Friends from calls

 I am going to change it up for this one. I want to tell y'all about some people from calls I have ridden. 

There is an assisted living facility in town that I have been to more often than I care to admit. At this facility, there was Frank who worked at the front desk. Frank was such a cool guy, he would always ask us if we wanted something to eat or some coffee. We normally would tell him no, but when we did say yes he had it ready as we were going out the door. Frank also always gave us great information on the patients we were there to get. He would let us know if the patient was prior military or prior public safety. He always had something to tell us, that gave us a way to connect with the patient which in turn made our jobs easier. Being in EMS having a good rapport with your patients makes it easier to assess them and makes them more likely to give you the information you need. Over the years we got to know Frank better, he told us that he was retired from not only the USMC but also one of the 3 letter government agencies. He also told us that he had 3 sons, one was a high-ranking officer in the Army, another was a doctor, and the third son was in college. It had been some time since we had seen Frank, we found out that he had been gravely ill and the staff wasn't sure if he was going to be back. After some time I was sent to the facility for a fall. We arrived on the scene, we were sent to the laundry area, and Frank was sitting on the floor. I greeted him as I always did, I asked him if he was hurt and he adamantly denied being hurt. The thing is, I could tell that Frank had been drinking...Way too much. Frank did not want to go to the hospital, he said that he just wanted to stay there until his shift that night. I could tell that the staff on duty at that time did not know the real situation. So, I told Frank that we were going to take him to the hospital. When he started to argue I told him that I knew why he "fell" and that the staff didn't. Next, I told him that he was a distinguished gentleman who did not need to get a blemish on his distinguished career by this incident. I knew if I left him there they would find out that he had been drinking and they would fire him. We loaded Frank up and did what we needed to do to get him out of there. Come to find out, Frank's youngest son to him out drinking to loosen him up for some news he had to break to him. The youngest son wanted to be a professional dancer and thought his dad was not going to approve. Being the man that he was, Frank told his son that he wanted him to be happy and successful no matter what he did. Frank was an amazing man and a great dad, we need more men like Frank. I am not sure where Frank is now, but I miss seeing him and talking to him. 

Next, I am going to tell you about and sweet young lady named Kathy. We were dispatched to a local hotel downtown for a sick person. We arrived on the scene, the hotel staff had no idea that we were coming or why we were called. We told the staff what the room number was and they got concerned. As we got to the room the door was propped open. The woman who let us in was the patient's mom and you could see concern on her face. As we came through the door I noticed a lot of medical supplies, there were IV fluids, bandages, and oxygen equipment along with all kinds of other things. It is not normal to see so many medical supplies on any call let alone a hotel room. The woman who let us in explained that she was there with her daughter Kathy, they were from Minnesota if I remember right. The mom advised that Kathy had been diagnosed with cancer the year before, and she had been going through intense chemotherapy. She explained that while Kathy was going through chemo she would watch the Food Channel and fell in love with Paula Dean. Kathy and her mom made the trip to Savannah just to Paula Dean's restaurant Lady and Sons. Unfortunately, Kathy got very sick the day before they were to go there and that led to EMS being called. Kathy was in her bed, she was covered with numerous blankets and looked very ill. I explained to her that we were there to take her to the hospital and I was going to do everything I could to make her warm and comfortable. We got her loaded up, gave her warm fluids, and transported her to the hospital. I know I didn't do much for Kathy, but I did manage to make her smile. I stayed in contact with Kathy's mom, and she told me that Kathy was not doing good and they were returning home. The day before they were to go home my partner and I went to go see her in the hospital. We told the nurse that we were going to say goodbye to her. The nurse said ok and that was that. As we walked in the room we noticed that the family was not there, I thought that was odd because the patient's mom was always with her. We got to where we could see Kathy and she looked so peaceful. On closer look I realized that Kathy was not breathing. I went back to the nurses station and said something, the nurse said that she passed about and hour prior. The family had just left the room right before we came upstairs. Kathy was a mom of 2 younger kids her mom told me. I felt terrible for the whole family, you could tell that Kathy was well-loved. I still hear from Kathy's mom from time to time. The last time I did she sent me a pick of her and her husband along with Kathy's kids. She always says the kindest things to me and it makes me feel so good. RIP Kathy, enjoy your blessings in glory. 

Lastly, I want to tell you about the 2 kids that I got to meet one cold night. We were dispatched to a motor vehicle accident on Abercorn Street, it was advised that it was a car vs a tree. If you are familiar with the trees on Abercorn then you know this has the potential to be bad. If you are not familiar with the trees on Abercorn, they are huge and they will flat mess up a car. I got on the scene and saw that the car was totaled and the patients were out of the car and seated on the curb. They told me that they were sore but not really hurting bad. I knew that they needed to be checked out just by the sheer impact, they agreed and we transported them to the hospital. They were in their late teens almost 20 and they told me that they were in town on vacation with their mom. They said they just went out that night to see the town and they had the only car they owned. I called their mom on the way to the hospital and she immediately freaked out, she was crying and didn't know how she was going to get to the hospital. I knew my partner would be ok if I did something on the sly. So, I told the mom that we would come and get her from her hotel and bring her to the hospital. The hotel was really close to the hospital so I knew it wasn't going to take long. We dropped off the kids at the ER, and while they were getting evaluated we went and got mom. She had calmed down and as we went to the hospital I told her what happened, the status of the kids, and the sad news about the car. As we got to the hospital and to the kids she had calmed down and was very grateful to us. It was a sad day for them, but it was a good day to help and get such appreciation from them. 

I love my job, I love to meet people and I love to make them feel better. I am blessed to have been doing this for over 20 years.