Anaheimfan
Blue Collar Boy
....Doesn't mean it's all you will ever see.
Hi everyone, just bringing a work experience into everyday life. It was probably the greatest lesson I could ever learn.
One day on the ambulance, we were running constant calls to the low-income part of town. This part of town cosists of gov't housing, trailers, and houses that are just in a general state of disrepair because of those who reside in it.
Every single time we rolled out there, it was either another drunk, junkie, skell, calling us because they too drunk or stoned to take their medications, or family calling because they refused to take their medications...Or the ones who thought we were the district taxi service. Everytime we walked in, the house looked like hell...It stank, there was mold everywhere, dirty dishes left everywhere, animal urine and feces on occaision. It was really unpleasant to all 5 senses. I got conditioned to believe that EVERY run I would go to in that area would be just like that.
So it's gettin towrds lunch, I haven't eaten yet. Once again, we get a High-Priority call to the low-income section of town. Woman in her 60's with a GI-Issue. First things running through my head "Yay, a skell that will be puking or xxxxxxxx all over herself, the truck, us." So we arrive at the house and ofcourse it looked the same as the others, but smelled a bit prettier. However, my assumptions about the pt were still the same, so I am ashamed to say my bedside manner was way less than proper.
I came to find out after droppin this woman off that she was a devout church-going lady who was only living in that particular area of town because her husband--and only source of income--died. And the house was only in a poor state because the woman had been sick for awhile....Boy did I ever feel like dirt.
Now, my behavior had an adverse effect on the situation in numerous ways. 1: Makes the Service look bad because you got a complete and total jerk comin off the truck. 2: Makes the pt uncomfortable and defensive. 3: If we would have been called back, and I had been attending the woman, I woulda had a hard time getting her to cooperate with me or trust me because I was such an xxxxxxx the first time around.
But, it was all I had ever seen. Little did I know, it wasn't all I would ever see.
The moral of the story is quite simple, and quite worn out...But don't judge a book by it's cover. You may never know the effect that pre-conceived notions about people and places will have on any situation.
Hi everyone, just bringing a work experience into everyday life. It was probably the greatest lesson I could ever learn.
One day on the ambulance, we were running constant calls to the low-income part of town. This part of town cosists of gov't housing, trailers, and houses that are just in a general state of disrepair because of those who reside in it.
Every single time we rolled out there, it was either another drunk, junkie, skell, calling us because they too drunk or stoned to take their medications, or family calling because they refused to take their medications...Or the ones who thought we were the district taxi service. Everytime we walked in, the house looked like hell...It stank, there was mold everywhere, dirty dishes left everywhere, animal urine and feces on occaision. It was really unpleasant to all 5 senses. I got conditioned to believe that EVERY run I would go to in that area would be just like that.
So it's gettin towrds lunch, I haven't eaten yet. Once again, we get a High-Priority call to the low-income section of town. Woman in her 60's with a GI-Issue. First things running through my head "Yay, a skell that will be puking or xxxxxxxx all over herself, the truck, us." So we arrive at the house and ofcourse it looked the same as the others, but smelled a bit prettier. However, my assumptions about the pt were still the same, so I am ashamed to say my bedside manner was way less than proper.
I came to find out after droppin this woman off that she was a devout church-going lady who was only living in that particular area of town because her husband--and only source of income--died. And the house was only in a poor state because the woman had been sick for awhile....Boy did I ever feel like dirt.
Now, my behavior had an adverse effect on the situation in numerous ways. 1: Makes the Service look bad because you got a complete and total jerk comin off the truck. 2: Makes the pt uncomfortable and defensive. 3: If we would have been called back, and I had been attending the woman, I woulda had a hard time getting her to cooperate with me or trust me because I was such an xxxxxxx the first time around.
But, it was all I had ever seen. Little did I know, it wasn't all I would ever see.
The moral of the story is quite simple, and quite worn out...But don't judge a book by it's cover. You may never know the effect that pre-conceived notions about people and places will have on any situation.
Last edited by a moderator: