Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Stitcher | RSS

Everybody needs to calm down.

Calm. The hell. Down.

This week, the National Association of State EMS Officials (NASEMSO) published a working draft of the 2018 national EMS scope of practice model. This is, as stated in the title, a working draft that is open for discussion and thus is open to change. It contains some important opinions about how to progress the practice of EMTs, EMRs, and Paramedics. Here’s some highlights:

EMTs should be able to give Narcan for opiate overdoses.

Therapeutic hypothermia following cardiac arrest is not supported by the literature.

Maybe EMTs should be allowed to give OTC pain medication, or even Fentanyl Intranasally.

We should update how we treat hemorrhage and maybe consider wound packing to be an option.

EMTs should be able to administer CPAP, and bronchodilators.

Paramedics should be able to use ultrasound.

But then there’s line 646 that mentions that endotracheal intubation should be removed from the scope of practice model. And everyone lost their minds. There’s a petition online. A PETITION. To allow paramedics to keep saving lives with endotracheal intubation. Nevermind that nationally our average intubation rate is in the toilet. Or that we don’t teach our medics how to intubate well, or often. Or that we don’t keep up with out training. No, we should file a petition so that NASEMSO knows how we feel.

Did we ever file a petition about low wages? Or poor working conditions? Any petitions over ambulance literally falling apart, or EMS workers being assaulted? Of course not. But don’t you dare take away our tubes.

Here’s the takeaway from the NASEMSO paper: It’s a working draft. It’s open for public comment. Write your state official and tell them that paramedic should be able to continue intubating. While you’re at it, tell them that we’re underpaid. Tell them that our working conditions are terrible. Tell them that we need more training, and better budgets. Tell your hospitals the same. Tell everyone.

We could’ve spent the last 20 years training our medics to be better at airway control. Instead, we made sure that our ambulances looked sleek, and that everyone had a pulse oximeter. We could’ve stopped this suggestion before it started. We have ourselves to blame, and it’s on us to fix the problem.

MedBox: 

You are Now Less Dumb by David McRaney