I hate my job...

[ResTech]

I dont ever try to insult anyone... intellectually I think Rid is a hard one to beat and respect him for his accomplishments in EMS and the medical profession in general.

Some things strike a nerve with me and this topic is one of them. I am just calling it as it is written.

 

[Sasha]

Compassion is sometimes the best medicine, unfortunately its not ever written into the protocols.

Compassion doesn't treat real lethal medical problems.

There are many other providers who are just as smart and on top of their game who can take the place of Rid and providers like him who are conceded and just do the "job" at hand without making any personal investment into their patients. I think being an educator may be the best place for you.

You simply cannot make personal investments in your patients. You will destroy yourself. No one is saying to not be compassionate and empathetic towards your patient, but when the call is said and done, you should carry it with you.

I'm learning how to distance myself from the patient while still being empathetic and compassionate. I have limited experience, but before when I would beat myself up over calls and come home from work or clinicals feeling emotionally drained and mentally tired.

 

[ResTech]

The compassion being written into protocols was not meant to be literal... it was a statement to make one think and just food for thought.

We'll agree to disagree...I dont see ne thing wrong with making a personal investment into your patient... as in actually caring about them and not just caring about how well you do your job. Hopefully all can see the difference.

 

[reaper]

Sorry, I am the most compassionate provider you will see. I immerse myself into my Pt's and their problem. I check up on all my Pt's every time I return to the ED, sometimes days later. I remember my Pt's if I ever go to them again.

I do not let them get to me and eat at me. When I go to the next pt, the last one is not on my mind. When I go home, I leave them all at work. I do not dwell on the ones that have been lost. I go home and dwell on the living, right in front of me.

You can not seem to grasp that you can be the most compassionate provider and distance yourself from Pt's at the same time. That is the type of provider that I would want working on my kids, in an emergency. One that has their mind focused on my child, not the one that is thinking about the last one that died, from the same injury!

Sorry, I will take Rid working on my family, anyday of the week!

 

[ResTech]

Totally agree, Reaper... some posts however, were pretty cold sounding which led to the comments from several about compassion and caring.

 

[rjddvm]

I don't think the starfish idea is stupid at all. I take it to mean that you can't help everyone in need (and if you try to, you will burn out from the futility of your quest), but you can help those who are in front of you.

For example, I can't constantly think of the 5-10 million animals a year who are killed in animal shelters across the country because there aren't enough homes for them all. I can't save them all. I can only work with the ones in front of me who need my help now, and do my best to save those, and what I do for those makes the world of difference for them and the people who adopt them. So I guess I'll join EMTTrainer throwing starfish.

 

[ResTech]

Nice analogy.

 

[EMTrainer]

Ends of a spectrum

Strange, the edit I did on my last post showed up as a separate post even though they both read as my seventh posting. :huh:

Back to the topic at hand:

I absolutely agree that you have to have some level of professional detachment to survive in a profession such as ours. At the same time, only a sociopath can be totally oblivious to the emotional impact of human suffering. Feeling for a patient or their family doesn't mean becoming a mass of emotional jello. You can have a tear in your eye when you tell a mother that her child just died and still be ready to go to the next call as soon as our truck is restocked. It doesn't make you weak, it just means that you give a damn.

And if we don't give a damn, what are we doing in this profession in the first place?

Sasha,

I understand where you are coming from and agree with much of what you said, but as to compassion not treating real medical problems, it's amazing how much better patients do when they have confidence in their care providers. One of the best ways to inspire confidence is to let them know you really care. Trust me, they know when you are faking it. Compassion is no replacement for competent medical care, but it's an excellent adjunct. Your patient's mental state can have a huge effect on their outcome, positive or negative, and that is something that compassion can directly impact.

IMHO