The Probie has been taught! Yay!!!!

[Michelle Latham]

After asking a zillion questions, reading books, magazines, and watching videos, I finally attended a great extrication class at our local EMS symposium. Alas, I suffered an injury during firefighter training so I couldn't DO anything but I brought my bunkers and got real close and asked a ton of questions. The instructor is the chief of our University's fire dept and he taught an awsome class - I finally "get it" !!! But I dont think I'm an expert or anything - I'm just not as confused and lost as before.
Thank you all for your help!!!!!!

[[email protected]]

Michelle, you can't possibly still be a probie. I'm not going to tell you how old I am but I would almost bet I've been doing this longer than you can remember. I'm still confused and it is NOT getting any easier. Every call seems to pose a new problem and just as you think you have it I promise you a new challenge to test your resources. Don't let this bother you to much, just rememeber that this is one of the things that makes this job so much fun.

[skip rupert61]

Michelle, I had the opportunity to attend a training session with Mr. Ken Jones, one of our friends from Maple Leaf country during the Eastern Ontario Extrication Competition. Mr. Jones started his presentation with this comment: "The only thing consistant about vehicle rescue is change." Keep this in mind. Just when you think you have it, sure enough, that call will come in that makes you realize that you forgot where you put it. Keep learning....it never stops.


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Skip Rupert
Shrewsbury Fire CO, PA
[email protected]

[ejfd30]

Michelle, cool, you learned, I think I am one of the first replys you ever got, I must agree with my counterparts, you will never stop learning, but once you have the basic knowlage thye rest is easy...Keep up the good work. And I hope that you get better fast.

[dcfa20]

FINALLY! Someone else that knows, and admits, that they still don't know it all!

I have been "responding" to calls since I was old enough to walk. Following my Father wherever he went, (okay so they made me stay in the car "way back then...") I learned a lot just from watching, but learned even more when I was finally permitted to use the darn tools. Then someone finally made me realize that you can never know every way of performing every extrication, (right Skip?) Someone can always come up with a different twist on how to "make space." After 16 years of riding the big trucks, I still enjoy learning how to do the job.

[lutan]

It's still amazing what you see out on the road!
We've all seen people literally walk away from the most mangled wrecks you could imagine, and other die in the most minor accidents- but the one thing that stays the same is- EVERY CALL IS DIFFERENT. The way we approach the scene, the way we stabilise a car, the way extricate, the injuries, etc, etc. WE NEVER STOP LEARNING.
I'm sure "guru's" like Ron Moore and Steve Kidd are still seeing/hearing some amazing stories involving accidents and the way things are done....

Get to as many calls as possible, train as often as possible, ask heaps of questions as you've alreay done and absorb as much as possible.

[ 07-04-2001: Message edited by: rmoore ]

[NFfireman23]

I agree!! I have been doing extrications for 5 yrs (by no means a pro at it!) I still learn from every incident. Last week I was supervising a newbie on a extrication and I forgot to remove the glass from the window. A paramedic on scene took over from the new firefighter. It made him look bad and me feel pretty stupid!

Mark