Just as I was getting my head around going to bed, D and Ch decided they wanted to take the ambulance on the air to go cruise around. I'm not one to miss a call so I go along. D is driving and Ch gets in the front. I ask if I can and she tells me she's senior so I have to ride in the back.

"Sigh!" I'm about 13 years older than her, been an EMT longer and my only reason for being there last night was to ride the ambulance but she's been at the firehouse longer so she's "senior."

Well, going on the air means they go driving to the nearby university which is out of our area, and cruise around. D's recently-ex-girlfriend is working at one of the gates and he goes looking for her. What an ass! As I spend time with D, I'm coming to realize that he's NEVER WRONG, he hates to be one-upped by anyone on anything and he's extremely vocal about his opinions. The Mac Medic's wrote an entry about "hackers and crackers" and how it relates to EMS. In all aspects of his life, I think D is certainly a "cracker." He always complains without offering solutions. He never looks at anything as a solvable problem and he's intellectually lazy. Oh, yeah, because of his confrontational attitude and never being wrong, you can't effectively tell him to shut up.

"Sigh!"

While we were out cruising around, we got a call from another unit that came upon an MVA in our area. We head out and find one car on the road, the other down the embankment in the grass. The two people from the car on the road are up and walking. I head to the car on the grass to find a male hispanic talking on his phone. No major deformities to the car and the airbags have not deployed. A firefighter from another station accompanies me to the car and tells me the guy has refused transport. Fine, I still want to at least talk to him.

"Hey! Get off the phone!" yells the Firefighter to the guy in the car.

"I got it, man. Thanks." I say to the Firefighter. He shrugs.

I squat down to get to eye level with the guy. He's speaks English with an accent and he's more intent on calling his insurance company than with talking to me. I try to ask him some questions in English and he keeps saying "I'm fine." I try a different tack.

"¿Hablas Español?" I ask him.
(Do you speak Spanish?)

"Sí."
(Yes.)

"Bien. No estoy policia. Es necesario que tú contestes mí preguntas. ¿Me intiendes?"
(Good. I'm not the police. It's necessary that you answer my questions. Understand?)

"Sí."

"¿Usaste el cinturon de seguridad?"
(Were you wearing your seatbelt?)

"Sí."

"¿Te duele a tu cabeza?"
(Does your head hurt?)

"No."

"¿Te duele a tu cuerpo?"
(Do you hurt in your body?)

"No."

"¿Porque hay sangre a tu boca?"
(Why is there blood on your mouth?)

"Mordí mí labio."
(I bit my lip.)

He's alert and orienting to me as I ask questions. I can certainly smell booze but it's not too powerful on his breath. It smells like old booze in his sweat.

"¿Te duele a otras lugares a tu cuerpo?"
(Do you hurt in other places in your body?"

"No."

He's on the phone now. I ask for his license and get it. I fill out my sheet, he signs the refusal and I split. In the ambulance, Ch is getting information from the couple who were in the other car for their refusal forms. They both look fine. sitting comfortably upright on the bench of the ambulance. I watch their heads as they turn to look at me in the side door. Good movement. I go around back to get in and watch their head movement again as I open the door. Full range of motion in the other direction with no wincing or guarding. Good. I get in the back and introduce myself to them.

"Hi, my name is ****** and I'm going to ask you a few questions while my partner's filling out the paperwork, Ok?"

Nods all around

I look at the woman, "Did you hit your head?"

"No." same question and answer from her husband.

"Do either of you hurt anywhere?"

"No."

"Ok, now I have to ask you silly questions but it's important that you answer, Ok?" Nods again. I look at the woman. "What's the date?" She smiles.

"Heh....Uh, it's April the second?" Giggles.

"Thanks." I turn to the husband, "Where are you, Sir?"

He smiles big, "In an ambulance on *************** Avenue."

"Thanks, guys!" I say and head out to collect our gear from the roadside. While I'm stowing the bags, Ch asks me, "Is the other driver going to the hospital?"

"He's Hispanic, from out of town and smells like booze. He's going to jail tonight." I say wryly. Ch laughs. I don't. I'm sure if he was white he'd be going home tonight with a citation for reckless driving or something innocuous.

We stop by the firehouse near the University so Ch can chat with the pajama-ed college boy firefighters for a while. We're all sociable and I get friendly flack for checking out their new ambulance. Maddog's squirrelling the ambulance! I shrug.

Late back to our firehouse. I stage my gear for a quick get up and go. Then sleep......

--maddog