The degree was cool but this is by far the thing I’m most proud of in possibly my life so far. “Clinical considerations in relation to diversity and equality” is now out on
@JRCALCPlus
@AACE_org
! Advice for assessing and supporting trans pt’s is now literally at your fingertips🏳️⚧️
LOVE handing over a patient to an ED sister, whose response to me informing her I gave the patient morphine was “well that was a bit silly wasn’t it?”
Since when did treating a Pt’s pain become “silly”? “Did you not think to give paracetamol?” As a follow up - groundbreaking
As a final year student para, I could join an ambulance trust at band 5, get 6 months of sporadic teaching, and get band 6 in a couple of years.
Or I could do this👇 at band 5, get supervision & teaching over 2.5 years, with 0 nights/weekends and get band 7.
Apprentice Physician's assistants can now get paid at band 5, same as a fully qualified Nurse or a year 1 Doctor without any of the training.
Requirements include
1. "interest in the subject matter"
2. Experience of health care desirable but not essential, but managing a
@SwingCompass
@DrOliBol
Much like a doctor has overheads for registration fees, indemnity insurance, proffesional exams and mandatory training which is payed at personal expense?
Seen this image a lot recently. Those baby-blue rank slides mean that this is a student paramedic (and judging by the 3 person crew on this truck, an external one) this means that they’ll be working a 36-50 hour week for free and paying to be there. Just a reminder
This is the view that hundreds of student Paras have for days at a time. Isolated, excluded from conversation and not ideal for learning. Great to see mentors recognising the benefits of getting students more involved on placements and making them feel like part of the team.
Please stop interrupting students when they’re literally in the middle of a handover in resus 🥲 Happened on two separate occasions today and it totally derailed me both times
Things I’d love to see on every ambulance station:
- beds, actual beds in an actual quiet room
- training room which is open, stocked and accessible (maybe with task suggestions from L&D each week)
- a station cat, for obvious reasons
1) Specialist Paramedic in critical care gaining precise POCUS-guided intravenous access with kit from their IV ankle pouch
2) Me popping a pink in the dominant ACF after some vigorous ‘tap-tap-tap’
Started the day as an FR, but finished the day as a Paramedic! So nice to get the payoff from 3+ years of hard work, with thanks to all the awesome people who’ve helped me along the way. Here’s to even more learning in the future 🥂
3+ years ago I finished my final shift before becoming a student para, in pre-op assessment, supporting anaesthetists to work up patients. Today I finished my final shift as a student para, being supported by anaesthetists to develop my airway management skills for patients.
Got disciplined by a matron for having a pride flag and pronouns in my email signature, which was “unprofessional” and “against trust guidelines”. Set me on the path to my current hill I’ll die on, as well as confirming that nursing culture wasn’t really for me
Cheers for all the death threats today you lovey people, it lets me know I’m being loud enough about the bigotry that trans and enby people experience daily.
Afraid I’m not going to stop talking about, or educating other clinicians on the provision of safe LGBTQ+ care 🏳️⚧️🏳️🌈
“paramedic workforce will need to increase by around 14,200– 15,600”
Who is going to train them?
“paramedics have more rotational training placements across hospital, community and primary care settings”
Is a 3 year BSc long enough? Let alone 2 year MSc/Apprenticeship?
Maybe it’s an ND thing but I don’t understand why we encourage students to bring baked goods onto placement settings? Why should I have to exchange brownies for basic civil treatment? And why are we passing this down as advice?
You know what’s awesome? Handing over a non-binary Pt in ED, telling the triage nurse that they’re non-binary, the nurse going “oh okay” and then instantly switching to they/them pronouns flawlessly.
Info. handed over > noted down > and actioned without faf. As it should be!🏳️⚧️
Hot take: stop telling student paramedics that there’s learning opportunities in working/running the ED corridor. We know there is, but that’s not why we’re there. We’re often there as free labour provision when we could be out on the road with far greater learning opportunity.
Anyone know why there’s a bunch of PHEM/HEMS placement opportunities for medical students but absolutely zero that I can find for student paramedics?
I’ve applied to a handful over the last two years and every single time been told it’s medical students only.
Sometimes I worry that I spout off about LGBTQ+ inequity a little too much, a little too loud. Then I read stuff like the replies to this and just feel the need to get louder.
Announcement: Following a hugely successful pilot of phase 2 of the NHS Rainbow Badge project, and a detailed tendering process, we are delighted to confirm that NHS England has provided funding for a further 40 NHS Trusts to undertake the NHS Rainbow Badge assessment model. 1/2
Everyone is understandably popping off about the new triage sieve tool, but ngl I am LOVING the new tally chart most of all. No more hurried drawing of columns on my arm
ED placement as a student para:
Got to assess, diagnose, discuss and support the treatment of a huge mix of patients, with follow up on every single one of them. With more in-depth teaching than I’ve ever experienced. (Also got a fist-bump off the Cas Reg just saying)
Why am I not surprised. Paramedics missed/forgotten about AGAIN.
Despite myself and others filling out the consultation documents, despite more paramedics working in hospital than ever, despite almost every other AHP getting their own colour-way.
Getting annoyed now. I cannot speak for trans people, nor can I speak for women, but as a human who writes/researches/waffles on about LGBTQ+ matters like there’s no tomorrow - I have NEVER seen a tweet by
@drphiliplee1
that doesn’t uphold high standards of allyship
In what I can only assume is an admin error
@ParamedicsUK
have gone ahead and published my ramblings in Paramedic Insight. Huge thanks to
@HowlettGemma
@GrahamClark24
Rebecca Connolly & the whole CoP DSG for their support
I’d kill for a resus-room style podcast focussing just on minors. Such a huge paucity of evidence based practice and variation in the area would make it super tricky though.
@rosieICM
Agree.
Minors is the most high risk place in any ED.
It’s not sexy, doesn’t have any podcasts and doesn’t have the equivalent of ‘resuscitationists’ (🤮), but it is where you’ll get your arse handed to you.
@Ortho_PA_
Really not loving “basic human decency” in a tweet relating to Qatar, a country that *checks notes* persecutes queer people on a systematic level
Final assignment in after 3+ years of learning and study to become a paramedic! Incredibly grateful to everyone who has helped drag me this close to the finish line, as well as those who’ve shown me just how genuinely enjoyable and fulfilling academia and research can be.
Your most embarrassing moment in medicine?
I have several that I’m not sure I could share 😳
Whispering 69 to the dean of the medical school in front of the entire year is one. I meant to say 99. He replied ‘only on Saturdays’
TBH I’ve blanked the details of this
Had the privilege of being invited by
@SarahToddPara
to present at the
@ParamedicsUK
inclusive recruitment conference in Birmingham. Talking about recruitment into Paramedicine from the other side of the desks and all those potential paramedics from the backgrounds we miss.
If I had a penny for every time I was told I “don’t look gay” then I’d be tweeting you my nonsense from a french château. As it is I’m not that rich, not actually gay (pansexual) and celebrating
#ComingOutDay
whether I “look gay” or not 🏳️🌈 (never got what that meant anyway)
“But won’t your ADHD get in the way of being a paramedic?” I proceeded to explain all the ways that my divergence can make me a BETTER practitioner than a neurotypical individual but occupational health were not vibing with it. Upon reflection - I literally do not care 😉
Got my diss grade today so a bit torn about what I’m more proud of, but working to create a national guideline to support ambo clinicians in the care of LGBTQ+ people is definitely up there! Thank you to all the clinicians and SME’s who have helped to create this new guideline
The Association of Ambulance Chief Executives has announced the forthcoming launch of a new
#JRCALC
guideline, ‘
#Clinical
Considerations in Relation to
#Diversity
and
#Equality
’ which will help
#ambulance
clinicians continue to provide the most appropriate ...
[1/2]
As a student paramedic, seeing some of the views expressed towards paramedics here is really bleak. I’m all for discourse but some of it demonstrates some really naff views on paramedics generally and our profession’s history of providing quality pre-hospital care.
Plan by
@swasFT
to introduce pre-hospital anaesthesia air-ambulance teams without a doctor on board. Is this appropriate? We want to start this discussion now.
So tired of trying to improve handover skills and getting interrupted/ignored multiple times while trying to do it. I understand it at times but my zoomy brain really struggles with how often it happens
Lil old me talking about how we as paramedics can and should be caring better for trans & non-binary patients, wherever we work. So much left to do but I feel so privileged to have been given the opportunity to talk about this in a national setting.
#ParaCon24
@ParamedicsUK
🏳️⚧️🏳️🌈
Like if you have a genuine concern please tell me, especially as a new registrant especially. But not sure this is the way to do that, in front of of the whole triage queue
Cancelled my RCN membership this week. The package they offer members and students like myself is great, but cannot financially support a professional body that is willing to step on every AfC clinician to get what they want. We’re stronger together
A new pay spine for nursing would mean, like doctors and dentists, nursing pay would be negotiated separately, getting our profession the recognition it is owed.
This is crucial for safe staffing.
Vote on this and the rest of the NHS pay offer here:
Been rocking the rainbow lanyard, they/them pronoun pin, rainbow badge and rainbow boot laces today. Small symbols really matter to LGBTQ+ Pt’s.
Gonna keep saying it but regardless of what the Health sec says: my ambulance is a safe ambulance
Felt even more important than ever to wear this pin whilst out on shift today, in the wake of the Tories’ dangerous transphobia at their party conference. Everyone has the right to be treated with dignity and humanity whilst accessing healthcare. Everyone.
To the person in Delamere services who just came up and told my knackered crew-mate and I “you are so appreciated for what you do” then walked off
1 - sorry we didn’t thank you properly, we’re both a bit tired
2 - thank you for being such a nice human 🥲
Today our Trust Board has approved changes to our senior clinical leadership that will see
@AndySwinburnQAM
become Executive Director of Paramedicine from Jan24 and us become the first UK ambulance service not to have a Medical Director leading our clinical strategy.
#TeamWAST
Once again peeps seem to forget that Doctors are not the only HCP that assess, diagnose and treat an undifferentiated patient cohort in the community successfully and safely, within their respective scopes of practice.
IMO should always be seen by a doctor, particularly in primary care where so much depends on pattern recognition without easy availability of test results. Paediatrics has the added layer of complexity where the historian is often not the patient themselves, and histories 2/3
I have a new least-favorite drug to draw up while on the move: Paracetamol/Ibuprofen suspension. Trying to get a syringe worth from the sachets while in the back of a moving ambo has left me, the walls and my steth painfully sticky
Morning peeps, especially good morning to all those student paramedics making their way to
@SwanseaUni
for
@UKSPC
23! The speaker lineup is looking outstanding although you will have to put up with me at the beginning. Looking forward to seeing you all!
If there’s one thing I’m particularly proud of in my career so far, it’s this. Every Paramedic trained in line with the new curriculum will be able to assess, communicate with and treat Transgender and non-binary patients the way they deserve - properly. 🏳️⚧️🏳️🌈
Can we stop doing this? These roles often involve a portfolio of responsibility for introducing and applying policy across entire organisations. This is tactical/strategic decision making, at sometimes a regional level advising hundreds of staff. That deserves fair pay.
Aneurin Bevan University Health Board:
Why on earth is an “Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Specialist” paid more than a senior doctor in Respiratory Medicine ??
Which one of these roles carries more responsibility ??
Arrr NHS is a profoundly unserious organisation 🤡🤡🤡
Infantilizing staff of any grade really salts my apples, but the 2 very senior and sometimes scary nurses who months ago decided to “adopt” me and proclaim themselves my aunties honestly get me through the day sometimes.
I cannot stress enough how grim this is. Any trans/enby person reading this news - please be assured that the opinions of the government do not affect the inclusive care you can and should receive in the NHS.
My ward is a safe ward. My ambulance is a bloody safe ambulance 🏳️⚧️🏳️🌈
So often when handing over Pt’s in ED I’m challenged to justify why I conveyed to that particular hosp. One of the reasons that I feel most passionate about yet seems to receive the most scorn is that the patient could not afford the return trip home from the other hosp option.
Thought I was done with hosp queueing but recently in 1 shift I have
- used ALL the O2 in my ambulance
- given a 2nd dose of IVP to the same Pt
- run out of analgesia options and had to escalate to a medical colleague purely for pain
All in the car park and it’s only Sept
30+ ambulance staff going through security for an airside major incident exercise and all realised at the same time that they’re wearing steel toe capped boots. One of the funniest things I’ve seen a while especially given how tiny said security porta-cabin was
@jade_w08
‘Uniformity’ has long been used as an excuse to disallow people from practicing in the NHS. I remember being told I was unprofessional for a rainbow becaus it wasn’t uniform. (It wasn’t my uniformity the matron had an issue with, it was my queerness) Lots of trivial policies harm
Brilliant reply from Tom. Taking someone to hospital to be “safe” - is it safe for the Pt or safe for you and your registration?
The best thing for the patient is the best thing for the patient. And that’s different every time.
@HarryTtweets
Let me tell you a story from when a dear friend was an F1 in Care of the Elderly.
Mr Smith was 94, and his care line called 999 after he tripped over he dropped his cup of tea, and overbalanced trying to mop it up.
The ambulance crew found his BP was 175/90 and LBBB (1/?)
@ShewbridgeMatt
@sarah_aslannnn
As the most junior, and only male member of a specialist nursing team who gets mistaken for a doctor almost daily purely because I’m a bloke - hush, this IS a real problem! please get a grip and educate yourself 🙃
Didn’t get many pics as I was too busy waffling, but it was amazing presenting a poster at
@ParamedicsUK
national research conference & humbling seeing the calibre of work on display. Big thanks as always to the
@BU_ParaScience
team & especially
@pete_phil85
for all the support!
After an incredible
@NatAmbLGBTUK
I’m still in disbelief at the privilege of being awarded the gold star of life. Being in the company of people like
@DrewDalton1980
@GrahamClark24
and other recipients who I look up to so much is incredibly humbling. Thank you for the kindness 🥲
Spending my weeks practicing skills in the sunshine and struggling to come to terms with what I’ve gotten up to this year. Had an incredible time at parliament thanks to
@BritCUR
& of course
@hss_bu
@BU_ParaScience
. Never thought I’d be doing this kind of thing but it’s so cool🥲
To the midwifery mentor who not only used my pronouns in conversion, but also when introducing me AND then went though all of my written feedback from other midwives correcting wrong pronouns: thank you 🥹
I’ve never understood the ‘maturity’ stance taken against young HCP’s. I have mates qualifying as paramedics at 21, I’ve had mentors younger than me as a 24 y/o student para and as far as I’m aware there’s 0 actual evidence demonstrating that young = poor practice?
@bmj_latest
Beware - being a fully qualified doctor at 21 / 22 may be a big ask for the level of maturity needed to take on the role safely and in the best interests of patients
Rushing this has many potential risks
Absolutely blown away at the reaction to the
@UKSPC
23 conference. It was a massive privilege to give the opening talk and great to see the culmination of 8 months hard work by
@EmmaWainw
and the rest of the
@ParamedicsUK
team. Thanks once again for all the support!
Last day in ED today and I’m slightly heartbroken. Can’t remember a time when I’ve had so much clinical teaching, literally learning practice changing things from every case. The willingness to teach and share knowledge has been fantastic and I’m hungry for more.
High fidelity simulation with vomit, pounding EDM and flashing lights is all well and good for scene management training, but throw a dog in the mix and I am GONE. The boi requires attention and I am here for it
Poster presentation done, job interview done, all off the back of 5/7 days of placement. No more exams left!
Just 2 more assignments left and couple hundred odd hours of placement and we’re there peeps.
Delighted/slightly shocked to announce I’ll be speaking at
@ParamedicsUK
#Paracon22
this year! I’ll be speaking about so called gay conversion therapy and how paramedics/pre-hospital clinicians can make a difference and support victims
Being able to deploy as a paramedic in this context alongside a senior EM decision maker would not only be great craic, it’d be such a fantastic learning opportunity. Can’t wait to see how far this new way of working progresses.
Has been a pleasure and privilege to spend the last year delivering community emergency medicine across north east London.
Getting to see patients in the context of their own environments and give them the best care we can is an absolute honour.
Community EM is a game changer!
Yeah trauma care is cool and everyone looks good in red trousers but this 👇 is what made me want to become a paramedic. Talking to patients, taking a SOLID Hx, diagnosing the problem and facilitating the solution. Bloody awesome
It is such a privilege as
#ambulance
crews to have almost infinite time with patients. Just spent 1.5hrs talking to a pt before we really knew why we were called. Pt said he were the first ppl to take the time to talk to him, we explained how lucky we are to not have time limits
Paramedics/ambo peeps - with the debate around ECA’s at band 3 vs band 4, what are views on ECA’s attending/assessing patients in the first place?
It’s something I see a lot as a student and it doesn’t match up with what I was originally taught about the role’s scope.
My not at all convoluted setup is ready to go. Been a long-term pipe dream to present at
#ParaCon22
and thanks to many people
@ParamedicsUK
and
@BU_ParaScience
I’m able to actually go and do it
@DrBenLovell
As an ADHD person I’m very fidgety and stim when sat down, it’s not bad in a room full of others but having a camera on me puts a spotlight on it. Makes me feel like I’m going to come across as bored or disinterested.
Not gonna say “happy pride month” because it ain’t that happy right now. There’s so much work that needs to happen amongst the profession and within the ambulance service to ensure that LGBTQ+ and especially transgender and non-binary people receive good care.