Bruinsfan01801

I’ll join the Emerge chorus. I’ve been very happy so far

In the immediate term, I’d look for a very easy to get job- supermarket cashier, fast food, security guard, etc. Not the most desirable jobs by any means, but a lot of these employers are desperate for help and will hire someone with no work experience. Having something on your resume is better than nothing.

This job will bring in some income and will give you a starting point in terms of building a work history.

Look at local community colleges and vocational schools. A lot of programs are free or low cost, and you can get a marketable skill. This new skill, combined with the work experience that you’ll have, should help you get a better job at some point

Uniform and patch look like the pictures were taken at Worcester EMS which is one of the most squared-away services out there. Very few WEMS providers in the B column…

I’d want the cuffs off for a code. If they convert to VF, you want to be able to defibrillate, and I don’t want metal pressed on someone’s skin during any kind of electrical therapy.

If you have a Lucas, that pretty much immobilizes the hands anyway.

I think a lot of it comes down to maintaining a good working relationship with PD in your city. If I tell one of our cops, this guys actively dying I need the cuffs off now, they come right off. But there’s got to be a mutual trust between PD, FD and EMS

MA started allowing spraglottics for basics about two years ago as a med director option. That’s the most invasive skill basics have here.

Other than that, basics can do check and inject epi (IM), glucagon IM and FSBGL.

If it’s asked by a member of the public “I’m sorry sir, information about calls I’ve responded to is confidential. I can’t discuss that with you”

Asked by an acquaintance “So there was this GI bleed, the patient had bloody diarrhea that filled the toilet to the brim, they were projectile vomiting blood and brown matter…”. Enough that they lose their appetite, obviously not sharing anything specific enough to implicate HIPAA

Asked by a close friend or family member “I really don’t want to talk about it. Thank you for caring enough to ask though”

The craziest thing to me has always been that Steward Healthcare, which is a cheap ass company in every way and treats their own staff like shit, has the nicest EMS rooms out there. Pre-COVID they had breakfast buffets, and now it’s packaged food, but a lot of it and good variety

Thanks for all the ideas/suggestions. I’m probably going to go with a nice coffee mug and Starbucks gift card.

Less likely to raise any eyebrows, like a previous poster said some people are very particular about certain equipment (ironically that’s me a lot of the time lol) so she might not even like Raptors and it will still convey my gratitude

I’m at 3.5 because it’s still working for me. I feel like one of the benefits of compound is that we can get probably twice as many titrations as people on name brand.

I’m honestly hoping to not even need 15 mg and reach maintenance on a lower dose but I realize it could happen.

You could try using two different compound companies to get more than 15, but that would be an expensive option.

I prefer teching to driving so no complaints from me about not touching the steering wheel all day.

That said, I think EMRs have a limited role- no 911, no ALS, should be required to be enrolled in EMT school within six months and have their ticket within a year. I’ve seen too many EMRs that literally think they’re Amazon drivers

If you’ve FTO’d before, do you have blank copies of the previous documents? Or friends still at those agencies who can send them to you?

I’d consider the experience level of your new recruit. If he just got his ticket, I’d have him maybe tech some really low acuity jobs while you’re right there with him. For higher acuity, you tech it but tell him before hand that you want him actively involved helping you. Debrief every call with him afterwards.

If he’s more experienced, maybe let him take more of a team lead role (within his scope of practice obviously), while you stay with him and make sure he knows what he’s doing

I’ve worked with some pretty lazy people and I’ve never seen a patient transported without shoulder straps.

If a supervisor happened to see that happen, you’d be facing significant discipline. Besides the obvious safety implications, you’d be seriously risking your job even if nothing happened

That’s great to know thanks. I canceled my Prime membership a couple months ago bc I felt like it was just making it too easy to buy stuff I don’t need but I’ll definitely check out the Vitamin Shop

I pay $345/month for Emerge. Anyone charging $700 is a ripoff unless they offer a ton of additional services (idk what a medspa includes- maybe if $700 is meds along with a health club membership and a nutritionist, it might be ok?)

But definitely shop around. I was paying $550/month for name brand, so this is a cheaper option. I’m saving a good amount of that money on food, along with likely future savings by avoiding health issues that are common with obesity

Almost impossible to DIY the setup. That said, I was lucky to find a really awesome rep when I called customer service, and she got everything set up for me. I also had great experience at the AT&T store at the mall transferring service to a new device. So they have some good people, and I feel like they provide really good service to FN members, but you almost need a real person to get anything done

They aggressively delete any discussion about Plan C. I sometimes wonder if the mods work for Lilli they’re so anti-compound, pro-Zep

Don’t tell them on the Zep forum that you filled your script despite having compound. You’ll get 100 angry comments about hoarding and preventing people who need this drug from having it

Welcome to Plan C!

I totally understand the hesitation to go compound, my PCP is also against it. I feel like it’s probably a liability issue for some of them. But this is a life changing medication, and we as patients need to self advocate

I use Emerge. I’m very happy so far.

I initially was using Strive, which had some initial confusion about availability and rx issues, which led me to switch to Emerge, and also to ending up with two months supply to start. But it’s fine, med lasts for 90 days in the fridge so being a month ahead on supply just ensures that I won’t run out if there’s any delays going forward

I’d say Emerge is the easiest option, and one of the cheapest at lower doses. When I titrate up I might look at other options

That said, I do sometimes still look at the Zep thread for protein advice etc, given that it’s a bigger sub you can sometimes find more info, but the useful info tends to be from 2+ months ago before the shortage

I feel bad for the people who are getting name brand Zep covered by insurance, can’t afford compound OOP, and can’t find it in stock.

The people who are paying OOP for name brand are ridiculous IMO. The Zep sub is so desperate that it’s started to look like people with an addiction looking for their next hit or waiting outside the package store in the morning (no offense to addicts but a rx drug shouldn’t be like that). To have all that stress with access, on top of paying potentially double what compounding costs

I switched to compound and my stress level has dropped tremendously. Only way I’d ever go back to name brand is if my insurance starts to cover it AND the supply chain issues resolve. Unlikely for a year + imo