Another one of "Nashville's finest" talks about life as a paramedic/EMT. Johnny Eagle Feather is a partner of Kendall Victor Smith's; they are on the same squad.
My name is Johnny Vincent Eagle Feather, and I am a paramedic/EMT for the city of Nashville, Tennessee. I have been a paramedic for five years now, and I find my job demanding and challenging; and there is nothing more exciting to me than to be "on call" and save somebody's life when they are in danger.
I work for Kendall Victor Smith; he is my buddy and my partner-in-crime (JOKE). Kendall has been a paramedic for nearly 10 years now, and he and I are often on "runs" together ("runs" being when we go to an emergency and treat the victims involved). Kendall is a very dedicated and hard worker, and I hope to be as good as him by the time I hit my ten-year anniversary as a paramedic/EMT.
What is the main job of a paramedic/EMT? Well, the main goal of a paramedic/EMT is to save lives when people are sick or injured; and when a person is very sick or badly injured, every second counts. Emergencies are no respector of age, income, ethnic background, or whatever: emergencies can strike anytime, any hour of any day, and they can strike anybody, even Kendall or myself. So this is why we have to always be prepared and ready when that time DOES come.
We drive ambulances that are loaded with lifesaving equipment and medications, and we handle every type of emergency known to man: car accidents, fires, heart attacks, breathing emergencies, strokes, stabbings or shootings, psychotic cases, drug abuse emergencies, terror or bomb threats, or any disaster involving weather, such as tornadoes or floods. We can be counted on to be called when such emergencies occur, and when they do, we must be ready to respond at a moment's notice.
When we are on the job, we not only treat the victims that are sick or injured: we also try to offer emotional support to the victims or their families, and we try to figure out what happened and why; and once we can get a general concensus of what happened, we can then treat the victim accordingly. For example, a little girl may have an asthma attack, and from the sound of her breathing, it is a bad one. We can give her oxygen, and monitor her vital signs and give her medications to help unblock her swollen bronchial tubes and hopefully, within a few minutes, she will be breathing easier. If not, or if her breathing becomes increasingly dyspneic (labored), or if her head falls back, we can then start rescue breathing on her (or CPR if her heart slows or stops). Or we may have a little boy who has a neuromuscular disorder and is in a wheelchair suffer from uncontrollable seizures; and when we get to the scene, the little boy is jerking uncontrollably, his face blue-grey, and bloody drool dribbling from his mouth. To help this youngster, we will roll him onto his side, and stay with him until the seizure stops, and then we will check his breathing and the level of consciousness. We then give him oxygen if he is having problems with his breathing, and we start an I.V. of antiseizure medication until we can get him loaded onto a stretcher and then into the back of the waiting ambulance. If he stops breathing, then we can assist his breathing by means of an Ambu bag attached to an airway tube--or start CPR if his heart decides to stop on us unexpectedly.
Of course, both above scenarios like the examples described above are unduly upsetting, and this is where our concern and compassion comes into play. We try to comfort the families of those who are suffering by reassuring them that everything is going to be alright, and we try to tell them that their loved ones are going to be just fine once the crisis passes. We know the families are upset; who wouldn't be upset by the sight of a child gasping for air or a little boy convulsing like a dog that has been hit by a car, and the seizures keep on happening, one after another, with no break in between?
No matter how "gross" an emergency may appear to be, or how bad things seem, we, as paramedics, must learn to hold our OWN feelings or reactions in check, and we must appear businesslike and professional at ALL times. It doesn't do the situation any good if a paramedic is freaking out over an amputated finger or faints at the sight of blood (this has happened, and by the way, the paramedic in question had to be let go by the department); we must remain cool, calm, and collected at ALL times! Yet, when we get back to the station after a particularly bad call, we always cry--but we do it in private.
After we get done with a particular case, we return to the station, have our cry, and then return to business mode and clean the ambulance (inside and out) thoroughly, and we also help clean and maintain the station. We then try to keep ourselves occupied by playing card games or watching tv, or we get a quick bite to eat if there is a particularly long "dry spell" (a period when no calls come in; but that doesn't happen very often I am afraid, as somebody is always going to need help). We also go over our supplies and stock up if we need more of a particular item, and we always make sure that our ambulances are in tiptop shape; ambulances must ALWAYS be in top working order for a paramedic.
To become a paramedic, one must take courses in first aid and lifesaving, and they must have at least 110 hours of instructed classtime. After they complete this class, they must have two tests (the first written, and the second, they must show off the skills they have learned in class), and if they pass, they are certified; and they are now certified as EMTs. They can have additional classes if they so choose, and the more classes one takes, the better a paramedic he or she will be.
Paramedics can make good money, but some areas pay more then others; and the hours are often long and unpredictable; but being a paramedic/EMT is something that I wouldn't trade for all the gold in the world. I enjoy helping people, and I love the drama and excitement that the world of a paramedic/EMT often can bring. If I can save a life, then that is worth more than anything in the world!
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My name is Johnny Vincent Eagle Feather, and I am a paramedic/EMT for the city of Nashville, Tennessee. I have been a paramedic for five years now, and I find my job demanding and challenging; and there is nothing more exciting to me than to be "on call" and save somebody's life when they are in danger.
