Inauguration Charlie-Foxtrot

[EMERG2011]

Hey all. Anyone on the board involved in the medical coverage for the inauguration that wants to share their horror stories? I'll go first


Arrived at staging area at 0400 to find the chain of command in complete disarray. Waited over 3 hours to get assignments to stations, and came to find that volunteers went AWOL after not getting spots near the parade route/podium. Another two hours pass (Mall now at capacity mind you appx 2million people) before transport even arrived to take us down into the thick of things. Transport dropped us off a full 11 blocks from our station, and behind 3 secret service barricades. Once at the station, we found out that of the 50 some odd stations that were supposed to be activated, only roughly 10 were active, including ours.

If there is one thing that shocked me the most was the fact that, despite us being stationed with 2 board certified MDs, we weren't given any ACLS drugs, not even an epi pen (which we desperately needed - and had to go pull over an ambu to get for an asthmatic who was completely closed up).

Anyone else have stories?

 

[medicdan]

A good friend of mine was there as a spectator, and ended up in a med tent with hypothermia. She said the treatment she got was great, but it was a clusterf**k.

 

[IrishEMT]

Hey hey hey, you remember what article 3 said! "You shall not criticize or voice opinions about the competency of other responders or personnel."

I actually had a really awesome station, and I think we worked with two of your folks, too.

It was a mostly slow day outside of one wave of pediatric hypothermics.

 

[frdude1000]

We had a similar problem. We got to the DOH to check in, waited an hour or two, got on the buses WAY to late, spent an hour in traffic, the buss dropped us off in the wrong location, we had to walk for an hour because none of the gates would let us in b/c the DOH did not give us "offical" inauguration id's, then we were allowed in finally at one gate. We had NO transports at our tent, what about you. I was taking peoples BP's, making hot chocolate, cleaning up puke, and other BS. U?