When the bell tolls, it’s time to put our problems on a shelf and get in the truck and go. The people who call us have problems of their own to deal with, and do not need a depressed, disgruntled or judgmental person showing up at their side.
Case in point: A friend felt sick, she was disoriented and vomiting. Things got so bad she called 911. I’ve responded to “a person vomiting” hundreds of times. More times than not I vent a bit en route, the usual grumblings about 911 abuse, and beating the system and don’t these people have cars, or haven’t they ever vomited before.
My friend has a brain tumor the size of a tangerine. She’s forty-eight years old.
I don’t know who took her to the hospital, and I don’t know if they treated her well, or like just another nonsense call. I hope they did the right thing, and treated her like a person deserving of respect, care and professionalism.
Emergency Medical Services are a relatively young part of public safety. We are the face of that service, we’ve got to rise to the occasion whenever it calls, and do our best, no matter what demons are bouncing around our heads. The ability to compartmentalize things for future dissection is an imperative part of any EMT or Paramedics tool chest. Sometimes it’s the most important medicine we have.
May your friend’s outcome be good. Words are so inadequate in these times of sorrow and worry.