Call A Test A Test

Tuesday

Airway was a fun chapter for one very important reason: I got to play with some fun “toys” and a contrary dummy (not one of the human variety).  Mr.M brought in all the airway goodies, from a live oxygen tank to an infant airway adjunct, in between which were OP airways, NP airways, a BVM, suction kits (think a mini-vacuum that goes in the mouth to suck out blood, other fluids and the little chunkies) and an empty oxygen tank. Us students didn’t get to play with the live one; actually, Mr. M rarely let go of his death-grip on it.

(Personally, I am very thankful someone thought up abbreviations; I would be in a tongue-twisting bind if I had to say bag-valve-mask, oropharyngeal airway adjunct, nasopharyngeal airway adjunct and such like all the time instead of the quicker BVM, OPA and NPA.)

Looking at all the airway management tools up close and handling them was pretty cool. It would have been even better if the dummy had been a bit more cooperative. His plasitc bag lungs needed new rubber bands to hold them to his trachea and his tongue left much to be desired in the way of flexibility. Mr. M’s demonstration of the correct way to insert an OP airway was a case of “Do as I say, not as I do”; that is to say he told us never to force an airway down, all the while trying to ram the airway around that tongue. I say “trying” because this was also a case of matter over mind.   

Thursday

My first test both at college and in my EMT-B course went rather well, I’d say. It was all multiple choice and it was the kind of test where the questions were on one piece of paper and we had to mark them on a separate slip of paper.

Mr. M’s unique teaching style presented itself once again: after grading our test sheets, he gave us an opportunity to challenge the questions. If we could present a good argument for why we had given an answer different from what the “correct” answer was, he would sometimes give us the point for that question. Of course it had to be a good argument, and he made sure we knew this was only for his tests. We can’t challenge the questions on the state test. Well, I guess we could, but I highly doubt the state would give us back the points!

My test score: 88%

I would have had a 95%, but I accidently put six of my answers in the wrong spot on the answer sheet. Arghh! Don’t you just hate silly mistakes? Next time I am definitely keeping better track.

 

Yet Another Blonde Joke

Upon following the possibly related posts WordPress attached to my last post, I found this blonde joke:

A contestant on “Who Wants to be a Millionaire?” had reached the final plateau. If she answered the next question correctly, she would win $1,000,000. If she answered incorrectly, she would pocket only the $32,000 milestone money.

And as she suspected it would be, the million-dollar question was no pushover. It was, “Which of the following species of birds does not build its own nest, but instead lays its eggs in the nests of other birds?”

Is it:

A) the condor

B) the buzzard

C) the cuckoo

D) the vulture

The woman was on the spot. She did not know the answer. And she was doubly on the spot because she had used up her 50/50 Lifeline and her Audience Poll Lifeline. All that remained was her Phone-a-Friend Lifeline. The woman hoped she would not have to use it because … Her friend was, well ..blonde.

She had no alternative. She called her friend and gave her the question and the four choices. The blonde responded unhesitatingly: “That’s easy. The answer is C: the cuckoo.”

The contestant had to make a decision and make it fast. She considered employing a reverse strategy and giving Regis any answer except the one that her friend had given her. And considering that her friend was a blonde, that would seem to be the logical thing to do. But her friend had responded with such confidence, such certitude, that the contestant could not help but be persuaded.

“I need an answer,” said Regis.

Crossing her fingers, the contestant said, “C: The cuckoo.”

“Is that your final answer?”

“Yes, that is my final answer.”

Two minutes later, Regis said, “That answer is ….Absolutely correct!! You are now a millionaire!”

Three days later, the contestant hosted a party for her family and friends, including the blonde who had helped her win the million dollars.

“Jeni, I just do not know how to thank you,” said the contestant. “How did you happen to know the right answer?”

“Oh, come on,” said the blonde.. “Everybody knows that cuckoos don’t build nests. They live in clocks.”

And now I think I’m done with the blonde jokes.

 

Football Finally Makes Sense

Ever since I first got an email address, my Nana has enjoyed sending me jokes and I have enjoyed reading them.

I really got a kick out of the one she sent a couple mornings ago; especially considering how I’m blonde and don’t really get football.

Football FINALLY makes sense……….

A guy took his blonde girlfriend to her first football game. They had great seats right behind their team’s bench. After the game, he asked her how she liked the experience.

“Oh, I really liked it,” she replied, “but I just couldn’t understand why they were killing each other over 25 cents.”

Dumbfounded, her date asked, “What do you mean?”

“Well, they flipped a coin, one team got it and then for the rest of the game, all they kept screaming was: ‘Get the quarterback! Get the quarterback!’ I’m like….Helloooooo? It’s only 25 cents!!!!!!!!!!!”

 

Too Funny Not To Share

Dad showed me a picture of himself as a little boy today before church. My response: “You were cute! Your face has changed a lot.”

I swear I didn’t mean it like it sounds!

 

Vital Signs, Lifting Techniques and Blood Pressure

That’s what I did this week in my EMT-B classes. Well, okay, so I kind of took the measuring of blood pressure home–but Mr. M said to practice!  

Tuesday was vital signs; where we learned about SAMPLE history, how to take baseline vital signs (respirations, pulse, skin condition, capillary refill, blood pressure and level of consciousness). Yesterday evening we watched some videos about lifting and moving patients, the major content of which seemed to be several dozen different ways of saying “Use your legs, bend at the knees and protect your back“. Considering how most injuries in the EMS profession are blown-out backs, I can see why they kept stressing this point.

This week I also discovered the disadvantage of being the green rookie in a class full of people already in the medical profession: they don’t need to practice the basic stuff (like taking blood pressure or pulses) nearly as much as I do. In fact, since practice time isn’t mandatory at this point, most of the others clear right out. Thankfully however a couple people recognized the, er, dismayed, out of depth look on my face as I was sitting alone with my stethoscope and volunteered to be practice.

Mom also offered her arm in the interest of science and education and said not a word of complaint, even when she couldn’t feel her fingers; and she also sent me a bunch of really helpful YouTube links on the proper use of a stethoscope and blood pressure cuff. My brother (who doesn’t really like to be touched) even let me take his blood pressure twice and Dad has volunteered to be the “patient” next. Every one says I have a cool family and it is absolutely true.

Next Thursday we are going to have our first “educational experience” of the course… Mr. M’s way of saying we have a test. That’s right, as of yesterday I have completed the first section of the course: “Preparing to be an EMT-B”.

Of course, it’s just section 1 of 8, but it’s still the first real landmark!

Sorry if this is a wee bit incoherent. Smallville is back tonight after the holiday hiatus and I’m really excited. . .and just a bit scatter-brained!

 

Two Different Ways of Relaxing

The Cricket way:

The Opal way:

 

Reflections

One day while browsing the internet, I came across an article looking into the details of the costumes, music, lighting and  sublties of acting when evaluating a movie or a TV show. It was a really good article and it got me thinking about storytelling in general.

I have no training in the art of storytelling; no formal training, at least. What I have is raw instinct and talent skating on potential. Is that enough to maybe be published one day? I honestly don’t know. But I do know that I don’t write and think and dream stories just on the hopes of having my name in a bookstore. I do it because I love it, because not doing it is against my nature, because I’m learning from it and (hopefully) I’m getting better. Learning from life is a slow process. But it’s fun and it fits me…i.e. I’m a slow learner. Lately it seems like I am being beaten over the head by subtlety, details, layers and symbolism in stories; and I realize this isn’t an area in which I excel.

I’m not a subtle person. I wear my heart on my sleeve…shoot, sometimes I think my heart is the sleeve! I say exactly what I mean and I mean exactly what I say. I’m also not very detail-oriented. Oh, there’s the rare moment when I notice the details…but those details are brightly colored. And I mean that literally. I see the big picture and I pick up on emotions before I even notice the facts. When I “over think” something in a story, mine or someone else’s, that something isn’t a metaphor or what the significance of that flower is. It is always something a character does or says.

Thinking about all this sort of explains why my characterizations and dialogue have been praised and why my “hints” feel like a shove off a cliff.

The point of this rambling post (if it has a point) is that I’m trying to improve my writing in an area I never really thought about.

P.S.

I’m sorry I haven’t posted much about writing on here lately; the truth is, I haven’t done very much writing since I started my EMT-B course. I still very much love writing and my stories but I guess my focus has been on the classes.

 

The Weekly Report

This week in EMT-B class we studied Medical-Legal Issues and the Human Body. Neither one of them followed the usual pattern of last week’s classes.

On Tuesday, Mr. M couldn’t make it and so T took over the class. Since her job is coordinating between hospital and EMS, reading run reports and things like that, she had quite a bit to say about Medical and Legal Issues. Her teaching style is a lot different from Mr. M’s; she likes PowerPoint. A lot. The note takers in the class (myself included) were kept busy trying to keep up.

Thursday Mr. M was back and we had the coolest class ever. For the Human Body, we got to watch an actual video of an autopsy. It was. . .interesting; definately not something you’d want to watch for entertainment purposes even if Mr. M was allowed to show it for non-educational purposes, but very interesting. Only one person left to room with a green face and a quick step and no, it wasn’t me. It was a guy.

A List of Official, Unofficial and Just Plain Interesting Things Learned At Class

Four things must happen for negligence to occur:

1. There must be a duty to act. (An EMT off duty and out of  uniform has no legal obligation to provide emergency medical car.)
2. There must be a breach of that duty.
3. There must be physical and/or physiological harm created in a noticable way.
4. There must be causality; the existence of reasonable cause and effect.

Three Tips on Not Getting Sued:

1. Act within your scope of practice.
2. Document consistent and complete run reports.
3. Treat the patient well.

• Threatening to punch someone in the nose is assualt. Actually doing is both extermely rude and a case of battery. (Assualt: Unlawfully placing  a person in fear of bodily harm. Battery: Unlawfully touching a person or providing care without consent.)
• Putting a wet tea bag on a hemorrhaging tooth is an oral surgeon recommended practice. At least, it is by Mr. M’s oral surgeon.
• Gallows/morbid humor is a defense mechanism that one learns surprisingly quickly.
• A competent patient has the right to be stupid.
• Take someone’s pulse on the thumb side of the wrist.
• “Left” is always the patient’s left and “right” is always the patient’s right. Forgetting is not recommended.
• An EMT cannot take orders from a nurse.
• Coccyx is pronouced “Cox-sic”.
• A firefighter likes my old seat. So do I, but he arrives earlier than me.
• It is easier to take notes from a TV screen than a PowerPoint projection that is half on, half off the blackboard that is really white.
• If you don’t know the official medical term for the forearm, just say the forearm. You’ll sound a lot more  intelligent than if you refer to it as the tibia. And the “you” was not me, by the way.
• Protect yourself first, because it’s hard to help someone if you’re in need of help too.

I’m still having a great time learning all this stuff and getting to know my fellow students better. Next week it’s supposed to be Lifting and Moving and Patient Assessment.

 

One Year

One year. That is how long I have blogged now. It has been a blessed year–with its fair share of bumps and bruises, of course. I’ve made friends, learned a lot, laughed a bunch more, and hey, I’ve even learned to appreciate change some!

Having this blog has been a thoroughly enjoyable experience and it is nice to look back over a year’s journey and other people’s reactions to it. So thank you all for taking the time to stop by, and I hope you’ll stick around for another year. . .because I am!

And now for some statistics!

In one year I have had a total of 13o posts; 403 comments; 23 people who commented (plus a few track backs); 5,619 views; the adverage of 15.4 views per day; my busiest day was on October 28, 2009 with 80 views; I’ve been given one blog award; and I’m on at least five blog rolls (Mom’s, Anne’s, Hannah’s, Kelsey’s and Elisabeth’s).

Hannah

 

Definitions From The Pulpit

Today’s sermon was about gifts of the Spirit and using them for the glory of God. When talking about discernment, my pastor said following:

“Discernment is sanctified common sense.”

 

I like this definition!

 

Thursday’s Class

Thursday’s class: let’s see. Mr. M and T spent the entire class (which lasted almost 3 hours this time) talking about stress; acute stress, delayed stress, burnout stress, critical stress management, the works. Since the stress and whether I can handle it was the main thing I am concerned about, I was very grateful for the generous time spent discussing it.

If anybody else in the class needs to borrow notes, I certainly have plenty to share! I took 4 and a half pages worth of them last night, much to the annoyance of my right hand–both for the rapid writing and the wringing of said hand too close to the table. Sometimes I’m glad I can’t see the person behind me.
Another interesting thing that I learned last night was that most EMS personnel share similar personality traits, including a fondness for being in control, massively disliking failure, reluctant to give up, dedication, empathy and a good deal of stubbornness. Huh.

Altogether the class was reassuring and reaffirming that this is what I want to do. Next Tuesday’s class is on Medical, Legal and Ethical Issues and the Human Body. I’m spending the time in-between making flashcards of the vital vocabulary in the chapters we’ve already done and starting to memorize them. The final exam and State test isn’t until the end of the course in four months, but I believe in head starts. Not to mention there’s a lot of vital vocabulary in the book!

 

The Change by Garth Brooks.

The Change by Garth Brooks has always been one of my favorite songs, for a variety of reasons. 1) It’s a good song with a good message, and the orgininal 2) it’s Garth Brooks, one of my Uncle Ryan’s favorite artists (which was more than reason enough for the younger me to love it).

Anyrate, I was looking it up online to get the lyrics and I found this music video for it; possibly one of the very best music videos I have ever seen.

The Change

 

And It’s Off To The Races

As per my Aunt Kgh’s orders, this is a report from my first EMT-B class.

I arrived in the classroom 15 minutes early, and I wasn’t the only one. This proved to be a good thing because the early birds definitely got the worms…in this case, chairs at the tables/desks. The people who arrived right on the hour had to sit on the practice beds, balancing their books and papers on their knees. It was a big class. Altogether there were around twenty of us; the majority, about two-thirds, being white men that looked between 20 and 35 years of age. (Actually, it was an all-white class. I was a little disappointed.) However, I wasn’t the youngest or littlest person there. One girl was a year younger and a good 2-3 inches shorter. It sounds odd, I know, but I was a bit relieved!

Our instructor is an older gentleman, Mr. M. He’s the one of the foremost paramedics in 4 counties; he has been in the emergency medical service for 30 years and he’s filled a number of positions over the years. It’s obvious that he knows what he’s talking about and loves what he does. In addition to all that, Mr. M is about as down-to-earth as they come. He doesn’t mind of we have food and drink in the class room (just so long as we pay attention and clean up after ourselves). His golden rule of teaching is, and I quote: “Your mind can only take as much as your rear end can.” Thus we got a ten minute break after the first hour.

I like this guy.

Our other instructor, T, is a middle-aged woman; the first female paramedic to entirely trained in-county. She is also the paramedic course instructor at the same Ivy Tech. 

The syllabus says that classes run from 6:00 pm to 10:00 pm, but last night we got out early. Really early: like 8:00. The first hour was spent with Mr. M introducing himself and T, passing out and explaining the syllabus, talking about what it means to be an EMT-B in general and the history of the EMS in the area. Mr. M is very strict about the local EMS presenting a clean-cut, professional appearance. We were given a dress code for our ER and ambulance observations: no jeans or T-shirts with stains or funky symbols. Dark slacks are preferred, dark cargo pants are allowed. For the ER observation we’re to wear a collared shirt and for the ambulance observation, sweaters or sweatshirts.

The second hour he talked about what we will see out on the streets, the stress we will face and the possible dangers involved with the job. He had many stories to tell about how people he worked with and sometimes trained found themselves unable to deal with the stress. I think this is his way of weeding out the students who aren’t going to be able to handle the job. On the other hand, he told us that he has been in the EMS for three decades and that the day what he sees stops bothering him is the day that he will quit. I found that very helpful.

Thursday’s class is going to be more about the well-being of the EMT-B; T is going to talk to us more about the critical incident stress debriefing (CISD) program.

I can’t believe I have to wait until Thursday for the next class. Who needs Wednesdays, anyhow? Well, actually I do because there is Bible study tonight, but still…

 

Cricket Pictures

While cleaning out my computer files I (surprise) found a lot of Cricket pictures. If I post them here I get to delete them on my computer…yeah, deleting things on a computer is really fun for some reason I would prefer nobody try to analyze. So, here they are!

And just for good measure, here are pictures of the other two pet quadrupeds that inhabit this house:

 

 

Would You Look At This!

This is one big icicle. By way of comparison, I’m 5 foot 2.

 

In Which I Pay My Tuition And Make An Entrance

Friday is deadline for paying tuition for the Spring 2010 semester at my local Ivy Tech; and since we are expecting a lot of snow between now and then, Mom thought it best that we go today. And I decided that even though I have come to enjoy the image of Independent Young Woman, I’d rather have Mom with me just in case I got flustered and thereby rendered unintelligible. One can very seldom drag my mother anywhere but today I do believe I did so. At least, I know I didn’t phrase it as a question.

First stop was the bank. By way of conversation, I mentioned that I was getting ready to pay my college tuition and then all three of us (banker, Mom and I) proceeded to make math mistakes. I should have known then that it was going to be an interesting outing.

Next we arrived at the sprawling Ivy Tech parking lot and after much searching, found the visitor parking. We neglected to use the cross walk…but hey, we are country folk. I was marveling that I wasn’t in the least bit nervous about doing something I’ve never done before; which left Mom to get the doors. When I came out of my internal reflections, I noticed that my mother was pushing at a pull door, so I reached past her to help. It was at that same exact moment that she realized what she was doing wrong. The final outcome of all this was that the entire lobby was alerted to my presence by the not so quiet howl of pain and surprise. I just hope I have a more, eh, dignified entrance into my class room on Tuesday!

By the way, I did not become flustered, despite that entrance.

 

Dad’s Birthday

Dad’s real birthday is today; but since we have Bibile study tonight, it was decided to celebrate the day yesterday. Birthday are small affairs in this house, ever since I was 12 and decided not to have anymore birthday parties. Mostly we just wish the person a happy birthday, give them their gift and someimes we might have a dessert.

This is called “Hannah Wrapping”; two scraps of fabric, the larger rectangle for the “wrapping paper” and the longer, skinnier rectangle for the bow and a card wedged between the two.

Opening the present

I’d say it’s a hit

The book is Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Book Two: The Sea of Monsters.