Do you laugh?

[exodus]

Do you laugh when something really bad happens to your pt? Something bad happened to one of my pt's tonight and for some reason I was giggeling to myself (NOT OUTLOUD), but it was hard not to. But I DID WORK ON THE PATIENT, while I was doing this, so don't say squat about my care, but it took a lot to hold it in! xD I guess it's just a coping mechanism.

 

[Sapphyre]

Not when something bad happens, but, there's been a few times I had a hard time not giggling about something or other. Some calls really are very stupid.

 

[Aidey]

I have to admit, I have a hard time not laughing at the overly intoxicated patients at times. In those cases though, it's more of because of what the patient is saying rather than laughing at the patients situation.

On my last shift we took one guy in who kept coming up with horrible metaphors for how pretty my (female) partners eyes were. It was all pretty nonsensical stuff like "You...you....you have eyes as blue.....blue.....blue as a....a.....a.....a.....a...what are those thingies...with those ummmmmmmmm.....fish! and the...ahhhhhhhh sand!" (you guys get the picture).

We both had a hard time not laughing, but again, it was at what he was saying, not at him personally.

 

[vquintessence]

I have to admit, I have a hard time not laughing at the overly intoxicated patients at times.

Eh, if they're drunk enough to require Police or EMS, why bother holding back? Unless there is family on scene, or your partner, Police or Fire are in a pissy mood, what harm is there in laughing at an absurd drunk pt? Obviously everyone has said assess and treat as appropriate... but if they're simply wasted and with a patent airway, they're due some humiliation (especially if they're acting out).

Disclaimer: Obviously ^^^ it is implied you have to maintain most of your composure

 

[imurphy]

Laughter is the best medicine they say.

Honestly, if we couldn't laugh at some of the things that happen, we'd all go mad(er)

 

[BossyCow]

Inappropriate giggling or laughing is a common stress response. People have been known to get the giggles at funerals. A friend of mine gets it whenever she's uncomfortable, (which was very awkward for her and did not help at all when that trooper pulled her over for speeding)

It doesn't mean you think its funny and can often be uncontrollable. We humans are odd creatures.

 

[Mountain Res-Q]

I have never laughed at a patinet, towards a patient, or near a patinet's family... but afterwards hell ya. Humor is a great coping mechanism. Once a month our team gets together for a meeting. At the meeting the SAR Coordinator gives a report of all the calls we ran that month. The stupidity that puts people in the kind of hot water we rescue them from is mind-boogling. You will never hear more roaring laughter and quips (even toward the ones who didn't make it). I often feel dorry for tehenewbies and newly interested folk who think that we are a bunch of uncaring jerks, the way we laugh about others misfortunes... but it helps us get through the stress and find teh energy to go out again. For instance:

Family is camping near the backside of Yosemite. His family want's to take a hike into the Park, but someone has to stay behind with the dog because dogs are not allowed in the Park. The 65 y/o man decides to hike around the outside of Yosemite while his family heads in. This guy is a PhD in several subjects and a university professor(which his family kept reminding us. "Oh, he must be hurt and not lost, after all HE'S A PHD.") Family gets back and the man has not returned. We launched a search using our team, the Forest Service, the Park Service, and a helo. Took no time at to find him. He and the dog were dehyrated and exhausted... and LOST, Phd and all! The comes the full story from the man (something we still laugh at): he got turned around at a lake near the park, but knew roughly which dirrectiont eh camp was in (he was right) but couldn't find teh same trail back, so took another one (which would have led him back). But the PhD gets to a fork in the trail. One sign says "this way the ranger station) and the other says "dry creek this way." WHICH WAY WOULD YOU HAVE GONE? Being a PhD he way over thought the situation and reasoned that with the states budget problems the ranger station might be closed, but the creek (called dry creek for a reason - and it hadn't rained in 4 months) might have water (which he was running out of). Needless to say the creek was dry and led him farther away from teh camp. The ranger station was staffed... and it was jsut don the road from the camp... and we were there! He and the dog were fine. We evaluateed him and rehydrated him and he sent us a donation latter. So much for "Oh, he must be hurt and not lost, after all HE'S A PHD!" Now whenever profiling a lost subject for likely behaviors we always ask, "Is he a PhD?"

 

[Buzz]

I had an altered mental status patient last night. Her speech varied between inappropriate responses to questions, making statements that included words in the wrong places in the sentence, and just plain jibberish thrown in for good measure. From what we could understand from her, SHE thought we were the ones not making sense when we were talking. Really neat stuff, but anyways... When we took her outside on the stretcher, she began calling for help loudly. My partner was behind her view, at the head when she began yelling "HELLO?" into the darkness. My partner was like "Hello." I lost it... couldn't stop myself from laughing.

 

[Aidey]

Hmmm, that is some pretty interesting aphasia. Any stroke or head injury symptoms?

 

[Buzz]

Hmmm, that is some pretty interesting aphasia. Any stroke or head injury symptoms?

No arm drift or facial droop present. No complaints of headache, dizziness, or anything really. No signs of trauma either. We went back to the ER a few hours later and the patient was still there and no change in condition.

 

[ErinCooley]

1 time i did. No matter how hard I tried, I couldnt control it. I ended up walking away for a minute.

This patient kept burping. Like LOUD belching every 5 seconds. I was rolling laughing. It wasnt until after we got her in the back and I realized she was faking the burps that I got irritated and stopped laughing.