Now Toemoss - Usually I am in agreement wiff you on most things...but not on this one.

Pre-hospital folks (cept the ones who are hospital based and usually end up spending their free time working in the facility or folks that PRN in-hospital) don't understand what life in the ER is really about....I was based out of a hospital for a few years and know where you come from....but, the same is true on the counterpoint.

What in-hospital folks see from pre-hospital is the folks they bring in. They don't see the 25% national average of "no-go'rs". This is the bunch that you see, many times after the fact, coming in via taxi, walk-in, public transit or the boys in blue that were many times system abusers.

Granted, there aint many jobs that pay a person to sleep - but when woke up at 3:15 in the morning because {insert name here} is - a. hasn't slept in 15 days because of a meth high and {insert name here}'s friend decides they should be looked at - b. {insert name here} is bed ridden and dropped his television remote off the side of the bed and really just needs someone to come over and pick it up so they can watch Oprah instead of Dr. Phil - c. 96 year old {insert name here} got up to poop at 2:15 in the morning and when they got back in bed were short of breath here is a forkin clue....96 year old people who get out of bed in the middle of night to poop should be out of breath when they get back to bed

One of the greatest signs we used to determine when a patient really didn't need an ambulance was the "positive samsonite" sign. When a crew got on a scene and the suitcase was packed sittin by the front door - you knew they really didn't need an ambulance....it was another public safety taxi call.

As long as time goes on there will be a debate of who is who in health care....it is good that people have pride in what they do.....but the good part of it is (with the exception of the cops

) when it comes time to roll up the sleeves and go to work - everyone knows their role in the gig and the patients benefit from it.....the people who everyone is there for to begin with....I know that the people probably don't forget that - but it is amazing to me how some tend to have lost that focus over the years.

dabs