EMTs Ever Look at You Like You're Dumb?

Specialties School

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I'm a new school nurse at a High School, and more than once I've felt that they look at me like I'm dumb. The funny thing is that the nurse who oriented me told that they do that (lol)

Earlier, they came in to take a student to the hospital to get checked out because his pupils were the size of the moon (suspected drug abuse) and he was non responsive, EMT asked me if I knew his history, I said no, he replied "Oh so you're not the nurse",

.... Uh yes I am, excuse me if I don't know the history of my 300+ students :nono::cyclops:

So yeah, I only know if I'm in front of my computer. Ugh. Plus I don't really know what to do when they come in, I just let them take over. Maybe I shouldn't ? Eh I don't know. lol

Keep on keepin on, and then you can look at them like they are dumb one day.. :) if you want, of course. Remember, no one, and I mean no one knows what it's like to be a nurse, unless they are or were one.

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I don't know. I don't really have the problems. Be assertive, give them what they need and step back.

I couldn't care less what they think of me. Just take care of my kids.

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LEV... As an ICU & CCT RN (and former ER RN) I will firmly disagree, but you are entitled to your opinion.

Not excusing the behavior Avill experienced, nor will I excuse the medics failure to attempt a BLS airway in your examples, but if we're changing the question to the ability to assess, manage, and treat an out-of-hospital emergency scene without the vast resources of the well lit and staffed facility (and the luxury of time to mull over details...a commodity the medics in the field rarely if ever enjoy), aside from flight nurses, I can count on one hand the nurses I'd trust my life to as much as a medic.

Just my opinion.

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I think it depends on the nurse and the medic. 'Cause there's a few of the local EMTs I wouldn't trust with my...anything. And there's some that I would take 24/7 for me and all my family.

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Specializes in Emergency Department.

I worked as Paramedic for a few years before getting into nursing. Back then, while I have met many excellent nurses, I have also met more than a few that just were absolutely clueless. I have had patients that were severely short of breath that were put "all the way up to 2 liters of oxygen" and only had an SpO2 in the low 80's with some altered mental status. I have experienced many, many times the "not my patient" when the nurse is giving me transfer paperwork. I have experienced (more often than I care to recall) instances where the patient was "weak and lethargic" only to see the patient was altered and hypotensive on the transfer paperwork and worse upon my own assessment. I've coded a couple of those.

I have also found that outside the ER, many nurses just do NOT have any clue about the scope of practice differences between a Basic EMT and a Paramedic. They seem to think both are the same.

I have also run across my fair share of School Nurses that don't know what to do in more emergent situations. There's a reason why I believe that School Nurses shouldn't be involved in assessing athletic injuries. Nurses do not get the requisite education to do it. Not in school, anyway.

I never gave a nurse the "you're dumb as a post" look unless the nurse earned that look and it takes a LOT for me to give that look. Otherwise nurses got the "we're on the same team" look from me because I believe that nurses and Paramedics (and EMTs too) are on the same team, just with different education tracks and patient care goals.

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Specializes in Pediatrics Retired.

akulahawk...I'm sure the school nurses would agree with you about assessing athletic injuries!! Fortunately, in my school district there is a certified athletic trainer at the High school and Junior high. Our Athletic department realizes this is a specialized area and the powers that be agree to fund it. A lot of other districts, however, don't fund that position so it's left to the school nurse.

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akulahawk...I'm sure the school nurses would agree with you about assessing athletic injuries!! Fortunately, in my school district there is a certified athletic trainer at the High school and Junior high. Our Athletic department realizes this is a specialized area and the powers that be agree to fund it. A lot of other districts, however, don't fund that position so it's left to the school nurse.

I have an AT as well and she is my buddy. :)

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Sometimes you're damned if you do and you're damned if you don't.

Yep. I hate having to second guess anything. But better safe than sorry.

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While I wouldn't ever hand a medic a patient on 12 drips, CRRT, & ballon on pump, neither would I expect an RN to take Medical IC of an MCI. The "I'm better 'cause I'm a ____" attitude is tiresome. Different disciplines, different focus. I've seen brilliance & boneheads, kindness & jerks come from every corner, license, and degree. The start of this whole thing mentioned an interaction between different disciplines, but it really wasn't about who had what license...it was about attitudes & respect. I'd like to take a moment to remind my RN colleagues that condescending attitudes can go both ways. Medics & EMTs find themselves on the receiving end from RNs also. We *all* should be mindful of the attitudes & image we project.

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Specializes in Pediatrics Retired.

Another good point, EMS-RN. Along those lines we could expand this to,let's say, IT Techs, do they ever look at you like you're dumb?

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You mean like Nick Burns, your company's computer guy? :cheeky:

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I find that I feel better about myself if I don't give a condescending look to someone, even if I feel they are not performing up to par. I can't control what they have to offer, only how I present myself. I like the impression I leave with someone to be positive.

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