"You ruined my HIGH" - sure did and I will do it again

Oh tonight…  we get on shift and we get to post, and sit for about an hour (super rare).  We get a call to a seizure. Which are interesting but in most cases we get on scene and see a patient that is postictal or some type of narc seeker faking their way to a medicated high.  We roll in with fire and walk to the back room where the patient ways laying and there he is arched back mouth open, and every muscle in his body tensed including his diaphragm (means he was not breathing).  I am ecstatic! Its go time J  we go I go to the bed side to open the air way, fire is getting me the BVM and OPA.  We get control of the airway and he begins to breathe on his own.  We begin looking for an IV site, looking down we see track marks, an infected AC and horizontal cuts all along his arms (a cutter).  His veins were shot, we could not get anything.  He began seizing again and stopped breathing, so we gave versed nasaly .  He stopped about 2 min later and appeared to be relaxed, so relaxed in fact that he was no longer seizing and no longer breathing (which is always good).  Check for a pulse, still strong.  We bag him, and then get him to the floor.  Ready the tube to intubate him, (he took the OPA), inserted the laryngoscope and just as I got to the vocal cords and starting to insert the tube here came one gag, then another, then I pulled the scope (he proved to me he could keep his airway).  Then came the vomit x3.  It gets me every time it is not the actually vomiting part it is when I look at what’s in it, this time there was onions in stuff… Barff (I wiped the barf with his girlfriends shirt that was on the ground ha! don’t tell anyoneJ).  Then the girlfriend pips in and spills the beans.  He is a methadone patient who has been drinking since 9am (mind you I am on nightshift), took the methadone, with some xanax, and that is all she knew of. She then tells us he has seizers when he overdoses.   As I finishing wiping the vomit from his face (with his girlfriend’s shirt) I see a beautiful EJ.  He then begins to seize again and stops breathing.   Fire handed me an 18g needle then I stuck the needle in his neck.  “Nailed it” I actually said this time, where I got a few chuckles from fire.  Then pushed 5 of valium, he stopped seizing where we then carried him down the stairs to the cot, then to the ambulance (I hate apartments).  There we managed to get him to tell us what he took, it was the same as given plus hydrocodone.  This moron was on everything.  We then pushed .5 Narcan to reverse the methadone and codone, there now he was just gorked on xanax and drunk out of his mind.  He woke up and literally screamed in my face I yelled at him sit back and shut up.  He then yelled, “YOU RUINED MY HI” I yelled back to a gorked out pissed, OD’ed, cutter, “you were not breathing and were going to die, you are welcome.”  I love my job.

My Life Rocks!!! Just sayin..

Once upon a time (aka yesterday) I was on shift just starting in the evening ready for the night to bring it on.  Our second call in the hour and a half was a man calling from a pay phone stating that he had a broken leg.  “Here we go, another lame-oo” I thought we fly on over there lights and sirens with a very unexcited face.   We arrive, I walk out to see a man with a knee immobilizer and crutches, I think great this guy is has already been taken care of… Lame-o.  We put him on the cot take him back in the ambulance, and start asking questions.  Turns out this guy had surgery 3 days prior on his leg putting in a rod to repair his femur and another one to repair his tibia.  He was prescribed meds but had no way to get them and no way to pay for them.  This homeless man crutched out of the hospital after his surgery hitchhiked to a local homeless shelter who would not accept him because of his injury and lack of ID (also I think he had a history with them that he was not telling us).  So he had been staying behind a Circle K drinking alcohol for the pain. That’s when I think man it sucks to be this guy.  If I had this surgery my mom would be doing everything for me including feeding me spoon full by spoon full (everything besides going to the bathroom, I would still need to do that). 

So this man had no antibiotics or pain meds.  I think, “oh snap, that has to be infected.”  I opened the knee immobilizer and this thing is inflamed like all get out, then the smell, barf.  I looked at him and said “you sir just earned some fentanyl (pain narcotic),” I pushed the med then oh boy, with the pain gone he became a hilariously inappropriate comedian.  For the next 30 minutes during the transport we are bombarded by nasty jokes by a homeless, faded old army vet.

But the real reason I post this is because I realize how good I have  it, I have a family that loves me, a future job that will provide for me, a church that teaches me correct principles, and a secure future.  I am still humbled everyday.

That Girl? Yeah she was Crazy

I remember early into my internship when we were still days we got a “psych” call for a middle age women.  That is one thing that made be a bit nervous at that time, because we have no idea what we were about to roll up on (as if we ever do).  The ambulance stops and I get out finding a ghetto neighborhood with people walking out of their small 1000 sq ft unkempt homes to see what was going on.  We kindly asked for everyone to go back inside and if we needed them we would come get them.  We walked towards the home passed over grown grass, two dead trees to an open door; I peered inside to see the middle age heavy set women finishing a whippet(link is explaining what it is).  Then she saw us and invited us in where my preceptor/medic took over because I have no idea what to say.  He said things like how are you today? How many whippets have you done? Do you know why you are here?  She was trippen on all sorts of things.  In the background there was an overwight older man causally doing dishes with his shirt off (you know the normal thing to do when the paramedics arrive) acting as if no one was there, especially the woman, he did not even make eye contact with us as we walked in.  I also remember the overwhelmingly, overpowering smell of alcohol mixed with rotten ground beef and old cat piss in a kitty litter box that was last changed in 1986 (not really).  Then the women looked into my eyes and seemed to look right past me, not able to focus on anything. Then started balling asking if she was going to jail, than began pacing back and forth, stopped then at the top of her lungs used every single word of profanity in the English language.  The old man help up 2 empty bottles of Vodika then pointed at her then went about his business, where then I wondered how she woman was able to even remember how to breathe.  I left to get the monitor and by the time I came back she was throwing herself at my medic in a very sexual way giggling and asking for us to do some creepy stuff to her.  I stopped and was caught so off guard, I was like a deer in the head lights, I asked, “What happened in the 10 seconds I was gone?” with a very puzzled look. I was then told she was a “Rapid Cycler” by my medic.   Happy, Sad, Pissed, Randy,  and Froggy (wants to fight).  I was confused as all get out…

                Finally in the back of the truck we were concerned by the amount of alcohol she consumed and needed to give her an IV to give her medications, and mostly I wanted to give her fluids, and she let us, Few!!

                But just as we finished Dr. Jekyll showed her ugly face and holy crap out of nowhere we were I had her arms pinned to her sides while the medic had her legs and the basic was getting the restrains ready, it seemed like an eternity!! She was trying to bite my hands, wrists, legs, anything.  Thinking back It was quite the adrenaline rush almost like a game to not be exposed to Hepatitis C via human bite J.  She was pinned and restrained (finally) and then she laid into us thick. 

                We then began to transport, where the medic sat behind the patient leaving me to talk to Mrs. Crazy.  Man I realized how innocent I was, the things she was yelling at me and then the things she said she would do to me (which was quite frightening and did not know was even possible) my medic was laughing nonstop at my reactions and responses, so me not laughing was not an option. The whole way to the hospital, I was verbally molested, and then insulted in the most drunken way (she made no sense).  It was quite amusing and just to think she is a voter…

Vote responsibly J

In honer of women, crazy and non.  Here is to second base.  "Hear hear"
#Pinkambulance
#Pin gloves
#Pinkpin
#BreastCancerAwareness

Puke - All over the place!

Last night i hear, "468 start towards xx and xx street." I think to myself what the crap, why are people getting sick at 4:00am.  Freaken...  All well we are in this to save lives right?  So we roll up on scene and i ask what the call is.  24 male suicide attempt.  We walk inside and fire is on scene and i ask was this really a suicide   They respond with heck no, he was just high as a kite.  Just took so much that he forgot how to breath (sucks when that happens).  So on scene i start an IV in this crappy apartment that had no lights, filled with the smell of dirty dishes along with used cigarette butts all over the floor and side tables.  You know the best place to start an IV right?  Here is the student, surrounded by 5 firefighters, 2 other ems personal, and 2 cops - no pressure right?  BOOM nailed it.  Then pushed .5mg of narcan (the antagonist to the medication abused).  Then just like that 2 seconds later awake and pissed!!! we then all the sudden mister OD (overdose) remembered how to breath and yell, but that is it.  We tie him down and make our way to the cot.  We had to carry this guy down some stairs and even though we had tons of personnel it was just me and another firefighter. I was tired.

So here is where the story gets interesting, we leave the scene and while en route to the hospital the pt starts to forget how to breath again. Mostly because The medication narcan that we pushed does not last nearly as long as the opioid.  Boom, another.5mg pushed.  Then he wakes up a little more this time pissed as ever, now just me and my medic holding him down this time, which was fine.  Just as we pull up to the hospital he begins to gag, my medic and i both think SUCTION!!  Got it ready and just as all was assembled, Vomit everywhere  like a fountain   Literary watching this guy he the thin brown nastiness poured 12 inches from his mouth.  Suctioned, just enough time to see this guy covered in his own vomit, which pooled in his ears, eyelids, and left a layer of brown all over his face my freaked left leg and my ambulance floor. Then he did it 3 more times, this time i was able to turn his face to the side so i just went to the floor.  Where i then began to dry heaving of the smell and shear nastiness.  This time the fountain shot from his NPA and nose along with the mouth.  I am surprised i did not cuss (which my EMT complemented me on) being amongst all the cuss words brought by disgust. Man BARF that was gross, but hey we saved a life :) Till next time.  Oh and P.S. it took over 45 to decon the truck. Nasty.

The nastiness of the night.  Actually early morning.
 Not to self never let anyone sleep at my house that i have just met at a concert hours before...

Trauma - Plug the hole and burn Rubber

On Sunday afternoon the last of my long work week we hear the tones go out for a near by (unknown) call.  It was not issued to us because we were out of service to fuel the truck, and if we were to transport the patient if would put us over hours.  I remember being excited to go home and to hit the sack.  Man i was beat.  The basic who i had just met that morning says "lets take it" both jason (my medic) and i were like, naaa. its time to go home. The basic Samantha picks up the mike says "299 to HQ" - "HQ go ahead" where she says we were willing to take that call.  Then it went out BOOM.  Gun shot wound to the Head! "No FREAKEN WAY" we were so stoked.  I had to remind myself of the basics that we normally native for me to do.... I had to remember how to freaken breath :)  Then as approached the scene it all came together   Gloves on and 3 more pairs in my pocket, Lets get bloody.  Walk in the room sure enough there is the patient, Dead as dead could be with brains all over the floor and against white cabinets.  We sure hoped i did not want to start working this guy cus the prognosis was not looking good.  Hooked up the 4 lead, his heart trying to beat at 150 a minute but had no pulse.  I was go time, placed hands together one over the other and started slamming on his chest.  Felt each rib break, switched place, IO in front shin, epi, advanced airway, back boarded then dragged out to the truck.  Flying code to the hospital with blood still pouring from the gaping wound on right of his head.   I remember joking with the cruw in the back of the truck,  "so gentlemen h's and t's (reasons why his heart is not working) hypovolemia? hypoxia? H+ (overdose)? Hypothermia? Tension phumo? oh i know a gaping hole in his head!!"  

But man - what a awesome call, in retrospect it was sad that we worked him, it was obvious that he wanted to die, gunshots to the head do not go well with crying for help, he really wanted to end it all.  The sad part about it though was that we attempted to save him while all of us knew he could not make it, we cannot live without our brain and the majority of his was gone (p.s. it was gray matter and white).  It was a great experience for me though.  I am glad that i am able to perform well in those situations.

The result of the day. Man I love my job.