EMTpro Podcast

In this episode, Steve presents two trauma case studies for the group to discuss. While patient care in both of these calls went well, and these scenarios provide an overview of successful extrication and patient management following both an MVA and significant blunt force trauma, the distinguishing factor in each is a very specific element that caught Steve "off guard" and forced him to revisit the call days or weeks later.

In today's episode, the team talks with Daniel Sundahl, a 20-year Firefighter/Paramedic, and artist. Daniel discusses how his experiences navigating PTSD led him to create powerful artwork, which is now helping open the conversation around mental health for first responders.

In this episode, Steve, Dan, Holly, and Dr. Selbak review a few of their calls involving aortic dissections. Because aortic dissection is a relatively uncommon disease process, and many severe cases never make it to the hospital, reviewing these cases provides a unique opportunity for the listener to gather abundant knowledge in one sitting that may otherwise take years to gather in the field.

In this episode, Steve, Dan, and Holly talk with Dr. Ramsey Selbak about the increasing prevalence of violence in healthcare. They each take a turn providing examples of dangerous situations they've been involved in, how they handled them, and how they have adjusted their tactics as providers since. This episode introduces a much-needed conversation about provider safety in healthcare and how it has long been neglected. The team touches on why violent incidents seem to be more commonplace, why they often go unreported, and the lack of debriefing many EMS providers have following these events.

In this episode, the team discusses specific ways efficiency can be improved in the field of EMS. The team discusses cardiac arrest response, checklists, and managing equipment on chaotic scenes. This episode encourages all providers to think critically about how we can each advocate for change that has the potential to dramatically improve patient outcomes.

In this episode, Steve, Dan, and Holly have the opportunity to chat with Dr. Selbak in the studio. Dr. Selbak introduces an exciting case he came across while working in the emergency department and discusses with the team how he went about treating it.

In this episode, Steve, Dan, and Holly discuss their experiences with OB calls, specifically field deliveries, that were outside a typical “textbook” experience. They dive into the aspects of the scene, patient, transport, and crew to discuss what made their experiences stand out. Each provider will also take the time to address a unique OB emergency related to the patient in their story or that they have experienced and how they treated that patient to benefit both mom and baby. 

OB calls, specifically those in which deliveries are imminent, are low frequency with the potential to be very high risk. So the team discusses how they felt going into the call, what they did that helped set them up for success, and what about the scene created a roadblock as they attempted to provide the best possible patient care. 

While each patient discussed delivered otherwise healthy babies, listener discretion is advised as these stories involve less-than-ideal scenarios with challenges in both patient care and scene management.

In this special episode, we celebrate our co-host, Dan Livengood, on his retirement after 27 years in the fire and EMS service. Dan is one of the most selfless and caring people you'd ever hope to have show up at your door during your time of need. We learn from his co-workers just how much fun it was to work with Dan and what life in the firehouse with him was like.

In this episode, Steve, Dan, and Holly discuss EMS education with Adam Culbertson, a current educator in North Carolina. The team has the opportunity to ask Adam about EMS education and how it is changing, as well as some trends we can expect to see in the coming years.

In this episode, Steve, Dan, and Holly are joined by Dr. Ramsey Selbak, EMTprep's Physician Advisor. Dr. Ramsey discusses his background in emergency medicine as well as his experience and relationship with field providers. The team then delves into an age old rut into which many EMS providers fall - chasing numbers. What do we mean by this?  Trying to correct specific lab values or vitals without taking into account the entirety patient. What do they look like? Why might this vital or value be skewed? How long did it take the patient to get to where they are now? And, of course, is the patient stable as they sit? Dr. Ramsey provides a couple brief examples of times where seemingly critical patients remain stable with limited intervention in the ED, which implores the crew to discuss the role of EMS providers in the field, and re-evaluate their responsibility to "fix" or "reverse" patients with advanced disease processes.