Ride Along (Kelle/Lara)

[Kelle Lindsay, EMTP]

"Always a first time!" Kelle nodded to Lara as they loaded the patient, then she climbed in the back, leaving room for the doctor. "Switch from the portable oxygen to the main tank," she requested as she moved the cardiac monitor to a spot where they could watch it. Then she looked down at the man and smiled, patting his shoulder reassuringly before hanging his IV bag on a hook high up on the wall.

"I hate when you can't really talk to a patient," she commented, "let them know what's going on...poor guy is in for a wild ride, and I mean after we get to the hospital!" She leaned through to the driver compartment to call to Steven, "We're ready, easy code three..."

Then she settled on the bench seat across from the patient and looked at Lara. "Let's see about a second IV, they'll need it anyway, and we have about ten minutes before we get to the hospital." Hopefully, the guy would last that long.

Steven Hudson, Lara DunCroft

[Lara DunCroft]

"Always a first time!"

That was sure true.

Lara followed Kelle into the back of the ambulance as they loaded the man up.

"Switch from the portable oxygen to the main tank,"

Lara nodded and quickly did as Kelle requested.
That was the good thing about being an intern, more experienced people nealry always made the decisions, all you have to do is what they tell you to do.

At this point it was kind of a scary thought knowing that she would one day have to make the decisions and judgment calls herself.

"let them know what's going on...poor guy is in for a wild ride, and I mean after we get to the hospital!"

Lara nodded.
She turned to them and did the best she could to help them understand what was going on.

"Let's see about a second IV, they'll need it anyway, and we have about ten minutes before we get to the hospital."

"Ok." Lara replied.
 Immediately doing as Kelle asked once again.

After she had finished all she could do was wait to reach the hospital.
She looked at the man as she sat beside him and she put her hand on top of his hand. She looked into his face with a gentle, caring smile conveying what she could not find a way to say verbally.

She gently kept her hand on top of the man's hand all the the way to the hospital, somehow communicating with them without using any words, letting them know that they were in good hands.

Though the couple were fearful and anxious, the genuine care Lara was somehow radiating made them feel very reassured.

Seeing Kelle and Steven working their magic and being in their ambulance made them feel reassured. Knowing that they were on the way to the hospital, a building full of people who would be their to help them to made them feel reassured too. Surely everything was going to be alright now...right?

Tag: Kelle Lindsay, EMTP , Steven Hudson

[Kelle Lindsay, EMTP]

Kelle glanced at Lara and smiled. She'd do great as a doc, she had compassion, evidenced by the way she held the man's hand to comfort him. It was easy, when the chips were down and all hell was breaking loose, to lose sight of the person behind the patient.

Of course, that was a survival technique...you had to be able to shut off the person so that you could focus past their injuries or illness and do your job. Not only that, but if you dwelt on the person at the end of the day you would run yourself into the ground with angst and not be able to function...

But...you still had to treat the person, to give them the emotional support they needed in the midst of their crisis. Not only that, a lot of times there was also the family who needed reassurance as well, no easy feat when you weren't certain that the patient was going to make it.

And Kelle was confident that Lara had that touch...

"We're here," she commented, although it was probably unnecessary as the sirens stopped and the ambulance jolted a bit as Steven navigated the driveway. As the back-up beeper stared, Kelle moved to switch to the portable oxygen tank mounted on the gurney, and to hang the IVs on the pole attached to the side. Out the back window, Kelle could see the ED doctor waiting.

"Feel up to giving the doc a report?" she asked Lara. They'd want a quick history, update on vitals and condition, but then, Lara would know that! "Here's the 12-lead." She handed the doctor the print out.

((Sorry, been waiting on Steven))
Lara DunCroft , Steven Hudson

[Steven Hudson]

Steven nodded seeing Kelle lean through the driver compartment, “Easy code three, on it.” He said as he pulled away hoping that the guy would make it. There was nothing worse than being terrified and having no idea what was going on. Driving was the easy part; he knew that the focusing on the road in front of him prevented him thinking much about what was going on in the back of the ambulance. The patient was the main priority and getting them from A to B was easy enough, he just needed the patient to have the will to fight to get there.

Flipping the switch to turn the sirens off Steven navigated the driveway that seemed to get worse with each trip. Space was needed and to avoid other units there too, all he wanted was a personal parking space and enough room to manoeuvre around in it. Was it really too much to ask he thought as he parked up and banged on the side of the ambulance twice to say as much that they had landed. Not that a stationary ambulance, no sirens and a bang on the wall was enough to let them know but he had always done that.

Steven jogged around to the back doors of the ambulance as he pulled them open, “Ladies, how was your flight?” He asked with a grin as he motioned the ER doctor over that was stood there. Well the doc was there so they might as well be useful as he got ready to pull out the trolley wondering who was going to give the report over to the others. Steven had no idea other than it was strange case, if not the marks but good luck in the language barrier he thought. Maybe it was worth letting them know a translator would be useful but then they would soon find that one out themselves.

((Sorry I'm late))
Lara DunCroft, Kelle Lindsay, EMTP

[Lara DunCroft]

Compassion was defiantly one of Lara's strongest suits, but it was also potentially one of her biggest downfalls when it came to her job.

Lara was a very caring and naturally affectionate woman, and distancing herself from her patients was something she was still working on at this stage of her internship.

But right now she had the balance right.

Lara felt the ambulance come to a stop, and the silence of the sirens let her know that they had arrived.

She squeezed the man's hand, giving him a smile as she gave a single reassuring nod before she let go. Allowing Kelle to do what she needed to do.

"We're here," "Feel up to giving the doc a report?"

Lara looked to Kelle for a brief moment before giving an nod, “Sure.”

It couldn't be that hard, right?

"Here's the 12-lead."

Lara took the readout and then the wall knocked before the doors opened.

“Ladies, how was your flight?”

Lara looked as Steven with a smile, “Well my in-flight meal never arrived, but the

landing was text book.”

The ER doctors came over and immediately began unloading the patient.

“Sixty-two year old male, presented with chest pain and shortness of breath. He has a history of cardiovascular disease and is on on chlorthalidone and Rivaroxaban but has never had a cardiac arrest until now.” Lara rattled of as they walked the man into the hospital, she continued

relaying off all the relevant information until she had nothing left to do but stand back and let everyone else take it from here.

Tag: Kelle Lindsay, EMTP , Steven Hudson .

[Kelle Lindsay, EMTP]

Kelle had to admit, Lara did a good job with her report to the ED staff, and she gave the woman a reassuring nod as they moved the patient onto the hospital gurney. She'd done a good job with it, but then, she was a doctor and would be aware of what the ED docs would want to know.

Kelle followed that up with the patient's current vital signs and what they had done for the man, then their part of it was over and she followed Steven and the gurney out of the room.

"Nice job," she complimented Lara. "Now...well, the driver," she grinned at Steven, "cleans up and I do the paperwork. You can stick with either of us." There really wasn't much clean-up, more just getting things back in place for the next run -- Kelle was pretty good about not making a mess and tossing her trash and stuff, after all, she hated unnecessary work, and so would anyone else. "Just stay close to one of us, no telling if we might have to run out again."

Steven Hudson, Lara DunCroft,

[Lara DunCroft]

"Nice job,"
 

Lara smiled.

She had been nervous, but she had handled herself pretty well. Especially considering there had been no other fully fledged doctors around. 

"Now...well, the driver." 

Lara followed Kelle's gaze to Steven.   

"cleans up and I do the paperwork. You can stick with either of us."   "Just stay close to one of us, no telling if we might have to run out again." 

Lara looked back to Kelle, "Well I haven't had hand cramp today, so I'll take paperwork." She joked, knowing Kelle would get the humor considering how much paperwork the job came with and how much time you had to spend with a pen in your hand...well, when you are an intern anyway.

"I think Lewis Hamilton here will be more than capable of handling himself alone." She said shooting Steven a playful wink.

"Besides, I don't think there is enough mess for both of us anyway." She added with a smile.

Tag: Kelle Lindsay, EMTP , Steven Hudson

[Steven Hudson]

Steven grinned, ah the clean up phase of the job though for this journey there was hardly a lot to do. The messy ones were the worst but all in all this one had been run of the mill for the clean up phase of it. “Yes the oh so glamorous job of cleaning... better grab the feather duster and the pink marigolds and hope for the best.” He said grinning; he never minded cleaning up even when it was a mess because the paper work could hurt twice as bad as cleaning anything. Especially if there was an overly eager ER nurse around to make them write everything out ten times.

“Why thank you, at least someone here appreciates my driving skills. It’s nice to finally have the formula one trophy to add to ambulance 61.” He said as he bowed before grinning to both Lara and Kelle. “Oh we can always make mess for two if you want.” He said before he realised that it sounded much better in his head than it did out in the open. "That sounded better in my head." He mumbled, geez and he wondered why he struggled to keep a partner as he quickly glanced between the two women before he looked back toward the ambulance.

“Yeah don’t forget to stick close to superwoman there.” He said motioning to Kelle, “The next call can be any time now.” He said wishing that he could just fly back into the ambulance and hide his embarrassment. Kelle was used to him by now or at least he hoped she was but anyone else, he felt he was sometimes an acquired taste as he motioned to the ambulance. “Clean up duty awaits.” He said as he backed away to go and start that.

[Kelle Lindsay, EMTP]

"Don't forget that feather duster and your little apron!" Kelle called after him, certainly not contributing to easing his embarrassment, but he could handle it, she was sure, as long as he didn't get too tied up in himself. Sure, he could say some silly things, but he had a good heart.

"So," she addressed Laura, "paperwork it is, let's go to the medic room, we can get some coffee there." And Steven would know to find them there, too.

She led the way, although the doctor would know that, then poured herself a cup of coffee before holding up the pot as a question. "Want some? We can take Steven some if he doesn't come in."

Then she settled in a chair and opened the computer, her face twisting into a frown. "I really hate this part, the job would be so much easier without all the stupid paperwork, but I guess you have a lot more than I do." She shook her head, "Oh do you just dictate it all? I'd lose track and forget something!"

Lara DunCroft, Steven Hudson

[Lara DunCroft]

“Oh we can always make mess for two if you want.”

Lara smiled at the comment. At first she had been a little nervous of what Steven was going to be like having an intern tagging along on Kelle's invitation. But to her relief Steven had shown nothing but a great sense of humor and a pleasant attitude towards her.

"That sounded better in my head."

Lara giggled, usually she was the one uttering that phrase, "No, that's ok thanks." She replied playfully declining the offer, letting him know she had taken it as the joke he had meant it to be.

“Yeah don’t forget to stick close to superwoman there.” “The next call can be any time now.”

"Don't worry, I'm her second shadow for the day." Lara retorted with a smile. She had no plans of letting Kelle out of her sight.

"paperwork it is, let's go to the medic room, we can get some coffee there."

"Ooh." Lara mildly exclaimed, her eyes happily widening a little at the prospect of HOT coffee. She could at least warm her hands up on the mug if nothing else.

Lara followed Kelle to the medic room and watched as she poured the coffee.

"Want some? We can take Steven some if he doesn't come in."

"Oh, yeah. It will warm me up even if it doesn't wake me up."

"I really hate this part, the job would be so much easier without all the stupid paperwork, but I guess you have a lot more than I do." "Oh do you just dictate it all? I'd lose track and forget something!"

"I dictate, but I mostly write notes for myself so I don't forget. Look." She said with an amused smile, pulling up her sleeve to show Kelle the scrawl of writing she had all over the underside of her forearm.

"I basically use myself as a human notepad."

Lara pulled her sleeve back down and took a seat by Kelle, getting started on the required paperwork.

Tag: Kelle Lindsay, EMTP, Steven Hudson.

[Kelle Lindsay, EMTP]

"Ah, right...it's a wonder we don't get ink toxicity from doing that!" Kelle grinned as she poured coffee for herself and the doctor, setting the Styrofoam cups on the table in the middle of the small room, where there were packets of sugar and creamer tossed haphazardly in a small metal basket.

"The flight nurses just put a hunk of two-inch adhesive tape on their thigh," she added, "they use that to scribble on. I just end up with a bunch of EKG strips stuffed in my pocket with notes." She laughed. "Those tend to end up in the wash! But, man, you have to keep notes somehow...it can be three hours and four calls later before there's a chance to finish a patient care report, and then it's easy to forget details...lessee, was that a seventy year-old pregnant male who fell off his Big Wheel...and did I start an IV or stick a tube down his nose?"

She laughed again as she booted up the program on her computer. "Just gets crazy sometimes, and all this is is a glorified billing form anyway!"

Steven Hudson, Lara DunCroft

[Steven Hudson]

Steven laughed and rolled his eyes before giving her the thumbs up. “Oh you only wish.” He said back, why did he have to dig himself into a place that meant all he could do was try not to blush any. Still it was easy enough to hide away in the ambulance as he started to clean up. When Lara spoke he was relieved to know she had taken it as a joke, a great way to start a shift was to annoy an ER doc and hope that the next time he went into that place he was safe to do so.

He knew he was getting a easy job as there was little to do in the clean up apart from a wipe down and a restock of things they had used. Steven had seen a lot worse in the back of that ambulance, things that put you off eating for dinner for weeks and yet somehow he still came back to work to start that kind of a day all over again. He often wondered when you were cleaning up mystery things what life was really about but then it was the good days that made everything else worth it.

Even a cleanup that took a while was worth it if the patient was alive at the end of it. Handing living people over there was no feeling like it, still he hoped their latest patient would be okay. It was bad enough being injured but a language barrier too well that was tough on anyone. Steven put the rubbish in a bag and ran it back to the hospital bins before he began to restock with what they needed.

[Lara DunCroft]

 "The flight nurses just put a hunk of two-inch adhesive tape on their thigh," "they use that to scribble on. I just end up with a bunch of EKG strips stuffed in my pocket with notes."

"I writing on the back of receipts or ATM balance slips I have in my pockets." Lara smiled. "I have to check my rubbish before I put it in the bin."

"Those tend to end up in the wash! But, man, you have to keep notes somehow...it can be three hours and four calls later before there's a chance to finish a patient care report, and then it's easy to forget details...lessee, was that a seventy year-old pregnant male who fell off his Big Wheel...and did I start an IV or stick a tube down his nose?"

Lara chuckled, she knew the feeling after doing a long shift in the emergency room on one of their insanely busiest days when their was little to no time between patients. But at least she didn't have to work like that on a regular basis like Kelle and Steven.

"Just gets crazy sometimes, and all this is is a glorified billing form anyway!"

Lara looked at Kelle with a smile. There was some truth to that, but as a doctor Lara knew how important it was to have an accurate medical history.

"Yeah, but a full and correct patient history sure helps us out my end." Lara commented, letting Kelle know her efforts actually counted for something at the end of the day other just for an accurate bill.

Lara took some sugar and milk from the basket and made her coffee to her preferred taste. She took a sip as she started helping Kelle fill in the appropriate paperwork, a tiny part of her feeling just a little sorry for Steven who was still out in the cold preping the ambo while her and Kelle were inside in the warm with hot coffees. If he wasn't in soon she'd just take him a coffee too.

Tag: Kelle Lindsay, EMTP, Steven Hudson.

[Kelle Lindsay, EMTP]

"Well, yeah, it is a legal document, but, you know, with paper we could actually put what we want to, what's really important to the patient and what we did, and not a bunch of stupid drop-down boxes that try to pigeon-hole everyone."

She shrugged as she took a sip of coffee, working on those drop-downs! "But yeah, I hate trying to figure out the wording, what to include and what isn't really pertinent to the case...so it looks good in court." She shook her head. "That's something else I hate, going to court. Man, they make you feel like the criminal."

Quickly, she glanced at the door, then back to Laura. "Steven's taking his time...we didn't leave that much of a mess. We can grab him some coffee and go out and check on him."

Lara DunCroft, Steven Hudson,

[Steven Hudson]

Steven had restocked and cleared up; the ambulance was as good as new and ready for another patient as he shut the back doors on it. When there was hardly any cleaning to do those were the best calls, full hazmat zone was more like a chore than a job but then in for a penny in for a pound. Still as he looked around to see if Kelle and Lara were there he wondered if they were still inside, likely he thought unless Kelle had finally come to her senses and he was about to get a new partner for the day.

He hoped she was still there but then it would be just his luck to managed to do that to the best partner he had in a long time. When he made his way back inside Steven saw Kelle and Lara getting coffee, at least she was still there he thought a little relieved as he waved at them across the ER before heading towards them. “Ladies!” He called, “How are we doing?” He asked them both as he stood by them, honestly sometimes it was better just to keep his mouth shut at times.

“Did the patient make it okay?” He asked, usually he tried to walk away at the end of a call but that was something he had never quite managed to master. He wanted to know that the hospital had managed to do something for them though he knew it was hardly always possible.