Partner got mad at me. Was I wrong?

Sasha said:
I hate taking students because i dont wear gloves unless theyre really groudy or there are body fluids or waste. or im dealing with open wounds. ive even taken a bgl with no gloves. Yet i drill "wear gloves!" into them so they do for school.
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OMG....BSI!!!! Nah, IM just joking.......
 
I just read this thread and can't believe what your partner feels is "crossing the line". How much time has he spent in the back of a rig in recent years? I've been at this game for over 20 years now and have done the exact same thing several times. As several people have pointed out earlier, if it benefits the patient then you did nothing wrong. Might I suggest that your partner sign up for a sensitivity training refresher class and I encourage you to show him this thread and the responses within it.
 
Wow! A unanimous response to a question! I haven't been on the forum long but I think this is the first time I've seen the board this united.
It does my old heart good.
and to pile on
Your partner IS and idiot.

From a twenty year plus paramedic and EMS Director.
Good job newbie.

Oh....Get a better partner at the first opportunity, find a experienced provider you can actually learn from. Your current partner could learn from you.
 
Anjel, if your partner has a laptop you should set his homepage to this.
 
You did nothing wrong. Your partner seems a little burned out to me. All you did was calm the patient, and sometimes thats better than any medication we can give.
 
dstevens58 said:
During my ride-time as a student, one assisting paramedic actually took the time for a quick verbal prayer (at the request of the patient) even before the ambulance moved. It comforted the patient to know we were looking after all aspects of her care.
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I recently took in a fall patient who asked me to pray with her before we left. It's the first prayer I've had thusfar (I've been heading a BLS unit for 2 months) and definately not the first hand I've held. My unit is in an area that is 83% geriatric, and I've yet to get a patient under 50. I pride myself that everyone I work with comments on my bedside manner, and that I don't hesitate to rub a shoulder or squeeze some fingers consolingly, or hold a wrinky hand or close my eyes when the patient on my gurney is praying.

My first day of clinicals, one of my instructors held up his hands and said to all of us, "These are healing hands. Never underestimate the power of just touching your patient." I fully agree with him.
 
I sort of feel like if it can be done without compromising medical attentiveness or treatment that the emotional well being is, to a certain extent, part of what we try to help. There does not seem to be anything neglected so it doesn't seem as though its bad to help the patient to be a little more calm.

What good would it have done everyone including the patient if she was terrified to the point of potentially being either aggressive or just super physical? It is a lot easier to hold a patients hand in comfort than it is to restrain the patient in distress.
 
Sort of a little known fact about the NICU and Neo-Nates....

Until the last 20-30 ish years they were kept confined and never touched. I cant remember exactly the woman's name nor do I recall the city in which this occurred but this story came up quite a few times in some of my pre-nursing courses.

There was a NICU unit with significantly lower death rate in neo-nates. When it was looked into further, the infants under a specific RN's care did best. Further into investigating why this was, it was determined that this particular woman 'touched' the infants. She would gently rub their leg, or foot or hold the hand of the infant confined to its 'healing chamber'.

A gentle touch of compassion can go so much further than most people give credit for.

It is now a common practice for the infants to be handled by mother, etc (obviously in a healthy way as to not increase risk of disease).
 
Your partner should not work in the EMS field period. That's heartless and cruel to suggest it's not okay to hold a patients hand, sometimes that is the BEST med you can give, honestly. Strap your partner down to the gurney with all the things this pt had on her then load and go, leave her back there by herself and listen to her HR on the monitor, I bet you all the money in the world her HR would elevate! It's freakin scary if you don't know what to expect. When I was in training the medics had me on a back board w. C collar and the works, in a VERY old and abused rig lol. Turning corners was skechy. Think back to when you learned to take people in and out of the back of the rig while your trusting partner was strapped to the gurney....... It's scary!!! Jeez some people are so jaded. Seems like she would rather push a benzo in the pt then just hold her hand!
 
The honest fact is folks like this usually either change, or more likely become part of the "less than five years" statistic.
 
We are basics.

He already stated he thinks people who stay in ems for 20yrs are nuts.

He has been employed here for a year and says its boring. The only reason he does it is because its "easy".

He isnt my regular partner anymore though.

so I now see where his mind set is at. Thanks everyone for the encouraging words.
 
Anjel1030 said:
We are basics.

He already stated he thinks people who stay in ems for 20yrs are nuts.

He has been employed here for a year and says its boring. The only reason he does it is because its "easy".

He isnt my regular partner anymore though.

so I now see where his mind set is at. Thanks everyone for the encouraging words.
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He will fad out, it's just a matter of time. People like that are better off working on wall street, funny how called you a "newbie" wtf? Like being there for a yr gives you any right to call another Basic a newbie. Puft!
 
The guy's an idiot Holding a pt's hand and talking to them, nothing wrong with that. People working EMS for a long time are not nuts. Maybe we may be nuts but we are nuts who care about others. I've been volunteering with my towns service for 3 and a half years.
 
public Relations

Public relations. Some people have it, others don't. You are there to help her right, holding her hand is pretty effortless, but actually can do a lot. Weather they are holding your hand to help w/ the px or for emotional comfort. What you did shows great public relations and helped to give EMS and your agency a good rep. Your partner obviously dosen't have the pr that you have and karma does come around
 
as long as you were not in any danger than there isnt anything wrong with what you did....you partner may need a vacation
 
You most definitely did not cross the line. I understand your partner being concerned for your safety as our first responsibility is personal safety, then safety of our crew, patient and bystanders. But as you stated the patient was not aggressive, just scared. You offered her a hand and she felt safer. I see nothing wrong with that.
 
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