Florence County EMS more than just another ride to the
hospital. Ron Cain and LaDonna Micale may drive ambulances, but they're not just ambulance drivers. Just ask the man who's having a heart attack in Effingham, or the mother whose 7 year old has just been hit by a car on Cherokee Road . |
 Paramedic Crewchief Ron Cain radios in information on a patient Tuesday while en route to a Florence Hospital. |
These people probably will say that all the medical technology in the world is of no help if you can't gain access to it. And it's of less help if you can't get to it alive.
So as members of Florence County EMS, Cain and Micale are much more than a ride. They're often a lifeline during the crucial moments between an emergency scene and the hospital.
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"Our goal is saving a patient's life. Ultimately, it's not up to us whether
a patient lives or dies, but we're going to do everything we can to make
a situation better and improve the chances," said Cain, a paramedic who has
been with Florence County for 10 years. "Care starts with us. We're responsible
for what a physician comes into."  |
| Ron Cain injects medication into a patient as partner Ladonna Micale assists |
Ladonna Micale, EMT, and her partner Ron Cain, Paramedic Crew Chief, of the Florence County Emergency Medical Service try to convince a man who just collapsed to go to the hospital Tuesday. |
Time is always a concern for EMS personnel, and sometimes one minute can mean the difference between life and death, said Micale. She's an Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) who is studying to become a paramedic and will take certification tests in July. "Sometimes we have what's called the Golden Hour. That's when a patient needs to be seen by a trauma surgeon and into the operating room in less than an hour," Micale said. |
"CARE STARTS WITH US. WE'RE RESPONSIBLE FOR WHAT A PHYSICIAN COMES INTO" - Ron Cain, Florence County EMS Crew Chief. |
"In those cases, we've got about 10 minutes on the scene. That means 10 minutes to assess the situation and stabilize a patient," she said. "That's not much time to treat someone, but it's got to be done fast. Time's a big factor in a lot of emergency situations."
This month, Cain and Micale make up the M-2 team, which covers most areas within Florence's city limits amd to the south as far as Effingham.
In addition to the M-2 base, Florence County EMS has a station in West Florence, a station in East Florence, two stations in Lake City and a station in Olanta. Eash station has a least one paramedic/EMT team on duty at all times.
Last Tuesday night was a slow shift for Cain and Micale. The M-2 ambulance is usually the county's busiest, but that night, the two answered only four calls in seven hours. None of those were to life-threatening situations.
But responding to a non life-threatening call is just as crucial. About 5:20p.m. Cain and Micale were dispatched to a Florence neighborhood after a woman called and said her son had been biten by a dog. The bites were not bad, but Cain and Micale considered the call as important as a bad car wreck.
As Micale exmained the 6-year-old boy, Cain explained the injuries to his mother and assured her he would be fine. To be on the safe side, the EMS team transported the boy into the hospital, where he was examined by a physician.
"He was bitten in the leg. The bite broke the skin, but it was'nt too deep. His parents were worried, and it will make them feel better if he's checked out by a doctor," Cain said. "We may not think it's too serious, but they're worried and scared, and it makes them feel better. So that's what we do - whatever it takes for them to feel like he's all right."
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| LaDonna Micale, EMT, reaches over a patient as her partner,
Ron Cain, Paramedic Crew Chief, attaches a monitor lead as ther prepare a patient for transport to the hospital. |
Micale talked to the youngster during the ride to the emergency room, and by the time the ambulance arrived, the two were like old friends. The boy, who was hysterical and scared five minutes before, was much calmer, and even smiling at times.
As Micale consulted with a physician on the boy's condition and did the necessary paperwork, Cain prepared the stretcher for the next call by replacing sheets, and equipment.
"We try to get in and out of the emergency room quickly, in case another call comes in." he said. "The stretcher is a priority. You've got to be ready for the next patient."
After the dog bite, the two returned to their office. As they waited for their next emergency run they took a quick break - a rare minute to grab a soft drink and a chair.
Micale and Cain caught up on work and joked with one another like brother and sister. Working 24 hour shifts together gives partners a chance to get to know each other, Micale said.
"I guess we all kind of complement each other as far as running together. For example, I grew up in East Florence, and I know that area," she said. "Ron grew up in South Florence, so he knows that area better. It works out really well."
"We're really the only people who understand what we do. After you work together a while, you almost know what the other person is thinking," she said. "You can work and entire call without saying a work to each other."
"We're sort of like family, but nobody around here would tell you that," she said jokingly.
A sudden tone over the speaker put an end to the lighthearted mood and joking. Conversation came to a quick halt, and their expressions instantly changed from casual to serious.
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The team was sent to a convenience store parking lot where a man complained
of chest pains - a possible heart attack.
When they arrived, the man was breathing, but slumped on the ground. He stood up on his own and walked to the ambulance. Cain and Micale did a preliminary examination, but the man said he did not want to go to the hospital. "You really ought to go, sir," Cain said. "You just collapsed, and you don't know why. Wouldn't you like a doctor to check you out?" |
| LaDonna Micale, EMT and her partner, Ron Cain, Paramedic Crew
Chief, relaod their stretcher after one of many runs to area hospitals Tuesday in Florence. |
Cain's pleas had no effect on the man's decision, but the patient promised to stay at the store for awhile before driving anywhere. |
"You can't force people to go if they don't want to. I'd prefer he go and get checked out," Cain said. "But he's and adult, and if he doesn't want to go, then he has that right."
A couple of hours later, Cain and Micale responded to a similar call, this time at a North Florence apartment. A 32-year-old man complained of chest pains as he lay on his couch, surrounded by family members.
Cain and Micale put the man on a stretcher and took him to the ambulance.. The man's 5-year-old son watched from outside as his father was hooked up to heart monitors and an IV.
Another family member told the boy, "C'mon honey, your daddy's going to be all right. He's in good hands."
The boy smiled, pointed at Cain and Micale, and said, "I know, he's with them. The help people."
Before Cain and Micale could finish the paperwork on the 32-year-old, they're called to help with a man they know.
The man was born with spinal scoliosis and calls EMS quite frequently. Cain and Micale knew the man's ailments were probably not a life or death matter, but that didn't matter.
"He doesn't have anyone top take care of him, and he depends on us," Cain said. "It's an emergency in his mind, and if he thinks it is, then it is. If he wants to go to the hospital, then we take him."
Each shift is different from the one before. On average, Florence County EMS responds to anywhere from 15 to 20 emergency calls a day. But on a busy day, EMS teams run back-to-back calls for 24 hours.
Each call is unique, which makes the job a challenge, Cain said.
"We get a lot of wreck calls, a lot of seizures, chest pains, diabetics, respiratory problems. You never know what you're going to get into," he said. "You've got be thinking on you feet all the time."
"Some days, we don't get to sleep or eat for 24 hours," he said. "When you come into work in the morning you just have to assume it's going to be a busy day."
Busy days often consist of emotional emergency scenes, but EMS workeers have to put those feeling aside and concentrate on their work, Micale said.
"I don't usually get emotional. You have to put that out of your mind," she said. "When I get to a bad wreck, I've got to be thinking about the patients and what they need."
"It's not easy, it can get pretty intense, but you definitely can't let your emotions get in the way of doing what you're there to do, which is to give medical treatment," she said.
"The hardest ones for me are the ones that involve children. Children really pull at those heart strings," said Micale, who has a 5-year-old son named Zachary and is expecting her second child in six months.
Emergency Medical Service work isn't for everyone. Paramedics and EMT's must be dedicated, focused and people-oriented, Cain said.
"You've got to be a certain kind of person to stay with this job," he said. "I've seen people come to EMS and leave within two weeks. I think you've got to be cut out for it, and some people aren't."
"Some can't handle the things we have to deal with," he said. "Whenever I get to a scene, I try to remember that we didn't create the bad situation. We're just responding to it."
(c) copyright 1999 Florence Morning News
Converted to HTML format 5-17-99 by C.G. Haines for Florence County EMS use