I’m not sure how many parts this report will have. I’ve been writing pages and pages of observations, recollections of discussions, talks with patients, staff, Doctors, other Paramedics, all in the hopes of learning something from the 23 days that I so hoped would open my eyes. We can occasionally get caught up in the details of what we do without seeing the broader picture, the entire system, with all it’s players and pieces. I found that visiting other systems around the US helped, but the same obstacles presented themselves.
When blogger Mark Glencorse an I dreamed up the Project, it was initially partially for fun. Then we began to talk even more about what we did differently and I had to see it first hand. And I did, for the most part. Just as with Mark’s visit to San Francisco didn’t show him everything we do, I know I missed a lot of the problems with the NHS system. That being said, I was able to burst many of the myths of socialized medicine and an ambulance service run by bureaucrats.
My experiences with Mark here and also in England taught me that there are all the same people in EMS no matter where you go. There are the flirts, the nerds, the jerks, the dirty guy and the OCD fellow. Some want to be there, others are on the way somewhere else, but for the most part people were genuinely curious as to what we might learn from the Project.
What did I learn, you might be wondering? It boils down to this:
We are two countries separated by a common language.
Not sure who said it first, certainly not me, but it is true. For example, in the North East of England a Chips Buttie is a nice afternoon snack. Here it is called a french fry sandwich with butter. There things are made with sugar, here High Fructose Corn Syrup. There the EMS system is seamlessly joined to the hospital and clinic care, here it is a fight to get triaged in a timely manner. In both places family means family, I now have a new one 9,000 km away.
Looking over my notes from this Project, I have a boat load to tell you about and a lot I hesitate to tell you about since it may appear my mind was made up before I went about socialized care. I do have some suggestions how to make that system more efficient, but things there are so completely different when it comes to health care, it will never work here. Not because of the administration, or government, or labor unions, but because Americans have come to expect instant gratification from their EMS systems. They refuse to believe their sprained wrist can wait more than 4 minutes for a fire engine and ambulance. It is this basic understanding of what EMS is that is lacking in America and I know who is at fault.
We are. Anyone who has been in this business more than 2 years is responsible for the complete lack of understanding that grips the common American about their emergency medical systems. It is time we recognized this fact and did something about it. Exactly what that is will depend on those above us in this machine to recognize their part and help us educate our “customers” (I hate that term in this business).
For my short career I’ve been repeatedly discouraged by people using EMS as their free taxi service when more appropriate, far less expensive methods of treatment are available. I did see, in my short time there, EMS abuse in England, but not nearly at the rate I see it here at home. I believe it stems from the belief that people have a “right” to an ambulance whenever they want. And not just the entitlement generation, but those who have paid into the system and want something, anything, back from it. We need to show these people that they are entitled to help when they need it and an honest discussion about what is best for them.
I also learned from my experience that my system is not being as efficient as it could be, nor is Mark’s. Believe me when I say that each of those statements could have their own volume, and likely will, since most of the things I want changed there, labor will never allow and the same here.
Before I start boring you with the countless posts about what I did, saw, learned and learned to avoid, I want to take a moment to thank a few people that made this trip everything it turned out to be.
To Mrs HM – The woman who sat next to a burnt out EMT on the tailgate of the rescue truck in rural New Mexico and said, “You don’t belong here.” She is the reason I got off my ass and got serious about going back to school full time. I graduated 3 years later. She’s been right here with me this entire time and made this whole thing work.
To Mrs 999 – Who I’m sure had just as many headaches as my Mrs while mark was away, you welcomed me into your home each night for tea and made me feel at home.
To Firegeezer – For noticing a little blog about the joys of 911 abuse.
To Lt Talmadge and her UK counterpart Fiona – Meetings, dinners, etc, all went to plan.
To anyone and everyone who donated to help make the Pilot episode of Chronicles of EMS. Having the cameras along was unlike anything else I have ever done, I hope you all like it. And I hope that Ted mentions I hit every IV first try with three witnesses and three cameras rolling.
And finally to Mark – Thanks for being so easy to get along with, bad jokes aside. and sorry all the nurses liked my uniform and accent…wadda ya gonna do?
I’ll get more specific on my observations over the coming weeks, keep an eye out here and at Mark’s blog. Thanks for following along.
Also on The Happy Medic…
- Preparation for tomorrow – November 9, 2009
- My Preconceptions of UK EMS – October 31, 2009
- Meeting the NEAS Executive Team – My UK EMS Conclusion – February 1, 2010
- Reflections on Day 2 – the Project – November 20, 2009
