Life of a Trainee Paramedic

Well I know that I told a little white lie when I said that I was going to post later on in the week due to no placement, but on the Monday evening, I was made aware of an email we had from Uni saying that we could go out on placement as long as it doesn’t interfere with any of our academic work.  Well it didn’t, so I have, beginning with today!

It was actually quite nice to do a day shift again, it’s seems to be that I’m only ever doing nights so it was nice to be awake in the normal hours of the day.  It wasn’t to busy either except the entire navigation system in control crashed, which resulted in them having no idea where we were and so being sent to priority calls that were miles and miles away.  I think they must have got fed up with all the crew’s ringing asking what they want them to do.  Not the controller’s fault I know but then you would have thought that they would have had a back-up procedure in place that could cope better than the way it did today.  Luckily whenever we were going to go on a long journey, a call always came in at the destination requiring us to go on blue lights, so we got there a lot quicker than we would have done normally.

There was a few jobs last weekend that I’m actually going to be able to include in my portfolio which I have now started.  This has a deadline of the 31st May, so I really need to be doing one of these reports every few days so that I’m not rushed towards the end.  I’ve said I would like a few ‘big’ jobs until the deadline which I can write up, and then I would be quite happy to have chilled out jobs for the rest of the time.  One of them showed me that I’m still not really thinking like a Paramedic yet.  We had an elderly gentleman who was really looking quite ill and needed to go to hospital.  A past medical history was taken and he’d had some sort of abdominal surgery not so long back.  En-route his BP dropped to 73/24, which is not good.    To my mentor, the thought that it could be somehow operation related gave rise to the possibilty of a pulmonary embolism , where to me I had no idea what so ever.  I thought perhaps it could be a heamorrhage, but was unsure of any other diagnosis until my mentor stepped in.  I know that it will come with experience and the more I learn, both out on the road, and at Uni the better.  I still don’t have that much of a clue when it comes to reading 12-lead ECG’s.  I can spot ST elevations easily enough but anything more technical than that is going to have to wait a while!

My up and coming shifts are Saturday, Sunday, Tuesday, Thursday day with a day at Uni on the wednesday to help with the 2nd year exams.  Hopefully we will get some pointers for ours in a months time!

TP

Well this weekend has really been quite busy.  I’ve worked Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights.  I was supposed to be working tonight as well but this week is classed as a reading week for us so we’ve been banned from going out on placement so that we can prepare for our exams (at the end of May!) and catch up with any academic work that we have to do. 

Friday has been my busiest shift so far, it was virtually non-stop as regards to jobs, and I was absolutely starving when it came round to the time for us to have our break.  It was also a very sad shift and the first time that a job that I have attended has been on the news.  It was an RTC where a motorcycle with a pillion passenger, collided with a car that was pulling out of a junction, and then another motorcycle behind falling over to avoid another collision.  These were 2 sets of a father and son.  The father on the first motorbike died at the scene while the son had survived the collision and was blue’d in to the nearest hospital for treatment.  We arrived after they had left and proceeded to treat the other father and son who were obviously quite distraught and upset about what had happened.  We transferred them to hospital and later in the night when we were taking another patient in to A&E, 3 Police cars were rushing into the hospital grounds on blue lights. We wondered what was going on, and we found out later that the operating theatre had contacted the boy’s family to tell them to get to hospital quick, as he had taken a turn for the worse.  It turned out that he died shortly before they arrived.  The whole thing was a tragic loss of life.  From something as small as not looking properly when pulling out of a junction, in the blink on a eye resulted in the death of 2 people.  The driver of the car was in an obvious state of shock, and I’m sure was struggling to take it what had happened. It placed a sombre tone on the rest of the night and really made me think.  I’m sure we have all pulled out at some point when we shouldn’t really have done.  When it would have been wiser to wait for a larger gap, yet we were lucky.  This time there was no luck. 

Saturday was a pretty routine night as regards to jobs, but was also busier than normal.  Sunday was not as busy but we had ‘bigger’ jobs.  I would categorise these jobs as where quite a bit of medical intervention is required. I’ll talk about these later in the week as I wo’t have nothing to post about otherwise.

I have one request, in that you spare a thought for the family of that father and son who died and I can only ask that to anyone who reads this blog to take extra care when driving and not to rush as it could end in tragedy.

TP

After yet another massacre in an American education establishment, I really am amazed at why they continue to do nothing about their gun problem, and they do have one.  How many more deaths does it take before they will stop caring what the gun lobby think’s, and actually do something that will save lives.

I found it amazing that the head of the gun lobby over there in cuckoo land, actually suggested that it could have been stopped sooner if there were more, thats right more gun’s around, and especially on the campus as then the students would have been able to stop him.  Now having been at Uni for 3.5 years, I can say 100% that I am glad that the student walking past me doesn’t have a gun in his bag, or the person who fails an exam or essay starts shooting randomly.  When ever I’m on a night out and on the walk back, I worry more about getting attacked or stabbed than shot.  Gun’s never even enter my head.

I am glad that this country has gun laws. I know they still exist but I’m proud of the fact that I would have absolutely no idea where to get one, nor do I know anyone who has any idea.  That’s because there illegal.  It seems that American’s get a gun because their neighbour has a gun.  Why can’t they make it so no-one has a gun.  The American Government should take notice and do something about it, as it will happen again.

TP

The last week has been pretty hectic, which has stopped me from sitting down and actually writing something.  I worked most days to try and earn as much as I can before I go back to Uni.  We do get a ‘Training Allowance’ by the ambulance service but any extra cash always helps and lets me treat myself now and then.

Apart from work, I’ve been attending the regular Thursday night quiz at my local pub.  My friends and I have been going since the beginning of our A-Levels and we’ve gradually worked our way up the scoreboard to win a few.  Were lucky in that we all have different areas of strength with Politics, Science, Sport and Music among them.  Personally I just sit out the music round as although I have heard the song, I could never say who sang it or the name of the band, except for the extremely obvious ones.  The only time I listen to new music is when I’m in the car and the radio is on, or when I see a CD advertised on T.V. which I like the sound of. 

Friday night I was out for a birthday meal with my work colleagues and I had a really good night.  I even had my first alcoholic drink since new years eve.  I’ve never really been one to drink, I’m quite happy having a coke or J2O as I really don’t think you need to alcohol to have a good time, but I do realise that it lightens you up, and I had a really good laugh.

Yesterday I went to Alton Towers, also with my work colleagues and I had a really good day although my face felt a little hot afterwards as even though it was a little windy, there were clear skies, and putting sun cream on never even entered my head. Stupid boy.

I’ve only got one shift left at work.  I cannot believe how fast these 2 weeks have gone.  It seems ages ago that I had that lovely welcome back from my mom (aka argument) to now.  It has been nice to be home, and I did actually take the time to have a holiday rather than do that much Uni work.  I know I have to get down to it when I go back with our exams just over a month away, our portfolio’s to be at the end of May, and the theory test for the C1 category on my driving license which has to be taken so I can do the driving course.  The next few months are going to busy I think, starting with uni on thursday.

TP

Well I’m back from Wales where I went for the weekend.  We have a caravan down there which I can cope with in small doses when I’m with my parents.  That is only because they are quite happy to sit outside and chat and catch the sun, where if I go down, I can only cope with that for a few days.  Luckily my friend came down with me to so it was a good weekend. 

I had my suit fitting for the same friends sister’s wedding where I shall be an Usher, and we have already decided to section the female guest’s on the category of the their looks.  Good looking women one side, no so good the other.  Think that will work?! I think it has to be the smartest that I have ever looked, with my mom hoping that it won’t be my only time I’m involved in a wedding!!!  Entertained the God-daughter again, and I even had an egg bought for me, with Uncle TP written in icing on the front which was very kind of them to do.

Where our caravan is situated, there is no mobile signal what so ever for at least 5 miles and it is great!  I like going down there knowing that it will be hassle free, you can forget about all the rushing around that you do in your normal life and really just chill.  They having a bowling green down there, not flat I have to say, and even though it is a sport that is associated with the elderly, I had fun playing.  With blue skies overhead, and the only sounds being birds and sheep, what more can you ask for.  It started by me challenging one of my dad’s friends (a Wolves fan no less) to a game, to try and remind him of their recent 6:0 thrashing at the hands of Southampton.  We only played to 11, due to their being 5 of us, and I ended up drawing (9 points a piece) with the wolves fan but ended up losing to my sister’s 16 year old boyfriend.  I may have thought he was OK before, but not anymore.  Luckily I redeemed myself and managed to win today, even against my dad who I cannot remember ever beating.  He was not amused.

I even made most of the dinner yesterday with cottage pie being on the menu.  I did my Mash Potatoe, which along with apple crumble, are the nicest foods I can cook.  Iwas told that it was even better than my dad’s.  He disagreed obviously, but I think they were all amazed I actually went to cook a meal.  I can be a good Son sometimes.

This week I’m back at work as it’s my last full week off before I head back to Uni for a meeting next thursday and then onto where I live for placement.  I think my first shift will be friday on nights but we shall see.

TP

Well I had a nice day off not doing very much on Monday.  I went to see my god-daughter who thankfully remembers me this time, and it was nice to be able to spend time with her. She’s one of the happiest baby’s that I’ve ever met, and she absolutely motors round the room on all fours.  She can stand herself up and can walk when someone is holding on to her hands, and I’m pleased that I’m going to be a part of her life.  It also gave me a chance to see my best friend who I havn’t seen since I was last back so we had a catch up.

Tuesday I offered to take my Aunt’s dog for a walk thinking that it was going to be a sunny day like over the weekend, how wrong I was.  My ears were buffeted by the wind, and this coming from across a lake, it was cold!  I was then called into work for the afternoon shift as a friend of mine found out when her minor operation was going to be, and knowing I was back from Uni, offered me her shifts until the weekend.  I was hoping to have this week off, as I’m working virtually every day next week, but then I think of the money and it’s hard to refuse.

One thing that I’ve noticed while I’ve been home is how some people don’t know the English language.  Why do people say “I ain’t doing that”, when they can say “I’m not doing that”.  To me it’s just laziness. It takes just as much time, and its the right way.  I know different regions have different accents and different words, which others may not understand, which is fine, I can accept that, I have words that some other people do not understand.  When though it’s little chav’s, which my town seems to have in abundance, whose language make comprehension a challenge, it makes me wonder why their parent’s havn’t been telling them how to speak properly.  I know when I was a kid, I was told the proper way if I said something wrong.

It’s funny to back in the cess pit of gossip that is my workplace.  No one has any secrets, and if even one person is told, who then tells one person, it spreads like wildfire, and it’s been funny to see it in action again.  One thing that I learned, not that there was any opportunity, was to never get up to anything when on a works night out or you would never hear the end of it.  They also have a nickname for me, which when I doing my degree, I hated, but I’ve had to get used to it as I know their not going to stop, and now I don’t expect to be called anything else.

I hope everyone has a nice Easter weekend.

TP 

Well these four days that I’ve been at home have been quite eventful.  I got back Thursday as my mentor had to cancel my remaining night shifts due to the need to attend a family funeral, and I didn’t ask if he could sort me someone else to go out with, as not knowing how close the relative was, thought it might be a little harsh.

First stop was my other workplace, where I had to attend staff training.  We get paid for it once a month, and this was this last time in March, meaning I can go again in a few weeks and get paid again.  After this finished I went home and literally within 5 minutes I was embroiled in an arguement with my mom, and ended up leaving the house.   This was a record even for me, and with temper’s raised on both sides, I thought it best to leave before we kill each other.  So I went to a friends where we hada pub tea, and then went to another pub for the usual quiz.  I won on the bingo meaning I had a chance to have a go at ‘Open the Box’ where the jackpot was £239.  I ended up turning down £15 for a can of rice pudding! Oh well.

Saturday was my first day back at work, and it was good to be back.  I like the work, but the best part is all the people that work there.  I’ve been there nearly 5 years and everyone has a really good laugh, you really do spend most of the day laughing.  The trouble is that there are no secrets, so I had the chance to catch up on the latest goings on since I was last there.  In the afternoon, I went on a walk with the family and the neighbours, and 3 dogs.  I used to hate walking as a kid, couldn’t think of anything more boring, but now I quite like to go when I come home.  It’s a nice break in the day, and the weather was great, but by the end of the day I was knackered.  It was hilly towards the end and another lad and I got onto the subject of the Golden Corral food restaurants in Florida where there is all you can eat for around £5, which made it even worse.  I was dying for my tea by the time we got back.

Today I was again at work for an early shift, and we went another walk afterwards.  I even feel as though I’ve caught the Sun, which so early in the year, I’m quite pleased about.  I think if the weather stays nice over the next few days, I might be out in the back garden with a good book and catch a few rays.  I have the whole week off, so I think I shall do a little uni work, but mostly just chill, chill, chill!

Have Fun.

TP