Skip to content

He’s a Witch! Burn Him!

9 comments

Caretic [noun; care-i-tik]*

Def: One who unapologetically defies dogma, conventional wisdom and poorly written protocols to provide quality patient care. Often confused with heretic, by the same people who unquestioningly propagate dogma, blindly accept conventional wisdom, and write stupid protocols.

The dictionary defines heretic as "a professed believer who maintains religious opinions contrary to those accepted by his or her church or rejects doctrines prescribed by that church."

There was a time when the same was said of Jesus Christ: "Say, what has gotten into that nice young, Nazarene carpenter? He used to be such a good boy, and now he's spouting crazy talk!"

Not that I put myself in the same category as Jesus Christ, but I'm a believer in EMS, and I believe firmly in the worth of what we do. I love this profession. 

Love it so much, in fact, that I'm willing to point out when we're full of shit. We've got a lot of doctrine in EMS that begs questioning.

Bryan Bledsoe, another EMS caretic, has been a good friend and a professional mentor for many years. And because of his willingness to state some unpleasant truths about our profession, some people in EMS hate his guts. I figure if I can piss off half as many of the same people, and for the same reasons, my career will have been a rousing success.

So yeah, I'm good with being a caretic.

*Word coined by Raquel "Rocky" Digati, a Facebook friend and reader. Here's hoping her word becomes part of the EMS lexicon.

Post to Twitter Tweet This Post

Posted by on July 12, 2011 • Filed under: EMS dogma, The "They Think We're Stupid" Files
  • http://daddybearden.blogspot.com/ DaddyBear

    To be perfectly honest, AD, I don’t care if you consult the bones in order to figure out what to do with me, as long as I’m still breathing when I get to the hospital.  If what you’re doing works, you’ll get no complaints from me.

  • http://lonelyemt.blogspot.com Hilinda

    There can be great satisfaction in standing up and doing the right thing, even when all around you are blindly following whatever.
    And there can also be satisfaction in knowing that the people who hate you for it are, in general, people for whom you have no respect anyway, so not being “liked” by them is preferable than being enough like them for them to want to be your buddy.
    But sometimes, it is also a serious pain in the ass to deal with.

    Thanks for being one of the stand up guys, AD. You are a source of inspiration that helps keep me going on the crappy days.

  • Too Old To Work

    Progress is generally only made by irrational people who won’t go along with the herd.

  • http://roguemedic.com/ Rogue Medic

    But if you keep losing weight, you will be lighter than a duck and therefore – Not a Witch! o_O

  • http://twitter.com/lilminimedic Mini Medic

    I refuse to burn you based on your bodily methane gas releases detailed in “En Route,” as that explosion would make Hiroshima look like a firecracker. 

    That, and you are 100% spot on with the fact that our profession is full of $h!t.

  • A. Non E. Moose

    Since I agree with you and.Dr, Bledsoe, then we shall all burn together to loosely quote Benjamin Franklin. Thanks for a new word, or rather thank your friend.

  • 40lizard

    put simply the truth hurts so take your lumps and learn from it! you don’t have to be popular to state the truth!

  • Penguin EMT

    Love it. I won’t burn either of you at the stake – it’d smell too horrible. Yourself and Dr. Bledsoe have a big impact on EMS professionals and how many people have been pissed off is only a good testament to that! 

  • Pingback: Three Percenters | A Day In The Life Of An Ambulance Driver

Vote for me! Click Here

Polarized sunglasses, Flashlights, and Hiking boots.