Cardiac Intensive Care Unit and Ambulances
Yesterday I spent twelve hours in CICU. I was there as a paramedic student. I was there to learn and to do whatever I was allowed to do. I helped with patient care and med administration. I'll probably be back on that same unit next fall as a nursing student.
Today, I'll be doing the first in a series of ambulance rides. They, too, are 12 hour shifts. I'll be there as a paramedic student.
There is increasing concern in Tulsa about gangs and guns. So, many of the people who work for the local high-volume ambulance service wear body armor.
I would like to have the opportunity to protect MY life, too. But, when I called a store that sells body armor (bullet-proof vests), I was told they might not sell to someone who is not already employed. (I'll have the opportunity to make my case with the manager of that store when he returns to work tomorrow.)
I called the ambulance service and was told that I probably will not be allowed to purchase body armor since I am not already employed in the field. I asked if they have some I may wear while I'm doing my clinicals with them. He said no.
Why is it that I am in a training program where I am learning to work as a paramedic, a dangerous profession, so that I will know how to save the lives of people who are sick or seriously injured, yet no provisions are made for my safety?
My school does not provide protective body armor for me.
The ambulance company I'll be riding with does not provide protective body armor for me.
And, I am being told that I probably will not be allowed to purchase it since I am not yet employed in that field.
What's wrong with this picture?
posted by jordanrep.com/10522 @ 9:31 AM
4 Comments:
Hey, we'll send troops to war without armour! What a country... -wolf
Perhaps you should send a letter to the editor of your local paper (or speak to a reporter for the paper and/or news station)to expose the inconsisteny of the issue. You should have the option of purchasing a vest if you feel it's necessary for your safty. Certainly the school that sends you to work with the EMT service, and the EMT company themselves, are responsible for making sure that you, and any other students, are as safe as possible while fulfilling your training requirements. A.H.
Well, here's the latest. I went to a police supply store today and told them of my situation. They agreed that I need a vest. They measured me for a vest (they're custom-made). But, they cannot sell me a vest until I have a law enforcement authority tell them, in writing, that I need it. I'll be working on getting that next.
Here's how the body armor situation turned out. I don't know any law enforcement people except one with whom I am acquainted at school. That person just kind of laughed at me and said, "They like you guys." (Which I took to mean, "They won't shoot at you.")
Then, she was a little more serious and asked when I needed it and how long it would be before I finished my ambulance rides. She said when she started with the police force, it took several months before her vest was ready. She said it's not just a quick and easy purchase.
That pretty much settled things for me. If that was true, then I knew I'd be finished with my rides before the vest would be ready.
I chose to ride on day shifts for all but one of the rest of my rides. I tried to go out on a night shift, since there are more medical calls during the day and more traumas at night. But, the one night I rode, things were slow and I saw even less than during the daytime rides.
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