Just an ambulance driver

[racing-emt]

Some of yall may have already seen this, but in a different thread they talked about media calling us "ambulance drivers"

Ambulance driver... Standing in chest deep water,freezing rain falling and stinging as it hits the exposed parts of my body. Holding her head above water to keep her from drowning until rescue could get there to cut her free--- BUT I'M JUST AN AMBULANCE DRIVER

Comforting a 89 year old woman who just watched me and my partner cover the face of her husband of 64 years as he lay dead in their bathroom floor--- BUT I'M JUST AN AMBULANCE DRIVER

On scene at an mva with mom trapped upside down in her car and her dead sons body laying on top of her without a second thought for my own safety i crawl into the wreckage to take C-spine control and calm the frantic lady--- BUT I'M JUST AN AMBULANCE DRIVER

Called away from my just prepared meal to respond to the middle of B.F.E to a house with no numbers,no porch light on,nobody waiting to signal us in and they bitch because we took too long only to find out the patient left P.O.V ten minutes ago...so we smile and walk away from the verbal lashing only because we are
JUST AMBULANCE DRIVERS

Standing in the middle of the street at midnight on the wrong side of town trying to patch the holes and stop the bleeding of a 19 year old shooting victim with the occasional bullet wizzing past our heads we never break stride because this kids life is in our hands--- BUT I'M JUST AN AMBULNCE DRIVER

Doing chest compressions on a 16 year old girl who decided this life was more than she could take.Her family screaming at us to help as though we are the ones who did this to her.Her lifeless body flailing about as the tube goes in and IV's being started, my arms and back burning from the pain of 30 minutes of CPR never once giving up, hoping she would make it through and over come whatever lead her to this bad decision----
BUT I'M JUST AN AMBULANCE DRIVER


Death is all around me and still i go home to live my life i get kicked,hit,spit on, bled on, puked on... i look into the eyes of a lifeless child at 7am and by 8 am i'm holding my child a little tighter and they know nothing about what happened. i have hundreds of hours of classroom time, years of in the field experience, i have challenged death and won, i've helped the helpless, i've neglected my family for yours, i find comfort in complete chaos, i eat cold meals if i eat at all, i work with no sleep for days at a time, i miss birthdays,holidays and school functions i put myself in harms way for a total stranger on a daily basis

ALL BECAUSE I AM JUST AN AMBULANCE DRIVER

I AM AN AMBULANCE DRIVER!!! I DRIVE 90 MPH THROUGH CONGESTED TRAFFIC FULL OF PEOPLE WHO REFUSE TO YIELD THE RIGHT OF WAY WHILE MY PARTNER STANDS UNRESTRAINED IN THE BACK OF THIS SCREAMING LAND MISSAL SAVING YOUR LOVED ONES LIFE!!
NEVER ONCE DOES HE QUESTION MY DRIVING HE KNOWS THAT AT THE END OF THIS SHIFT HE WILL GO HOME TO HIS FAMILY SAFELY BECAUSE..............................

I AM AN AMBULANCE DRIVER...

[MaverickMedic]

Amen!!!!!!!!!!! Very good

[mike]

I DRIVE 90 MPH THROUGH CONGESTED TRAFFIC FULL OF PEOPLE WHO REFUSE TO YIELD THE RIGHT OF WAY WHILE MY PARTNER STANDS UNRESTRAINED IN THE BACK OF THIS SCREAMING LAND MISSAL SAVING YOUR LOVED ONES LIFE!!
NEVER ONCE DOES HE QUESTION MY DRIVING HE KNOWS THAT AT THE END OF THIS SHIFT HE WILL GO HOME TO HIS FAMILY SAFELY BECAUSE..............................

I am not a big fan of the term ambulance driver but that is public perception. It is even the perception of some in the medical field i.e. just "an ambulance driver."

Having said that if someone is doing 90 with me in the back I am not standing up working on the patient. After dropping the patient off it will be the last time they and I work together and one of us might be in cuffs if I can't retard my anger enough after dropping the patient off.

[fire medic 328]

I am not a big fan of the term ambulance driver while technically we do drive ambulances but it is a small portion of the job. As Mike pointed out it is the preception of even some healthcare providers. Nothing gets me madder than to hear a nurse at a nursing home refer to us as "Ambulance Drivers". Just as it would make them mad if I called them "Geriatric Ass Wipers". Technically much as me driving an ambulance is part of my job cleaning up the train wreck papaw just left in his adult diaper is in theres.

[shfd739fm]

No we arent ambulance drivers, we are much more than that.

But Im tired of seeing these same kind of things always reposted and passed around stations,emai etc.

[racing-emt]

driver Nothing gets me madder than to hear a nurse at a nursing home refer to us as "Ambulance Drivers". Just as it would make them mad if I called them "Geriatric Ass Wipers". Technically much as me driving an ambulance is part of my job cleaning up the train wreck papaw just left in his adult diaper is in theres.

I giggled!!!

[Sasha]

I'm going to go against the grain. I don't really care for that "I'm Just an Ambulance Driver" thing...

Not only does the author encourage dangerous activities, it feeds the drama lama. People wonder why shows like Trauma only depict high energy, dangerous and dramatic calls, because that's the persona EMTs and Paramedics like to display.

This piece of literature just seems like a burnt out EMS provider whining that he doesn't get the recognition s/he thinks they deserve or get their hero ego stroked enough.

With so many confusing levels, many don't know what to call the person who shows up in the big truck with pretty lights and woowoos.

And let's face it, driving an ambulance IS part of our jobs (Unless you're like me and are not allowed to drive anymore. )

[GaHazMedic]

I personally don't take offense anymore. I used to, but it does nothing but get my blood pressure up. Besides, when I started, that's all a lot of people were. Hell, in some states that's all some STILL are. Would I like to see that term disappear. You bet. But it's not going to get better until we as a whole start educating people. Everyone claims to do it, but few actually do. And no, busting someone's chops when they call us that is NOT educating them. Until we start doing a better job of promoting our profession, it is not going to change. The other thing that is going to have to change for this term to disappear, is for EVERY state to make it so that EMT is the lowest level allowed on a crew. Until that happens, there will always be just "ambulance drivers" out there. Sasha made the comment that it seems like a burnout whining about not getting enough recognition. It could be that it is just a for real ambulance driver who is proud of what he does. It's hard to believe that ambulance drivers still exist, but I assure you they do in several states.

[StreetDoc67]

Done been posted.

http://www.ghettomedic.com/forum/sho...bulance+driver

[General Weakness]

it only makes me mad when a nurse in the ER says it
Come on... they know what we do (most of them)

we don't call them "cant do anything until the Dr says, and still cant do half the stuff I can"