Brave Responders

Had to share this. No, this isn’t a whacker’s POV truck. I kinda wish it was because I’m going to tell you this is how Allentown (PA) is screwing their tax payer over. Yes, they are considering this a ladder truck, and no, the fire department doesn’t get a say in the matter. This is local politician fuckery. So this truck actually responds as a ladder truck right now. That’s embarrassing. 

A link (which is not Brave Responders since I’ve been too busy with finals to write anything on the site in several weeks) : 

When is young too young? A city council member in South Carolina has launched an investigation on his town's fire department for allowing a 16 year old EMT perform CPR as a secondary attendant on an ambulance. Oh, he's also upset that HIPAA exists and that the town council wasn't informed. 

Is this guy right or just completely bat shit crazy?

Don’t forget your Cincinnati Stroke Scale! If you’ve forgotten or need a refreshed I’ve written a nice little article on it as today’s highlight!

The project is still going. I started it late last night and I’ll probably be working on it late into tonight as well. As I said before Brave Responders is breaking away from Tumblr. I’m quite frankly tired of this network and I can’t bring myself to be active on it. Brave Responders will still maintain a presence here and on other networks but these accounts will become a part of our social networking department. I hope to grow the brand in the future and even perhaps take it to a professional level like sites like EMS1, EMS World, JEMS, etc. I’m going to take the time to explain the project. I welcome any and all feedback, negative or positive, critical or not, and hope to hear from you. 

What it will be. Brave Responders is going to dip into the bigger picture of EMS. Although we often include our brothers and sisters in the 911 service here this break away from thought comes from my own preferences of being an EMT. That doesn’t mean we won’t be interesting to firefighters, police officers, dispatchers, or anyone else but means we have a target audience. We’re going to start writing articles on EVERYTHING in EMS. Opinions, productivity, technology, Con-Ed, News, whatever you can think of. If I’m sitting in the bunk room looking at the top injuries on Youtube...I can share it without the threat of a Tumblr ban now (which I’m pretty excited about). You know I used to post a lot of educational (but graphic) injury pics but I kept having to fight with Tumblr over what GORE means. I always won, but I digress. Brave Responders seeks to be the center of EMS for the internet. By EMS, for EMS, dedicated to EMS, and it’s going to remain down to Earth. 

What’s all that other stuff? Well. Let me answer that one. In the menu you will see three items at the end that are unexplained. “Our Humor” is going to be a picture board like this Tumblr account is now. I don’t know how I’m going to implement it yet. Merch is going to be a store through Cafepress or some other service where I’m going to sell merchandise. I’m actually pretty good at graphic design (as a hobby) so I’m going to be making my own products like shirts and such? Why? Because internet servers cost money. It’s not to make a profit but to offset the server bill. Forum is nothing. I tossed around that idea for a bit but I don’t know if I’ll keep it. I don’t know if it’s worth the trouble or if anyone would use it. So that one is to be still decided. 

Can I help? YES. I’m looking for volunteers to help me (also a volunteer) get the site going. I’m looking for bloggers and also someone interested in maintaining social media networks (*like this blog and FB). OR you can take the far easier option and just give me your opinion right now as I’m building the site. It really does help me. There are bugs I will miss. 

It’s official. I’ve completely burned out of EMS as of this week. It’s been happening for years but I don’t know this week was like it. I’m ashamed - I even called out of a shift last week. I just couldn’t go. I couldn’t force myself to go. I just didn’t care. I just couldn’t do it. Been thinking a lot. Been doing this for 12 years. First paid, now volunteer, and I’ve wasted my life. I’m about to be 30. I’m just now trying to get a degree and get a real job. I mean I was in the military but that ended in 2015. Two years have hit me like a train. I’m going into my thirties and I have less than the average twenty year old. I don’t know. Maybe all the LODD’s lately have made me think about it more but it’s time to hang up the bunker coat I think. Life is changing and I need to change too.  I’m posting this because I know some of you have been here, have thought about it, and can relate. It’s a tough life. People burn out all the time. I shouldn’t be ashamed of it. Maybe I’ll come back to it. My EMT is renewed until 2022 in Virginia. NREMT is cake to renew. I’ll just juggle it all until the time is right again, if it’s right again, I guess. Hope you like my GIF.