BREAKING NEWS
Original Post Date: 6/9/08
It is with a twinge of regret that I announce that I am stepping down as the Clinical Affairs Officer to accept a position at EastCare. My last official day will June 25, but I have agreed that I will remain in a part-time, interim capacity until a successor can be chosen.
I want to thank each member of my current work family for the opportunity to serve with you to build our service into one of the premier EMS systems in the state.
All of my contact information will remain the same for the time being, so please do not hesitate to contact me if I can help you in any way.
Doing good work...
Original Post Date: 6/8/08
We all have something around the house we need to get done. Painting, mowing, cleaning…it's always something. Even at work it seems like there is always something to do that contributed indirectly to the success of the business. Lately, my work project has been people. To be specific, facilitating the professional development of new employees.
Not long ago, we hired the folks I talked about last week and, through the orientation process, it became clear that some fundamental part of their education was, well…missing. Through little fault of their own, they lacked some very basic knowledge without which we could not reasonably allow them to practice.
Long story short, we chose to remediate them. It was a labor-intensive process for all of us that went very well and, after a few weeks, one of them looked at me with surprising candor and said "I've figured it out. I'm your project, aren't I?"
She had me. Cold.
I started to give her the company line about everybody being equally important to me, but it was a lie and she would know it. Instead, I said "Would you have a problem with that?" She said she wouldn't and we went on about our business, but it got me wondering if that is the best way to train people.
Projects, mentoring, nurturing…whatever. It's all about focusing disproportionate effort towards a smaller group of people. Is it right? Absolutely. It's necessary.
Like I said, some of the employees in any career will be missing parts of the skill set needed to do what they have to do. As an administrator, you can either throw those people away or you can accept that they will require more of your time than others. You can then decide whether or not you will ask the same of them. That's the other side of this coin…they have to want it. Fortunately my project did indeed want to get better, and has. The point is, by taking time to help someone improve themselves, everybody gets something. We keep our technician, they keep their job and the patients get good care. Win-win-win.
But what about when you're the project? This happened to me recently and I must say it felt strange to be on the other side of the desk. To be someone's project can be rather daunting if, for no other reason than finding yourself in the shadow of someone else's hope for you. Mentors not only teach; they advocate, usually with vigor. There is a tremendous responsibility for the student or new employee or whoever to excel and give their best because your biggest fan has gone to bat for you and assured someone that you would. It's not as much pressure as it is approval…the stamp that says "You promised and I delivered." Your mentor's job may not be at stake, but a piece of their credibility is certainly in your supposedly-capable hands.
So, when you find someone at work who is struggling and you decide to help, remember that they should be grateful.
So should you.
This week has been fantastic! It's been like my own little summer music festival. Monday was the Eagles, then the Moody Blues on Tuesday. Outstanding! They were part of the Grand Opening Celebration of Hard Rock Park in Myrtle Beach. If you were there, you know the park is great; the shows were incredible; even if the venue itself sucked just a little. Their amphitheater is far too small to hold the kind of acts they have in mind. I did not; however, allow their poor planning to detract from my enjoyment of the shows.
Then on Thursday, my lovely bride calls and asks the dumbest question since why did the chicken cross the road: "Do you want to go see Jimmy Buffett this weekend?"
Duh.
After assuring her the answer to that question is always "yes", she told me that she had lucked into some tickets for the sold out show this weekend. That is how I found myself on the lawn at Walnut Creek with 35,000 of my closest friends swaying back and forth to "Southern Cross" instead of cleaning house. My wife rocks!
On a sad note, news broke this morning of the third air medical crash in less than a month. This one was in Texas, and like the one in Wisconsin in early May, was fatal. As brothers and sisters in the business, keep the families and colleagues of these fallen protectors in your prayers as they sort through what remains after the ultimate sacrifice. But, as medical professionals, remember to use the utmost discretion and thought when using air medical resources. Like us all, they take supreme risks every day when called; so be judicious when asking them to take those risks for you.
You can view and sign the condolence book here.
Do good things with the week to come, learn something new and be safe.
Original Post Date: 6/8/08
We all have something around the house we need to get done. Painting, mowing, cleaning…it's always something. Even at work it seems like there is always something to do that contributed indirectly to the success of the business. Lately, my work project has been people. To be specific, facilitating the professional development of new employees.
Not long ago, we hired the folks I talked about last week and, through the orientation process, it became clear that some fundamental part of their education was, well…missing. Through little fault of their own, they lacked some very basic knowledge without which we could not reasonably allow them to practice.
Long story short, we chose to remediate them. It was a labor-intensive process for all of us that went very well and, after a few weeks, one of them looked at me with surprising candor and said "I've figured it out. I'm your project, aren't I?"
She had me. Cold.
I started to give her the company line about everybody being equally important to me, but it was a lie and she would know it. Instead, I said "Would you have a problem with that?" She said she wouldn't and we went on about our business, but it got me wondering if that is the best way to train people.
Projects, mentoring, nurturing…whatever. It's all about focusing disproportionate effort towards a smaller group of people. Is it right? Absolutely. It's necessary.
Like I said, some of the employees in any career will be missing parts of the skill set needed to do what they have to do. As an administrator, you can either throw those people away or you can accept that they will require more of your time than others. You can then decide whether or not you will ask the same of them. That's the other side of this coin…they have to want it. Fortunately my project did indeed want to get better, and has. The point is, by taking time to help someone improve themselves, everybody gets something. We keep our technician, they keep their job and the patients get good care. Win-win-win.
But what about when you're the project? This happened to me recently and I must say it felt strange to be on the other side of the desk. To be someone's project can be rather daunting if, for no other reason than finding yourself in the shadow of someone else's hope for you. Mentors not only teach; they advocate, usually with vigor. There is a tremendous responsibility for the student or new employee or whoever to excel and give their best because your biggest fan has gone to bat for you and assured someone that you would. It's not as much pressure as it is approval…the stamp that says "You promised and I delivered." Your mentor's job may not be at stake, but a piece of their credibility is certainly in your supposedly-capable hands.
So, when you find someone at work who is struggling and you decide to help, remember that they should be grateful.
So should you.
This week has been fantastic! It's been like my own little summer music festival. Monday was the Eagles, then the Moody Blues on Tuesday. Outstanding! They were part of the Grand Opening Celebration of Hard Rock Park in Myrtle Beach. If you were there, you know the park is great; the shows were incredible; even if the venue itself sucked just a little. Their amphitheater is far too small to hold the kind of acts they have in mind. I did not; however, allow their poor planning to detract from my enjoyment of the shows.
Then on Thursday, my lovely bride calls and asks the dumbest question since why did the chicken cross the road: "Do you want to go see Jimmy Buffett this weekend?"
Duh.
After assuring her the answer to that question is always "yes", she told me that she had lucked into some tickets for the sold out show this weekend. That is how I found myself on the lawn at Walnut Creek with 35,000 of my closest friends swaying back and forth to "Southern Cross" instead of cleaning house. My wife rocks!
On a sad note, news broke this morning of the third air medical crash in less than a month. This one was in Texas, and like the one in Wisconsin in early May, was fatal. As brothers and sisters in the business, keep the families and colleagues of these fallen protectors in your prayers as they sort through what remains after the ultimate sacrifice. But, as medical professionals, remember to use the utmost discretion and thought when using air medical resources. Like us all, they take supreme risks every day when called; so be judicious when asking them to take those risks for you.
You can view and sign the condolence book here.
Do good things with the week to come, learn something new and be safe.
...late than never...
Original Post Date: 6/1/08
From a very early age, I knew what I wanted to do with my life. When I was nine years old, there was a wreck in front of my house. Nothing serious, but all the emergency folks showed up just the same. When the ambulance cam, I asked my dad what they did. He told me they care for the injured and take them to the hospital. They got out of their truck with the dazzling red light carrying bright orange bags and boxes full of, well…I didn't know. But whatever it was, it had to be as cool as the truck and the clothes and I was hooked. On that day, by the side of the road 25 years ago I made my career choice. And, since, I have harbored a certain amount of mistrust for anyone who had not felt as strongly as me for as long. Most of the great paramedics I have known told similar tales of a very early commitment to paramedicine. Therefore, in my mind, folks for whom EMS was any less than a lifelong obsession were party crashers; intent on eating the food that we long-timers paid for and leaving us to clean up the mess.
Turns out I may have been a little hasty.
While the needs of our business continue to grow, the labor force available to us is steadily shrinking. This inverted math forces administrators to cultivate trainable employees from rather non-traditional soil such as vocational reassignment centers and retraining programs. These are perfectly competent, usually intelligent people who have zero knowledge of emergency care and often choose EMS as a career option through a process of elimination. This is known in some educational circles as the "zero to hero" approach to EMS training and staffing. To educators, it presents a unique challenge wholly unlike teaching those who have genuine passion for the business. On the one hand, you don't have to worry about untraining bad behavior or correcting bad care habits because they enter the program with no habits at all. But on the other hand, there is a real risk of turning out a "cookbook" technician with a wealth of classroom knowledge and no experience. So where is the balance? I believe it is in the hands of the end-user of this new manpower—the personnel-strapped agencies.
I've recently had the opportunity to work with several brand new paramedics who, for whatever reason, did not immediately grasp the basic principles of their newly bestowed responsibility. They struggled with ideas and concepts so basic that I wondered if they and we had not all made serious mistakes by indulging their fledgling EMS aspirations. It was while sitting with one of these new medics, she on the cusp of tears, that I grew up. At that second, looking into the face of somebody who just didn't get it, I got over it, got over myself and realized that she just didn't get it YET. In that moment, I knew that the only thing standing between her and a bright EMS career or a life in the food service industry was somebody that gave a damn one way or the other. Folks like her don't need a free ride, they don't need attitude, the just need a push. And a map. And a flashlight.
For me, EMS was..is a passion. For them, it's the next thing in a life that I can barely guess at. They have passions of their own that they can share if we will let them. And we need to let them, because we need them. Badly.
It's not important that they haven't wanted to do it for 25 years. What matters is that they want to do it today.
Next: Projects.
Nice relaxing week coming up for me. Heading out on Monday to catch the Eagles in Myrtle Beach. We debated for a while about making this trip, but we had to ask ourselves…how many more chances will we have to see these guys? What are they, like 80?
In sports, the Cubs have just completed an undefeated homestand, have won seven games in a row and, are you sitting, have the best record in baseball, baby! Yeah, it's only June, but as a friend pointed out to me yesterday, they've got steam and are rolling healthy and strong towards the All-Star break.
If you have to manage, teach or live with anyone born between the years 1980 and 1997, I highly recommend an article in Newsweek titled "The Dumbest Generation? Don't Be Dumb." Interesting reading and discussion for they Generation Y'er that you know…if you can get them to put down the iPod long enough to read it.
Do good things with the week to come, learn something new and be safe.
Original Post Date: 6/1/08
From a very early age, I knew what I wanted to do with my life. When I was nine years old, there was a wreck in front of my house. Nothing serious, but all the emergency folks showed up just the same. When the ambulance cam, I asked my dad what they did. He told me they care for the injured and take them to the hospital. They got out of their truck with the dazzling red light carrying bright orange bags and boxes full of, well…I didn't know. But whatever it was, it had to be as cool as the truck and the clothes and I was hooked. On that day, by the side of the road 25 years ago I made my career choice. And, since, I have harbored a certain amount of mistrust for anyone who had not felt as strongly as me for as long. Most of the great paramedics I have known told similar tales of a very early commitment to paramedicine. Therefore, in my mind, folks for whom EMS was any less than a lifelong obsession were party crashers; intent on eating the food that we long-timers paid for and leaving us to clean up the mess.
Turns out I may have been a little hasty.
While the needs of our business continue to grow, the labor force available to us is steadily shrinking. This inverted math forces administrators to cultivate trainable employees from rather non-traditional soil such as vocational reassignment centers and retraining programs. These are perfectly competent, usually intelligent people who have zero knowledge of emergency care and often choose EMS as a career option through a process of elimination. This is known in some educational circles as the "zero to hero" approach to EMS training and staffing. To educators, it presents a unique challenge wholly unlike teaching those who have genuine passion for the business. On the one hand, you don't have to worry about untraining bad behavior or correcting bad care habits because they enter the program with no habits at all. But on the other hand, there is a real risk of turning out a "cookbook" technician with a wealth of classroom knowledge and no experience. So where is the balance? I believe it is in the hands of the end-user of this new manpower—the personnel-strapped agencies.
I've recently had the opportunity to work with several brand new paramedics who, for whatever reason, did not immediately grasp the basic principles of their newly bestowed responsibility. They struggled with ideas and concepts so basic that I wondered if they and we had not all made serious mistakes by indulging their fledgling EMS aspirations. It was while sitting with one of these new medics, she on the cusp of tears, that I grew up. At that second, looking into the face of somebody who just didn't get it, I got over it, got over myself and realized that she just didn't get it YET. In that moment, I knew that the only thing standing between her and a bright EMS career or a life in the food service industry was somebody that gave a damn one way or the other. Folks like her don't need a free ride, they don't need attitude, the just need a push. And a map. And a flashlight.
For me, EMS was..is a passion. For them, it's the next thing in a life that I can barely guess at. They have passions of their own that they can share if we will let them. And we need to let them, because we need them. Badly.
It's not important that they haven't wanted to do it for 25 years. What matters is that they want to do it today.
Next: Projects.
Nice relaxing week coming up for me. Heading out on Monday to catch the Eagles in Myrtle Beach. We debated for a while about making this trip, but we had to ask ourselves…how many more chances will we have to see these guys? What are they, like 80?
In sports, the Cubs have just completed an undefeated homestand, have won seven games in a row and, are you sitting, have the best record in baseball, baby! Yeah, it's only June, but as a friend pointed out to me yesterday, they've got steam and are rolling healthy and strong towards the All-Star break.
If you have to manage, teach or live with anyone born between the years 1980 and 1997, I highly recommend an article in Newsweek titled "The Dumbest Generation? Don't Be Dumb." Interesting reading and discussion for they Generation Y'er that you know…if you can get them to put down the iPod long enough to read it.
Do good things with the week to come, learn something new and be safe.
Singin’ to me in my sleep...
Original Post Date: 5/25/08
To dismiss the importance of music in the history of mankind is to be the guy that believes this American Idol thing will never catch on. Or maybe those folks that wrote the bible really missed the mark with their "joyful noise". Music is everywhere, including my ears right this second, and it punctuates everything we do, whether we notice or not. Most of us sang along in preschool and bible school, fell in love or fell to our knees to just the right melody at just the right moment. Some danced all night, others danced in the rain, still more wish it would rain down; but we all know a song that opened a door or pushed down the wall between who we want the world to see and the reality of our soul.
Just about anyone who spends a measurable amount of time in my life gets a song attached to them. Many get more than one, like my Cookie. Other's songs change as their role in my own story changes. This is how I remember my friends at their best, and how best I capture the moment in time when I knew that someone was going to be important in my life. And, I suspect, I'm not alone. Sure, every couple has "their song", but I think so does every union, no matter how simple.
But what about every career? Just about anything that evokes or involves emotion has been romanticized in song. So where, you ask, are al the EMS songs? Few jobs are capable of producing such a complex range of feeling in a matter of seconds as the boredom and terror associated with playing chicken with death. Then, ask again, where are the EMS tunes?
Friends, they surround us.
Hollywood doesn't write a lot about ambulances or paramedics for plenty of reasons, but the biggest is that no one really cares. Honesty, EMS work is interesting chiefly to EMS people, and there aren't enough of us to sell a whole lot of CD's. (I must confess when I first wrote this, that said "records", as in vinyl….I am so old) What the big shots do write about; however, is raw feelings – love, pain and guts, and EMS is full of all three. The soul of EMS is not in the ambulance, it's in the EMT's heart on his first call. It's in the paramedic's bloodshot eyes at 4am on her 20th call in 20 hours. It's holding a new baby, it's holding a dead one. Nobody does emotion like a medic, and our songs are out there waiting to be sung.
For your homework this week, find all of the following songs, or even one, play it and think. Of your worst call, your best day. The day you fell apart in a pool of tears and blood and came out whole at the bottom. Whatever day that made you feel like you couldn't win or couldn't be stopped. Maybe you'll find meaning or peace, maybe not. Whatever you find, take comfort knowing that the right song will find you.
The List:
Turn the Page (Seger): "Out there in the spotlight, you're a million miles away. Every ounce of energy you try to give away."
Good Run of Bad Luck (Clint Black): "Gambled on a third time, fool'll tell you it's a charm"
Better Life (3 Doors Down): I'm about to see just how far I can fly, surely you're gonna break my fall"
The Space Between (Dave Matthews Band): "The space between the tears we cry is the laughter that keeps us comin' back for more"
Long Day (Matchbox 20): "Reach down your hand in your pocket, pull out some hope for me"
Wild Ones (Waylon Jennings)" Straight outta nowhere, and a little bit out of our minds"
Fire and Rain (James Taylor): I've seen fire and I've seen rain. I've seen sunny days that I thought would never end."
We Can be Heroes (David Bowie or The Wallflowers): "We can be heroes, for just one day"
Just About Right (Blackhawk): "Your shiniest day might come in the middle of the night, that's just about right"
There are a thousand more. Go find yours.
My trip to the River was incredible. Spectacular weather, good fishing and food that doesn't end. Ever. Nothing major happened, but that is after all sort of the point. I see my family so irregularly these days that the idea of doing it on purpose is no longer foreign to me. Probably something to do with getting older, too.
Speaking of getting older, just had a birthday. Thanks for all the well-wishes!
Big story in Newsweek about the rescue and recovery effort in China after a series of earthquakes and aftershocks. The article opens with a two-page photo of a soldier carrying a toddler from the wreckage on his back, the anguish on his face unmistakable.
Original Post Date: 5/25/08
To dismiss the importance of music in the history of mankind is to be the guy that believes this American Idol thing will never catch on. Or maybe those folks that wrote the bible really missed the mark with their "joyful noise". Music is everywhere, including my ears right this second, and it punctuates everything we do, whether we notice or not. Most of us sang along in preschool and bible school, fell in love or fell to our knees to just the right melody at just the right moment. Some danced all night, others danced in the rain, still more wish it would rain down; but we all know a song that opened a door or pushed down the wall between who we want the world to see and the reality of our soul.
Just about anyone who spends a measurable amount of time in my life gets a song attached to them. Many get more than one, like my Cookie. Other's songs change as their role in my own story changes. This is how I remember my friends at their best, and how best I capture the moment in time when I knew that someone was going to be important in my life. And, I suspect, I'm not alone. Sure, every couple has "their song", but I think so does every union, no matter how simple.
But what about every career? Just about anything that evokes or involves emotion has been romanticized in song. So where, you ask, are al the EMS songs? Few jobs are capable of producing such a complex range of feeling in a matter of seconds as the boredom and terror associated with playing chicken with death. Then, ask again, where are the EMS tunes?
Friends, they surround us.
Hollywood doesn't write a lot about ambulances or paramedics for plenty of reasons, but the biggest is that no one really cares. Honesty, EMS work is interesting chiefly to EMS people, and there aren't enough of us to sell a whole lot of CD's. (I must confess when I first wrote this, that said "records", as in vinyl….I am so old) What the big shots do write about; however, is raw feelings – love, pain and guts, and EMS is full of all three. The soul of EMS is not in the ambulance, it's in the EMT's heart on his first call. It's in the paramedic's bloodshot eyes at 4am on her 20th call in 20 hours. It's holding a new baby, it's holding a dead one. Nobody does emotion like a medic, and our songs are out there waiting to be sung.
For your homework this week, find all of the following songs, or even one, play it and think. Of your worst call, your best day. The day you fell apart in a pool of tears and blood and came out whole at the bottom. Whatever day that made you feel like you couldn't win or couldn't be stopped. Maybe you'll find meaning or peace, maybe not. Whatever you find, take comfort knowing that the right song will find you.
The List:
Turn the Page (Seger): "Out there in the spotlight, you're a million miles away. Every ounce of energy you try to give away."
Good Run of Bad Luck (Clint Black): "Gambled on a third time, fool'll tell you it's a charm"
Better Life (3 Doors Down): I'm about to see just how far I can fly, surely you're gonna break my fall"
The Space Between (Dave Matthews Band): "The space between the tears we cry is the laughter that keeps us comin' back for more"
Long Day (Matchbox 20): "Reach down your hand in your pocket, pull out some hope for me"
Wild Ones (Waylon Jennings)" Straight outta nowhere, and a little bit out of our minds"
Fire and Rain (James Taylor): I've seen fire and I've seen rain. I've seen sunny days that I thought would never end."
We Can be Heroes (David Bowie or The Wallflowers): "We can be heroes, for just one day"
Just About Right (Blackhawk): "Your shiniest day might come in the middle of the night, that's just about right"
There are a thousand more. Go find yours.
My trip to the River was incredible. Spectacular weather, good fishing and food that doesn't end. Ever. Nothing major happened, but that is after all sort of the point. I see my family so irregularly these days that the idea of doing it on purpose is no longer foreign to me. Probably something to do with getting older, too.
Speaking of getting older, just had a birthday. Thanks for all the well-wishes!
Big story in Newsweek about the rescue and recovery effort in China after a series of earthquakes and aftershocks. The article opens with a two-page photo of a soldier carrying a toddler from the wreckage on his back, the anguish on his face unmistakable.
I was reminded then of Oklahoma City and the fireman carrying the baby from the rubble of the Murrah Building in 1995. Not only the victims of this disaster need our thoughts and prayers, but also those tasked with restoring order to chaos. Those folks over there may pray to a different god than ours, but I bet they're both listening.
And finally, Hillary, if you 're reading this, let me give you some advice...
STOP IT!
Do good things with the week to come, and thanks for reading.
STOP IT!
Do good things with the week to come, and thanks for reading.
A little something different...
Original Post Date: 5/18/08
We're going to try something new for this week…a multi-part blog. The usual dose of cynicism tempered with some current events and a personal note. Enjoy.
Blah, blah, blah…
After I quoted a line from a movie to a new friend the other day, she asked "Don't you have any lines of your own?" I said something about my talent being the ability to choose the best from wiser people, but that isn't all of what I believe. The truth is, I really wonder who is listening. Not just to me, but at all.
Of course, you need only watch a campaign commercial to understand the majority of why that is, but it's not all political. A lot of it is plain rudeness and ignorance.
I am an exceptional listener. Letting people talk is a big part of my job, and I've learned that you can extract all sorts of useful information from a single simple question if you'll just ask it and shut up. Usually, folks can't wait to tell you 100 things they screwed up if you'll only get out of their way.
The Pareto Principle states that 80% of the effects come from 20% of the causes. You can further extend this to simple conversation: Do 80% of the listening and 20% of the talking. Believe it or not, this is vital to EMS success.
In education, the teachers and students both usually fudge the ratio. It isn't necessary for the instructor to do all the talking. Most times, the students understand where he's trying to lead them and can probably get their on their own if they just had the chance to say it out loud. So many times I've talked to students who understood something very complex, yet they had allowed themselves to be talked out of it because the instructor read the whole thing to them in some sort of convoluted terminology that the student didn't grasp. Learning takes a lot longer this way and is not nearly as effective.
Paramedic school is all about learning to ask the right questions. Honestly, you could teach an 8th grader to do most paramedic skills in a weekend, so why spend 14 months in school?
Complaint-centered assessment.
In order to treat patients, you have to know where it hurts. And, unless they have an arrow sticking out of their chest, this usually requires a properly worded question or two and the patience to let them answer. A common failing, especially with new technicians, is to spew forth their newly acquired knowledge like a bad Mexican meal stirring around inside of them just waiting for the right place to spill. The truth; however, is that most patients prefer empathy over the display of adequacy, and empathy requires honest listening, not just waiting to speak. If you have to prove to everyone that you know your business by speaking it out loud, you probably don't.
So, for those who wonder if I have an original line, here's one:
Shut your mouth.
This week in sports.
The Cubs are off to a great start, holding a 2 game lead in the NL Central at press time and just finishing up an 8-2 homestand. It's only May, but things look really good if we can just keep the injury bug away.
In other sports, is it just me or are the NBA playoffs the longest, most useless waste of network airtime on TV today? How about we cut a few games out of this thing, eh? As it is, the new season will start about 45 minutes after the last playoff game.
This past week, I was reminded yet again what good technicians we have where I work. I've very pleased to say that little of the ranting I do through the blog is about the folks I currently work with.
The week to come looks to be fun. Only three days to work before I head off to the mountains for some much needed R & R. Hopefully by the time my birthday rolls around on Friday I will be waist-deep in a mountain stream looking for trout. Wish me luck....turns out I'm a far better medic than I am fisherman.
Oh, and for those wondering about my profile picture. Somebody recently referred to me as short and fuzzy, so I wanted to find the best possible example. He shoots...he scores.
To borrow a line (there I go again) from Garrison Keillor, "Be well, do good work and keep in touch."
Original Post Date: 5/18/08
We're going to try something new for this week…a multi-part blog. The usual dose of cynicism tempered with some current events and a personal note. Enjoy.
Blah, blah, blah…
After I quoted a line from a movie to a new friend the other day, she asked "Don't you have any lines of your own?" I said something about my talent being the ability to choose the best from wiser people, but that isn't all of what I believe. The truth is, I really wonder who is listening. Not just to me, but at all.
Of course, you need only watch a campaign commercial to understand the majority of why that is, but it's not all political. A lot of it is plain rudeness and ignorance.
I am an exceptional listener. Letting people talk is a big part of my job, and I've learned that you can extract all sorts of useful information from a single simple question if you'll just ask it and shut up. Usually, folks can't wait to tell you 100 things they screwed up if you'll only get out of their way.
The Pareto Principle states that 80% of the effects come from 20% of the causes. You can further extend this to simple conversation: Do 80% of the listening and 20% of the talking. Believe it or not, this is vital to EMS success.
In education, the teachers and students both usually fudge the ratio. It isn't necessary for the instructor to do all the talking. Most times, the students understand where he's trying to lead them and can probably get their on their own if they just had the chance to say it out loud. So many times I've talked to students who understood something very complex, yet they had allowed themselves to be talked out of it because the instructor read the whole thing to them in some sort of convoluted terminology that the student didn't grasp. Learning takes a lot longer this way and is not nearly as effective.
Paramedic school is all about learning to ask the right questions. Honestly, you could teach an 8th grader to do most paramedic skills in a weekend, so why spend 14 months in school?
Complaint-centered assessment.
In order to treat patients, you have to know where it hurts. And, unless they have an arrow sticking out of their chest, this usually requires a properly worded question or two and the patience to let them answer. A common failing, especially with new technicians, is to spew forth their newly acquired knowledge like a bad Mexican meal stirring around inside of them just waiting for the right place to spill. The truth; however, is that most patients prefer empathy over the display of adequacy, and empathy requires honest listening, not just waiting to speak. If you have to prove to everyone that you know your business by speaking it out loud, you probably don't.
So, for those who wonder if I have an original line, here's one:
Shut your mouth.
This week in sports.
The Cubs are off to a great start, holding a 2 game lead in the NL Central at press time and just finishing up an 8-2 homestand. It's only May, but things look really good if we can just keep the injury bug away.
In other sports, is it just me or are the NBA playoffs the longest, most useless waste of network airtime on TV today? How about we cut a few games out of this thing, eh? As it is, the new season will start about 45 minutes after the last playoff game.
This past week, I was reminded yet again what good technicians we have where I work. I've very pleased to say that little of the ranting I do through the blog is about the folks I currently work with.
The week to come looks to be fun. Only three days to work before I head off to the mountains for some much needed R & R. Hopefully by the time my birthday rolls around on Friday I will be waist-deep in a mountain stream looking for trout. Wish me luck....turns out I'm a far better medic than I am fisherman.
Oh, and for those wondering about my profile picture. Somebody recently referred to me as short and fuzzy, so I wanted to find the best possible example. He shoots...he scores.
To borrow a line (there I go again) from Garrison Keillor, "Be well, do good work and keep in touch."
Daily wisdom
Original Post Date: 5/15/08
Got this in an email today and thought it was worth preserving for posterity.
'Political Correctness is a doctrine, fostered by a delusional, illogicalminority, and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a turd by the clean end.'
I will add comments later, though I'm not sure what I can do to make that any better.
Original Post Date: 5/15/08
Got this in an email today and thought it was worth preserving for posterity.
'Political Correctness is a doctrine, fostered by a delusional, illogicalminority, and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a turd by the clean end.'
I will add comments later, though I'm not sure what I can do to make that any better.
Those little things...
Original Post Date: 5/11/08
I was recently told by a friend that I sounded like an "angry little man" when I write. So, in the spirit and in spite of that all at the same time, I am posting my list of things that just piss me off. Some funny, some serious, but all responsible for my acid reflux.
1. People who insist they "need" the Ford Gigantor SUV because they have to take Ashton and Chandler to soccer practice, Ruffton to the vet and then stop at Le Markete for organic broccoli and scones. Trust me; you can accomplish the same things in an Accord with room to spare
2. Same people in 1 who always say "Why do you care, I pay for the gas!" You know what, lady? I'm paying for your gas, too. Because you're willing to pay $4.00/gal X 46 gallons to fill that monstrosity that you NEED to do the same things that I can do in a PT Cruiser, the bar of demand is set by you. Indulgence is truly as American as baseball, footlong hot dogs and heart disease.
3. Oil company execs who try not to look like the bad guys. Granted, oil is a global market, but enjoying unadulterated profit at the expense of others is an American pastime. Energy giants are selling their product for 3X what it cost 4 years ago, but their productions costs have not gone up one penny. There is truly nothing oil companies can do about the global unrest that destabilizes energy markets, but there is plenty they can do about the ancillary areas of their businesses. Profit may not be a dirty word, but Greed is a deadly sin.
Moving on...
4. People with piss-poor speed control on the interstate. Cruise control...look into it.
5. People who laugh at things that aren't funny, and become frustrated with me because I don't.
6. Those who insist on listening to your conversation, even if it doesn't involve them. Worse still when they insist on your repeating something in said conversation.
7. People giving the ghost of Steve Irwin a hard time. He died doing something he loved...we should all be so lucky.
8. People who are upset about the way you react to a certain situation, even though you've behaved the same way in the same situation for as long as they've known you. "Why can't you change?" Why can't you learn?
9. Said people who are surprised by the consistent behavior of everyone they know. You knew they were snakes when you picked them up...don't bitch when they bite you.
10. People who live in my (old) apartment complex and drive 100ft from their apartment to the pool. Refer to 2 for why this pisses me off.
11. Paramedics and students who have no intention of practicing any longer than it takes them to get into nursing school. That school is across campus...save us all some time.
12. Paramedics who insist on dazzling everyone on scene with their diagnostic prowess when they should be getting themselves and their very sick patient to the hospital. Got a little piece of news for you...sometimes, we truly need to be just ambulance drivers.
13. Any care provider who overtreats because they can.
14. Any care provider who undertreats because they fear litigation.
The list is much longer, but no need to wax sarcastic. I throw these out there as a counterpoint to the wonderful week I had. I celebrated my anniversary, got to be with some friends I rarely see anymore and held my best friend's brand new baby boy. Amongst all that, I attended class with some educators who are clearly as frustrated as I at the state of things. In this, I found hope; not because misery loves a quorum but because there are plenty of folks out there who care enough to do the work it takes to make it better.
Angry is my tone, but it gloves the left hand of hope that reaches beyond what I can see into a future that is clean, light and full of chance.
Original Post Date: 5/11/08
I was recently told by a friend that I sounded like an "angry little man" when I write. So, in the spirit and in spite of that all at the same time, I am posting my list of things that just piss me off. Some funny, some serious, but all responsible for my acid reflux.
1. People who insist they "need" the Ford Gigantor SUV because they have to take Ashton and Chandler to soccer practice, Ruffton to the vet and then stop at Le Markete for organic broccoli and scones. Trust me; you can accomplish the same things in an Accord with room to spare
2. Same people in 1 who always say "Why do you care, I pay for the gas!" You know what, lady? I'm paying for your gas, too. Because you're willing to pay $4.00/gal X 46 gallons to fill that monstrosity that you NEED to do the same things that I can do in a PT Cruiser, the bar of demand is set by you. Indulgence is truly as American as baseball, footlong hot dogs and heart disease.
3. Oil company execs who try not to look like the bad guys. Granted, oil is a global market, but enjoying unadulterated profit at the expense of others is an American pastime. Energy giants are selling their product for 3X what it cost 4 years ago, but their productions costs have not gone up one penny. There is truly nothing oil companies can do about the global unrest that destabilizes energy markets, but there is plenty they can do about the ancillary areas of their businesses. Profit may not be a dirty word, but Greed is a deadly sin.
Moving on...
4. People with piss-poor speed control on the interstate. Cruise control...look into it.
5. People who laugh at things that aren't funny, and become frustrated with me because I don't.
6. Those who insist on listening to your conversation, even if it doesn't involve them. Worse still when they insist on your repeating something in said conversation.
7. People giving the ghost of Steve Irwin a hard time. He died doing something he loved...we should all be so lucky.
8. People who are upset about the way you react to a certain situation, even though you've behaved the same way in the same situation for as long as they've known you. "Why can't you change?" Why can't you learn?
9. Said people who are surprised by the consistent behavior of everyone they know. You knew they were snakes when you picked them up...don't bitch when they bite you.
10. People who live in my (old) apartment complex and drive 100ft from their apartment to the pool. Refer to 2 for why this pisses me off.
11. Paramedics and students who have no intention of practicing any longer than it takes them to get into nursing school. That school is across campus...save us all some time.
12. Paramedics who insist on dazzling everyone on scene with their diagnostic prowess when they should be getting themselves and their very sick patient to the hospital. Got a little piece of news for you...sometimes, we truly need to be just ambulance drivers.
13. Any care provider who overtreats because they can.
14. Any care provider who undertreats because they fear litigation.
The list is much longer, but no need to wax sarcastic. I throw these out there as a counterpoint to the wonderful week I had. I celebrated my anniversary, got to be with some friends I rarely see anymore and held my best friend's brand new baby boy. Amongst all that, I attended class with some educators who are clearly as frustrated as I at the state of things. In this, I found hope; not because misery loves a quorum but because there are plenty of folks out there who care enough to do the work it takes to make it better.
Angry is my tone, but it gloves the left hand of hope that reaches beyond what I can see into a future that is clean, light and full of chance.
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