I’ve always had stations, so posting would be a HUGE sea change for this old dog. And I’d still take the job. I’m rarely in my station, too, these days. My admin also haven’t touched patients in 15-20 years. That’s a huge disconnect that has only been exacerbated by the pandemic. Seriously, everything you’ve written makes this a no-brainer (well, maybe little brainer) for me, especially since you’re not near retirement. Speaking of which, what is the retirement with Job Offer? Did I miss it?

Oohh!! I completely misunderstood! I thought you meant the 16 hr shifts at current job. My mistake. I can’t believe job offer company pulls crews in an hour before shift change. Wow! That’s incredible. That…doesn’t happen in my system, at all. This seems like a company that is understands what’s really important and that is definitely NOT to be undervalued. (To be fair, we don’t have that horrid posting system a lot of other systems do. We have stations we stay at when we’re not on calls, running admin tasks, on standby, etc.) Yeah, if new company accepts your proposal, don’t look back. Go!! I bet you’ll find that your entire outlook on life changes when that weight is lifted from you. This offer seems tailor made for you. And you’re absolutely correct about bosses. That’s certainly been made abundantly clear to me in the past several years.

Hmmm…seems like there is a bad option given what you’ve said about the toxicity levels. And I can’t get past the bit I bolded above. Will 2 16 hour shifts/week be enough to overcome this feeling? You and I both know how easy it is for shifts to go past their clock out time: late calls, catching up on PCRs and other paperwork, holding over for a colleague “who’s almost there”, etc, not to mention the short staffing problems (perhaps this is just an issue down here, though). I’d like appreciation, too. I’d like to feel like what I do — what I’ve suffered and sacrificed for — matters to my system. Unfortunately, although my colleagues appreciate what I do, my bosses sure as hell don’t. And, I apologize for the brag, I am damn good at what I do: patient care certainly but also myriad other things that are not part of my job description. I essentially work the equivalent of 2 1/2 full time jobs. So, although the commute seems horrible, I wonder if you’ll ever feel like you’re properly appreciated by your system and/or bosses. I don’t know, you certainly know your life’s variables better than I. If I had such an offer on the table, I’d leap at it so fast someone’s head would spin.

You knew I’d chime in, right? 😆 Take the job. As someone who intimately understands more than most here how hard these busy shifts are — I just got off a “48” hour shift some 52 hours after I first clocked in — and as someone who is 50 and still working on the truck, there simply is nothing better than f’n SLEEP. It will help everything — relationships, mental and physical health, everything. This new system sounds like they have their priorities straight and that’s why there are lots of medics applying to work there. The lack of toxicity alone would be enough for me jump ship. But no/low toxicity + opportunities for advancement + pay raise = accept the job offer (for me). Plus I think your dh is correct that you’ll spend as much time away from your kids as you do now, practically speaking and when you include recovering from long, busy shifts. Take the job. ETA: You have nothing to lose except the millstone of nepotism and toxicity that’s around your neck. I would leap at this job in a heartbeat.

First, sorry for the quote box, Loowit; I hit something accidentally and can’t delete it. Second, @TheAttachedMama, are you RC? Assuming the answer is yes, are you saying that you are basically the DRE for your church? As a volunteer? No wonder you are feeling burnt out. My church is rebuilding the RE program after a disastrous DRE gutted it. That wasn’t his intention, of course, but the result of several years of poor management by the DRE and complacency by the priests. Several years’ worth of kids never had their Sacrament paperwork filed with the diocese. This had a negative knock-on effect with other ministries like altar serving. So, what I’m about to say is from the RC perspective. Ignore me please if nothing is relevant. You can’t continue like this. In many parishes, including small ones, the DRE doesn’t run the EIM program (or whatever safety program your diocese uses). That’s another usually paid position. (Actually, DRE is also usually paid in my area, too.) I can’t imagine that your diocese would be happy about an overworked volunteer managing the diocese mandated safety program. That seems…unwise…for many reasons. That is the first thing I’d had back to the priest. Second, by ‘church board’ do you mean parish council? Yes, this is a good place to bring your concerns. And others had very good suggestions about breaking down your time commitment, an excel sheet is great for this, and making it a large portion of a presentation to the PC. Err on the side of you — in other words, don’t minimize the amount of time you spend on the various tasks. Third, what does your diocese require for Sacrament prep for FHC? For Confirmation? My diocese requires two years prep for each. At what age does Confirmation tend to happen for the kids in your diocese? After you complete the excel sheet detailing how much time you spend on the various tasks, you might think about how the program at your parish will meet the diocese’s Sacrament prep requirements. That’s the meat and potatoes to me. Everything else is the gravy that is nice to have, assuming you have enough volunteers. I would approach the PC with this. I might also consider approaching the priest first to discuss these issues you’re having, depending on the atmosphere in the parish if you know what I mean. So, I would (1) complete the excel sheet of time commitments, (2) ensure that the parish’s Sacrament prep programs are in compliance with the diocesan requirements, and (3) be crystal clear on what you will/will not do going forward. Maybe have two plans: one for Sacrament prep only and one for all grades assuming adequate volunteers/staffing. Because you can’t sustain what you are trying to do right now. I’m not certain if anything I’ve said is helpful. I have other thoughts, too, but this is already too long. But certainly you need to offload the safety stuff. You should only be working with the safety coordinator for your parish to confirm that volunteers meet the diocesan requirements, not putting on any training programs or managing that paperwork.

Yup. I’ve had to have several conversations with young co-workers (early 20s, male and female) about bathing, using deodorant, and brushing teeth. I’m very matter of fact which seems to lessen the embarrassment factor. One young colleague asked how I was so comfortable talking to him about hygiene stuff. I said I have six kids, boys and girls, and have had this same conversation multiple times.

“Music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, and life to everything.” Plato

And unlike Mrs TW, I work for a county run (i.e., gov’t) EMS system. The dispatch center is also county run. Although there are private ambulance companies in my area, none of them run 911 calls at all, only BLS non-emergent interfacility transfers (think hospital back to nursing home, home/facility to dialysis and back, etc). They have their own dispatch centers. Probably half the cities in my area have their own dispatch for the city FDs and the other half have the city FD dispatched by the county. I believe all the cities dispatch their own PDs. As for what you’d need to do to be trained, it is highly area specific, as Mrs TW said. My county’s comm department will train you in all aspects of the job. I don’t know, however, what the requirements are to be hired. More than likely, a new dispatcher would be assigned the overnight shifts. I think all the shifts are 8, maybe 10 hours long. If you worked for a comm center like the one in my area, you would be taking those awful 911 calls. The training includes being both a call taker and a dispatcher. (In smaller and/or poorer areas, those will often be the same person. In larger areas, the call taker is a different position.) If this is something you’re interested in, you’ll need to research to find out what your area does for dispatching.

Like Mrs TW said, I have so many elderly patients who will choose to stay on the floor for hours rather than call for help. They don’t want to “bother” anyone; they fear losing independence, even if that fear is unfounded; it’s a generational issue; they are actually injured and cannot call for help; etc. It is such a common phenomenon. As for a monitor of some kind, I agree with you that a baby monitor in his bedroom is a privacy issue for an otherwise independent person. Perhaps he might be willing to wear (and use <sigh>) a life alert type pendant. I have elderly patients who live with family who use these. It’s a real help when the elder is alone (meaning people are in other parts of the house & not with the elderly person). Ultimately, though, there is no certain solution.

I will say that my area got rid of mask mandates sometime in mid-2021, if I remember correctly, and, although there certainly have been exposures and very localized outbreaks of cases, the number of cases did not spike like everyone thought they would, even in schools. Even with the worst of omicron we just didn’t see the spikes in hospitalizations or deaths. I agree with this.

I agree with you. It’s probably going to be a couple years of reacquainting and repriming our immune systems to all the non-covid ick out there.

In my area, at least, many people are getting nasty noroviruses and URIs, not Covid. Covid rates are quite low after being astronomically high a month or two ago. You certainly can take all the necessary precautions you would normally take and keep testing. It may just be that as you have been out and about more, it’s inevitable that y’all are going to be exposed to/contract all the other illnesses that we’ve mentally put on the back burner. So, test again either daily or in a couple of days. (I don’t know what your access is to tests.) But it kinda sounds like a nasty GI bug.

For everyone who wants to see an adaptation of the book, Sir David Suchet is, I think, the definitive Hercule Poirot. The series Poirot is very well done.

Truth.

I’m certainly not. I’ve been yelled at, spit on, hit, kicked, and shoved because some patient and/or their family members were adamant that Covid “wasn’t a thang”. I’ve had patients who were in cardiac arrest not because of Covid, but because they decided that self-dosing ivermectin from a tube they bought at TSC was better than vaccinating or at least taking the disease seriously and being cautious. Yup — broken HCW over here.

That’s a positive in my book. (We use the same tests at work.)

Congratulations!!! What a wonderful article! I thought this line, especially, was so important and absolutely spot on “You’re the professional on scene and you set the tone. Others will increase or decrease their emotional levels to match yours, so direct supporting agency staff to follow your lead.” I teach our new hires the same thing. In any situation, but especially mental health incidents, everyone on scene - including the cops - will take their lead from you, the paramedic. Be the adult and always be professional. I have been increasingly impressed with the quality of EMS magazines and journals over the past five or so years. So much more professional than when I first started. Are you speaking at NAEMSP?

Oh, ugh! 911 & IFTs?!?! We do critical care IFTs as well, but they’re under 20% of our overall volume. I’m also quite certain that my area is much more urban with more major hospitals. So, none of our crit care transfers are over an hour. I really feel for you. I just had a potential exposure the other day. What presented as pure status asthmaticus and responded really, really well to meds and BiPAP turned into a positive Covid test. Only *someone* <ahem> didn’t take the time to don their damn respirator; *someone* stayed in their unfitted KN95. We do put a B/V filter on the exhalation part of the vent circuit and there are other filters in place as well but damn. And, yes, *someone* is vax’d and boostered so it probably isn’t as big a deal as it seems. And flight medic test?! Good heavens, woman!

Damn skippy you’re not gonna stress! You enjoy every blessed minute away from that damned ambulance. I know I take whatever respite I can when I can. We’re so short staffed that most of us aren’t allowed to take vacation/holiday time and are working 48-24s. It is unsustainable.

I feel you, sister, so very much. My kids are surprised when I’m at home these days. Extreme staffing shortages + flu/RSV/covid + mandatory overtime = physically and mentally exhausted medics. My kids don’t have the same issues with inflexible thinking. And, being Catholic, are used to the 12 days of Christmas. Maybe instead of only replicating the Before Christmas Fun y’all can start some new Christmas Fun practices/traditions in addition to some of the other traditions you have. Anyway, I’m mainly posting in complete empathy and commiseration.

You don’t actually have to act differently. You’re not doing anything “wrong” and certainly neither are your kids. Recognizing where SIL’s feelings, actions, etc come from is enough. You can choose to address individual issues as they come up or not. (I would, but I’m not you.) Your kids most definitely should NOT be made to feel bad for their relationships with their gf and ggf. And that I would address with her, especially if/when she voices her thoughts in their hearing. I think you may just need to accept that right now there is nothing you can do in this situation aside from standing up for your kids.

Ooohhh!!!! So, that’s your real issue with Dean and Sam…. 🤣

As a fellow paramedic, I will strongly second everything Mrs T-W has said. The bolded is especially true. Never in 25 years has a life alert/medical alarm company been helpful on scene. They’re like the phone version of nursing home nurses. Ensure any medical information is readily accessible by flustered/upset family members.

Just to add onto Mrs. T-W’s post — her patients’ profiles mirrors mine on any given shift. Even though numbers are trending down in my area, they are still considered very high. I’ve had the CPR call of a youngish man who died because he believed the hype against vaccines and for ivermectin. So, he drove on down to TSC and bought tubes of the stuff. Then he self-administered for 3 months prior to dropping dead. He was alive when we opened the front door and dead by the time we reached him in his recliner. Turns out that in addition to absolutely tearing your intestines up, livestock strength ivermectin also causes cardiac issues. Who coulda guessed that a livestock strength dewormer would have ill-effects on humans? (/sarcasm off) Also, turns out that there is a worse smell that the c-diff smell. It’s the smell of bowels destroyed by ivermectin. ETA: Mrs. T-W and I live in completely different areas of the country.

My experience mirrors yours — front line HCW, NO PPE (except gloves and some “surgical masks”) for months, 1/4 of my colleagues out with Covid at one point, ambulances kept running 24/7/365, paramedics working multiple 24 hour shifts in a row to keep those ambulances running, no time off allowed except sick time. Although I have had some patients who had breakthrough cases post-vaccination, they were not severe. ALL the patients I’ve had lately who have been seriously ill with Covid have been unvaccinated. ALL of them. I’ve also run a couple of codes of people who adamantly refused vaccines in favor of taking ivermectin, one was prescribed it and one rather memorable one was a tube off the shelves of TSC. (And can I say that the smell when that person lost control of their bowels was worse than c-diff.) Maybe I’m a bad person, but I and my colleagues are just exhausted and at this point our compassion level for the willfully unvaccinated sits on empty.