway and ended up dodging cars until CHP got their.

I do not think I am supposed to talk about that...

I would be interested to know what the patient's history is and if there were any indications prior to leaving the facility that the patient might be an elope risk.

My feeling on the restraint issue is that it seems that most EMTs fall into two polar opposite camps. There's the "restrain everyone on a hold" camp who discount the idea that the vast majority of psych patients are neither violent nor an elope risk. The other side almost never uses restraints, but don't ask the appropriate questions to determine if the need to use restraints.

 

[BLSBoy]

One of the lowlife "psychs" , found my Xbox 360 that was under the seat, and decided to steal it last night. Locked car, they pried the new car door open.

One reason. ONE reason why you had an X-Box in the back.

*Edited* What makes you think that it was a psych pt?

And go.

 

[Meursault]

I agree with most of the finger-wagging so far, but:

One is a human being, the other is a games console.

Humans:

• Self-reproducing
• Prone to doing really stupid things when brought together in large numbers
• Spend their lifetimes annoying me
• Extremely difficult to improve or correct

Consoles:

• Require assembly, therefore making them rarer than humans
• Awesome when brought together in large numbers (ignoring the power requirements)
• Spend their lifetimes entertaining me
• Can be quickly and completely shut off without legal repercussions
• New and improved version every few years

The winner is obvious.

To add to BLSBoy's questions, why wasn't the console hidden and, seriously, how do you know it was either a psych or a "psych" (whatever you mean to imply by that) patient? Did they carve a little psi on your upholstery before running off cackling into the distance?

 

[daedalus]

I would be interested to know what the patient's history is and if there were any indications prior to leaving the facility that the patient might be an elope risk.

My feeling on the restraint issue is that it seems that most EMTs fall into two polar opposite camps. There's the "restrain everyone on a hold" camp who discount the idea that the vast majority of psych patients are neither violent nor an elope risk. The other side almost never uses restraints, but don't ask the appropriate questions to determine if the need to use restraints.

It was one of those situations where two EMTs disappeared without explanation (suspension pending investigation) and a new memo was issued the next morning, requiring a blanket policy of restraint of all pysch patients. I ignore this policy because LA county EMS trumps mere company policy and they have a protocol that prohibits blanket use of restraints.

You are completely correct about the two camps of EMTs when it comes to use of restraints.

 

[sir.shocksalot]

call me crazy but all my psychs get stretcher rides. I am not going to be that guy that had the psych pt run off and murder someone (if that psych pt is so inclined). But on that same note I think we all need to realize that psychs are people too, and you are seeing them only in their worst condition, who knows, they might be great people after appropriate treatment. And never forget that people will always remember an ambulance ride, its up to you to make it a positive experience for the pt.

 

[JPINFV]

call me crazy but all my psychs get stretcher rides.

I'm not saying that it's appropriate to walk psych patients into the ER, just that most psych patients do not need restraints. The little goth girl with skulls on her slippers who got into a fight with her mom and was threatening suicide probably doesn't need the leather bracelets, even if she is on a psych hold.

 

[Ridryder911]

Well here we go again. It is very obvious that the EMT receives very little or no real training and education in psychiatric care.

Psychiatric patients are mentally ill and may not be physically ill. Treat appropriately. Requiring or even attempt to slightly force one to be on a stretcher may not be the best modality.

If a patient is sedated, there is usually a reason. Allow the patient to rest as in some conditions the mind ...never shuts off.

With all the fun one could describe; lets remember we are there for the patient not the patient is there for us.

R/r 911

 

[silver]

my 150 mile transfer


You become bored and have no one to talk to except your partner and yourself


Only 1.5 more hours left before we get there! Woohoo!

I was hoping for a crazy crazy. Not annoying lets ask the EMT 500000 questions of "why"



That is all

and now you know how they became psych patients...

 

[raisingkahne9]

My question is, why is there an x-box in an ambulance? I realize that people take game consoles to work, for when its a slow night, but for crying out loud keep them in your personal vehicle. And you have no one but yourself to blame for it being stolen. If it wasn't there in the first place, and to accuse a patient of breaking into the ambulance to steal it is pretty low, in my own opinion.

 

[Sapphyre]

Hey, Kahne, some of us only leave our rig on scene and at the hospital... We don't post at a station between calls. And, some of us, are lucky, and have storefronts with couches and TVs, but not actual stations, so, you're still not making it back to where your car is.... But, I'm still with you, why an xbox 360??? If you're gonna bring games, bring the personal ones (says someone who brings her laptop on the rig)

 

[raisingkahne9]

Ok but if that is the case then why the xbox? its not like your going to be able to play it on the rig. My second question is when you take your laptop to work, do you make sure its out of sight, when you are not in the ambulance?