EMTs and Blood

callalily61 said:

I'm nearly done, yay! And I'm now wallowing in ignorance again. Please help.

1. MC has a 12-inch knife slash on her ribs from a very sharp switchblade. Ribs untouched, but bled a lot because after that gash, she continued to fight off attacker #1. MC also has cuts on both palms, because she missed grabbing attacker's wrists after 1st slash and grabbed blade instead.

What will EMTs do? Put butterfly bandages on all 3 wounds just to get her to the hospital? More, like an IV, or would that be solely the ER's job? I won't be too fancy here. Gauze over the wounds, soaked with sterile water (local hospital protocol), and a quick wrap around the hands. If I could do a wrap around the ribs, that's how I'd go there. Quick, easy, and painless to remove at the hospital. Would depend on a lot of things whether an IV would be started. Is patient going into shock? This would be the first ambulance, and we would be thinking about whether this patient has a potential of crashing on us.

2. MC first hit attacker #2's nose with heel of hand and fractured it. Then when he fell off her, she punched it full-on, breaking it.

What will EMTs do? Pack nose with gauze suppositories to slow bleeding so they can get him to ER or set it? Would he go in ambulance with MC or would cops take him (he'll be handcuffed)? I'd use a second ambulance. Ice pack for the nose, cuffed to the cot, with a police officer to keep us company. If I annoyed me, then he can go with the police. I wouldn't worry about stopping the bleeding, as the blood loss isn't likely to be significant. Patient is not going to let me do a whole lot with his nose.

3. Knife-wielder is dead (MC's boss shot her). Would MC have to ride in ambulance with dead body or would coroner be called and body go in "meat wagon"? (Can you tell I watch film noir?) This guy wouldn't go for quite a while. Police would have to do an investigation, and would keep him in place for quite a while. He'd travel in a hearse.

Thank you! (I'm cool with stitches vs. glue for wounds in the hospital--I work with nurses.)

Click to expand...

Former EMT and Captain, Webster Fire Department, Volunteer.

Best of luck,

Jim Clark-Dawe

Christmas Eve and you're still trying to murder someone.

Lordy, I love you, woman.

Actually, depends oin your setting whether your char will get EMTs or PMs. Bigger the city, better trained and equipped folks usu. If it happens in Small Town, then the above scenario not bad, save the sterile water. (Hypotonic sol'n not a good idea.) If the medic can start a line on someone with a 12" rib slash, then the medic will, and it will be a large gauge needle, say 14 g. (looks/feels like a large nail). Sol'n will be Ringer's or saline, whichever they carry, not the weak sugar, D5W, but it will be on a slight drip with a stable pt, not running full open and not bothering to have used blood tubing for a venoset.

1. MC has a 12-inch knife slash on her ribs from a very sharp switchblade. Ribs untouched, but bled a lot because after that gash, she continued to fight off attacker #1. MC also has cuts on both palms, because she missed grabbing attacker's wrists after 1st slash and grabbed blade instead.

How long will it take help to get to MC? If she goes in shock they'd give her fluids, pack wounds and hie her off to the closest hospital. If there's a run on accidents they may have to take her to a hospital further away, also certain EMT's only work for certain hospitals which cold increase the assistance time for fuller medical treatment.

2. MC first hit attacker #2's nose with heel of hand and fractured it. Then when he fell off her, she punched it full-on, breaking it.

If you hit the nose hard enough you can drive the vomer bone into the brain. Attacker will then have an appointment in the morgue. Most nose shots will rupture oodles of blood vessels, really hard ones will break the bone at the tip before the ball of the nose. Assuming baddie is alive & bleeding, he'd be packed, and set up so that he wouldn't choke on the blood flowing back into his throat. At the hosp. bleeding would be cauterized, nose bone reset. 2 black eyes wold result of ancilliary broken blood vessels.

3. Knife-wielder is dead (MC's boss shot her). Would MC have to ride in ambulance with dead body or would coroner be called and body go in "meat wagon"?

Anyone dead goes in the coroner's wagon. No ride-alongs in those. MC & boss would be asked for statements from the police. Autopsy would determine time, cause of death, stance of deceased, struggles if any, intoxicants in blood, distance from the gun, etc.