Archive
Excited Delirium: Improving Our Care Of The Agitated Patient by David Aber
I would like to welcome David Aber to Paramedicmastery.com as a contributor. Dave has been involved in the EMS service for over 20 years and is a passionate educator and conference speaker. While still working full time as a paramedic for an all 911 service he also serves as the Training and Education Coordinator. Dave believes that EMS does an amazing job but can do much better for our systems, co-workers, and most of all our patients.
Paramedic class – Are you ready to make the difference?
Paramedics save lives and make the difference every day. Now that you have decided to take the next step in your EMS career what concerns do you have about paramedic education? Are you concerned about finding the time for class? Maybe you have been out of school for a while and want to know how to get conditioned for the challenge of medic school. Subscribe to my blog and learn how to prepare for medic class from the Medic Mentor. Leave a comment to let me know what concerns you about medic class.
ACLS Study Guide: What Do You Want To Know To Prepare For ACLS?
So, now it is time to go back to ACLS class. LIke many of us you are nervous about being evaluated. You realize you do not use all of the information your practice each day. Don’t worry, not many people do use all the info in ACLS every day. That is why there are refreshers every two years.
Let me help you prepare for ACLS CLass:
- Review the current 2010 CPR standards before you start class.
- Review the alogarythyms (Hint Atropine has been taken out of PEA!)
- Look up the key meds like vasopressin, epinephrine and Amiodarone
- Review ECGs (Vfib, VTach, 3rd Degree blocks)
Lastly, relax, prepare and enjoy the class. Click here for more information on how to prepare for ACLS
Want to learn more about Epinephrine research? Click here
What would you like to know about to prepare for ACLS Class? Post your comment below
Book Review: Respiratory Diseases by Terry Des Jardins.
Clinical Manifestation and Assessment of Respiratory Disease, by Terry Des Jardins and George C. Burton is an awesome respiratory book for the EMT or paramedic who wants to gain in-depth medical knowledge in respiratory disease.
This book is one of my all-time favorite medical books because it has an extraordinary view of the cardiac and respiratory system and their diseases that affect patients. The combination of respiratory and cardiac diseases together is practical and intuitive. This book discusses in detail the examination of the patients, the use of accessory muscles, the anatomy and pathophysiology of respiratory diseases as well as cardiac issues.
This text also covers ECGs, heart sounds and cardiac emergencies -
“I have found students gain deeper knowledge when they learn from different sources .”
I especially like the illustrated graphics that show in detail the alveoli, bronchioles and changes during disease.
About The Book:
Respiratory Diseases is broken into several sections including Assessment of Respiratory Diseases, Clinical Data, Obstructive Pulmonary Diseases, Newborn and Early Childhood Respiratory Diseases.
Included in this book are sections are cardiac assessment, heart sounds and the ECG. When learning a topic like assessment the student benefits by reading from different sources and shared views of a topic.
Book Features:
- Pathophysiology of respiratory diseases
- Patient interview and assessment
- General management of respiratory diseases
- Case Studies and Self-Assessments
This book is available on-line and is published by Mosby. Mosbybooks.com
Related articles
- Respiratory Health in New York City Neighborhoods Most Affected by #Sandy (securityblog.jcrcny.org)
- Vehicle Pollution Linked to Respiratory Illness in Children (motortrend.com)
New Airway Trainer Available
Gaumard Scientific has released a new airway training simulator which is useful for intubation, King LT, Needle Cric. 
pneumothorax and tension pneumo decompression. This simulator requires no batteries, no plug. Utilizes air pressure to function. Great for airway and continuing education training. http://www.gaumard.com/hal-advanced-airway-trainer-s315-400/ The simulator allows you to select tongue edema, laryngospasm, pharyngeal swelling, or pneumothorax. All powered pneumatically, allowing the simulator to operate in remote places without electricity. Air reservoir is charged using a BVM.
The cost is very reasonable compared to similar difficult airway simulators.
EMS Educator Job Opportunity
Inver Hills Community College in Minnesota, is looking for 2 tenured track EMS educators. this is a top notch program with national ties and national speakers. Great job for a EMS educator who wants to be a mover and a shaker.
“Please help us get the word out…
Two paramedic instructor openings (tenure-track faculty positions) at Inver Hills: http://tinyurl.com/cejftl5
deadline to apply is 1/28/13. ” share with your friends and those interested.
Sim Center revolutionizes medical education
Join us for an Open House from 2-4 PM on Monday, January 7
Hennepin County Medical Center (HCMC), already a nationally recognized teaching hospital, is opening a brand new, state-of-the art medical simulation facility. The Interdisciplinary Simulation and Education Center (“Sim Center”), opening January 7, 2013, will support education programs that train more than 20,000 caregivers each year.
Located in the lower level of the state's first Level I Trauma Center, the 10,000 square foot Sim Center area provides a safe environment for health care professionals to practice real-life medical situations and procedures in rooms with the equipment found in operating rooms, emergency departments or other treatment areas – including the electronic health record.
Partners – Part 3. Why We Should Help Rookies Learn.
During the past three months we have talked about Dealing with Difficult Partners and The Care and Feeding of a Dinosaur in this three part series on dealing with partners. I would like to talk about why we should help new EMTs and Medics get off to a good start. True we do not get paid to help new EMTs and Medics but it is in our best interest as a profession to help each other out. The rate of turnover in EMS is tremendous and shows no sign of slowing. Each time a Fire Department or Police Department hires we lose experienced personnel. You should invest in the next generation of EMS because it is good for patient care, it is good for our jobs, teaching helps build your network and provides an unexpected benefit.
Patient Caring
The responsibilities of helping the patient in their time of need is a daunting responsibility and one we need to all work together to provide. When a provider in our system fails, we all look bad. If you are truly about providing patient care and doing the “Right Thing” for your patient, then you are also about getting new members of your service of to a strong start. President Chris Nollette stunned me during the NAEMSE EMS Educators Course by stating, “Your students will be better providers than you.” I thought about his words and realized they are better and more informed because we share our lessons of experience with them as new partners! We advance patient care through doctors sharing new research and treatment choices to provide in the field. We in turn educate our partners and the public. Teaching new providers and the public is caring about our profession and investing in EMS’s development.
What Can You Gain?
By helping new employees and being generous with your lessons learned you can gain the respect of those under you and build a great reputation. Positive feedback about your interest in teaching new employees and medics can lead to profitable teaching, prec
epting and mentoring jobs! You partners will often go on into other fields and remember the caring and lessons learned you shared with them. A former EMT thanked me because he was able to provide better for his family as a paramedic and was appreciative we taught him and explained ALS to him in the field which sparked his interest in becoming a paramedic.
Building A Legacy
You will be respected by helping new EMTs and medics at work and remembered when when you decide to move on to bigger and better things. I work with several doctors, nurses and PA’s who used to be medics and respect them for their dedication to teaching and caring for patients.
7 Reasons You Should Help New EMTs and Medics
- Share your experience and lessons learned
- Help your new providers learn through your experience.
- Build a team, not a group of individuals
- May help you get satisfaction
- Appreciation from helping others.
- Satisfaction of seeing new employees do well.
- Next level of professionalism is giving back
I have enjoyed the Thank You of some past partners when I see them on the road or at conferences. Gratitude does not always come immediately if not at all from all those you teach.
On occasion a former partner or EMT that backed you up will say thank you or say, “you showed me how to start an IV. Do you know how many times I thought of your patience while starting an IV? Thank You Steve.”
Before retiring from FDNY EMS I made a conscious effort to teach new EMTs to listen to lung sounds and treat asthmatics properly. I also made an effort to teach all the providers in my station to stay safe at the next terrorist incident or MCI. I taught them the importance of Time, Distance and Shielding. I thought when I see one of them on TV in the future as a doctor, fire chief or paramedic I could be confident they knew how to keep their people safe and care for asthmatics.
You never know what the future will bring, what opportunities may come your way or where your former partners will end up. I have former partners who are Police Lieutenants, Fire Captains, hospital administrators, educators and so forth. Above all your reputation as a professional extends far outside of your ambulance into the health care and educational world. Helping new EMTs and medics is good for the system, lightens your work load, makes you feel good and above all, we need to look our for each other and share our knowledge and tradition. Teaching the rookies is The Right Thing To DO!
Next month I will explain why “I Brake For Asthmatics.”
Custom Medical Equipment Kits For EMS Students
During the NAEMSE 2012 symposium I spoke with Mike Shultz who produces a stethoscope and medical equipment package for EMS students in his company Custom College Medical Equipment. . Student success starts with giving the student the right resources to succeed. This kit includes equipment you specify and comes as a package with your program’s logo on the box. You know you have the best program, products like this kit show others that you are an organized program that believes in excellence.
Also Check out: BIG SHEARS FOR EMS
Why “I Brake For Asthmatics.”
I was recently in Miami for a meeting and met a man from Ontario, Canada. We were talking about our jobs when he asked me what I do for a living. I replied to Joe, “I am a paramedic.” Joe’s eyes became a little watery and he stated, “Paramedics saved my life.” Joe explained when he was a younger man he experienced sever shortness of breath from asthma and felt dizzy. HE wet to his mother and told her to dial 9-1-1-. Joe does not remember what happened but later awoke in the ICU and was told he stopped breathing and paramedics breathed for him, gave him medications and put a tube in his trachea. I told Joe, “you are lucky to be alive.” I reached into my pocket and took out one of my pens I carry that promote my web site http://www.paramedicmastery.com and has the saying “I Brake For Asthmatics. “
I was a paramedic in the Bronx during the 1980s when trauma was frequent and way too many asthmatics died from lack of primary and emergency care. I remember one call in particular where we arrived on scene at an apartment building in the early hours of the morning to find a man leaning out his window, begging for help. “We will be right there sir,” we grabbed our stair chair, oxygen, Life Pak 5 and medication bag and airway kit and rushed to his apartment. When we got to the patients apartment he was on the floor in cardiac arrest. We took about 3 minutes to get from the curb to his living room, but we were too late.
Despite the epinephrine, dopamine, isuprel and intubation, our patient died. From that experience I learned that asthma is a serious and hard to reverse disease when a patient is in cardiac arrest. Through the years I did my best to care for asthmatics and save their lives, fortunately I was able to treat and pull several dying patients from the precipice of severe bronchospasm, acidosis and death.
Along the way I started saying, “I Brake For Asthmatics.” Several paramedics and respiratory therapists agreed with me and suggested I make up a bumper sticker. I have made stickers and pens on Vista Print. The pen is a great way to promote caring for asthmatics and promote this blog for EMS providers who want to be the best.
Share your asthma experiences below in the comments section.
Next post I will review one of the Best Books I have ever read about the pathophysiology and treatment of respiratory diseases !
Related articles
- Asthmatics suffering ‘because doctors can’t understand inhalers’ (telegraph.co.uk)
- Xolair, asthma drug proven by Games swimmer, too pricey for NHS (thetimes.co.uk)
- Yoga for asthma- basic level I (fondfamily.com)
- How to control asthma quickly? (healthandcare.in)
Contributing Authors
David Aber
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phaelliecks
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Steven Kanarian, MPH
