The September EMS Roundup
“And the days dwindle down to precious few, September, November – and these few precious days I’d spend with you. These golden days I’d spend with you.
Maxwell Anderson, American Playwright 1888-1959
With the golden days of September behind us and October upon us lets put down the rakes for a moment and take a look at all that happened in the world of EMS.
Here at the spot, we started off the month with a hugely successful readers survey, talked a bit about trust and paid homage to Jim Page and the victims of the 9/11 attacks. We debated what to do when common sense and written protocols collide and we looked at the success of the muscular dystrophy drive with a closer examination of the MD dieses process. I told you about my hundredth post as well as five things my kids have taught me about EMS. Then I gave you some tips on physical restraint and lastly we looked at the Tulsa EMTs who are taking to the classroom to prevent alcohol and drug abuse.
Around the country, The Colorado District Attorneys Office has announced that Todd Teel will face both felony and misdemeanor charges for both forgery and unauthorized practice of medicine for forging his paramedic certification and working as a paramedic for 18 months. A Missouri appellate court is deciding if EMT’s should be granted immunity from liability for medical errors. The Texas couple who owned Priority One EMS have been convicted of fraud for falsifying Medicare claims. After the death of a three year old child, the Columbia, SC fire chief has asked for changes in a policy that states fire department EMTs cannot drive ambulance crews to the hospital. And a Jefferson, IN EMT will face murder charges for trying to treat his ill wife himself instead of seeking medical care.
In other galaxies of the EMS blog universe, The Happy Medic wrote a hilarious wake up call to everyone who thinks the NBC series “Trauma” needs to be more real. The ever prolific Greg Friese gave us a few tips for new paramedics and still found time to publish a comprehensive look at EMS and Social Media for EMS Responder. Rescuing Providence aptly relates the feeling we all get when the call just goes wrong in Rear Window and Medic999 gives props to a local facility for their remarkable compassion in the post “It’s a Shame It’s So Rare“.
Life under the lights tooka controversial look at EMS system abuse in Everyday EMS Ethics. 9-Echo-1 reminds us all, regardless of age, to appreciate each other with I’m Getting Old. And I’d like to give a big thank you to Rouge Medic for his simple yet keen insight on note taking in your medical classes. If you are a chronic note taker you need to read this.
I dropped in on a the EMS Educast to talk about Paramedic Journal Clubs, though the episode is not yet published 
but a great episode on teaching toxicology is available for your listening pleasure. In the EMS Garage the boys got rowdy over paramedic initiated refusals and The Medicast discussed airway skills.
That’s all for this months slice of the EMS online pie. Come back in October for updates every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. We’ll see you then.
Related Articles:
