We had a busy day yesterday. It figures, right? My last full time tour and the volume of calls has been kicking my ass. Yesterday we did a couple of MVAs, a GI bleed, several “I don’t feel so goods” and the other assorted calls that make up a typical day working on a BLS rig. I think it was 16 or 17 calls, all told.
Around 11 yesterday morning, we were called out with fire for a “non cardiac chest pain” call. Medics had already come and gone. They did an eval and cleared the guy the for BLS.
We arrived on scene and the firefighter with the clipboard said to me, “This is Wayne, He’s been living on the streets and he’s been drinking and doing drugs this week. Today he wants to go to detox and get some help.” I said okay and introduced myself. The guy walked over to our truck, waved off the helping hand I offered and climbed in. He settled himself on our stretcher. My partner, who was in the back this time around, started to ask him some questions. As she was getting a BP, he looked around the truck and then at me and asked, “Is this just a BLS rig?” I smiled and said yes. He laughed and said, “No 12 lead? No ET tubes? No fun stuff?” He must have been amused by the look on my face as he reached in his wallet and pulled out his laminated National Registry EMT-P Card. He had a state cert, too.
He told me that he hadn’t practiced for a couple of years but would love to get sober and get back to it.
We rolled to the ER and as we were waiting to check in at triage, we talked about where he had worked as a paramedic and his stint as a remote medic, taking care of the guys working in the oilfields in Alaska. As my partner was doing the handover, he asked me to make sure the nurse looked at the big abscess on his foot. He had been shooting heroin and had an infection.
As I walked out, he wished me good luck in medic school and recommended Dubin’s book. I laughed and told him I already had it, and it was a big help. He gave me a fist bump as I walked by.
Man. That was tough. Medic to street junkie.
Wayne, how did you get there?
That is definitely a tough run. I know what the percentages are, but here's hoping being in the back of a truck sparks something in his head that creates the change.
Good luck to him.
Jesus – that sucks.
We had a guy out this way spiral down the same drain about 5 years ago. He broke into three of our ALS trucks to steal the narcs not long after being fired for discrepancies. The DEA got involved, too. It was big-time bad.
Just the same, it's painful to see someone slide like that. Definitely will put in a word for him…
Wow. Tough call.
I thought you were totally going somewhere different when I started reading how he was listing off all the procedures…
Last year when my, soon to be a physician, spouse was doing the residency interview circuit we had a very interesting conversation with our hostess. She was a resident at the program my spouse was applying to, had a nice house, kids running around, etc. At some point the conversation got to the question of life prior to med school. It turns out that she was a junkie. Sometimes it works both ways.