Been commented upon but not addressed directly: How to Look Like a Newbie

mycrofft

mycrofft

Still crazy but elsewhere
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What visual and behavior cues tell you a "new guy" has arrived? Or those of us who never outgrow that period?

Let me kick it off: Wearing the big EMT beltbuckle and EMT tee-shirt to the new paid job.
 
Emptying the entire truck onto the cot for every call. Yeah, that was me.
 
<---- Hey... what'cha got against the big EMT belt buckle!

Whackers come in many shapes and sizes.

Look at the car when they pull up:
Do they have some form of "blue light"
Do they have a HUGE LED "blue light" on a 1986 Toyota Corrola?
Do they have a VFD/Vollie EMS station front license plate?
Do they have a state issued FF/EMT license plate?
Do they have some form of FD/EMS sticker on the back of their car?
Do they have More than one? A LOT more than one?
Does the 1986 Corrola look like every rust patch was covered with a sticker?
Did it have a lot of rust?


Look at them:
Are they 16 and wearing "FDNY Never Forget 9/11" T-shirts?
Are they wearing "Save a Stretcher, Ride an EMT" T-shirts?
Do they have a holster with 16 different gadgets in on their belt?
Do they have a "Duty belt" on?
Do they have their own $200 stethoscope?
Does it have a BAAM on it, and they AREN'T a medic and not in medic school?
 
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more gloves in your pocket than on the rig.
Verbally say BSI...scene safe when approaching a scene sometimes.
nailing the test sheet "medical" on every call in precise order.
Taking over 2 minutes to do vitals.
the best one i notice is that they always look at you after every question or thing that they do to/with the patient.
 
If the say "Hi, I am new here" Its usually a clue that they are new.

If there NYS emt # starts with 39xxxx I know they are new.

If I have to show them what an ambulance is, they are probably new.

If they aren't old enough to have a drink with, they are probably new.

If they are afraid to touch people to do an examination, probably new.

If they do a chin lift on a talking pt, probably new.

If I have to write the PCR with them after the call, probably new.

If they get excited on any type of job, probably new.
 
firecoins said:
If they are afraid to touch people to do an examination, probably new.
Click to expand...
That's me.
I heard different opinions from different instructors. There were ones who told me to not to be afraid to assess female pt.'s rib cage (as long as it's done in an appropriate way) just like male pt's, but then there were some who advised to just palpate the sternum, lower ribs.... basically everything except where, ehm, mammary glands are.
I'm still not sure who is right.
 
When a basic carries an ALS bag in his POV "just in case". Scary thing is that I know a guy that did that.

When the first question out of their mouths is "how many lights can I put on my car?"
 
Foxbat said:
That's me.
I heard different opinions from different instructors. There were ones who told me to not to be afraid to assess female pt.'s rib cage (as long as it's done in an appropriate way) just like male pt's, but then there were some who advised to just palpate the sternum, lower ribs.... basically everything except where, ehm, mammary glands are.
I'm still not sure who is right.
Click to expand...
If it is medically needed - DO IT. If you are doing it to get pleasure... you need to find a different field.

Jon
 
The new guy runs to the pt/wreck/scene. Sort of like my german shorthair when we go hiking.... back and forth and back and forth and back and forth. Run to the pt... wait.. forgot the O2.. run back to the rig.. run to pt with O2.. wait.. needs the jump kit.. runs back to rig gets jump kit.... backboard.. back to rig.... back to pt.... oops.. left clipboard in rig on last run back to rig.. back to rig....

But all of this is done in the time it takes one seasoned responder to get what it needed and make one trip to the pt.

About assessing a female pt, you assess the ribs because they might be damaged. Are you going to ignore or miss a possible rib fx because you're afraid the pt might think you are groping her? It's possible to assess the integrity of the rib cage without getting fresh. And trust me, if the pt has trauma to that area, she's not going to be worrying about your intentions so much as she will be about her possible injuries.
 
The newbie's tend to have the whole deer in headlights look when they run thier first code/multi trauma/DOA... and then they usually end up confused about what to do and what to write in their chart. And of course there is the proverbial "bat belt" with various apparatus attached to it.

As for red/blue lights on your POV, depends on where you live as to whether or not you are just metting the requirements of the local laws or if you are just a plain whacker. That being said, there is nothing wrong with lights on your car if you are a vollie if its allowed in your area...but its always better to err on the side of visibility/safety than to end up as a greasy spot on the road.
 
firecoins said:
If there NYS emt # starts with 39xxxx I know they are new.
Click to expand...

I usually have students toward the wintertime, and it's funny to see their EMT#'s...mine starts with 26...., and I feel like an old timer when they rattle off the 35....
 
mikeylikesit said:
Verbally say BSI...scene safe when approaching a scene sometimes.
Click to expand...

That's funny! I'm surprised I never did- it was drilled into us for practical tests though I always say it out of habit for CPR refreshers...
 
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Crikeythyrotomy!! I'm smiling and nodding like a bobblehead.

I'm remembering my first EMT kit I self-made in an ammo box, included directions for final unction (talk about lack of confidence...not really, got it at a workshop), double-beveled bitestick, mylar space blanket, commercial tourniquet with wooden dowel as a windlass, burn cream...and my first patient...I'll post it under the funniest runs, now that I remember it!
You guys cracked me up, keep 'em coming!!!
;)
 
el Murpharino said:
I usually have students toward the wintertime, and it's funny to see their EMT#'s...mine starts with 26...., and I feel like an old timer when they rattle off the 35....
Click to expand...
mine starts off with 21
 
BossyCow said:
The new guy runs to the pt/wreck/scene. Sort of like my german shorthair when we go hiking.... back and forth and back and forth and back and forth. Run to the pt... wait.. forgot the O2.. run back to the rig.. run to pt with O2.. wait.. needs the jump kit.. runs back to rig gets jump kit.... backboard.. back to rig.... back to pt.... oops.. left clipboard in rig on last run back to rig.. back to rig....
Click to expand...

Wait a tick, this sounds EXACTLY like something that happened to me and my partner last summer, and unfortunately neither of us are new! The medic couldn't make up her mind on how to do a carry down for a patient, so it went something like this:


  • come up without anything, medic wants the stair chair
  • go back down to the truck for the stair chair
  • come back up with the stair chair, medic tells us that the pt. can't sit
  • go back down to the truck for the long backboard, leave the chair at the truck
  • come back up with the backboard, get told to get stair chair again
  • go back down to the truck for the chair, leave the backboard at the truck
  • come back upstairs, the medic wants the backboard again, we look at her, ask her if she's really, REALLY sure, she says yes
  • leave the chair upstairs, go back down to the truck for the backboard
  • come back upstairs with the backboard, load the pt. do a carry down, fun stuff.

My partner and I both told the officer at the scene to keep his gun away from us, that either of us was likely to grab it and shoot the medic.

Oh, did I tell you that we were on the 4th floor, that the stairwell was just large enough for one person across, and the elevator kept threatening to come loose from its cables?

Moral of the story: leave something you bring up up, that way you won't have to go back and get it. <_<
 
OOps another self-story

Driver cleaned out the ambulance. Call came in, code three. We jumped in, took off, got there...he had removed the litter and not replaced it, I didn't look back before we left. Used a STRETCHER to bring pt to hospital.
 
We had a crew up here that got toned out to the local camping area. The EMR was already there with her family (it's within our response time limit) and the EMT thought she was there with the rig. So, he showed up in his POV. Now there is a BLS crew on scene with no rig. The EMT had to go back to get it.
 
theres a few spoof videos on youtube about a rookie on a canadian ambulance. its not only and absolute riot but very representative of some(not all, but some) brandy new rooks.

btw, if anybody can post a link to that video series, id appreciate it. i cant find it.
 
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