Stupid things you did on your first few calls

[rhan101277]

Left the clip board on the diamond plating on the back of the truck, and it somehow stayed there the entire ride, which had ALL the patients history, demographics, etc.

Forgot the stretcher

Put our first in bag on the floor of a house (a not so clean crack house)

Slam an entire milligram of narcan on an overdose, gets a little messy haha

I'm sure I'll think of some more later on.

It must have been a carpuject. Our narcan comes in .4mg single dose vials.

 

[ERMedic]

It must have been a carpuject. Our narcan comes in .4mg single dose vials.

Indeed it was a 1mg/2ml capuject. Was a newer medic (still new, a year now) and it was the first chance I had to push narcan. It was a heroin overdose and slammed it instead of pushing slowly .4 at a time. Long story short, we had the patient projectile vomitting in the back of the rig. I'll never make that mistake again!

 

[Trip]

This didn't happen to me, but had an ambulance service respond to an "elderly unresponsive pt." at a nursing home, they placed the pt. on the cot and whisked them to the hospital, only to have the pt. wake up, in the ED, and yell at everyone, that she was only trying to sleep. That was funny.

Myself,
I learned never to ask an obese pt. when the baby is due.

Yup on both counts... the first was on prescription sleep aids...

And I learned to never, never laugh when a guy/yes, a male, tells me that his vulva in his throat is swollen.

And never ask "you put what where?" then snicker

My partner reported a strong irregular throb in a "dorsal penis" on the radio med report, PCR and when he updated the nurse at the ED.

 

[johnrsemt]

KatGirl can vouch for this, (and Probably Epi): I have left the clipboard in more places than I can remember; and my partners had to start threatening to hit with it. that would work til I got a new partner then I would start leaving it again

 

[yotam]

Great thread, very reassuring (for us, not patients)

Here's a frew:

1. Didn't lock the legs of gurney (pt. included). twice.
2. My paramedic inserted an needle application on an evident pneumathorac patient with a 14G I/V needle (as requested in our protocols), but separated the needle from the polithilan (the catheter) as if he was administering an IV and not pushing it in as needed. Catheter just folded.
3. Not mine. after a pretty hard MVC me and my paramedic started triage. After another crew came with a paramedic, my paramedic asked her to take a look at a couple of kids. All seemed fine, except complaint of slight abdominal pain on one of the kids. She decided they can be transported to the hospital with a BLS unit. Day after We took another patient to the hospital, and bumped into the driver who took those kids. I asked him how they were doing, and he said that about midway to the hospital, kid with ab. pain rolled up his eyeballs and collapsed. Internal bleeding, it sucks.

 

[dhaage]

Left the clip board on the diamond plating on the back of the truck, and it somehow stayed there the entire ride

You would be amazed at the stuff that never seems to fall off that little ledge, no mater where ya go or how fast you get there.

 

[katgrl2003]

KatGirl can vouch for this, (and Probably Epi): I have left the clipboard in more places than I can remember; and my partners had to start threatening to hit with it. that would work til I got a new partner then I would start leaving it again

Yes, I can vouch for that. I didn't threaten to hit you with it, I smacked you upside the back of the head more times than I can remember.

 

[Rob123]

You would be amazed at the stuff that never seems to fall off that little ledge, no mater where ya go or how fast you get there.

We were standing outside of our truck shooting the breeze with another unit.

A call came in. We jumped in and sped away. It was a great feeling when I found my large cup of coffee waiting for me on the step. I was sure I lost it.

 

[EMS/LEO505]

Another student and I were riding with AbqAmbulance, anyway when we arrive to an unwitnessed collapse at the mall and he snaps in to AHA CPR check sheet and yells at someone to call 911. The emt,paramedic, and me plus everyone in the food court just stared at him until he realized what he said....which was about a second after he said it haha

 

[fortsmithman]

One time I forgot to put the o2 tank back in the trauma bag I left it at the ambulance bay we keep 4 spares in the rig. Another time I forgot the trauma bag at a pt's house. I haven't done anything like that since then. Because my fellow service members did not let me forget about it.

 

[CAO]

Another student and I were riding with AbqAmbulance, anyway when we arrive to an unwitnessed collapse at the mall and he snaps in to AHA CPR check sheet and yells at someone to call 911. The emt,paramedic, and me plus everyone in the food court just stared at him until he realized what he said....which was about a second after he said it haha

Haha, I'm not sure I would have been able to keep my composure with that one.

 

[johnrsemt]

Yes Kat you did; I just didn't want people to think that you were abusive to your partners

 

[jjesusfreak01]

Haha, I'm not sure I would have been able to keep my composure with that one.

I don't think anyone would fault you if you didn't for a second.