Your first code

[stagejedi]

First code was in 2007, worked the patient, who had attempted suicide, for 45 minutes ended up getting pulses back but the patient never regained consciousness.

 

[VCEMT]

First code was in 2007, worked the patient, who had attempted suicide, for 45 minutes ended up getting pulses back but the patient never regained consciousness.

That could be considered a successful suicide...

 

[Chrissy1]

first code was a lady who had hit a rock while rafting, had gone a good two miles down the river part of it facedown before being pulled out. I was still on probationary runs. never forget the details of the call. just did my job then went home and carried on.

 

[DVetter]

Code save

We had a drowning last year. It involved a 2 yr old girl found face down in the back yard pool. It was February and at night. The neighbor came into the house asking what was floating in the pool. When we arrived CPR was in progress and the family members were hysterical.it's these calls that teach you to remain calm and do what you need to do. The one thing I would like to stress to any newbie EMT s is how important it is to get a FSBS ( finger stick, blood sugar)This little girls sugar was at 20 . You can do everything possible to revive a code but if you don't have sugar in their system it is like trying to jump start a car without gasoline. The medics got some sugar onboard and then worked their magic.Believe it or not the paramedics had pulses and she was crying by the time she got to the hospital ! She was released from the hospital the next day and returned home showing no deficits .AMAZING !!

 

[Trashtruck]

My first code was as a paramedic student. I forget what it was dispatched as(it certainly wasn't as a code, of course), but we found an man down on the sidewalk...apneic/pulseless. First run of the day...maybe 7 or 8ish.

In retrospect, I now know the efforts were utterly futile.

My preceptor worked him for my benefit/education/experience and not the pt's, as he was long dead and would've been pronounced dead on scene, sans paramedic student ride-along.

 

[blazenemt]

1st code

100 degrees in the shade. sweated alot. took a nap!

 

[Tigger]

My first code was as a paramedic student. I forget what it was dispatched as(it certainly wasn't as a code, of course), but we found an man down on the sidewalk...apneic/pulseless. First run of the day...maybe 7 or 8ish.

In retrospect, I now know the efforts were utterly futile.

My preceptor worked him for my benefit/education/experience and not the pt's, as he was long dead and would've been pronounced dead on scene, sans paramedic student ride-along.

I get that paramedic interns need to practice working codes in some way, but if I was long dead I wouldn't want my body violated like that.

 

[sgc9703]

Just had my first one this week. Did CPR, bagged and suction while medics started an IV and gave epi. Pt never regained pulse. Didn't really bother me. I knew we had done all we could, but sometimes it doesn't matter.

 

[blazenemt]

100 degrees in the shade. sweated alot. took a nap!

just to add, i was a new basic, did cpr and bagged. asked alot of questions and it was HOT

 

[hoop762]

Just had my first code as a paramedic a couple days ago. Everything went really smooth. Got the IO and tube with no issues. And had a awesome firefighter ride in with me.

We were given the wrong address which delayed out time to pt by 2 minutes, but rescue was doing excellent CPR when we got there.

My pt didn't make it, but im really happy with how the call ran. Doc in the ER called it after 10 min.

 

[Foxbat]

The first code I witnessed was a male in his 40's who had an apparent MI. He was awake and talking when we arrived. In the ER he went into cardiac arrest when the doctor tried to cardiovert him. The ER staff let us (the EMS crew) stand nearby and watch the cardioversion, for my educational benefit. After the arrest and about 15 min of CPR the medic said "Enough of us being in a way, let's go. He's gone", and we left. I hadn't had a chance to follow up, EMTs/medics would just shrug and tell me that it's a 99.999....% chance he didn't make it but I never knew for sure.

That call bothered me. The fact that he died in front of me (DOAs don't bother me at all), the fact that his wife and daughter were nearby, the guilt from that fact that that earlier day I was waiting for a "good" call, the callousness and cynicism of EMS and ER staff (normal behavior, but at the time it looked really, really bad to me), the fact that I didn't know the outcome for sure... I still remember the patient's first name, which is pretty rare for me.

The first code that I actually worked was after I've been an EMT for 4 (four!) years. Elderly male, unwitnessed cardiac arrest. We knew that the chances were nil, but we had to follow protocols and work him until the medic contacted the doctor and he called it.

 

[homingmissile]

My first code was a month ago, only my second duty ever as a newly minted EMT-B. 100+(!) year old woman in her bedroom. Firefighters were already on-scene doing CPR when we got there. I bagged, did some chest compressions, put a c-collar and spine boarded her, and got confused by some IV tubing.

At that age the chances were slim to none of bringing her back but we had to try. Hope she lived a full life.

 

[rennex]

My first code was a month ago, only my second duty ever as a newly minted EMT-B. 100+(!) year old woman in her bedroom. Firefighters were already on-scene doing CPR when we got there. I bagged, did some chest compressions, put a c-collar and spine boarded her, and got confused by some IV tubing.

At that age the chances were slim to none of bringing her back but we had to try. Hope she lived a full life.

At that age, I wonder if the trauma her body will suffer from the MI and resuscitation efforts will be worth it.