Been awhile since I posted about work.

If your one of those stalker types and I have had a stalker, many many years ago, it was a girl too!
You may have been counting the days to keep a track of my movements?
You may have thought that I had chucked it in?

Truth is, I've been back at school for re-certification and compulsory training.

It's supposed to be every 18 months and is completed over your two day shifts and first night. That's not that you train at night you do three days at school and return to one night shift.

Increases in the skills set of our P1 or Qualified Paramedics commenced this year.
Cardiac reperfusion trials have been operating within the state for over a year for out of hospital thrombolysis. This trial has been extremely successful without a single adverse event.

Qualified 12 lead diagnosis of a STEMI on our Lifepak 15 defibs along with transmission of the ECG and bypass of the ED directly to the Cath Lab is the minimum standard for a P1.

So 12 lead ECG's were de-mystified. I've read books but it didn't click, I just needed the right instructor and we got her. The rest of the mystery around a 12 lead can still be held by ICP's but that to will be slowly taught to the rest of us in the coming years.

After re-cert a P1 may now administer adrenaline to a pt in cardiac arrest. This one has bugged me for years, they're dead when we get there mostly why has it been so long for us to be approved to give embalming fluid to the dead in a hope of making them less dead??????

The CARE program that I have been part of for the last two years has now ceased and these low acuity jobs are now being incorporated into the core skills of officers so if your not CARE trained you get instructed at re-cert. It's not a big leap in practise just a proven package to allow you to leave a safe pt at home.

After years of talking about it the larygascope and Mcgill forceps have been introduced to remove that half a side of cow from the throat of a choking victim.
A new traction splint called a CT6 and a military based arterial tourniquet where also part of the training.

So that is what I have been up to.



See you at the big One.

Taz