# Ambulance serves morbidly obese



## MariaCatEMT (Mar 29, 2006)

Vehicle's gurney capable of holding up to 1,600 pounds

*Several times a month, American Medical Response crews roll out on calls for individuals weighing upwards of 600 pounds.

Often times, to lift and place the patient into the ambulance, responding EMTs and paramedics will get creative, using special means such as wooden boards. But offering emergency or commercial medical services to people who are morbidly obese requires much more than the traditional ambulance, EMT and paramedic.
*

Read more here...


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## Jon (Mar 30, 2006)

We've got the equipment at work... it is jokingly referred to as the F.A.R.T. Unit...

(The Fat-*** Retrivial Team)

And, in case you can't tell... it is Las Vegas AMR... the only ones with Blue and White rigs...


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## Wingnut (Mar 30, 2006)

MedicStudentJon said:
			
		

> We've got the equipment at work... it is jokingly referred to as the F.A.R.T. Unit...
> 
> (The Fat-*** Retrivial Team)
> 
> ...


 

ROFLMFFAO!!!  :lol: :lol:


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## TTLWHKR (Mar 30, 2006)

Over 500 pounds, and unable to walk...

Keep them in an institution... They are killing the backs of society. Honesty, I don't know how anyone could live that way. Often, they lay in the same place for weeks, or months.. They do not get up to bathe, or relieve themselves, they lay in their own excrement. Obviously, they have to eat, so _who ever is feeding them_, but not helping them live better.. Even making a simple phone call... _Should be taken out back for some hillbilly justice with the handle of a shovel._


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## Raf (Mar 30, 2006)

Sitting in their own excrement for months? That is definitely not humane. Humans were clearly not meant to live that way, and those kind of people should be helped.


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## Jon (Mar 30, 2006)

So - Here is a question from EMS Today:

If you refer to a patient who meets the standards as "Morbidly obese" - is it slander?


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## TTLWHKR (Mar 31, 2006)

I call them Bariatric. That's in my book of words to use for reports, and that's what I choose to employ.

Because it's better than saying "That fat-*** made my back hurt for the whole shift!".


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## futuretoledoemt (Mar 31, 2006)

I've been struggling for a time on whether or not I wanted to take part in this conversation, it's a touchy subject for me...

Three years ago I was the fat *** on the back board that it took a few people to carry.

I was in a car accident... Nothing horribly serious... Most of my injuries were from the airbag deploying.

At the time I weighed in at 330 lbs.  Of course I'm 6'2, which allowed me to tell myself that I wasn't "morbidly obese"... I don't know how I got to that point... A rough pregnancy, a sedentary lifestyle, bad food choices... I guess I do know how I got that way.  Anyway, here I am, in a car accident... And the very cute firemen/medics are breaking a sweat heaving my big *** onto a stretcher.

I would not be lying if I said it was the most humiliating experience of my entire life.  I kept apologizing, I felt awful... To their credit, they treated me like gold, and they didn't do anything to make me feel any worse than I already did (from the accident I mean).

I decided to have a Gastric Bypass.  I've since lost 145 pounds.  

Last year, pregnant with my little girl... Nine months pregnant actually... I was in a hit and run accident (some girls have all the luck!).  The calvary shows up and naturally, they're telling me I need to go get checked out.  I was outo f the car walking around ranting and raving like the insane pregnant woman I was (I was ready to chase the guy down who hit me on foot).  The EMT's decided to strap me to a LSB while I was standing instead of letting me lay down on the stretcher.  One of the EMT's made the statement "Feels like you haven't missed any meals lately!".  She's lucky I didn't grab her by the neck at this point... Come on, I'm 9 mos. pregnant.  I'm over six feet tall.  At the time I weighed just over 200 lbs.  Heavy, but Christ, Use a little frickin' tact, for cryin' out loud....  

I'm not sure what I'm trying to say... I realize that given the state of our country's obsession with food and ever expanding waist lines, there will probably never be a shortage of bariatric patients and aching backs... Just remember that some of these people are probably feeling the same way I did... Absolutely mortified at the situation, embarrassed beyond belief... Embarrassed about how they got to the point they're at... 

Allrighty... I'm done babbling. 
*hides back in the corner*


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## Wingnut (Mar 31, 2006)

Wow April, first of all Congrats. That's not an easy decision to make. Second of all, that EMT should NEVER have said that. If her supervisor were there I'd be suprised if she wasn't at least suspended. We are never to treat pt's like that. Especially pregnant, I mean that's ridiculous, I wouldn't even make that joke out of earshot, it was inappropriate and not funny.

I really don't understand being THAT obese, and I'm talking the 600lb and up obese. My weight has been fluctuating ever since I've had kids,(I'm 5'6" and usually 125 but have been up to 160) for several reasons, but there's no way I could eat (or afford) the amount of food I would need to maintain that kind of weight. 

I have to say I agree with WHKR, whoever is helping these people needs to bring to these people a counsler one day instead of a big mac. It would make a world of difference for the person's life. I would imagine it being worse than living in prison.


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## TTLWHKR (Mar 31, 2006)

I had a partner comment about a patients weight near them once, I know the patient heard them. But the problem was, compared to anyone on the crew, the patient really wasn't that large. Maybe 250... I flicked him on the end of the nose with my finger, and told him to use his brain before opening his trap. He sat in the front of the ambulance and hasn't spoke to me since that day. But it was better than listening to him moan for an hour about how it was ruining his plans for the day. Um.. If I'm not mistaken, that's what you're being paid for, were my last words to him. 

Damn kids...


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## futuretoledoemt (Apr 3, 2006)

I hope I didn't come off as over sensitive... I know how I got the point I was at... Sheer laziness.  I may have taken the easy way out with having the gastric bypass, but hey - I ran a 5K for the first time last year 

April


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## Wingnut (Apr 3, 2006)

I wouldn't call serious surgery an easy way out.


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## futuretoledoemt (Apr 4, 2006)

Wingnut said:
			
		

> I wouldn't call serious surgery an easy way out.



A lot of the people around me, supposed friends and some family members, some of which have weight issues... Think of Gastric Bypass as the "easy way out".  

It's everything but that.  I didn't eat solid foods for seven weeks.  

I should have used quotes in my last post when I said what I did.  When I say it in conversation it's with a sarcastic tone.  I'm not all that great at conveying sarcasm online 

April


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## TTLWHKR (Apr 4, 2006)

But they don't advertise the serious and sometimes fatal side effects of a gastric bypass....

I'd say it isn't worth it. If I were in such a situation, I'd feel better about myself if I did the work to look the way I wanted.


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## futuretoledoemt (Apr 6, 2006)

TTLWHKR said:
			
		

> But they don't advertise the serious and sometimes fatal side effects of a gastric bypass....
> 
> I'd say it isn't worth it. If I were in such a situation, I'd feel better about myself if I did the work to look the way I wanted.



I would say it's more accurate to say "they don't always advertise the seriousness...."

My surgeon put me through a battery of tests, including a psych consult prior to surgery... He told me of the side effects, as well as the chance that I could die.

I could die... I could die... Wow... that pretty much rocked my world for a long time... It consumed me for a good couple of months before my surgery.  

I wish I could have had the willpower at that point to drop the weight myself.  It's not something I'm proud of, believe me.  The only thing that makes it okay in my head is the fact that because of the surgery, I work out now.  I run, I do pilates, I do cardio dance, I lift weights... I ran the Susan G. Komen 5K last year and I had close to 20 people waiting for me at the finish line.  What I didn't think I could do *then* I can do *now*.

All of that being said, it's not for everyone... Any time you get someone who is morbidly obese on an operating table it's not an ideal situation.  But speaking only for myself... I'm glad I did it.

Enough babbling on my part 

April


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## Wingnut (Apr 6, 2006)

You shouldn't let it or rather those nay-sayers around you bother you. Losing weight isn't easy, whether you work out, diet or have the surgery. The important thing is no matter how you lost it you did and your healthy now and taking proper care of yourself. Were you lazy before and overweight? Maybe but are you now? No, that's in the past and you work at it now more than the average person does.


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## i_drive_code3 (Apr 9, 2006)

*a little compassion*

here's my 2-cents:

the obese pt KNOWS they are obese and MOST are truly mortified, horrified, embarrassed as well as frightened due to whatever the reason is that caused us to be called.

not all morbidly obese pts are just "lazy" or sit around "stuffing their faces" -- does something need to be done about the "fattening up of america?"  HELL YES there does BUT our job is to provide medical care and compassion to our pts 

is it appropriate for us to make negative comments about of pts within earshot of them or anyone else? NO!  do we all have pts that piss us off, irritate us, scare us, freak us out, and/or gross us out?? of course we do - we are human but it is inappropriate and wrong for us to judge them or remark about them while on scene or within any type of earshot of friends or family....

*we do not know what has occurred in our pts life that has led them to where they are and its not our place to judge or condemn*

go back to your station, make sure the front door is shut & you are out of earshot and unload/share/whine/:censored::censored::censored::censored::censored:/moan/whatever with your partner or shift-mate but also remember that the person you are talking to may have a different experience in their history than you know about ---

there's my soapbox preaching for the month --

~kb


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## TTLWHKR (Apr 10, 2006)

I've thrown several discs over the past twelve years... I find the morbidly obese to be annoying. They should seek help early, before it gets above 400. Not all areas have special units to take care of these emergencies, most cots buckle over 550lbs. One patient could take out an entire response system because they failed to manage their lifestyle, and now decide someone else needs to do that for them. It's great they they made that decision, but when it's looking bad, get help then, don't wait. And if they can't get around, someone has to be helping them, it should be illegal to allow someone live like that when things can be done. It almost nearing abandonment and abuse to let someone lay around and die like that. When muscles aren't used, they have a funny way of getting use to that.


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## NjEMTGirl (Apr 10, 2006)

MedicStudentJon said:
			
		

> So - Here is a question from EMS Today:
> 
> If you refer to a patient who meets the standards as "Morbidly obese" - is it slander?




I was at the same talk and I'd have say it is much better then refering to them as a fat ***.  I could see the presenter's point, but i totally disagreed.


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## JJR512 (Apr 10, 2006)

*Study: Obese People Lack Health Awareness*



> Study: Obese People Lack Health Awareness
> By TIM WHITMIRE, Associated Press Writer _Sun Apr 9, 1:56 PM ET_
> 
> 
> ...


More to read at http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060409/ap_on_he_me/diet_obesity_perception_1


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## Jon (Apr 14, 2006)

NjEMTGirl said:
			
		

> I was at the same talk and I'd have say it is much better then refering to them as a fat ***.  I could see the presenter's point, but i totally disagreed.


Really?

What other sessions did you go to???

I was the loud-mouthed fat kid...


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## NjEMTGirl (Apr 15, 2006)

MedicStudentJon said:
			
		

> Really?
> 
> What other sessions did you go to???
> 
> I was the loud-mouthed fat kid...



I went to a lot.  I'd have to say my fav was the Putting Humor in your Practice.  I also enjoyed the Athletic injury one and the Entrapped Pt.


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## Jon (Apr 16, 2006)

NjEMTGirl said:
			
		

> I went to a lot.  I'd have to say my fav was the Putting Humor in your Practice.  I also enjoyed the Athletic injury one and the Entrapped Pt.


I didn't do the Care of the Entrapped Pt because Dr. Ed is the Medical Director of the ALS service that covers my work and home (not volly squad, though).... so I hope to see the class offered locally.

Steve Berry was awsome, and the Athletic Injury one was great.


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## TTLWHKR (Apr 16, 2006)

What are we talking about? I didn't scroll back...


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