February 2008 - Volunteer Ambulance Officers Association of

Volunteer Ambulance Officers Association of Tasmania Incorporated
Vol 12 No 3 - February 2008
Tasmanian Ambulance Volunteer Handbook
The TAS has asked the University Department of Rural Health (UDRH) to update the Volunteer
Ambulance Officer Handbook. It is hoped that the development of this resource will assist in the retention
and recruitment of volunteer ambulance officers (VAOs).
Suzanne Crowley from the UDRH is the person undertaking this project. She is currently reviewing the
existing Procedures Manual for Volunteer Ambulance Officers. This includes reviewing its content, finding out
what is out of date or no longer relevant, and designing a format for the Handbook that will be easy to access
on the job. The current draft includes sections as follows:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
About the TAS
Recruitment (How to apply, selection and probation)
The Job (What you need to know as a VAO)
Health and Safety issues
The Legal framework in which the VAO operates
Discipline
Policies and Procedures (TAS and State government)
Costs and Expenses (what can be claimed for and how)
Recognition of Service
Documents and Forms (relating to the position of VAO)
So far Suzanne has met and corresponded with a number of individuals connected to the VAOs. Some
people have already provided feedback on the old Manual. However, Suzanne would also like to hear from
anyone who would like to comment on what, in the Manual they have found invaluable or what they would
like to see the new Handbook contain.
The Handbook template will be completed at the end of March. If you would like to contact Suzanne with
any suggestions regarding the Handbook’s format, content or any other considerations, her details are as
follows:
Suzanne Crowley
UDRH
Tel: (03) 6226 7374
Email: Suzanne.Crowley@utas.edu.au
IN THIS EDITION ......
PHIL’S THOUGHT - Medical TV Shows
2 EDDIE KEEN - memories of a much loved colleague
KWIK KWIZ / WHAT IS IT?
4 WAYNE McCRAE - farewell to Macca
10
RAMBLINGS FROM THE CENTRE - the President
5 CONFESSIONS OF A TRIBAL ELDER
13
TRAINING NEWS - components of Certificate IV
6 MOSTLY MEDICAL PUZZLE / WORD SEARCH
15
FIRST RESPONSE - FEBRUARY 2008 -
8
T
his article is about the way medical procedures
are shown in TV programmes. I know
Margaret, my better half, usually makes some
comment at the way it is portrayed, and the worst thing
seems to be someone attempting CPR. In most shows the
person who is attempting to perform CPR does not put
enough pressure on the personʹs chest, most only seem to
put their hands on the patientʹs chest and move their
elbows up and down. Perhaps if they practised on a
manikin they would realise how hard it is.
As for the air bag that seems to go on nearly every
patient, when was the last time you saw one with any air in
the bag? The BBC police drama The Bill is a shocker in this
respect. Being a police drama there are plenty of assaults
and accidents, but the police only need a brief touch of a
person’s neck to find a pulse; when the ambo crew arrive
they never say a word and always seem to be carrying a
red blanket, Marg calls it the magic blanket. As in
other television shows, the ambulance always
sounds the sirens when driving off; when was
the last time you used your sirens leaving a
scene?
So does all this give the viewer a false impression of
what to expect when you are admitted to hospital, and,
you might ask, does it matter? Well, viewers do notice
what they see.
In one instance some boys were playing, one boy
named Tyler Williamson was four metres above the
ground swinging on a rope when it broke and he fell, his
head hitting a rock. His mate Ryan Burke ran over and saw
that Tylerʹs head was partly scalped. With no first-aid
training Ryan replaced the flesh, pulled off his shirt and
pressed it on the wound. Tyler later recovered, he had a
fractured neck and scalp, but his friendʹs quick action had
saved the day. When asked later Ryan said he had seen the
same thing on a medical show.
And a Dutch viewer, who had a medical problem that
his doctor was not able to pin down, saw a patient in
Flying Doctors with the same symptoms. When
tested by his doctor he was found to have a gastrointestinal complaint, the same as the person in the
programme. Melbourne nurse Barbara Datson,
who oversees the medical stories on Flying
Doctors, was delighted to hear this story, she
"...but the police
added that she tries to make it as realistic as
only need a brief
possible.
Anyone coming out of a coma in these
shows can usually manage to wake up and feel
normal at once, in one episode a woman in a
Researching for this article I was amused by
touch of a
coma for four years wakes up and leaps out of
some of the tricks used in the medical
bed, normally it would be months before she
person’s neck
programmes. When someone is cut they love to
could walk. After major surgery most patients
show blood spurting out in the surgery. The
to find a pulse."
make a instant recovery, and I notice that after
studio have been know to use shaved pig skin
someone has been in a accident they are soon
with balloons full of blood underneath, as soon
sitting up in bed with just a piece of plaster on,
as they are cut with a scalpel the blood spurts out.
usually just over the eye, and are able to converse
The blood can be made of a detergent or, if a thicker
with no effort.
blood is required, it can be made of a mixture of corn
In hospital dramas things are not much better,
notably in the number of patients that require CPR and the
success rate. A recent study of medical programmes in
America showed a vast number of cardiac events requiring
resuscitation in patients of all ages, the young represented
65% of those given cardiopulmonary resuscitation,
whereas in reality cardiac arrests are much more common
in the elderly. And 75% survived the immediate arrest and
67% appeared to have survived to be sent home, these
rates are much higher than the average. The outcome of
resuscitation is also portrayed as a full recovery or death,
while in fact many of those who survive cardiac arrest
have some disability. Of 97 arrests shown on television,
only one survivor had a disability. In real life it is not
always appropriate to distress a person who is dying,
perhaps in the last few days of life, by discussing
attempted resuscitation when clearly CPR would not be
successful.
Another niggle is the use of electric ʹpaddles’ when
everyone is told to “stand clear” after assessing the charge
to give the patient. In true life the paddles will not work on
anyone who has flat-lined (asystole).
2 - FIRST RESPONSE - FEBRUARY 2008
syrup and red colouring. For vomit anything in the
frozen section of the supermarket seems to work, Billy
Connelly the comedian always talked about seeing diced
carrots in his vomit, even though he said he had never
eaten any in his life.
I suppose that in the end it all comes down to the
programme having a dramatic effect, and in a choice
between medical procedure and drama the entertainment
will always take first place. With TV programmes in
Australia the only one that is actually real is RPA. At least
you see how bad a patient can look after an operation, and
it’s very encouraging to see how people cope with having
bad news told to them, and their attitude after an
operation.
Cheers - Phil Dennis
Source:
The Age newspaper
www.google.com
ON MY SOAPBOX
This edition of First Response includes a number of
farewells: Ted Preshaw (Superintendent Southern Region)
and Des Lane (North west VAO Clinical Instructor) have
both retired from the Service and we wish them all the best
for the future.
We also mourn the loss of two colleagues - Triabunna
VAO Eddie Keen and Paramedic Wayne McCrae, both of
whom will be sadly missed. Clearly Eddie was a very
popular and respected volunteer on the east coast, it also
sounds as though he was quite a character. Wayne ʺMaccaʺ
McCrae was a much respected Paramedic in the northern
region. I was always so impressed with his ʹlaid backʹ style
- so reassuring when I felt far from relaxed - and the
respect with which he treated everyone, we were never
ʹjust volunteersʹ to Macca. In his eulogy, Grant referred to
Maccaʹs willingness to impart knowledge and I recall a
memorable training session on Paediatrics back in the days
when Rossarden still had an ambulance service. On behalf
of the ʹAngelsʹ in Avoca I can say that we were all very
saddened to hear the news about Macca.
Getting back to housekeeping matters - as you should be
aware, our new financial year started last October and
membership reminders were sent to everyone; with second
reminders going to some members. Please note that this
will be the final First Response for people who have still not
renewed their membership.
WITH THE WARM WEATHER UPON
US, TAKE CARE WHEN SWIMMING
IN THE SEA, CREEKS AND
WATERHOLES.
Newsletters like this one help to keep the
community informed and strong, I’m proud
to be able to assist with the production
of this newsletter.
Please contact my office if I
can assist you in any way
53B Main Road
58A High Street
P.O. Box 50,
P.O. Box 271
Perth 7300
New Norfolk 7140
Phone: 6398 1115 Phone: 6261 3366
Fax: 6398 1120
Fax: 6261 1030
Toll Free Call: 1300 132 689
Email: D.Adams.MP@aph.gov.au
Written and Authorised by Dick Adams, 53B Main Road, Perth, Tas. 7300
We have certainly been busy at Avoca, partly due to the
influx of holiday makers travelling to and
from the east coast. I do hope 2008 has
started well for everyone.
Bye for now,
Margaret
Port Sorell Car
Here is a photo of the car purchased for the Port Sorell
First Response Unit and funded by Port Sorell Lions Club
& TAS.
Coordinator Rob Lee reports: ʺWe are very proud of it
and I think you will be pleased with the look. It has a boot
full of gear and is much better than using own cars, and
we have more gear than before. I picked the car up from
Burnie on Saturday morning so it is fresh off the press for
you. We have also had Les Bain the Ambulance Volunteer
Instructor for NW prepare a course for 1st Response Unit
which is very good and we are working through it; this is
another first.ʺ
7/12/07
Dear Marg,
Please pass on my appreciation for the support given to
me over the past 5 years by the Association. I wish to
acknowledge the time and effort given freely by our
Volunteers within the Tasmanian Ambulance Service, what
a great bunch of people you are.
When I reflect back to starting as the Volunteer Clinical
Instructor, for the North and North West Regions, it was
with some trepidation. Sure, I wanted the job but it was a
little confronting as part of the job took me out of my
region and into towns such as Beaconsfield, Avoca, St
Mary’s and of course Flinders Island. I need not have
worried! The ability of country people to make you feel at
ease never ceases to amaze me. I am now fortunate to have
some wonderful new acquaintances throughout Northern
Tasmania as a result of the training position.
May I take this opportunity to wish each of the
Association Members a fulfilling and (not too merry)
Christmas and New Year.
I retire knowing that your Association will go on to
much bigger and better things, all the best for the future.
Miss being part of it!
Thanks guys,
Cheers, Des Lane
FIRST RESPONSE - FEBRUARY 2008 - 3
Farewell & Thanks to
TED PRESHAW
In this edition we farewell Ted
Preshaw who has retired after 44
years involvement with ambulance
service provision in Tasmania. Ted
commenced with St John when it ran the Ambulance service and then transferred across to the Ambulance Board of
Southern Tasmania. He worked for many years at New
Norfolk where he was the first Branch Station Officer and
was later appointed Deputy Superintendent of Hobart and
subsequently Superintendent. Over the years Ted has relieved in Launceston and Burnie; he was amongst the first
Tasmanians to do the ALS course.
On behalf of the VAOAT I would like to thank Ted for
his strong support of the Association over the years. His
regular attendance at our meetings has allowed us to raise
issues of concern and get answers, usually immediately.
Ted may have been a paid for his work in TAS, but when
he has come to our meetings it has been in his own time
and at the expense of time spent with his family, to whom
we also say thank you.
Goodbye & good luck Ted, enjoy your retirement and
come back to see us whenever you have time.
Marg Dennis
First on the Scene
VAOs who attended the 2006 Seminar will no doubt
remember Steve Dashwood, who came over from Victoria
to talk about his experiences as a volunteer seeking paid
employment as an ambo. Steve, an Associate member of
the VAOAT and regular reader of First Response, recently
made the news when he was first on the scene at an RTA.
DINNERTIME DILEMMAS
1/ You are sitting in a steak house enjoying a quiet meal on
your night off when you notice a man a few tables away
performing a bizarre pantomime. His mouth is wide open
and he seems to be trying to talk, but he is completely
silent. His complexion is becoming an alarming shade of
blue, and he appears to be struggling. Then he collapses to
the floor. The most likely cause of his behavior is:
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
He has had a heart attack.
He has suffered a spontaneous pneumothorax.
He found a cockroach in his coleslaw.
He is having an epileptic seizure.
He choked on a piece of meat.
2/ The following week, again on your night off, you are
dining at an elegant seafood restaurant. Your companion
has just finished her shrimp cocktail when she begins
complaining of itching. You notice that her eyes look
rather puffy, and her voice is becoming quite hoarse. She is
most likely suffering from:
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
A heart attack
A severe allergic reaction (anaphylaxis)
Tonsillitis
Choking on a piece of shrimp
Flea bites
Answers on page 16
WHAT IS IT?
Hereʹs the story: A mother was seriously injured and
her baby left dangling inside their vehicle when it rolled in
central Albury yesterday.
Insp John Wadsworth, of Albury police, said ʺA Toyota
Hilux was travelling south on Smollett Street, and it appears the vehicle has gone through a green light,ʺ he said.
ʺAt this time, a silver Honda station wagon, travelling
west, has, it would appear, proceeded through on a red
light and has hit the passenger side of the Hilux, causing
the Hilux to roll onto its roof.ʺ
Kapooka nurse Steve Dashwood was the first at the
scene. ʺI was just on my way home and I thought Iʹd stop
and help,ʺ he said. ʺThe mum was half hanging out the car
and we managed to get her out, just through the side window. The bub was still hanging upside down and the dad
managed to come around and get her out.ʺ
Mr Dashwood helped ambulance officers secure the
female passenger onto the stretcher and into the ambulance. The woman was flown to the Alfred Hospital with
back injuries; the baby and two men in the vehicle suffered
minor injuries in the collision.
4 - FIRST RESPONSE - FEBRUARY 2008
What does this picture depict?
Answer on Page 16
Walking can add minutes to your life.
This enables you at 85 years of
age to spend an additional
5 months in a nursing home
at $5000 per month.
There is a saying which you may be aware of ‘Just
when you thought it’s safe, I’m back’.
Well this has occurred, thanks to the support of
volunteer ambulance officers in Tasmania and again giving
me the responsibility of representing this group for another
twelve months. Thank you for your continued support.
The number of members attending the annual general
meeting was on the low side, but with volunteer’s
commitments to rosters, families and other activities it’s
not always easy to attend meetings. I urge you to consider
attending future meetings because it’s a great time to catch
up and chat, meet other volunteers who have similar
problems or achievements which they want to share and
perhaps there could be a surprise. Thank you to those
members who nominated and were successful in joining
the committee – we look forward to another exciting year.
At the last meeting members recognised the
involvement of Marg and Phil Dennis to the VAOAT by
granting them life membership. Grant Lennox spoke of
someone or something being a ‘glue sticker’, which holds
things together and Marg has amply demonstrated this by
her involvement with the VAOAT as its foundation
secretary.
Marg has continued in this job until the annual general
meeting when she said – ‘time has come’. Marg has not
only kept us ‘glued together’, but continues to be a listener,
recorder and doer. Marg was very grateful for the award
and thanked everyone for the life membership.
Phil Dennis has given an incredible amount of ‘free’
service to our association by way of assisting with
bookkeeping, involvement with the website, a regular
contributor to First Response publication and providing
proof reading, printing, stapling and envelope stuffing for
the magazine. Unfortunately Phil didn’t make the
presentation, but Marg was going to hold a presentation
ceremony at home.
It was a pleasure to visit the Port Sorell First Response
Group for the official handover of their vehicle, which the
VAOAT supported by assisting with the purchase of the
car. Robert Lee and his eighteen active volunteers were
smiling broadly as they showed off the car to Port Sorell
Lions Club members, TAS personnel and family and
friends. During the first twelve months in excess of 10,000
hours on call roster has been clocked up and they have
attended eleven cases from September to November. The
vehicle keys were handed from the President of Port Sorell
Lions Club to me and onto Grant Lennox and finally to
Robert Lee. Each person spoke of their organisationʹs
involvement in the process of the vehicle purchase, so this
handing over of the keys was symbolic of the purchasing
process.
The Lions Club provide substantial funds, the VAOAT
accepted responsibility of being the owners, TAS fitted out
the car and the volunteers are the operators. Paul Templar
and Norrie Hayes have overseen the establishment of the
unit and the vehicle purchase. A training package for first
response units has been developed covering nine topics
including cardiac arrest, burns, allergies, haemorrhage,
and fractures.
Des Lane – volunteer educator with TAS has resigned
from the service. Des has provided countless hours of
training to many volunteers and VAOAT appreciates this
amazing amount of work.
Ambulance 20/20 continues to inform Tasmanian
communities that the three organisations are opposed to a
user pay system for gaining increased revenue for the
ambulance service. Recently in a Hobart shopping centre
over 400 people signed the petition calling on the State
Government not to introduce the user pay fee, but
introduce an ambulance levy.
The VAOAT continually grows and is recognised as the
key consulting body for ALL volunteer ambulance officers
in Tasmania. This recognition and strength comes about by
many people continually ‘putting in’ time, knowledge,
skills and supporting their salaried ambulance officers and
providing pre–hospital care to the population of Tasmania.
People do not change with the times: they change the times.
-
P. K. Shaw
Wayne Doran
President - VAOAT
You Know Youʹre In An Australian Summer When…
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
The best parking place is determined by shade instead
of distance.
Hot water now comes out of both taps.
You learn that a seat belt buckle makes a pretty good
branding iron.
The temperature drops below 30C and you feel chilly.
You find that it only takes 2 fingers to steer your car.
You find out that the local pool has closed two lanes
because of water restrictions.
You discover that you can get sunburned through your
car window.
You develop a fear of metal car door handles.
Your biggest bicycle wreck fear is, ʺWhat if I get
knocked out and end up lying on the pavement and
cook to death?ʺ
You realise that asphalt has a liquid state.
Farmers are feeding their chickens crushed ice to keep
them from laying hard-boiled eggs.
The cows are giving evaporated milk.
- from Steve Dashwood
FIRST RESPONSE - FEBRUARY 2008 - 5
Training News
The ambulance has been offering a new protocol based training system that complies with the Vocational Education
and Training Sector and when complete offers a Certificate IV in Basic Ambulance Care qualification that is recognised
throughout Australia. This equates to TAS Level 3 Volunteer Ambulance Officer. In the past month the final module has
been completed and now is available. The newer qualified Level 2 will be able to undertake the final three packages that
will enable them to gain this qualification.
Schools sector
Vocational Education & Training sector
Higher Education sector
Doctoral degree
Masters Degree
Graduate Diploma
Graduate Certificate
Bachelor Degree
Advanced Diploma
Advanced Diploma
Diploma
Diploma
Certificate 1V
Certificate 111
Senior Secondary
Certificate 11
Certificate of Education
Certificate 1
For the old hands (Level 2s) we have some extra units that was not apart of their training that need to be completed to
gain this accreditation. These are:
SESSION
Modules are:
Hours
Current Level 2 accreditation
Driver Education Day 1 & Day 2
Level 3 Certificate IV
in basic Ambulance Care
16
OH & S
2
2
Cardiac Arrest with AED
3
2
MCI
4
2
Electronic Communications
5
2
Interpersonal Comms
6
3 nominal
Law and Ethics
7
2 nominal
Working With Culturally Diverse Patients (Elective)
7
3 nominal
Some of these modules may have been completed by current level 2 officers and certificate of attainment issued. These
will be recognised by TAS as a part of the components to make up the requirements in this qualification.
Continued on page 7
6 - FIRST RESPONSE - FEBRUARY 2008
Training News
Listed below are all the modules that make up the Certificate IV in Basic Ambulance Care course:
LEVEL
SESSION
Modules are:
Level 1 modules
Hours
Orientation & ESW attended
1
14
Manutention
1
2
MANUALS
E & T & logbook (1-3 months)
RECEIVED:
Driver Education
OH&S
OH & S
2
2
E. COMMS
Cardiac Arrest
3
2
CS1
Cardiac Arrest with AED
3
2
CS2
MCI
4
2
CP
Electronic Communications
5
2
Level 2 modules
Basic Support
6
2
Basic Trauma Life Support
7
8
Report Writing
8
2
Pain Relief
9
2
Chest Pain
10
2
Shortness of Breath
11
2
Decreased SOC
12
2
Trauma other than BTLS
13
2
Allergies Bites & Stings
14
2
Maternity
15
2
Hypothermia
16
2
Scene Assessment and Control
17
2
Interpersonal Comms
18
3 nominal
Law and Ethics
19
2 nominal
Working With Culturally Diverse Patients (Elective)
20
3 nominal
Level 3 Certificate IV
in basic Ambulance Care
16
The final three components are self directed with manuals available through the Volunteer Clinical Instructors who
will order them. The hours estimated to complete the units are nominal and further time may be needed to complete the
assignment. On completion, a Certificate IV In Basic Ambulance Care will be issued by the Tasmanian Ambulance Service
Clinical Practice and Education Unit.
Ian Moyle
A BIG thank you to Macquarie Builders for their
generous donation of $1,200.00, for the purchase of
banner and polar-fleece vests, which will be used to
promote the role of VAOs. Well done to Greg Kunkler
for securing this donation and to Jono ʺStickermanʺ
Hayes who made the banner for us.
FIRST RESPONSE - FEBRUARY 2008 - 7
Edward (Eddie, Ed) Stuart Kean
- part of the eulogy delivered by Grant Lennox at the funeral of the
much loved and respected Triabunna VAO
I am not here today to just mourn Eddie
Kean’s passing and show the respect the
Tasmanian Ambulance Service had for him.
I regard it as an honour to stand here today
to celebrate his life, and his wonderful
contribution to this community, which is
something we should cherish and celebrate and
be extraordinarily thankful for.
Each and every one of us here today and the
many others who are not here who benefited
from his good work and his deep caring for his fellow man,
all have the highest of regard of Eddie for his willingness
to put in and serve his community when it needed him
most.
Eddie was a good man, an ordinary man but he made
an extraordinary contribution. He was made up of a bit of
Slim Dusty – genuine, dinky di, true blue Aussie,
everlastingly good. He was shorter than Chips Rafferty but
just as dry with his sense of humour. He also had more
than a bit of Chad Morgan thrown in to his character to
add extra spice and humour to the most difficult of
situations to help others cope.
Eddie was not the sort of person to stand out in the
crowd, he would often be one of the last to join in
wandering in with his hands in his pockets with a slow
drawling voice saying, “sorry …. I’ve just been feeding the
pigs … or I just had to pop in to see how Mrs X was – she
hasn’t been well”
While he may not have stood out in the crowd you can
be dam sure when the crowd had all gone home to rest
Eddie was ready at the drop of a hat to get out of bed or
drop everything he was doing to go off at any hour of the
day or night to deal with a medical emergency. So he was
always “Ready Eddie”.
Eddie did not do too many things at a fast pace – even
talking was at the pace of a slow drawl – and work was at
a steady pace, never rushed. He drove his car very slowlyprobably if anything Buck might have needed him to tell
him to speed up to let other motorists go about their life at
a faster pace.
Eddie’s son Bryan said the only time his Dad did get a
move on was to respond to an ambulance call-out and it
gave the family a chuckle or two when he had to get out of
natural slow crawl and franticly dry himself quickly when
a call out came in just after he got in the bath.
Ambulance cases often can and do arise when it is the
most inconvenient time. Eddie often had his much loved
kids or grandkids with him when his pager went off and
he had to quickly drop them off near home and get to the
station. Sometimes he would be out feeding the pigs or had
just killed a couple of lambs, or he was having car trouble.
Tony Buckingham remembers he had two recently
killed sheep in his car when one emergency came in on the
pager and he could not keep his eyes on the road as he was
8 - FIRST RESPONSE - FEBRUARY 2008
desperately looking for a shady tree to bag and
hang them under to set while he went off on a
case because he knew he might be gone for
hours.
In the ambulance service our staff use
disposable gloves to protect themselves from
picking anything up from patients - it could be
anything from hepatitis to an infection. In
Eddie’s case it was not unusual for him to come
straight to a scene with either sheep’s or pigʹs
blood on his hands or even grease or oil from where he
had been tinkering with his car.
So in Eddie’s case our gloves were to protect the patient
– not to protect Eddie lest the patient get a free grease and
oil change while he treated them or some pig or sheep’s
blood to mix with their own.
In the ambulance service Eddie was anything but slow.
In fact he is on record of being one of the fastest operators –
if not consistently the fastest. I expect you all know that
wasn’t from speeding as he had no lead foot.
How that comes about is that we have what we call
status buttons in the front of the ambulance which when
pressed send a radio signal to the computer in Hobart and
time stamps the message to the hundredth of a second so
we know where crews are located. These status buttons
give us our legal record of our response times.
There is a button to press to say you have left to go on
the case, one to press when you arrive at the scene, another
when you leave the scene, one when you arrive at hospital
and a signal for when you are clear for the next case.
In Eddie’s case until he had his cataracts done his short
sightedness meant he consistently pressed the wrong
buttons so he was regularly recorded as having arriving at
an accident scene before he had even left the station. Those
records still stand
He was a real Steadie Eddie in more ways than one as
he the most dependable and steady of volunteers – always
outwardly calm despite the carnage around him at an
accident scene, always a calming influence on patients
when they were injured, ill or distressed. It was always
reassuring to people at an accident scene to see a very
steady Eddie bring calmness and order to a scene and go
about doing what he had to do.
Underneath he may have been paddling as fast as a
duck on a pond but on the surface he always seemed to be
calm and steady and reassuring.
The very steady Eddie gave enormous support to a lot
of people when they were ill, often terminally ill, or
recuperating. He visited them, sitting with them, often for
hours giving support. He was a warm, friendly and
reassuring presence to a lot of patients but still made time
to also be there for his kids and grandkids.
(Continued on page 9)
(Continued from page 8)
It did not have to be an emergency for people to seek
out Eddie. They popped over to see him to have a look at
this injury or to bandage something up so some called him
Dr Ed. Dr Naidoo had a lot of respect for him as well.
Eddie’s support to others also extended to his fellow
volunteers who are a very close-knit group working
together as a team, often in very difficult circumstances.
The team do well in crisis not just because of their training
and the strength of their desire to put their hours and
hours of training into effect when needed. They perform
well because they are a true team and Eddie was a very
very strong link in this team who serve this community so
well.
It is sometimes incredibly hard working in the
ambulance service in a rural area. You know such a high
proportion of the patients you treat at the most difficult of
times – they can be members of your own family or close
friends or neighbours or workmates so that adds to the
challenge.
Importantly too though it adds to the reward and
Eddie got a lot of personal and very deep reward from
helping others that he knew, from seeing them up and
about again after a mishap or an illness. I am sure Eddie’s
heart swelled with pride when he got the simplest of
thanks from someone he had helped though an emergency.
His level of pride must have nearly exploded his chest
and popped his shirt buttons when he was once involved
in delivering two babies in one day. He looked nothing like
a midwife and he used terms afterwards like “she dropped
a pup” but there are a couple of youngsters who owe him a
very big thanks for being there at the start of their life –
whether that was on the Buckland Strait or elsewhere.
The much-deserved recognition he received through
the Australia Day award was not the sort of accolade Eddie
sought but it was greatly deserved.
His quiet modesty meant he was never going to be a
person who pushed for recognition. This modesty about
the extent of his contribution to his community was one of
his endearing features – not just to his family and friends
but to his workmates, to his fellow volunteers and the
whole community.
We should not underestimate the sacrifices Eddie’s
family made to enable him to serve the community so well
for so long. His kids Bryan, Rachael, Erin, Paul and Bianca
all knew and understood that as much as he loved them all
– when an emergency arose he had to drop everything
and go because he was needed. Bryan recalls the only
chance he got to go to the local footy was when his dad
was covering the game with the ambulance.
In emergency services some workers seem to attract
more cases when they are rostered on duty than others and
when Buck first came to town he thought Eddie was jinxed
as he always seemed to be on call when the cases arose. It
wasn’t until he started counting the number of ambulance
volunteers at some scenes that he realised that Eddie did
not have to be on call to respond - he always came along to
help.
Neither his fellow volunteers nor his workmates ever
saw him in a bad mood – he was even tempered and
always ready with a dry comment to cut the ice.
I think Eddie would have liked me to thank the mill –
his employer Gunns and other owners, before that TPFH
for the support they gave him in releasing him from work
to go and serve this community – “good on em” he would
like me to say.
His workmates, particularly those he had worked with
for 30 years – held him in great esteem – they saw him as
the solid worker, the good friend, the listener, the practical
joker and the constant presence – but he was the one who
had to drop what he was doing whenever his pager went
off and they were left wondering what case he was going
on.
If he went through a tough period of going to fatal
accidents he even took their good natured ribbing when
they called him “the undertaker”. Rodger Evans recalls
that after a bad run with three cardiac cases they took to
Royal Hobart never returning from hospital they were
transporting the local reverend with a heart condition. As
Rodger drove he heard Eddie saying to the reverend
“you’d better pull your socks up reverend, the last three
we have taken to Hobart haven’t come back”.
Rodger heard the reverend have a good chuckle and
then say “I think I’ll have to convert you Edward”.
By the way he came back so Eddie and the reverend’s
luck turned.
To a man everyone at the mill held him in high regard
both at work and for what he did for this community.
On TV on Who Wants to be a Millionaire you get to
phone a friend when you need help.
In Triabunna Eddie was the person who called you to
offer help before you ever asked – not the other way
around. When this town gets to say how he was respected
we would all say “Lock in “A” thanks Eddie – you did a
great job and we will miss you more than we can ever put
into words.
I think Eddie’s family should take pride in what he
contributed to this town and this community.
Eddie may not have been paid for the thousands of
hours he volunteered but that does not make what he did
worthless – quite the opposite – what he gave to this
community was priceless.
Rest in peace mate from all of us here and the many
you have helped over your life’s journey and special
thanks to your family for their support allowing you to
serve so us all so well.
Grant Lennox
CEO
Tasmanian Ambulance Service
FIRST RESPONSE - FEBRUARY 2008 - 9
Wayne John (Macca) McCrae
- part of the eulogy delivered by Grant Lennox at the funeral of our
much loved and respected colleague
I am not here today to just mourn Wayne’s
passing and show the respect the Tasmanian
Ambulance Service had for him. I regard it as
an honour to stand here today to celebrate
Wayne’s (or Macca as we know him) life, and
his wonderful contribution to the Tasmanian
community.
He served the public on the west coast,
throughout the northern region and to all the
outlying areas of the state served by the air
ambulance including the Bass Strait islands, the east coast
and the west and north west. Macca’s life and his
contribution to the Tasmanian community is something we
should cherish, celebrate, & be extraordinarily thankful for.
Many thousands who are not here have benefited from his
good work, his skills & his deep caring for his fellow man.
Wayne was a very good man, but a quiet man. He was
a deep thinker, a methodical and meticulous planner, a
perfectionist, a real problem solver, and a person who was
thoughtful, dependable, and considerate of others. Above
all, he was highly respected. No one had a bad word to
say about Macca and he never said a bad word about
others - he might think that some people’s actions at times
were below standard but he looked for good in people and
criticised their actions not them as a person.
After commencing his career with Metropolitan
Ambulance Service Melbourne during the mid 70’s, Macca
moved to Tasmania and commenced as a volunteer with
the then Northern District Ambulance Board before taking
up a permanent position as Branch Station Officer at
Zeehan, coming straight from the big smoke of Melbourne.
He fitted right in because he was a no nonsense, straight
talking person - seen by everybody for what he was - a true
professional and a team player who valued everybody’s
contribution no matter how small it was. He never belittled
anyone or talked down to them.
He was never ever a whinger. No matter how bad a
road or air ambulance shift was he never complained - he
just got on with the job, served the patients, and supported
his fellow workers whether they were students, volunteer
ambulance officers, fellow paramedics, pilots of the Royal
Flying Doctor Service or medical staff from LGH.
Dave Swiggs recalls one shift where they did 8 or 9
sectors doing flight legs from Launceston to Hobart to pick
up a critical patient taking them to Adelaide - then off to
Essendon to pick up a patient to bring back to Tassie. Off
back to Launceston - down to Hobart with another patient
- then back to Launceston. And so the shift went on with
not so much the slightest complaint from Macca - forget
meal breaks, forget fatigue - these patients needed him so
he got the jobs done by chalking up thousands of miles.
Working on the air ambulance for so long and doing
branch station relief at various stations he knew the state
10 - FIRST RESPONSE - FEBRUARY 2008
very well indeed and he also knew the rural
ambulance volunteers, the rural doctors and
nurses and the aircraft refuellers right around
the state. He valued what they all did and they
could all sense that he was the perfect
professional to work with.
He never talked down to anyone, he never
criticised and no matter how complex a case
was he developed a plan for how to deal with
the patient’s condition, doing as much on the
ground as he could before they got airborne.
All the pilots at the Royal Flying Doctor Service and
before that with Airlines of Tasmania (when they had the
air ambulance contract) knew they were working with a
professional in Macca. Seeing his name on the flight
manifest meant that no matter what occurred on the shift
you knew that there would be first rate care, no whinging,
no dramas, no cross words and a “can do” attitude to get
any job done, keeping the pilot updated at all times and
meticulous planning and decisive care to manage the
patients.
Wayne was a valued member of flight crew not just
because of his clinical skills and the fact that he was a great
bloke to work with - no matter what the situation. He took
a real interest in meteorology, air safety and aircraft
operations and in navigation. The aircraft engineer always
knew Macca was on the ball when he wanted a piece of
equipment looked at. He could interpret all the coded
information given by air traffic control in Melbourne or
elsewhere.
He could have played Chips Rafferty with his height
and his dry sense of humour - but the ponytail might have
cost him that part.
Talking of his dry sense of humour, he respected a
person he called God-otherwise known to us as Kevin
Sheedy the coach of Essendon AFL team - and as the air
ambulance flew over Windy Hill, he would call out “keep
up the good work boys”. His love of the Essendon team
gave him some good times.
I don’t want you to think there was a feminine side to
Macca because he had a ponytail for years - but there was
definitely more than a touch of the Mother Teresa in him such was his level of caring for others.
As a person who originally trained and worked in
engineering Macca’s caring nature probably made it an
inevitable thing, a natural extension of how deeply he
cared for others - that he would change careers to
ambulance and equip himself with the clinical skills to help
other people at times of medical crisis.
All who know Macca know he had skills in many fields
- from sailing to farming and welding, to investing on the
stock market to working on inventions - with one being a
(Continued on page 11)
(Continued from page 10)
hooker system for divers to use from their boats. He was
also an avid fisherman and loved his trips away with Nick
and Greg and others to Flinders Island or to the east coast.
He loved talking about catching fish, crays or abalone.
problem solving skills, his caring nature, his calmness
under pressure and his practical skills made him very good
at it.
Macca’s support to others also extended to his fellow
ambulance staff who are a very close-knit group working
together as a team, often in very difficult circumstances.
They perform well because they are a true team and Macca
was a very strong link in our team who serve this
community so well. We fondly recall the effort he put in to
help our late colleague Mark Mansfield get his fencing and
landscaping finished before he passed away.
He researched things and then developed his plan of
action. Mind you, he went the extra mile in research and
Webby remembers going with him to look at a new fridge.
Macca knew more about all the fridge’s technical
specifications than the salesman but still wasn’t sure so it
would measure up so he opted to rent the new fridge
before he purchased it to test whether it met the
performance expectations. Now that’s cool!
All students and volunteers spoke highly of Macca. He
could impart knowledge and was willing to do so.
Macca was not the sort of person to stand out in the
crowd. He wasn’t an attention seeker or a practical joker
or a joke teller. But when the chips were down, he was a
person you wanted alongside you. No matter how difficult
a situation was, nor how traumatic, and how much chaos
was around Macca would bring calmness and order,
quickly work out a plan and get the job done.
People outside of police and emergency services often
do not have that fullest appreciation of just what it is like
to have to go into an emergency situation and do the job
you have to do-to worry afterwards how the patient or
multiple patients have got on in surgery - the self
questioning of whether you had done everything right or
done enough when always you had given your all.
While he may not have stood out in the crowd you can
be dam sure when the crowd had all gone home to rest
Macca was planning what to do about an issue or problem.
A real difference though was that he always carried things
through whether it was:
Importantly too though it adds to the reward and
Macca got a lot of personal and very deep reward from
helping others and he took great pride in his work. Macca’s
quiet modesty meant he was never going to be a person
who pushed for recognition. This modesty was one of his
endearing features – not just to his family and friends but
also to his workmates, and the whole community.
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
working on an extended scope of practice for flight
paramedics
developing road rescue training standards
doing volunteer training
designing our 4 wheel drive interior layouts
doing advanced airway management training
learning then teaching advanced rope work or rock
climbing
working on the regional wilderness response policy
design work on the interior fit-out of the aircraft.
Macca did not do anything haphazardly – even talking
was a bit of a drawl – but he was the planner, the thinker,
the one who worked out a solution to the most complex
and difficult tasks. He was the one who always finished
what he started. He was both skilled and practical and
when you combine this with attention to detail and
planning skills, our Service had a real asset in Macca.
The ambulance service is a family with a lot of family
branches all sharing a common bond --a bond formed from
working together under the most stressful of circumstances
to help the community when they need us most. All
members of Macca’s ambulance family admired and
respected him as a person, as a skilled professional, as an
ultimate team player, as “a doer”, and as a rock solid
person you could depend on. He was a joy to work with.
He was a real rock of Gibraltar in more ways than one
as he the most dependable and steady of paramedics –
always outwardly calm despite the carnage around him at
an accident scene, always a calming influence on patient’s
when they were injured, ill or distressed.
It’s hard to say what attracted Macca to Ambulance
profession but the combination of his intelligence and
We should not underestimate the sacrifices Macca’s
family made to enable him to serve the community so well
for so long; his family in Tasmania and on the mainland
should take great pride in what he contributed to the
Tasmanian community.
His workmates never saw him in a bad mood – he was
always even tempered at work- and worked hard without
complaint. Workmates, particularly those he had worked
with for over 20 years – held him in great esteem – they
saw him as the solid worker, the good friend, the listener,
and the constant presence. To a man and woman everyone
in our service held Macca in high regard.
If they made a TV show about Macca’s work in
supporting rural and isolated health care workers with
their most difficult patients they would probably have to
call it “Thank God You’re Here” as to see his face appear
out of the door of the aircraft was a relief to those
struggling with a critical patient.
To paraphrase words from the song played every
Sunday on the ABC radio show- “Australia all over with
Macca” - in rural health care here in this state it could be
called – “Tasmania all over with Macca”- he picks us up when
we feel down- no matter where, no matter when - we’d wait all
week for Macca to help us some night or morning”.
Rest in peace mate from all of us here and the many
you have helped over your life’s journey.
- from Management and staff of the Tasmanian Ambulance
Service and colleagues with the Royal Flying Doctor Service and
Launceston General Hospital.
FIRST RESPONSE - FEBRUARY 2008 - 11
Volunteer Association 1966
About 1966 a Volunteer Association was formed in
Launceston at 12 York St., which was then HQ for the
Northern District Ambulance Board (Now Tasmanian
Ambulance Service) before moving to 450 Wellington St.
The association was formed because some volunteers
were not being treated fairly from management and staff of
the day, as some volunteers had white overalls some had
dress uniforms, others were not given days so they could
volunteer, some staff would not take a volley out with
them just because they didnʹt like them. There were many
more issues.
When the association was formed all Tasmanian
Volunteers were invited to join and about one third did,
but all Launceston and Beaconsfield volleys joined. The
association lasted for about 8-10 years.
Back in the sixties & seventies there were 3 types of
volunteers: Driver, 2nd Officer (road crew) and Radio
Operator. Volleys worked Monday to Friday afternoon &
night shifts, weekends mainly the horse racing, car racing,
Launceston show. The first crew out was the volunteers
then the staff officer; itʹs changed some what now.
Alas a lot of the original volleys have died but only a
few of us are left who can remember that far back. Some of
Launcestonʹs volleys were Ian Con (radio operator), Keith
Beams, Des Webber, Terry Gill, Neil Dine, Bob Barns,
Malcolm Murray, Ron Hinds & Peter Fisher.
The association had a badge, we have found one and as
soon as I can get it I will take a photo or scan it & send it.
Peter Fisher, Ex-volley Beaconsfield
Trea$urer'$ New$
All current financial members should have
received a receipt and membership card, my
apologies for the delay and thank you for your patience. I
have also sent out new VAOAT bumper stickers to current
members - newer members may have missed out and older
members are probably finding that their original sticker is
looking somewhat worse for wear.
Thanks to all who have renewed their membership and
to those who still havenʹt paid, itʹs never too late!!!
Extra bumper stickers are
available for $1 each - contact Marg Dennis, 4 Nevin
Street, Rossarden 7213
“Ritchie & Parker Alfred Green & Co are proud
to support the Volunteer Ambulance
Officers Association of Tasmania”
Employer
Recognition
Employers support our communities by allowing their
employees in emergency services to leave work when
necessary. Latest nominations are:
•
BICHENO DIVE CENTRE
...nominated by George Hudson (Bicheno)
•
MACQUARIE BUILDERS
...nominated by Greg Kunkler (Maydena/Bridgewater)
Does your employer get the ʺThumbs Upʺ?
… the VAOAT would like to hear from you so that we can
recognise your employer publicly with an Employer
Recognition Certificate issued by TAS, and a listing in
First Response & on the VAOAT website.
Please send details to Marg Dennis
Tel/fax: 6385 2147 or
Email: margaret.dennis@bigpond.com
BARRISTERS, SOLICITORS & TAX AGENT
Paul McShane
CHARTERED ACCOUNTANT
Small Business Services
GST & Income Tax Advice
BAS Preparation
10 Cameron Street, P.O. Box 184
Launceston, Tas. 7250
Telephone: (03) 6331 5233
Facsimile: (03) 6331 1325
Email: rpag@vision.net.au
12 - FIRST RESPONSE - FEBRUARY 2008
"Clear!"
Confessions of a Tribal Elder
...by David A. H. Newman
HOW MUCH TRUST ABOUT WHAT WHEN
“I Trust You,” means What? We imply: “Iʹd trust You
with my Life!” but that wouldnʹt extend to loaning you my
car – unless I knew you and your driving habits and
capacities very well – life, maybe; car, no. Yet we routinely
put our lives in the hands of various and sundry
professionals, experts, and advisors.
For example: your family practice doctor, nurse, first
responder, chiropractor, automobile mechanic, pharmacist,
police, fire-fighters, the military, coroner, funeral homes,
accountant, lawyer, electrician, plumber, clergy,
manufacturers of all kinds of products, food suppliers and
retailers, the regulators and standards-setters, inspectors,
spouse, kin, neighbors, everyone else on the roads, airline
pilots and maintenance crews, politicians and bureaucrats
(local, regional, national, and international), the media,
ethicists (who ponder on and judge the impossible tradeoffs of life and death and means) – and countless more.
The list is personal to each of us, and is almost infinite in
length and diversity. We live in deeply complex societies
and the wonder is they work at all.
Mostly, we take these things for granted. Sometimes, in
the hopefully rare extreme situations, we have no choice
but to trust. The in-between situations and conditions – we
give our trust with a grain or two of salt. Sometimes, if
there is time, and it is feasible, we may seek a second and a
third opinion. Trust is, ideally, well-informed consent; and
the onus is on each of us to be as well informed as we can
manage – in the circumstances. Your life and well-being
are ultimately in your own hands. Thatʹs an awesome
responsibility.
Life decisions are seldom simple yes-no choices. We
have to make trade-offs among imperfect possibilities in
conditions of considerable uncertainty -- we seldom have
complete and completely reliable information. Even if we
did, coming to a decision would be difficult. As
Hippocrates wrote in his famous First Aphorism -- “Life is
Short, The Art Long; Judgment is Difficult, Experiment
Perilous, and it helps if Conditions are Favorable.” He also
wrote: “Extreme Situations may require Extreme
Answers!”
So much for the philosophy. I recently took part in a
study of “Privacy and the use of Personal Information for
Health Research; comparing attitudes and expectations
among people with selected health conditions and with the
general public, and what Factors affect these attitudes –
asking people their thoughts on such issues as the need for
permission when personal information is used in health
research, the use of electronic health records, and how
they perceive the value of health research.”
Personal Health information was defined as: “Any
information that relates to the past, present, or future
physical or mental health of an individual; stored in paper
form or electronically.”
The study had two phases: a phone or internet survey,
followed by a ʹFocus Groupʹ discussion among nine
participants working to a schedule and guided by a very
skilled moderator (the lead researcher) using a structure
linked closely to the interview questions. It worked
remarkably well.
We considered, in turn, the circumstances in which we,
individually, would want to have a veto on the use of our
personal health information in research. For example,
academic research, sponsored research, research involving
multi-disciplinary teams (say doctors, pharmacists,
academics, etc. etc), the purpose of the research, and the
credentials of those involved.
As we worked through, I realized that, for me, the
central issue was that of Trust. And because of that, I
wanted, in all circumstances, the right of prior notification
and the right of refusal before any of my personal health
information was released for use in research. For a variety
of reasons, the other participants came to much the same
conclusions.
My Family Practice doctor is a superb individual and
an outstandingly fine doctor: experienced, up-to-date,
evidence-based, practical, pragmatic, compassionate,
listens and takes the time to understand me. I value his
insights and recommendations: he always has choices for
me to consider. I trust him as much as I trust anyone with
my life and well-being, but that trust isnʹt absolute and
unconditional. It couldnʹt be, and it shouldnʹt be: the
responsibility is shared. He knows far more than I do in his
field and has far wider and deeper experience, and his
judgment has, so far, been solid. But medicine, like life, is
an Art, and each of us is to an extent unique and we
sometimes react uniquely to treatments; so finally it is up
to me to make my informed judgment call (which usually
coincides with his advice).
None of this is dispassionate. Pain, fear, discomfort,
and the rest of the vocabulary, are always lurking
behind the scenes (or in the forefront). Total objectivity
isnʹt attainable, and might not be desirable or useful. The
essence of being human -- is being human, and trying to be
honest about it. To the extent I trust, I worry. Maybe, if I
had perfect and total trust in someone, and was prepared
to abdicate my right to choose for myself, Iʹd cease
worrying and become a happier person? But then, Iʹd start
to worry about whether my complete trust was justified,
and itʹs back to situation normal.
(Continued on page 14)
FIRST RESPONSE - FEBRUARY 2008 - 13
(Continued from page 13)
My level of trust in the “System” (any System) is much
lower. Iʹve seen and heard and experienced far too much of
incompetence, carelessness, cowardice, lack of
accountability, malevolence, and worse, to put much trust
in things as they are. We all have horror stories to recount.
At the same time, like Diogenes, I look for those
individuals within the system who exemplify what is best
in humankind and professionalism. They do exist and they
are the ones who make the world work – to the extent it
does; and in many respects it works quite well. But its
often a case of happenstance or who you know that makes
the difference, and not the System.
First Responders rate highly in my personal scale of
things. This is, in part, because my son was a first
responder for many years and I was seriously interested in
what he did: I even got to ride shotgun with him on a few
of his neighborhood rounds. He and his colleagues were
impressive: dispassionately professional yet without
sacrificing compassion, ever-striving to do better, and
making a colossal contribution to the well-being of their
community.
The downside aspect of being in the hands of First
Responders is that one is apt to end up in hospital; and
thatʹs where things tend to go wrong too often.
I could go through the whole list again: family practice
doctor, nurse, first responder, chiropractor, automobile
mechanic, pharmacist, police, fire-fighters, the military --and so on. The list and the judgments, and the amount of
trust, assigned to each are personal and very situational.
Undoubtedly they change as I age, and experience, and
learn, and perhaps accumulate a bit more wisdom; though
not necessarily in the positive sense. Someone defined an
optimist as a person who believes others are better than
she is. I guess Iʹm a pessimistic optimist.
To say that I donʹt trust anyone or anything completely
and totally, is not the same as saying that I am completely
lacking in trust or faith. Obviously, we all trust everyone
and everything to some extent; otherwise, society and
civilization would be impossible. The truer statement is
that I trust – with more or less reservations.
The right to have and to express your reservations, and
to ask questions, is a large part of personal freedom and
personal responsibility in a free society. So is the right and
responsibility to question the experts and the Poo-Bahʹs
(who are not always right or responsible). Someone has to
keep the game half-way honest, and it is your life. Think
about it.
David A. H. Newman, © 2008
It's the little things that count
As the song says ʺItʹs not what you do, itʹs the way that you do itʺ. The following article from
Currituckʹs ʹDaily Advanceʹ in North Carolina, USA, shows that a caring attitude
can make such a difference to people in their time of need.
ʺThree county emergency medical service workers who
came to the aid of an ill Virginia vacationer last summer
were honored last week by both the Board of Commissioners and the womanʹs grateful family.
county officials. ʺIf they only knew how much it meant to
my mom and her little great grandchildren, how compassionate and caring these people (were in going) above any
standard that an EMS worker is to follow.ʺ
Jennifer Donohue, William Jones and Bonnie Boyer
were honored for their work assisting Rosa Lee Elswick, of
Madison, Va. on Friday July 6.
The Elswick family purchased a plaque for each of the
three EMS workers, and Commissioner Gene Gregory
presented them, as well as certificates, at a Board of
Commissioners meeting Monday, Oct. 15.
According to Elswickʹs daughter, Debbie Berry, Elswick
had been vacationing with her family in Nags Head and
was on her way home when she suddenly became ill. Berry
said her mother had woken earlier that morning
complaining of paralysis on her right side, but had insisted
that she was OK.
The family stopped at a rest area near Aydlett, where
they were able to convince Elswick to seek medical
attention. Donohue, Jones and Boyer responded to the
familyʹs call for help, Berry said.
Berry said the care Donohue, Jones and Boyer gave her
mother reminded her of why emergency medical service
personnel are so critical.
ʺAs I sit here today on the sixth anniversary of 9/11, I
am reminded that our true heroes are the men and women
we depend on in our daily lives to comfort and care for
us,ʺ Berry wrote. ʺOur entire family just wanted to let
everyone know that so many times people touch lives in
ways they never ever know.ʺ
Berry said her mother died of cancer a month later, but
her family wanted county officials to know they will never
forget the caring treatment and compassion her mother
received from Donohue, Jones and Boyer.
Gregory told the three EMS personnel that their professionalism was a good example of the service that many
county emergency workers provide.ʺ
ʺThe three people that answered the call that day did
their job as they always had,ʺ Berry wrote in a letter to
from Mike Donohue, West Virginia - a regular
reader of First Response, and Jenniferʹs proud Dad.
14 - FIRST RESPONSE - FEBRUARY 2008
The Ambulance Levy campaign is heating up at the moment, with the legislation expected to be drafted in February.
Ambulance 2020 has met with a number of MLC’s, councils and community groups, and gained a variety of support
for an Ambulance Levy style funding system. The Ambulance Usage Fee has been raised as an issue by a number of
community members to these people. There is still a perception that an Ambulance Usage Fee may reduce case load. We
are continuing to advise of experiences in other states with usage fees and the reduction of cat 1 & 2 cases, but no reduction
in lower acuity cases. Unfortunately, those that abuse the Ambulance Service continue to do so, regardless of charges,
which increases the administrative load on Ambulance.
Of concern to us at the moment is that with the State Liberal Party and several other community groups publicly
advising that they do not support any form of user pays system including a levy, we will be back where we started with no
additional funding for Ambulance. Our understanding is that the Government commitments for future staffing are based
on the additional income that they will receive through a fee, so we need to ensure that we are vocal about the necessity of
funding the Ambulance Service.
Miranda Jamieson
Ambulance 2020
PO Box 635, North Hobart 7002
Phone: 1300 880 032
The VAOAT website - www.tasmanianambulancevolunteers.asn.au - contains a wealth of information including
reports on the research trip to Queensland (which adopted a levy system in 2002); comparisons with fee and funding
models for all Australian states; and the submission sent to government and stakeholders: it is updated regularly.
State politicians tell us that the great majority of enquiries from their electorates at the moment are about the
ambulance fee, and all volunteers will know about the confusion, fear and uncertainty this issue has created. We volunteer
to make our communities safer, not more fearful.
What we would like you to do is, at least, inform yourself on this issue. Then, if what you learn makes you concerned
and motivated, please get out and talk to your communities and your politicians. Write letters to newspapers and direct to
Members of Parliament.
But please note: VAOAT strongly advises against talking about these issues to current ambulance patients or their
families, even if they ask you. Suggest that they approach you later, when the patient’s health crisis is resolved. If a
person needs an ambulance the only thing that should be on everybody’s mind – patient, family, and ambulance
officers – is the welfare of the patient.
By virtue of being Volunteer Ambulance Officers we are involved in this issue. The VAOAT urges all of us to be
informed and active.
Marg Dennis
Australia Day Awards - 2008
Congratulations to all VAOs who received awards on Australia Day, be they
National, State or Local Government honours, this includes the following:
•
Craig Blizzard (Smithton VAO) - Emergency Services Medal
•
Shirley Squires (Avoca VAO) - Northern Midlands Citizen of the Year
•
Sarah Madden (St Helens VAO) - Break OʹDay Young Citizen of the Year
Have any other VAOs received awards? Share your news
with us - contact Marg Dennis, tel/fax: 6385 2147
or Email: margaret.dennis@bigpond.com
Shirley Squires (left) with
Northern Midlands Mayor Kim Polley
FIRST RESPONSE - FEBRUARY 2008 - 15
Answers to KWIK KWIZ
DINNERTIME DILEMMAS
1/ The tip-off in this question is that the patient is
COMPLETELY SILENT, which is a very good indication
that something is preventing the passage of air through his
vocal cords. Certainly most patients suffering a heart attack
(answer a) or a spontaneous pneumothorax (answer b) and
in such apparent distress would cry out. And just as
certainly, someone who finds a cockroach in his coleslaw
(answer c) would have something to say on the subject.
Even the epileptic patient (answer d) is likely to give a gasp
or cry as a premonitory sign of a seizure (besides, the
patient has simply collapsed; there is no mention of tonicclonic movement). Thus the correct answer is e: This
patient has choked on a piece of meat, which is now
obstructing his upper airway to the degree that he cannot
utter a sound.
It should not have taken you more than a few seconds
to reach this conclusion, for you donʹt have very much time
if you want to save this manʹs life. Complete airway
obstruction can be expected to lead to cardiac arrest within
a very few minutes, and irreversible brain damage will
follow shortly thereafter if ventilation and circulation are
not promptly restored. Since it is your night off, you have
only your two hands to work with. If the obstructing bolus
of food cannot be readily reached and removed with your
fingers, and if a few sharp blows to the patientʹs back donʹt
do the trick, immediately give 4 lateral chest thrusts.
Repeat back blows and chest thrusts until the obstruction is
cleared or the ambulance arrives.
Moral: DONʹT TALK WITH YOUR MOUTH FULL.
2/ Your date is having a severe allergic (anaphylactic)
reaction (answer b), and this is a dire medical emergency.
Anaphylaxis can develop with astonishing rapidity in such
cases, and complete airway obstruction may occur within
minutes. The itching was the first clue that her problem
was allergic in nature; granted, flea bites (answer e) can
also can itching, but they rarely lead to laryngeal swelling,
which is manifested in this case by your dateʹs sudden
hoarseness. Besides, why should there be fleas in a highclass establishment like the one at which you are dining?
Adapted from Ambulance Calls by N. L. Caroline
Answer to WHAT IS IT?
A Scarificator - this English scarificator and six lancets,
made by Fuller of London, was used for blood-letting.
Health was thought to be restored by purging, starving,
vomiting or blood-letting, which seemed logical at the
time when the foundation of all medical treatment was
based on four body humors: blood, phlegm, yellow and
black bile.
The Wellcome Library, London
Take a tip from nature:
Your ears aren’t made to shut,
but your mouth is.
16 - FIRST RESPONSE - FEBRUARY 2008
BACK TO BED, SLEEPY HEAD
You may think that the infinite ability of teenagers to
sleep in on weekends is all down to attitude, but this
altered sleep pattern isnʹt about being bone-lazy or
antisocial, itʹs about biology.
Newborn babies sleep, in a series of naps, for 16 to 18
hours a day. By age five, this is down to about 11 hours,
and continues to drop with age - until puberty starts.
Puberty lasts to about 17 years and five months in boys,
and 16 years in girls, as measured by the end of bone
growth. But adolescence continues for a few more years.
During adolescence, the natural circadian rhythm is
mightily interfered with and there is a delay in the onset of
sleep, probably due to the later release of melatonin. So a
teenager claiming to be not tired at 11pm is probably being
truthful. Another biological change is that adolescents need
more sleep - between nine and 10 hours every night.
Indeed, one marker of the end of adolescence is the switch
to the shorter and earlier adult sleep hours. This happens,
on average, at 19 years and five months in women, and 20
years and nine months in men.
The teenage years are very messy, in terms of sleep. An
early bedtime is, in most cases, simply fighting biology.
Adolescents need nine to 10 hours of sleep, but often start
school early. Typically, an adolescent, going from holidays
to regular school, will sleep for two hours fewer on
weeknights, and try to make it up on weekends. So your
average high-school student sleepwalks through their
school day, in a semi-permanent state of sleep deprivation.
Various studies have shown that this sleep deprivation
is linked to rebellious behaviour, depressive symptoms,
cigarette smoking, obesity, anxiety disorders and poor
school marks. Indeed, being tired while taking an IQ test
can drop about seven points off your score - and can do the
same for regular exams. Also, about 20 per cent of road
deaths are caused by micro-sleeps related to tiredness - and
about half of all such fatigue-related road deaths happen to
those aged 16 to 25.
Another study looked at so-called REM sleep, during
which humans do most of their dreaming and which
usually happens about 70 to 100 minutes after falling
asleep. About half of the high-school students studied were
so tired that, when given the opportunity to sleep at school
in mid-morning, they dropped into REM sleep within a
few minutes.
So what can help? Well, adolescents should avoid
caffeinated drinks and not have a computer or TV in their
bedroom. Dr Martin Ralph, a psychologist at the
University of Toronto, recommends starting university and
high-school classes at 11am. And next time you want to
chide your teenager with a well-worn cliche, in the
interests of scientific credibility donʹt make it, ʺEarly to bed
and early to rise...ʺ
Dr Karl Kruszelnicki
THE AGE - GOOD WEEKEND, February 10, 2007
1
2
9
3
4
5
6
10
8
11
12
13
15
7
14
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
26
27
25
28
29
30
References: Chambers English Dictionary,
The Macquarie Dictionary & Mosby’s Dictionary.
Solution - The Back Page
ACROSS
1/ Way of departure (4)
3/ Lower chambers of the heart (10)
9/ Unnatural distension of a part of the body with air (9)
11/ Based on the number eight (5)
12/ Taken as oneʹs own (7)
14/ Ling (5)
15/ Back of the neck (4)
16/ Partners without full membership (10)
19/ Relating to a nerve impulse concerned with bodily
movement (10)
20/ Coloured part of the eye (4)
22/ Lack of red blood corpuscles (7)
24/ Metallic element (7)
26/ Red dye (5)
27/ Drunkard (9)
29/ Isolation (10)
30/ Method of pain relief using electric current through the
skin - abbrev (1.1.1.1.)
DOWN
1/ Fluid injected into the rectum (5)
2/ Spontaneous (9)
4/ Organ of sight (3)
5/ Incision into the windpipe to relieve an obstruction (11)
6/ Pertaining to a line connecting places of equal pressure (8)
7/ Door catch (5)
8/ Hardening of tissue by thickening or lignification (9)
10/ Abominable snowman (4)
13/ Displacement of a joint (11)
15/ Matchless (9)
17/ Shaped like a top (9)
18/ Relating to secretions from endocrine organs (8)
21/ Heavenly body (4)
23/ Maliciously setting fire to property (5)
25/ Comes face to face with (5)
28/ U.S. network of pre-hospital services - abbrev (1.1.1.)
The trouble with bucket seats is that not everybody has the same size bucket.
WORD SEARCH
JOB APPLICATION
How many words of 4 letters or more can you make
from the given letters?
A mathematician, an accountant & an economist apply
for the same job. The interviewer calls in the
mathematician and asks, ʺWhat does two plus two equal?ʺ
The mathematician replies, ʺFour.ʺ
The interviewer asks, ʺFour, exactly?ʺ The
mathematician looks at the interviewer incredulously and
says, ʺYes, four, exactly.ʺ
Then the interviewer calls in the accountant and asks
the same question, ʺWhat does two plus two equal?ʺ The
accountant says, ʺOn average, four -- give or take ten
percent -- but on average, four.ʺ
Then the interviewer calls in the economist and poses
the same question, ʺWhat does two plus two equal?ʺ
The economist gets up, locks the door, closes the
blinds, sits down next to the interviewer, and says, ʺWhat
do you want it to equal?ʺ
In making a word, each letter may be used once only.
Each word must contain the centre letter & there must be at
least one 9-letter word in the list. No plurals or verb forms
ending in “s”, no words with initial capitals and no words
with a hyphen or apostrophe are permitted. The first word
of a phrase is permitted (eg inkjet in inkjet printer).
Target - 23 words
Solution - The Back Page
O
E
G
T
H
R
P
I
T
FIRST RESPONSE - FEBRUARY 2008 - 17
VAOAT Online - http://www.tasmanianambulancevolunteers.asn.au
NEVER APPROACH A BULL FROM THE FRONT, A HORSE FROM THE REAR,
OR A FOOL FROM ANY DIRECTION. - Danny Saradon
Who’s Who?
Solution to MOSTLY MEDICAL
President:
Wayne Doran
Ph: 6259 5697
V/President: Cheryl Wilson
Ph: 6265 3703
Treasurer:
Marg Dennis
Ph/Fax: 6385 2147
Secretary:
Dianne Coon
Ph: 6471 7017
Fax: 6471 7317 Email: diannecoon@hotmail.com
ACROSS
1/Exit; 3/Ventricles; 9/Emphysema; 11/Octal; 12/Adopted;
14/Heather; 15/Nape; 16/Associates; 19/Neuromotor;
20/Iris; 22/Anaemia; 24/Yttrium; 26/Eosin; 27/Inebriate;
29/Loneliness; 30/TENS.
Committee:
Louise Geale
Collette Harrold
George Hudson
Mary Knowles
Helen Reynolds
Shirley Squires
DOWN
1/Enema; 2/Impromptu; 4/Eye; 5/Tracheotomy; 6/Isobaric;
7/Latch; 8/Sclerosis; 10/Yeti; 13/Dislocation; 15/Nonpareil;
17/Turbinate; 18/Hormonal; 21/Star; 23/Arson; 25/Meets;
28/EMS.
Ph: 6394 3706
Ph: 6265 1111
Ph: 6375 1560
Ph: 6385 2002
Ph: 6384 2101
Ph: 6384 2311
Public Officer } Dianne Coon
Publicity Officer}
AREA REPS
Islands:
East:
South:
--{
--{
Central:
North:
North West:
West:
David Reed
Sue Kuter
Cheryl Wilson
Collette Harrold
Greg Kunkler
Louise Geale
Monica Kursawe
Jack Van Dalen
TAS COMMITTEE REPS
Fleet:
George Hudson
Equipment: George Hudson
Uniform:
Greg Kunkler
OH & S:
Greg Kunkler
Ph: 6471 7017
Ph: 6462 1740
Ph: 6376 1570
Ph: 6265 3703
Ph: 6265 1111
Ph: 0424 228 457
Ph: 6394 3706
Ph: 6442 1029
Ph: 6473 4321
Ph: 6375 1560
Ph: 6375 1560
Ph: 0424 228 457
Ph: 0424 228 457
Any concerns? - we’re here to help!
Please try to resolve problems first via the correct
chain of command in your region, before
approaching the Association.
Solution to WORD SEARCH
eight, ghetto, girth, gopher, heir, hero, hire, hope, hotter,
other, pith, pother, right, righto, their, thorp, throe, tight,
tighter, TIGHTROPE, tithe, tother, troth.
Closing Date for next
edition of
First Response
- 16th April 2008
(but please send a.s.a.p.)
ADVERTISING RATES
Commercial advertising accepted, rates are:
¼ Page (8.55x12.5 cm) - $5 per edition
½ Page (17.5x12.5 cm) - $10 per edition
Full Page (17.5x25.25 cm) - $15 per edition
No charge for non-profit organisations.
WHY DO WE SAY?
*** Lady ***
……Lady comes from Old English hlafdie, who was the
mistress of the house.
The name literally means
one who kneads a loaf or
loaves.
Phil Dennis
18 - FIRST RESPONSE - FEBRUARY 2008
We reserve the right to refuse or alter adverts at
our discretion: VAOAT does not endorse any
product advertised.
~~~~~~
Opinions expressed in the newsletter are not
necessarily those of the editor.
Compiled by Margaret Dennis,
4 Nevin Street, Rossarden 7213.
Tel/Fax: (03) 6385 2147
Email: margaret.dennis@bigpond.com
Printed at the office of Dick Adams MHR