Week 9: Almost Done
Sofia R -
Hello
This week was very exciting. I ran almost 15 calls! Not only did I get to see more patient interactions and treatment plans, but I also got to practice with a crew for active shooter training.
Active shooter training allows the crews to get used to responding to mass casualty incidents. Last time I was a patient, this time I was treating! I was required to wear a bullet proof vest and I had my own medical supply bag I carried. The “patient” I got had a gaping upper left chest wound, and I assessed and decided the course of action. After placing a chest seal on them, I made sure they remained calm and helped them out of the building. Now, what exactly is a chest seal? It is a type of bandage placed on the chest to lower the risk of air entering the abdomen and can add pressure causing disfunction of the lungs. If this occurs, it is called a tension pneumothorax which is life threatening. I found this exercise very interesting, and I am glad I got to see it from the provider’s perspective.
As I mentioned, I ran a lot of calls this week. One that I found interesting was a truck crashing into a ditch. This call was less medical related rather than safety oriented. When we arrived, the patient had already left their vehicle and walked up a hill to sit on a bench. After assessing them, the only things we could find wrong were two minor wrist abrasions. They opted to go to the hospital with their spouse rather than the ambulance. At the time they seemed fine, but there could be issues distracted by adrenaline that EMS providers are just unable to detect. The next issue was how to get their truck out of the ditch. After firefighters made sure the truck wasn’t spewing out dangerous substances, the crew called a tow truck crane to pick it up, the result is below.
Overall, I had a very informative and exciting week. I am not looking forward to next week, I know I will have a great time, but I do not want this project to end!
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