# Lunch Break.



## Ambulanceman (Nov 28, 2012)

Once while holding the wall at an ER there was another crew from a different company doing the same thing, then out of nowhere one asked the other who wanted to go to lunch first, once they made up their decision the first member went to their rig to eat, while the other waited with the patient and vice versa all while patient care was still on their hands. Has anyone else seen or heard of this happening before? Just curious as this was the first and only time I’ve seen this happen.


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## akflightmedic (Nov 28, 2012)

Ambulanceman said:


> Once while holding the wall at an ER there was another crew from a different company doing the same thing, then out of nowhere one asked the other who wanted to go to lunch first, once they made up their decision the first member went to their rig to eat, while the other waited with the patient and vice versa all while patient care was still on their hands. Has anyone else seen or heard of this happening before? Just curious as this was the first and only time I’ve seen this happen.



You were amazed that two partners communicated and respected each other by discussing who would eat first? Weird indeed...


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## Amberlamps916 (Nov 28, 2012)

When you work in a busy area such as yours where you may hold the wall 4+ hours, you'll see this happen often. It's just part of our jobs at this point.


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## DrParasite (Nov 28, 2012)

Addrobo87 said:


> When you work in a busy area such as yours where you may hold the wall 4+ hours, you'll see this happen often. It's just part of our jobs at this point.


ugh, holding a wall for 4 hours??? I would kill myself from the boredom

damn, i would bring a book, go for lunch, enjoy multiple smoke breaks, eat dinner, call my spouse, listen to my ipod, watch a movie on my ipad, nature breaks, flirt with the nursing staff, and they might find me hanging from a noose in the ER.  I might even leave my partner with the patient and order a pizza, enjoy it in the ambulance bay, and then let him have Chinese be ordered.  After all, once you are in the ER, the patient is the ER's responsibility, at least according to EMTALA.

I work in a pretty busy area, but we don't hold a wall for more than 30 minutes on a really bad swamped day.  

I'll never understand how your administration tolerates you holding a wall for 4 hours.  I know I couldn't do it.


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## Anonymous (Nov 28, 2012)

DrParasite said:


> ugh, holding a wall for 4 hours??? I would kill myself from the boredom
> 
> damn, i would bring a book, go for lunch, enjoy multiple smoke breaks, eat dinner, call my spouse, listen to my ipod, watch a movie on my ipad, nature breaks, flirt with the nursing staff, and they might find me hanging from a noose in the ER.  I might even leave my partner with the patient and order a pizza, enjoy it in the ambulance bay, and then let him have Chinese be ordered.  After all, once you are in the ER, the patient is the ER's responsibility, at least according to EMTALA.
> 
> ...



Hahahaha! And yes 4 hours is not uncommon around these parts


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## Amberlamps916 (Nov 28, 2012)

Sadly, that's how it is in California. You even have ALS Fire units holding the wall for long periods of time yet they get blamed for long response times. Seriously, I've lost count how many times I've held the wall for hours! It really has helped me study for Paramedic school I tell you.^_^


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## akflightmedic (Nov 28, 2012)

When this happened in my city, 1 of 2 things occurred.

1. The departments complained to the hospital and made them assist with a solution which was the hospital hired paramedics whose only function was to "receive care" from the incoming paramedics. Therefore care was handed over legally to a same level of care and that medic then held the wall and freed up the transport unit.

2. Some of the larger departments placed their own people at the hospitals during peak hours or peak season and it was basically a light duty shift or an overtime shift...and for some unlucky recruits it was their regular assignment.

Great stop gap measure...more people should look into it.


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## Jon (Nov 28, 2012)

Ambulanceman said:


> Once while holding the wall at an ER there was another crew from a different company doing the same thing, then out of nowhere one asked the other who wanted to go to lunch first, once they made up their decision the first member went to their rig to eat, while the other waited with the patient and vice versa all while patient care was still on their hands. Has anyone else seen or heard of this happening before? Just curious as this was the first and only time I’ve seen this happen.



How many EMS providers does it take to watch a patient (that isn't really your responsibility to watch, anyway). If the allow for appropriate supervision of the patient, I see nothing wrong with it. It is likely the only downtime they get.

While we don't hold the wall in the ED around here, I do wait-and-return runs to Drs offices and hospital inpatient units with "outpatients" - often they are ALS, out of a LTAC, and on a monitor and perhaps vent.

If they are ALS, I can't really leave. But my partner will often go and grab lunch, perhaps grab my laptop from the truck, etc. Once in a while we get a nice nurse that will watch the patient for a while and we'll both go to lunch quickly.

It's rare for these to take less time than an hour, some take 5 or 6 hours. It gets boring.


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## Achilles (Nov 28, 2012)

"If you have time to lean, you have time to clean"


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## TheLocalMedic (Nov 28, 2012)

I've seen this kind of thing happen from time to time if it's busy enough.  I don't see a problem with it as long as you have a way to summon your partner back if you need them again.


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## akflightmedic (Nov 28, 2012)

TheLocalMedic said:


> I've seen this kind of thing happen from time to time if it's busy enough.  I don't see a problem with it as long as you have a way to summon your partner back if you need them again.



Summon them back? If something goes wrong, you are on the wall in a hospital...I would venture a guess that your patient just got bumped in the line and there are plenty of resources around...let your partner finish their bologna sandwich.


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## Handsome Robb (Nov 29, 2012)

We don't hold the wall that often but when we do it isn't uncommon for crews to watch eachother's patients so one can catch up on charting, eating, bathrooming, whatever it may be and visa versa.

We call status 99 when we get put on the wall, more than one or two crews goes status and the ER goes on bypass and we don't bring patients there, it's like a closed divert, which hurts the hospital because we are the only 911 and IFT provider in the county except for a few areas and now they are out for the patient's bill if they have to go to an out of network hospital because of it. That's how it was explained to me anyways. 

Needless to say we don't hold the wall all that often but it does happen from time to time and we help each other out. One medic can watch two ALS patients pretty easily.


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## CGULL (Jan 6, 2013)

I also have never had to hug a wall that long. However if it is taking a while my partners and I will take turns helping in the ER if we are allowed. Just to pass the time a bit and is usually appreciated by the staff.


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## WolfmanHarris (Jan 6, 2013)

We only ever have one medic watch a patient while awaiting a bed. One medic will go complete their paperwork in the write-up room or when that's done one may run downstairs and grab coffee, use the phone, etc.


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## mycrofft (Jan 6, 2013)

If the pt goes sour, walk away and dial 911.


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## TheLocalMedic (Jan 7, 2013)

akflightmedic said:


> Summon them back? If something goes wrong, you are on the wall in a hospital...I would venture a guess that your patient just got bumped in the line and there are plenty of resources around...let your partner finish their bologna sandwich.



True enough!  Guess you're right on there.


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## medictinysc (Jan 7, 2013)

*Wow*



Addrobo said:


> When you work in a busy area such as yours where you may hold the wall 4+ hours, you'll see this happen often. It's just part of our jobs at this point.



Holding the wall?  I assume that means waiting for a bed in the ED.  Sorry I am from the south we don't wait there we talk the patient into going to the faster ED's.  HAHA oxymoron I know


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