# What gear bags does your service use?



## CWATT (Mar 4, 2017)

Hey y'all,

I'm curious if your service uses a combined O2/trauma bag or separate bags for everything. 

Me  -  When I first started in EMS it was at the BLS level for an industrial company.  We used the Ferno Trauma bag for everything - the O2 bottle was in the bottom and was accessed through the side door.  Once I got on car, we used the Trauma bag for narcotics, IV, and trauma gear, and a seperate medium-sized airway bag which had the O2 tank plus adult BVM, OPA/NPA, ET, and cryc. kit and some other misc. stuff.  We also had a peds bag with peds IV kits, BVM, and meds.  If you responded to a peds call, you'd take the LifePack15, trauma bag, airway bag, and peds kit.  I felt like a pack mule.  (Haha).

*I started a poll above


- C


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## DesertMedic66 (Mar 4, 2017)

Our main bag has everything from meds to trauma supplies to airway to IO. The only thing it doesn't have is CPAP or suction. Our O2 bottle is on the gurney. If we need it we will pop it off. 

Fire has a trauma bag, med box, airway bag with O2 in it.


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## NomadicMedic (Mar 4, 2017)

We have a half a dozen bags. It blows. 
Oxygen lives at the head of the stretcher. 

We have a stat pack BLS first in bag, a stat pack drug bag (als drugs) an airway bag, a pedi bag, IV bag and a few others.


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## VentMonkey (Mar 4, 2017)

Our ground division uses a blue jump, or "first-in" bag that has all of our supplies needed in an emergent situation from airway, to IV, and all Level 1 (immediate) meds.

Our secondary (red) bag is in the ambulance but consists of more meds; some more for restock, others that may be given en route, and/ or with orders.

Our CCT division has a paramedic bag (the ground unit is set up identical to the ALS/ 911 divisions with a few extra airway tools; the helicopters medic bag is primarily airway stuff, the EZ-IO drill kit, and an IV roll out kit). The nurse has their own bag with primary and secondary gtt sets, etc. Our flight nurses carry all of our meds in their bag that we would carry on the ground, and RSI meds/ narcotics. All of the CCT bags are statpacks, except for the ground units paramedic/ nurse bags.

None of our bags have a portable O2 bottle, nor have I worked somewhere that provided one. Fire's jumpbag has it, good enough for me.


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## TransportJockey (Mar 4, 2017)

Right now we use ferno bags. An airway bag with am eti roll and an o2 bottle (plus trauma supplies) plus a drug bag with our ezio in it as well. We are hopefully switching to one big statpack soon without an o2 bottle 

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## NomadicMedic (Mar 4, 2017)

I keep trying to get us to condense our stuff and politics/hospital policy continue to impede progress.


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## VentMonkey (Mar 4, 2017)

NomadicMedic said:


> I keep trying to get us to condense our stuff and politics/hospital policy continue to impede progress.


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## DSDMedic (Mar 4, 2017)

We run with Statpack jump bags that carry the usual "first in" stuff -- basic trauma, IV, a first-in drug bag with 8 or 10 of the common ones, and an adult BVM is usually stuffed inside one of the sides with an airway roll. We also keep an IV box in the rig -- it's just IV stuff, catheters, tape, TQs, wipes, the usual stuff. Saves us from having to constantly run to either the bag or the drug box to pull that stuff out. There's a secondary major trauma-and-everything-else bag that lives in the truck, and I don't think has been touched in living memory other than for restocks, and then the main drug box in the rig with everything else plus restocks. For a while we kept an IO set in the jump bag, but moved to EZ IO, and now it lives in its own spot in the truck and we just grab it as needed. We toss it in the bag for arrest or man-down calls, or if fire warns us we need it.

Our O2 lives on the stretcher, unless we luck out and get one of the crap stretchers with no O2 bracket, in which case somebody gets to hump the tank, unless we've got fire right before or after us and we can get them to do it.


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## WolfmanHarris (Mar 4, 2017)

Our bags are made by FireTech Manufacturing. http://firetechmfg.com/category/medical-backpacks/ 

The exact bags we use aren't on their site because they're custom jobs. 

All of our bags are backpacks and break down to:
- Circulation (red)
         IV/IO, all our meds
- Airway (blue)
        Suction, intubation roll, King airways
- Trauma (green)
- Pediatric (pink)
      Includes OBS kit, paediatric intubation roll

Oxygen is kept in a separate sleeve that can clip onto the airway bag or hang off the stretcher via carabiners. Inside the bags every piece of equipment/kit is in its own labelled pouch velcroed into the larger bag.


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## Jim37F (Mar 4, 2017)

Not sure who makes it, but we have a blue jump bag we take when first in to a call, has all our BLS supplies, OPA/NPAs, portable suction, BVMs and O2 masks/cannulas, Kelley, 4x4s, Guatemala pressure bandages, pen lights, shears, alcohol wipes, bottle of normal saline and so on and so forth. Actual O2 D-tank is strapped to the gurney, and most crews keep extra O2 masks and the like strapped there as well. 

My previous department however, we had bags for days. We had a separate BLS trauma bag (similar set up just no O2 supplies) and a separate O2 bag (D tank, NRB, NC, BVM, CPAP), but in addition to those two we also had a blue BLS bag that combined both that did have everything but the kitchen sink in it complete with D tank. Although it was bulkier and heavier, most crews there actually tended to leave that bag on the gurney and just bring that one in with the monitor (medics would carry their ALS drug box), although a couple preferred the much smaller O2 only bag (which seemed odd to me since once again, a D tank with masks and the like was already strapped to the gurney, I always thought it'd be better to carry the red trauma bag if you didn't want the full Blue bag....but I liked the bigger one if only because with it you could handle just about anything and everything to stabilize and get to the ambulance without worrying if you grabbed the wrong one)


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## StCEMT (Mar 4, 2017)

I don't even know who makes our bags, but I hate our set up.

Blue Bag: (internal)EZ IO pack, IV pack with some meds and fluid, small blue pack with prefilled meds, smaller black pack with drawn meds, laryngoscope roll. (External) worthless thermometer, glucometer, basic trauma supplies, igel 4&5.

Green bag: OPA/NPA, suction, CPAP, BVM adult and pediatric, nebs, NRB/NC, etc.

O2 tank is on the stretcher and a soft stretcher tucked behind the hydraulic arm. Along with a quick and easy mixed bag I make that has a BVM, NRB, NC, emesis bag, and CPAP. That way if someone needs to be carried, puke, or any temporary airway management, I don't have to go far to handle it.


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## Bullets (Mar 4, 2017)

BLS service....yes, on bag with a d tank, airways and trauma stuff, only meds we have are epi, narcan, glucose and ASA. Plus CPAP

Out ALS also has one bag, a Meret Omnipro, they use our O2 is they need it


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## CWATT (Mar 4, 2017)

StCEMT said:


> I don't even know who makes our bags, but I hate our set up




What part of the set-up do you hate exactly?  Your description seems reasonably straight forward (although I'm not sure which bag your trauma stuff if kept in...  green?).


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## StCEMT (Mar 5, 2017)

CWATT said:


> What part of the set-up do you hate exactly?  Your description seems reasonably straight forward (although I'm not sure which bag your trauma stuff if kept in...  green?).



The trauma stuff is kept in the front pouch of the blue bag, but depending on the trauma I'd have to get supplies ahead of time from inside the ambulance. Its bare bones. I don't like what we use for the meds that have to be drawn. It has foam cut outs which /would be fine if it was glued in place. Instead **** tends to roll over or under the foam. Green bag (airway) is kind of a mess in the main pouch. I am used to it now, but its just a sea of plastic bags, its hard to tell what some stuff is without digging around. I know why they do it, but it annoys me that every single thing is tagged, so I have to tear them off when I need something. Not an issue on most calls, but annoying when its a cardiac arrest and there are multiple things I am looking for and have to tear through 5 or so tags to get completely set up. We also don't have an extra set of a things like meds, airway adjuncts, and some other things on the truck too. So if I were to be sitting and something were to go down, I'd have to go get the bags out of the cabinet and then get what I need rather than having it at arms reach by my knee or head (I would preplan though if I felt like there was any risk). Lastly, a lack of decent pediatric airway back ups. Once they get so small, I don't really have much in the way of OPA's or any type of backup airway which would be nice since I have had a couple kids that were at that point. Its NRB/BVM or be able to justify an intubation basically and we are a bit restricted on those.

I loved the set up I had during medic school, it was just cleaner. We had a red Meret bag with standard meds, airway adjuncts, some trauma supplies, IO kit, quick trach, etc all in it and easy to find. The ped bag came with a tape to get an initial measurement of the and a bunch of color coded pouches attached to the inside with your IV and airway supplies premeasured and ready, then the top pouch was advanced airways, sides were BVM and something else. There was a trauma bag in the outside of the truck with a more supplies if needed. The set up there just made so much more sense and had a better sense organization, at least it made more sense to me.  

Even though the majority of the time I don't really need to do much, I like having my stuff preset, organized, and within reach. It's mostly just preference from what I had during medic school and what I have personally grown to do since I became a medic from trial and error. What I have is enough to do what I need, it just irks me since I've been able to ride with multiple other agencies that had set ups that were a little more thought out.


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## shelvpower (Mar 5, 2017)

DesertMedic66 said:


> Our main bag has everything from meds to trauma supplies to airway to IO. The only thing it doesn't have is CPAP or suction. Our O2 bottle is on the gurney. If we need it we will pop it off.
> 
> Fire has a trauma bag, med box, airway bag with O2 in it.


What bag are you using? 

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## Tigger (Mar 5, 2017)

I love our Conterra stuff. Airway Pro bag with their intubation roll and rip off pouches for O2 delivery, tube confirmation, and BLS airways. We also keep a set of Kings, NGs, suction, and extra bougies in it as well as a D tank. We don't take the cot out of the ambulance since the terrain is pretty rough here, so the bag needs a bottle in it. Our med bag is a big Conterra Responder, it's got an IV roll, and awesome drug kit, bare bones trauma stuff, BP cuffs, IO kit, and collars. 

We also have a Broselow bag which I also like a lot. CPAP is in it's own bag since it's a big device, same for the vent. We also have some ALS Extreme packs that live on the frontline ambulances during the summer for backcountry calls.


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## DesertMedic66 (Mar 5, 2017)

shelvpower said:


> What bag are you using?
> 
> Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk


We have a couple of these: https://ironduck.com/product/ultra-sofbox-plus/

And then some more that look the exact same but are probably knock off brands


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## GMCmedic (Mar 5, 2017)

Some Blue Molle backpack. I dont know the brand but its awesome. Also a Broselow bag and the Cpap bag is from Galls. 

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## TransportJockey (Mar 6, 2017)

GMCmedic said:


> Some Blue Molle backpack. I dont know the brand but its awesome. Also a Broselow bag and the Cpap bag is from Galls.
> 
> Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G920A using Tapatalk


Most likely 5.11. Their responder bags are blue with MOLLE webbing. 

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## Ensihoitaja (Mar 7, 2017)

We use these Pelican cases without the inserts. We used to have Halliburton Zero cases, but apparently they stopped making them. Too bad because those were awesome!

We have a separate Handtevy/pediatric kit.

Fire brings the oxygen, typically. Otherwise we have a mount in the box for a D-tank.


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## Handsome Robb (Mar 7, 2017)

We have ferno airway bags and pelican cases for our drug boxes. We also have two duplicate trauma bags and a pediatric bag on every truck. Not sure if the brand on those. 


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## Ensihoitaja (Mar 7, 2017)

Oh yeah, we have 3 total Pelican cases in the ambulance. Our regular kit, Handtevy/peds kit, and a drug box.


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## EpiEMS (Mar 7, 2017)

Our BLS bag includes a D-tank, and I can't stand it. I'd rather have an O2/AED kit, and a separate trauma kit...

Not that I shouldn't be bringing O2 on every call, but, you know - two people on a BLS rig, two bags...makes sense, right?


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## TransportJockey (Mar 8, 2017)

EpiEMS said:


> Our BLS bag includes a D-tank, and I can't stand it. I'd rather have an O2/AED kit, and a separate trauma kit...
> 
> Not that I shouldn't be bringing O2 on every call, but, you know - two people on a BLS rig, two bags...makes sense, right?


Eh counting our monitor, we have three things to carry in (drug bag, airway/trauma, and monitor) and we still only have two people. It's not completely the end of the world lol

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## EpiEMS (Mar 8, 2017)

@TransportJockey Absolutely, I just don't love being the only person carrying something when it could easily be split up - lucky for me, I don't have to schlep a monitor (usually)


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## CWATT (Mar 8, 2017)

Ensihoitaja said:


> Oh yeah, we have 3 total Pelican cases in the ambulance. Our regular kit, Handtevy/peds kit, and a drug box.



Pelican cases?!?  Ugh...  I can only imagine how uncomfortable those must be to carry.  Even with shoulder straps, I wouldn't want the hard plastic digging into my ribs.  Is your service concerned about the equipment being crushed somehow?  Or do they just want waterproofing?


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## NomadicMedic (Mar 8, 2017)

Pelican cases are the standard ALS box in Washington state. Everywhere I worked or did paramedic clinicals used them. I liked them right up until they fell off the bench seat and spilled everywhere.

Now I'm much happier with my StatPack. 

And by the way, you don't carry it with a shoulder strap. It's like a suitcase. Pelican in one hand, monitor in the other.


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## NomadicMedic (Mar 8, 2017)

This is a pretty interesting thread. I'm curious if anyone's found a really good backpack for a Composite D tank and ALS gear.  I need one for events at a stadium.


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## GMCmedic (Mar 8, 2017)

NomadicMedic said:


> This is a pretty interesting thread. I'm curious if anyone's found a really good backpack for a Composite D tank and ALS gear.  I need one for events at a stadium.


We use the same 5.11 back at my FD as we do at my ALS job. FD has a steel D cylinder in it. Its heavy but manageable. I imagine it would be perfect with a composite or Aluminum cyclinder.

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## DesertMedic66 (Mar 8, 2017)

NomadicMedic said:


> This is a pretty interesting thread. I'm curious if anyone's found a really good backpack for a Composite D tank and ALS gear.  I need one for events at a stadium.


I'd imagine the 5.11 ALS bag may fit your needs. It has an option to secure the O2 tank inside the main compartment. I have only use their bags as a work bag and a range bag.


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## VentMonkey (Mar 8, 2017)

Or you could carry one of these tackle boxes like LACoFD*. I want to say one of their squads was testing out the Pelican, but this was well over a decade ago.

*theirs is only 1-2 tiers as they only have/ need a handful of meds anyhow, even til this day. I doubt they'd have any use for the Pelicans extra drug pouches, but perhaps they put BLS stuff in it; OCFA does/ did use Pelicans.


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## NomadicMedic (Mar 8, 2017)

This was 
	

		
			
		

		
	





	

		
			
		

		
	
 the Washington ALS set up. Almost everybody was doing something like this when I left.  Looks like it was in 2011, based on the med expiry.


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## GMCmedic (Mar 8, 2017)

DesertMedic66 said:


> I'd imagine the 5.11 ALS bag may fit your needs. It has an option to secure the O2 tank inside the main compartment. I have only use their bags as a work bag and a range bag.


After a quick google search this appears to be the bag we use.


GMCmedic said:


> We use the same 5.11 back at my FD as we do at my ALS job. FD has a steel D cylinder in it. Its heavy but manageable. I imagine it would be perfect with a composite or Aluminum cyclinder.
> 
> Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G920A using Tapatalk




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## DesertMedic66 (Mar 8, 2017)

Another option is the Conterra ALS bag for a backpack style that holds an O2 bottle.


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## Tigger (Mar 10, 2017)

NomadicMedic said:


> This is a pretty interesting thread. I'm curious if anyone's found a really good backpack for a Composite D tank and ALS gear.  I need one for events at a stadium.


Conterra ALS Extreme. Not cheap (especially with all the modules), but worth it IMO. We have them as backcountry bags and they are as nice as any backpacking backpack I am familiar with. The Responder and Airway Pros are big enough and can be worn as backpacks, but are not good for long distances. 

My n=1 experience with 5.11 bags was not great, all the hardware failed at one point or another. 

The Meret backpacks are decent, fire here uses them and they definitely hold up to wear.


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## Handsome Robb (Mar 10, 2017)

NomadicMedic said:


> This was
> 
> 
> 
> ...



That's nearly identical to our med box. 

I absolutely loathe that thing. 


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## TransportJockey (Mar 10, 2017)

Handsome Robb said:


> That's nearly identical to our med box.
> 
> I absolutely loathe that thing.
> 
> ...


Gotta be better than those damn 747s. I used them at AMR in NM before we went to statpack setups 

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## Handsome Robb (Mar 10, 2017)

TransportJockey said:


> Gotta be better than those damn 747s. I used them at AMR in NM before we went to statpack setups
> 
> Sent from my SM-N920P using Tapatalk



Honestly they're a pain in the butt. They're heavy, bulky and in some of our units there isn't enough room to put them in the exterior cabinet during transport so then it's sliding around the box unsecured. 


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## Bullets (Mar 15, 2017)

EpiEMS said:


> @TransportJockey Absolutely, I just don't love being the only person carrying something when it could easily be split up - lucky for me, I don't have to schlep a monitor (usually)


driver has the bag cause they do the assessment, passenger who is teching has the toughbook cause they are doing the chart?

If you really feel the toughbook is not enough, ill grab the stairchair on most calls


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## EpiEMS (Mar 15, 2017)

@Bullets
You got a toughbook? Fancy


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## Handsome Robb (Mar 15, 2017)

EpiEMS said:


> @Bullets
> You got a toughbook? Fancy



I've never worked anywhere that didn't have toughbooks. 

We're getting fancy new ones too where the screen pops off and becomes a tablet. Pretty snazzy.


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## NomadicMedic (Mar 15, 2017)

We've got iPads.


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## Jim37F (Mar 15, 2017)

Handsome Robb said:


> I've never worked anywhere that didn't have toughbooks.
> 
> We're getting fancy new ones too where the screen pops off and becomes a tablet. Pretty snazzy.
> 
> ...





NomadicMedic said:


> We've got iPads.


We currently have Toughbooks, and are getting a new ePCR program.....rumor has it we're getting new hardware as well, the most common rumor is iPads, that's what one of our FD's we run with uses, and quite frankly, their IPad plus the software they have is the best ePCR software I've seen.....looks just like a normal paper run form, tap on the section you want to put it, and it opens a submenu you input what you need, and it goes back to the main form written in, it's really super nice, I hope that's what we are getting, but I have a sneaking suspicion what we'll get will somehow be more complicated/less user friendly than our current setup lol. I guess we'll find out in a couple weeks when they do the mandatory in-service training on the new stuff


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## NomadicMedic (Mar 15, 2017)

Ours is pretty nice. It's called, oddly enough, iPCR. We use active 911 as our pseudo cad/mapping. That's also not awful.


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## DesertMedic66 (Mar 15, 2017)

Handsome Robb said:


> I've never worked anywhere that didn't have toughbooks.
> 
> We're getting fancy new ones too where the screen pops off and becomes a tablet. Pretty snazzy.
> 
> ...


We have had those for over 2 years. They are ok. Nothing that is too exciting. We ended up screwing the keyboard in to the tablet. When we were able to separate them there were issues with some of the connections not lining back up when we connected them back.

We are switching systems to ImageTrends and I was one of the testers... let's just say there were so many issues between the tablets, software, and unit WiFi that we are no longer testing them.

This is the model we have: http://business.panasonic.com/toughpad/us/windows-tablet-fz-g1.html


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## Jim37F (Mar 15, 2017)

I knew I had posted about it a while back lol:





Jim37F said:


> My last FD job used iPads with various Otterbox style cases (different brands though), and they worked out rather wonderfully I thought. It also helped the ePCR program was extremely user friendly and straight forward. Medic Clipboard from Digital EMS Inc., basically you opened the form and it basically opened what looked like a blank paper run form on the screen, you tap on the section you want to fill out and then it brings up a detailed subscreen that lets you put in what you need to, then when you go back it shows up on the run form just like you wrote out a paper one. Very cleanly and nicely done, no more scrolling through 50 sections or hunting across 20 tabs, it was very user friendly I thought.
> 
> 
> 
> ...





Jim37F said:


> We currently have Toughbooks, and are getting a new ePCR program.....rumor has it we're getting new hardware as well, the most common rumor is iPads, that's what one of our FD's we run with uses, and quite frankly, their IPad plus the software they have is the best ePCR software I've seen.....looks just like a normal paper run form, tap on the section you want to put it, and it opens a submenu you input what you need, and it goes back to the main form written in, it's really super nice, I hope that's what we are getting, but I have a sneaking suspicion what we'll get will somehow be more complicated/less user friendly than our current setup lol. I guess we'll find out in a couple weeks when they do the mandatory in-service training on the new stuff


Our current setup on the Toughbook is HealthEMS Mobile 



 (Ours is slightly different, but almost identical...somehow I'm not terribly surprised someone made a Youtube video of it lol)


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## agregularguy (Mar 16, 2017)

My current agency just unfortunately switched from the toughbooks to the microsoft surface tablets.. As much as the tablets are decent, getting signatures on them are a pain in the ***, and typing while driving is a lot more difficult with their keyboard then the toughbooks.


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## Jim37F (Mar 16, 2017)

agregularguy said:


> My current agency just unfortunately switched from the toughbooks to the microsoft surface tablets.. As much as the tablets are decent, getting signatures on them are a pain in the ***, and typing while driving is a lot more difficult with their keyboard then the toughbooks.


Our medical units had Surface tablets, and a couple filtered out to us BLS units (myou shift had one for a couple of weeks). Most guys didn't like them because they felt "small" or "flimsy" or unlike the Tough book where the keyboard is fixed, the Surface's was part of the case that just flopped around if you didn't prop it.....me and my partner once we figured outhat how to hold it so the keyboard was propped on our arm or something liked it better than the Toughbooks because it's smaller and lighter and more portable, easier to work with in the hospital hallway lol, and the touchscreen was a lot easier to work with too...but alas they've been removed....so I wonder what, if any, new haelrdware (tablet or not) we'll get when we do the in service in two weeks lol


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## NomadicMedic (Mar 17, 2017)

Here's a video of what we use and it's really the easiest PCR ive ever used.


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