85 | Kevin Hazzard | Being an EMT tourist | Paragod phase | Moving on from EMS | A Thousand Naked Strangers

Kevin Hazzard 

Author of A Thousand Naked Strangers and American Sirens (you can find these on Amazon or wherever books are sold). You can find Kevin Hazzard at KevinHazzard.com

We talk about the difference of caring for someone dying in their home vs the hospital bed

There is something more intimate about dealing with death in a home, where the person had lived

In a lot of way this is harder to deal with in a patient’s home than my role in the ER as a PA, where I have more resources to manage the family dynamics

Kevin talks about how the crew emphasized the fighting component of the job when he did his early EMT ride-a-longs. We talk about fighting patients and how a lot of times this can be avoided. It comes down to your relationship with the patient and how you present yourself. Many fights are unavoidable, but some are inevitable 

Kevin talks about being more tourist than devoted to learning early in his career. About how a partner helped make him a true believer

Our partners make such a huge difference, they can show us how the job is or is not supposed to be done

“You should wake up every day excited to be here and learn the medicine” 

There’s no mystical force we tap into, it’s about learning the medicine. It’s you and another human being with a few tools at your disposal 

Appreciate the incredible opportunity you have to be there

Kevin talks about his stent as a paragod and how this came to an end

“Hubris comes before the fall”

Kevin talks about an embarrassing moment that ended his paragod phase when he brought in a cardiac arrest with lividity 

Humbling experiences will occur and end that paragod phase, hopefully you learn from your mistakes

We talk about moving on from EMS and how the options are really limited for a paramedic looking to progress. There is no natural movement upward

Kevin talks about the struggle of identifying with a profession like paramedicine or being a firefighter and how this can make it difficult to move on, even when you should

It was hard for him to move on when being a paramedic was such a big part of who he was and was the motivating factor behind writing A Thousand Naked Strangers

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Everything you hear today from myself and my guests is opinion only and doesn’t represent any organizations or companies that any of us are affiliated with. The stories you hear have been modified to protect patient privacy and any resemblance to real individuals is coincidental. This is for educational and entertainment purposes only and should not be taken as medical advice nor used to diagnose any medical or healthcare conditions.