This morning, I received some terrible news: one of my colleagues, a past supervisor, was found in his home. I don't think I need to elaborate further on what that means. It hits too close to home, coming on the heels of an anniversary of another tragedy in our public safety community. I'm still stunned, …
Admit it: EMS stresses you out
A recent story in the Tampa Tribune, available here, talks about the "price" first responders pay for the stressors encountered on the job. My comment to my friend who posted it: "The reality of the job stressors in our environment is becoming more evident. I'm seeing more and more of this come out, and its …
Fitness in EMS
Every once in a while, a trend starts regarding the fitness for duty of EMS providers, including a recent story of a fire department mandating fitness while on duty for their firefighters and paramedics. While I'm not on board with departments mandating fitness while on duty, I am on board with EMS providers needing to …
Loss
Over the past several months, there has been much ado over the loss of life in emergency services. Tragically, in December, two firefighters in a neighboring district were fatally wounded and two others sustained serious injuries in an ambush (read my original blog post on this topic here). But not every loss is directly associated with …
Expect the unexpected
Is it just me, or has the use of personal protective equipment seemed to have gone by the wayside? It seems no matter where I go, I see more and more responders conducting patient care without basic protection, including the use of gloves. Ask yourself this: do you "glove up" only when the patient is grimy, …
Finding balance
After joining the first agency in my career, a small outfit with two ambulances, a pole barn base, and about 20 active members, I jumped in with both feet. I wanted to be a part of everything, wanted to do everything to help out my hometown Corps. This “dedication” drove the other three new members …
Jon David LeRoy 