Flying through the air in a helicopter that's "so much smaller than you think," Sophie Fuller works to save lives as a critical care flight paramedic. In this captivating conversation, she reveals the unexpected journey that led her to becoming a lifesaving flight medic who transports critically ill patients by air.
Sophie's path wasn't always clear. Seeking something beyond the hospital walls to satisfy her "super ADHD" personality, she discovered emergency medicine through a friend who was a paramedic. This sparked a multi-year educational journey through EMT school, advanced training, and finally paramedic certification—all while working as a firefighter and in 911 services. Her love for medicine and adrenaline eventually led her to the skies as a flight paramedic, where she found her perfect professional home.
The reality of flight medicine comes alive as Sophie details her daily routine: the two-and-a-half-hour commute, the extensive safety protocols, and the remarkable teamwork between paramedics and nurses that makes airborne medicine possible. She vividly describes the complex dance of managing patients in a confined, noisy space where "we tend to communicate with our eyes more than our mouth." From blood coolers to helmet communications, every aspect of this specialized care environment serves a critical purpose.
But Sophie's story goes deeper than medical procedures. She candidly shares how burnout nearly drove her from the profession entirely before she found renewal through an unexpected source: sharing her experiences online. As "Paramedic Sophie," she built a community that reignited her passion for emergency medicine and eventually led to co-hosting the Life and Sirens podcast, where she and colleagues share everything from clinical education to tales of "haunted stations" and unforgettable patient encounters.
Whether you're considering a career in emergency medicine or simply fascinated by these "quiet heroes" of healthcare, Sophie's story offers a powerful reminder of the extraordinary people who stand ready to help on our worst days. Ready to explore emergency medicine for yourself? Sophie encourages everyone from high school students to healthcare professionals to take advantage of ride-along programs and experience firsthand the "chaos and excitement" that makes emergency medicine unlike any other healthcare specialty.
Paramedic Sophie (Instagram)
Life and Sirens Podcast (Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Website)
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Ashley (00:00):
Hello and welcome to Shadow Me Next, a podcast where
I take you into and behind thescenes of the medical world to
provide you with a deeperunderstanding of the human side
of medicine.
I'm Ashley, a physicianassistant, medical editor,
clinical preceptor and thecreator of Shadow Me Next.
It is my pleasure to introduceyou to incredible members of the
(00:22):
healthcare field and uncovertheir unique stories, the joys
and challenges they face andwhat drives them in their
careers.
It's access you want andstories you need, whether you're
a pre-health student or simplycurious about the healthcare
field.
I invite you to join me as wetake a conversational and
personal look into the lives andminds of leaders in medicine.
(00:44):
I don't want you to miss asingle one of these
conversations, so make sure thatyou subscribe to this podcast,
which will automatically notifyyou when new episodes are
dropped, and follow us onInstagram and Facebook at shadow
me next, where we will reviewhighlights from this
conversation and where I'll giveyou sneak previews of our
upcoming guests.
Today on shadow me next, I'mjoined by Sophie Fuller, a
(01:07):
critical care flight paramedic,president of the Tennessee
Association of EMS Providers andco-host of the Life and Sirens
podcast.
In this episode, Sophie opensup about the burnout that almost
pushed her out of EMS and howsharing her stories online
sparked a creative revival thatreignited her purpose.
(01:27):
We talk about the chaos andcontrol of working in a
helicopter, the wildest patienttransport stories yes, someone
really used an ambulance to getto their drug dealer and the
deep-rooted teamwork it takes tosave lives from the air.
Please keep in mind that thecontent of this podcast is
intended for informational andentertainment purposes only and
(01:49):
should not be considered asprofessional medical advice.
The views and opinionsexpressed in this podcast are
those of the host and guests anddo not necessarily reflect the
official policy or position ofany other agency, organization,
employer or company.
This is Shadow Me Next withSophie Fuller.
Sophie, thank you so much forjoining me on Shadow Me Next.
(02:11):
We've chatted a little bitbefore now and I just have so
much respect for you and whatyou have done and what you have
created, even outside of therole, which is saving people, is
what you do for a living.
You're incredible.
I can't wait to have thisconversation with you.
Thank you for being here.
Sophie (02:27):
Well, you're too good to me.
I'm very excited to be here andI think what you're doing is
very important, because I had noidea what the heck I wanted to
do.
I just knew healthcare was theanswer.
Ashley (02:38):
Yeah, exactly, and I think a lot of us are in that
position, right, and we eitherwe either, you know, read about
a position, or we we talk to afamily member or a friend who's
been doing this job, or we seesomething on TV that we think
you know hey, maybe I'minterested in that, but until
you really get to step intosomebody's shoes and shadow them
, it uh, it really doesn'tbecome real to you, and it's
(02:59):
hard for you to see yourselfdoing what they do day in and
day out.
Sophie, you have, like I said,you have so many aspects of what
you do on the day to day.
All of them are equallyimpressive.
I don't know how you throw,keep so many balls in the air.
You're incredible.
Let's start, though.
Let's start with your, yourprimary jobs, your critical care
.
I can't even say your primaryjob because you have so many
(03:20):
primary jobs, but you, whatwe're here to talk about, which
is critical care?
Many primary jobs, what you,what we're here to talk about,
which is critical care?
Flight paramedic, tell us, tellus about your education leading
up to that.
How did you first decide it'swhat you wanted to do and what,
really, what steps did you haveto take to get?
Sophie (03:35):
there?
Yeah, definitely so.
For me, and I think for a lotof people, the only thing that I
knew of or had in mind wasnursing.
So I got a tech job at thelevel one trauma center because
it was so cool and I loved it.
I love the people I worked with.
But I realized that I maybedidn't want to work inside the
(03:56):
walls of a hospital, like I'msuper ADHD and I just needed
more chaos.
I know it gets chaotic in there, but I needed more.
And one of my friends was aparamedic and I was like you
know what, I'm going to try thatout.
So I went to EMT school.
So in this state you have to goto EMT school, then you go to
(04:16):
advanced EMT school and then yougo through paramedic school.
So while I was EMT and advancedEMT, I was actually a
firefighter.
So while I was EMT and advancedEMT, I was actually a
firefighter and that was a lotof fun, but I really loved the
medicine.
So I got a job at a 911 servicethat was in a neighboring
county.
(04:38):
I worked for about a year and ahalf before I went to paramedic
school, just to get someclinical experience under my
belt, because there's reallynothing quite like 911.
It is whack out here.
It's crazy.
So I did all that and I workedfull-time while going to
paramedic school, which is alsochaotic but totally worth it.
Paramedic school is threesemesters.
(04:59):
Advanced school is one semesterand then basic school is one
semester.
So what are we at?
It's like two and a half years,um.
And then, once I had worked fortwo years as a 911 ground
paramedic, I went to criticalcare paramedic school, which is
an additional semester.
Um, did that for a little whilewith a ground nine one or
(05:23):
ground critical care service,while working the 911 truck as
well, and I was like this is alot of fun, it's a lot more ICU
vibes.
I guess it's like mobile ICU, Iwould say.
And then I was like okay, I'mready for the next step.
So once I got all my certs andmy experience that the flight
(05:47):
company that I work for nowrequired, I applied after doing
an internship or a fellowshipwith them is what they call it,
and it's basically all theironboarding stuff.
But you get to do it before youeven apply or before you're
eligible to apply.
Just kind of see if it'sactually what you want to do,
because I would say that it'sprobably likely that you don't
(06:08):
want to test out if you lovebeing in an aircraft for the
first time on your first day ofwork and here I am.
So it's a lot of school afteryou get hired as well.
So I had to go to another stateand do training for a full week
with you know all the normal HRthings, but also clinical
(06:29):
education and then aircrafteducation, and you take about
six more months after your hiredate and then you continue doing
like regional intensive thingsand there's just a lot of
clinical stuff you do.
But then you have to throw inavionics into the mix, which is
not was not my expertise, stillis not my expertise, but it is
(06:52):
so cool, so very dynamic jobthat is so dynamic, that is so
cool and I just I love how therewas a next step which for you,
I'm sure was very motivating foryou in your current role.
Ashley (07:05):
You know you saw you got to see so many different
elements of things and you said,hey, look, there's another
avenue, let me pursue that, I'mprepared for this All the way up
to being a critical care flightparamedic.
So if you tell us a little bitmore about the distinction
between EMS and being aparamedic, aside from schooling,
you know what you get to do onthe day-to-day are there
(07:31):
differences there?
Sophie (07:32):
Yeah, definitely so.
For EMT, basics or advancedEMTs, some states only have EMT
and then paramedic.
So an EMT is basic life supportskills, so basic airways, basic
trauma, just you're not doing aton of invasive interventions.
It's kind of you're not doing aton of invasive interventions.
It's kind of obviously they'redoing cpr, they're placing
airway adjuncts, but they're notdoing things like intubating or
, you know, running cardiacarrest or things like that.
(07:53):
And then once you move up toparamedic, that's when you start
doing the more invasive skills,anything from obviously ivs,
medication administration allthe way up to cricothoratomies.
So like you do a lot of things,yes, and then when you get to
critical care, you can dosurgical crics, which is there's
a very wide scope in EMS, whichI love.
(08:14):
It is so cool, obviously lotsof continuing education.
But most services in my stateare what we call ALS services,
so a paramedic is required to beon the ambulance with an EMT or
another paramedic.
So the paramedic is essentiallyin most scenarios the lead
clinician.
(08:34):
So a lot of the times wecompare like medic and EMT to
like mid-level or doctor andnurse, just not because that's
really quite an adequaterepresentation, but for people,
especially lay people who aren'treally in the EMS or
pre-hospital setting.
(08:54):
It kind of makes a little moresense.
We do the decision-making andthen someone follows through
with the orders or we followthrough with the orders.
We kind of work as a team.
Ashley (09:03):
No, I think it's.
I was just as you were talking.
I was like this is a perfectrepresentation of the teamwork
model in healthcare and I thinkyou know an interview question
that would just be so amazing isdescribe why the teamwork model
in healthcare works so well.
You know, because you get tosee it every day.
You know, I mean, you guys areout there really Saving people's
(09:27):
life does sound dramatic, butthat's what you're doing, and
maybe you could give us a coupleof other examples where the
teamwork model really, really,really helps when you're
transporting a patient, eitheron ground or in the air, but I'm
sure you see it all the timehow it benefits your patients.
Sophie (09:42):
Yeah.
So it's really wild.
For the most part when you'reworking ground 911 or even my
ground critical care job, we arealone in the back typically and
your partner is driving yourEMT or your paramedic partner.
If you're swapping off calls,you're back there by yourself.
So teamwork is really importantas far as like maybe we need to
(10:02):
divert to a closer facility,maybe we need to upgrade to
emergency traffic.
You know there's.
You still have to communicatewith your partner even though
they're driving.
But one thing I absolutely loveabout flight is I get to be
right next to my partner, who istypically a nurse.
So I get to be myself and anurse and we get to collaborate
(10:23):
and we get to talk about thecomplexities of this patient and
make decisions together, whichis really cool.
It's not something that I wasused to and that transition was
a little weird, but it's amazingbecause the nurses have all the
experience in things like asfar as ICU side of things goes.
So all the drips and thingslike that and kind of the
paramedic is more like the.
So all the drips and thingslike that and kind of the
(10:45):
paramedic is more like theexpert on the ventilator and
things like that and some of thetrauma.
So it's a perfect.
I cannot imagine a better team,truly.
And then some agencies even havefor flight not only nurses and
paramedics, but also they'llhave PAs, nurse practitioners
and even docs on the aircraft.
So that's even cooler.
You get even more expertise andpeople who can do all kinds of
(11:07):
crazy stuff with you.
So I love it.
It's so fun.
Ashley (11:11):
When you're transporting these patients, especially in
the air.
Are these the sickest of thesick or the most injured of the
injured?
Sophie (11:22):
Yeah, so in a perfect world, typically, yes, these are
some very critically illpatients.
But sometimes we get things andwe're just like what?
This person is fine.
But most of the time, yes, solike if we're calling for air,
it's either because the patientneeds to get to a facility that
is quite a distance, or maybethey just need to get somewhere
(11:47):
in a quicker amount of time, ormaybe even the ground EMS
service doesn't carry somethinglike blood or the patient needs
to be intubated and they aren'table to rapid sequence intubate.
We kind of fill in the holeswhere they're needed, and it's
so diverse across the US whatground EMS can do, depending on
county or jurisdiction.
(12:08):
So for scene flights, it'softentimes because air needs to
do some kind of interventionthat ground can't, or they're
just really far away from amajor facility.
Ashley (12:20):
I would imagine it becomes a little bit complicated
for you if you're ever lookingto say move, you know, maybe to
a different state Would you haveto research kind of what you're
qualified for in that instanceit's not really as universal as
being like a doctor, for example.
Sophie (12:35):
Yeah, so EMS is obviously a lot newer than some
of the other healthcareprofessions, so we're still
ironing out all the kinks.
To get an EMT or paramediclicense, you have to take a
national registry Okay, sothat's standardized.
But as far as state goes,there's no like interstate
license you have to apply for,like reciprocity, in every
(12:56):
single state.
For the air medical I work for,I have two state license, just
because we're on the line.
So that makes things a littlemore complicated.
Boy do I wish there wassomething that could streamline
things.
But I think that it does workin a way that, like every
demographic that we serve, everyarea that we service, can be so
(13:19):
different that the EMS serviceshave to be different, because
the way you operate urban EMS iscompletely like it would not
work in a rural setting.
So I think that it is good to acertain degree.
But also it would give you know, our paramedics and EMTs on the
street more access to be ableto, you know, transfer to
(13:43):
different states and things likethat, and adapt for their
families.
So I think that is one thingthat puts limitations on us is
that you can't do like you can.
You can't easily do like travelnursing.
In the paramedic aspect.
There are travel contracts forparamedics.
It's just very.
You still have to get a licensein that state and everything
(14:05):
like that.
So, um, I think we should havean interstate license.
Ashley (14:09):
That's my shameless plug for all those people listening
who are in administration andhealthcare politics.
Yes, no, I think that's great.
I think that's great.
Um, it just it really I don'tknow.
It kind of touches me becauseour you know, we think of our
EMTs, paramedics, firefightersas our hometown heroes.
(14:30):
And you guys are like you said.
You know they are members ofthe community.
You guys are like knitted intothe community.
You serve this specificcommunity, you know, and I think
that it just it reallyhighlights that and, um, oh, my
goodness, I'm so grateful forthe paramedics and EMTs and
firefighters that frequentlycome to my house and my place of
(14:51):
work, because it's nothing likebeing in a crisis and seeing
you or seeing somebody that justsays I've got this, we're going
to handle this.
Take a seat or lay down if it'sactually you that's having a
problem.
Um, let's talk about a day inyour life.
I would love to hear about this.
So let's talk specificallyabout a day in your life as a
critical care flight paramedic,because I think, again, that is
(15:14):
so cool.
You mentioned, maybe having todrive the ambulance.
Sometimes you don't ever haveto fly the helicopter, right, oh
, gosh, I can I.
Sophie (15:21):
that would be so scary and I'm not sure I would ever
even make it off the ground.
Ashley (15:27):
Fair valid, valid.
So scary and I'm not sure Iwould ever even make it off the
ground Fair Valid, Valid.
Sophie (15:29):
But tell us about a day in your life.
I would love to hear about whatyou do.
All right, so I have to make apretty significant drive because
I live very urban and I wantedto work very rural, so that is
what I did.
So I drive a whopping two and ahalf hours to my air medical
gig.
Oh my goodness, I know that'slike cuckoo bananas, but it is a
great drive.
It's a great time to listen topodcasts and decompress and get
(15:51):
ready for the shift.
So I'll drive into work, grabsome coffee on the way, relax.
When we get there we do a crewchange so we will get our
narcotics keys and our radiosfrom the crew that is coming off
and then we'll meet with ourpilot.
We will do a shift brief.
(16:12):
We'll talk about the weather,if we're able to fly or not that
day, or if it's going to belike maybe, maybe not.
We'll just have to update as wego.
And then any concerns if we'reout for maintenance or there's
certain things, maybe we're in aspare aircraft or something.
He'll fill us in on that.
We sign a lot of paperworkbecause we still have to follow
(16:34):
FAA guidelines and things likethat, even though we're medical.
We get our helmets ready in thepilot's office and then we go
to the aircraft and we check theaircraft off, which is also fa
compliant, and then stateguidelines say everything we
have to have on the aircraft, um, and it's wild what we can pack
(16:56):
into that bad boy, because itis so much smaller than you
think it is.
It is crazy, um.
So we do all that and usuallyif we're not taking a flight or
doing some kind of education,we're either just hanging out
with each other, we're studying,we study a lot.
(17:17):
I know that's kind of weird,and that's one thing that kind
of changed from ground to fly iswe study a lot because there's
a little bit more time for it.
Um, but when we get a flight,it's just like if you were going
to get tones, um, or dispatchto a call on the ground, so
we'll get tones on our radio.
We will all.
(17:37):
Usually, as a paramedic, I'llgrab the blood from the cooler,
I'll go grab my helmet, um, andwe'll go straight to the
aircraft, um aircraft, when it'sready, when our pilot's ready
for us, either one of us isstanding in what we call it fire
watch, so they're making surethere's nothing crazy going on
with the aircraft and they'requite farther than the paramedic
(17:58):
is typically and I'll be rightat the nose of the aircraft and
then we will do walk arounds.
So the paramedic will start onthe nurse's side and the nurse
will start on the paramedic sideand we both walk around.
The pilot's already done hiswalk around.
We make sure it's super safe.
There's a lot of checklists andthings like that that we do.
We get into the aircraft, ourhelmets are already on but we
(18:21):
get to plug them in and we canhear what's going on through our
helmets, um, which is supercool unless you have a terrible
helmet.
So I just ordered a new helmetand I'm really excited.
And then we go through achecklist before we lift and
then as soon as we're lifted andeverybody is good to go and we
(18:44):
no longer have what we call asterile cockpit, so if we're
landing or lifting, we all arequiet so we can hear any
instructions from the pilot orif we see something that is a
safety hazard, we're able tocall that out.
So once we're up in the air, ourdispatch or our comms will talk
to us and let us know wherewe're going, what the
(19:05):
coordinates are if going.
You know what the coordinatesare if it's a scene or what the
hospital is, and then a generalidea of what we're going to and
how much the patient weighs andthings like that.
So it's a fun time.
Once we get to where we'regoing, you know it's a bad day
or you know it's serious.
I should say when they say, oh,thank goodness you're here, I'm
(19:28):
like, oh no, what are wegetting into?
It's a little different if it'sa scene flight.
So if it's a scene flight, it'stypically an EMS crew we're
picking up from, which is a lotof fun.
I get to see some of the peopleeither that are followers which
is crazy, or that I work with,so that's so fun our followers,
which is crazy, or that I workwith, so that's so fun and we do
a little rendezvous.
We talk about what's going onwith the patient they usually
(19:55):
have them on their monitor andthings like that so we'll swap
them over to all of our stuff,which just makes a big spaghetti
mess with all the wires.
So that's something I'mstarting to get the hang of is
cable management and then we putthem on our little cot and then
we take them over to theaircraft, load them in, which is
a very small space and a veryloud space, so we tend to
(20:16):
communicate with our eyes morethan our mouth.
And then we do the samechecklist again and then we head
to whatever hospital is mostappropriate.
We land and then take thepatient inside, give reports and
then head back to the aircraft,do all of our checklists again
and hopefully head back to base,unless we get another call on
(20:38):
the way.
Ashley (20:39):
Which happens.
You get other calls and thenyou have to go somewhere else.
Sophie (20:44):
Yeah, it does happen.
It could be a full day of justzing, zing, zing and we never
see the base, but it is fun.
We love to fly.
Even if it's just we're gettingup in the air and we're going
to a scene and we get canceled,I'm still happy to be in the air
.
So call us anytime.
Ashley (21:02):
What a cool thing.
I love how you really describedthe environment, because I
think so much I mean, you know,I don't appreciate the
environment that I work inenough.
I think in in clinic it's quiet, it's very clean, everybody is
listening to each other, there'sno usually there's no chaos or
(21:24):
background noise.
The amount of focus that youhave to have to perform all of
the safety checks to make surecords are not getting tangled
and you're not accidentallystrangling your poor patient or
one of the EMTs.
I think that it's these thingsthat attention to detail is so
(21:47):
easy to talk about.
But until you realize what canhappen if you are not attentive
to those details, you reallydon't feel like the full force
of that.
You know, and um, and a lot'son the line most of the time.
You know, when you guys, you,you can't just be skimming over
the little stuff.
Little stuff matters too.
Incredible.
(22:08):
Oh my God, that's so incredible.
Okay, sophie, you mentioned um,you mentioned running into
followers.
Uh, when you're on the ground,when you're picking up from EMTs
, I just I love this so much.
So, sophie, um, you areparamedic Sophie, on Instagram,
facebook, tiktok.
Paramedic Sophie, you havebuilt this amazing, strong
(22:28):
following through your Instagrampresence.
Tell me a little bit about whatinspired you to start sharing
these stories and yourexperiences and, my God, you
have so many.
You truly do.
Sophie (22:38):
You have such a strong following and I love that you
get to meet these people in reallife too.
It is so much fun to meetpeople in the wild, I say.
But really, what inspired me tostart doing this was I became
really burnt out.
I was working really hard and Iwas exhausted and I started to
(22:58):
take for granted the job that Ihad and the opportunity I had to
do what I do every day, whichis amazing, and I was around a
lot of people who are reallyburnt out too and that were
miserable doing this job, whichit can happen very easily.
It's exhausting many days, mostdays and I was able to start
(23:20):
sharing some of my stories, someof the excitement and just some
silly things as well.
On.
Tiktok is where I reallystarted and I realized that
there's people who love this jobas much as I do and are just as
eager or as excited to get intothe field as I was, and that
was so refreshing and it reallyhelped me recover from the
(23:40):
burnout that I was going through, and I was at a place before I
started sharing andcollaborating and hearing
people's stories on the internetthat I was going through, and I
was at a place before I startedsharing and collaborating and
hearing people's stories on theinternet that I was ready to
leave.
I was like I'm just going to goto nursing school.
I can't do this anymore.
It's hurting me and it washurting me, but it kind of
restored my excitement and mypassion and I am all things EMS
(24:04):
all day, every day, 24-7, andI'm not burnout.
So it was very exciting to beable to see people just as
excited as I was, and I don'tthink enough people understand
what we do.
So obviously, plenty of peoplewho are first responders in the
field follow me, but there'salso a lot of lay people as well
(24:24):
and it's really exciting forthem to be like no way, like
what the heck?
That's what y'all are doing,because we're not only running
emergencies, we're also doingsome wild, crazy, silly things.
So you're just like what wasthat?
That happened?
They called for that,absolutely they did, and it was
a lot of fun and those sillythings that we do every day.
(24:45):
It's really easy to get burnouton if there's no outlet.
So I'm glad that we can cometogether and laugh about it, cry
about it and celebrate it.
Ashley (24:54):
So if you tell me about one of the silly things, the
things that you're just like,are you kidding me?
What are we doing here?
What is an example of that?
Sophie (25:01):
All right, let's see no-transcript.
(25:32):
And they refused assessment,they refused vital signs, they
refused everything.
They just said I need to rideto the hospital.
We get to the hospital, theyeven signed my computer and
everything and they're like cool, I want to walk inside.
I was like all right, they jumpout of the side door of the
ambulance, they look at me andsay thanks, I just needed a ride
(25:53):
to my drug dealer.
I'm so serious, that reallyhappened.
That was so real and they ranfull sprint away and I was like
I guess I got to call mysupervisor now because I did not
know what just happened and Ithink about paperwork.
That really happened.
It was crazy.
Ashley (26:12):
Let's talk about quality questions Now.
Sophie and I did not have achance to discuss a quality
question, but this story thatshe's just told brings up a
topic that would make a greatquality question.
Something like describe a timewhen you witnessed misuse of
medical services, answer thequestion, but after answering,
(26:33):
make sure you have a follow-upresponse, something describing
perhaps how you stepped in toameliorate the situation or what
you wish you would have done,or even how the situation made
you feel.
Keep in mind that there's moreinterview prep, such as mock
interviews and personalstatement review over on
shadowmenextcom.
There you'll find amazingresources to help you as you
(26:55):
prepare to answer your ownquality questions.
Unreal, you really like you.
We probably should have calledpsych at that point.
Sophie (27:05):
Yes, they did look out for this person, because that
was why that was wild, that'sunreal the fact that they gave
you real information too.
Just close my mind yes, and wehad all their information and we
knew this person like we pickedthem up before they wanted to
come clean this right, theywanted to be honest, I'm not
going in there, oh my gosh.
Ashley (27:23):
Well, you see, it's okay .
It's such a good example,because I mean that's a really
good example of how it's amisconception, right that, and
it's a silly one that that EMS,emt, first responders,
paramedics, you guys are doinglife-saving things all day long,
which you are most of the time,but then people misuse
resources, like that person, andyeah, that was wild.
(27:46):
And that's a source of burnout.
Oh my God, it's a huge source ofburnout, absolutely, when
people are wanting to use you asa glorified taxi service, which
is not the first time that'shappened.
Maybe the first time theyadmitted to doing it for drugs,
but not the first time it'shappened.
Sophie (28:01):
Yes, that's why it was so wild, because they were
honest about it.
Ashley (28:04):
Well, bravo for the honesty, but bigger problems
there.
So I love that you addressedburnout.
It's such a huge topic rightnow in medicine and what's
what's so interesting to me, andas you know, is we're doing
jobs that people are desperateto do right now.
I mean, you're God, your jobsounds so cool to me and you
(28:28):
know, so many people I've talkedto are so excited and
interested in being a PA.
But you and I both know it doescome with challenges and it
comes with challenges that areknown.
Obviously we're going to havehard days where you lose
patients or where I have to tellpatients they have cancer.
Those are hard days.
But you know, the hard days arealso when, um, you are
transporting patients thatreally don't need transport and
(28:50):
doing that over and over andover, and you kind of start to
ask yourself why am I here, whyam I doing this?
Um, you know time away from yourfamily, you drive five hours
into work, you know, and that'sthat's these things build and
they build and there's a coupleof ways to deal with burnout and
I think people haven't reallyfigured out the perfect way, but
you figured out a great one andthat's using what, where you're
(29:13):
at right now and finding outhow to find joy in it again.
Finding the joy in what you'redoing, and for a lot of people,
it's talking to other people.
For a lot of people, it'sgetting oh, it's getting
students involved, which is whatI love doing.
I think it's fantastic.
For others, it's, you know,maybe making some type of a I
don't know a podcast which we'lltalk about, and I think it's a
(29:36):
great way to use a creativeoutlet to lean on your community
and to fight this terriblething called burnout, and it's
just going to provide so muchpassion and joy and infuse that
back into what you do.
So well done.
Sophie (29:51):
Thank you, I'm trying my best.
I just think we need tocelebrate the amazing things we
do more.
I think healthcare in generalis one of those like quiet hero
situations, like we don't talkabout all the good we do.
So I love to hear and share thegood we do, because that's what
matters most.
Ashley (30:09):
You have this incredible podcast that I am just so happy
to highlight.
I've loved listening to it.
Oh my God, you guys need like afull-blown TV show.
I think in life and sirenspodcast, um, you and a couple of
other colleagues uh, createthese fantastic episodes.
Tell us what kind of storiesthat you like to really showcase
(30:32):
in in your podcast episodes.
Sophie (30:34):
Yeah, so life and Sirens was basically born from our
long chats in the ambulance bayat like two in the morning,
where we come back and we wouldjust talk do listen, I'm not
gonna lie, um, and we wanted toshare that.
(31:01):
Just.
It kind of came after my socialmedia became something that
really was an incredible outletfor all of us actually.
So we talk about all kinds ofthings.
We talk about burnout, we talkabout anything from.
You know, we have some episodesthat are super heavy clinical.
We have some that are likelight clinical, from like asthma
(31:23):
exacerbations all the way up tolike RSI, so that's rapid
sequence intubation, if you'renot familiar, where we paralyze
and sedate people and intubatethem.
So we have a wide variety andso we try to touch on topics
that are relatable to plenty ofclinicians out there, from emt
basic to, you know, our flightpas and things like that, um.
(31:46):
But we also talk about the funstuff and the funny stuff and
the rides to their drug dealer.
I think we talked about that onepisode two.
We even have listener tales,which so exciting.
We had somebody talk about ahaunted station, which that was
kind of cool.
We all have stayed the night inthose haunted stations because
we work 24-hour shifts, which isspooky.
(32:07):
But I just think we have anopportunity to do a wide variety
of things.
We really just decide.
Honestly, I know some peopleare like man, you guys must
spend so much time preparing foran episode.
I'm just going to be honestwith you.
We decide, we get in, we walkupstairs to my attic, like in a
three story townhouse.
We walk all the way up to theattic, we sit down and we say
(32:28):
what are we going to talk abouttoday?
And that is how we decide.
I am so serious.
So it is very laid back, it isvery chill and it very laid back
, it is very chill and it's foranybody, everybody.
Ashley (32:43):
It's so true though I mean it's so off the cuff the
fact that you guys aren'tpreparing these conversations.
It also goes to show you howmany things that you experience
on the day-to-day that you couldtalk about.
Sophie (32:50):
Yes, it is seriously the weirdest job.
People just pick up theirphones and essentially call us
and we just show up right thenand we just walk right into
their homes and it is just likethat's wild, like what do you?
Ashley (33:04):
mean On a lot of their worst days too, yeah, and they
say come on in.
Sophie (33:09):
I don't know you, but I hope you can help.
Ashley (33:12):
Sophie, I'm just so impressed with you.
So you have this fantasticInstagram, instagram, facebook,
tiktok platform with ParamedicSophie.
You have Life in Sirens podcastand I think what, to me, what
is just the most amazing andmeaningful is the advocacy and
the leadership that you areinvolved in.
You are not only involved inthe Association of EMS Providers
(33:34):
, you are the president, so tellus about this association and
tell us why advocacy?
We've talked a little bit aboutthis, but why is it so
important in emergency medicineright now?
Sophie (33:48):
Absolutely so.
The Tennessee Association ofEMS Providers it is a mouthful,
so often we just call it theassociation.
It sounds spooky but I meanit's easier to say.
So it was formed out ofsuggestion by our state EMS
board director because we had aneducators association and we
(34:09):
have, like, the ambulanceservice association but we
didn't really have anything thatwas representing the people out
here on the street doing thework, representing the people
out here on the street doing thework, exhausted, tired and
burnout, and we needed a way toformally advocate for them.
(34:29):
So I am so lucky to be a part ofit and I was able to be the
board director of my regionbefore running for president and
it's an exceptional opportunityand I get to meet so many
people across the state and Ihad no idea some of the things
that our providers were dealingwith across the board and a lot
of it had to do with, you know,unsafe working conditions, poor
(34:51):
staffing, things that we dealwith in all aspects of health
care, in all aspects of healthcare.
But one of the biggest thingswe advocate for and especially,
you know, as far as politics go,things are kind of in a weird
place for health care, but wereally advocate for provider
mental health and our state isdoing some amazing things.
(35:12):
I know recently a bill was justpassed in our state that stated
you are diagnosed with PTSD andyou are in a first responder
role.
That it would be.
It could be consideredassociated with your job, so
then you could apply for, youknow, oji and it would be
(35:33):
covered.
So that's a really big step andI'm glad that we're doing it
here so maybe other states canfollow in suit.
That's not something we'respecifically responsible for at
the association, but we arefighting hard for things like
that.
And it's a great space too tobring providers together.
We do all kinds of continuinged and we do EMS nights out and
(35:55):
just a place for people, justlike social media, because
social media it's not foreverybody, especially some of
our more experienced providers.
So it's really nice to bringpeople together and be like
there are people out there, justlike you, who are so excited to
be here and they want to behere and they know that change
needs to be happening, so let'smake it happen.
So I think it's reallyrefreshing for a lot of people
(36:20):
and so important to Sophie.
Ashley (36:21):
Thank you so much for doing that hard work, because I
could imagine, after working,the days that you work and the
nights that you work, the24-hour shifts that you work,
and then coming and reallybreaking it down with your
colleagues in a way that you'rein a position of leadership.
So when you ask these questions, it's not just fleshing out the
problems, it's brainstormingand it's generating ideas and
coming up with solutions.
(36:41):
And as rewarding as it is, I'msure it's also a lot of really
hard work, but you're motivated.
I mean, you're motivated tomake it better.
You're seeing the fruit of yourlabor already, which is awesome
.
Sophie (36:54):
It is amazing and I work with a lot of talented and
enthusiastic and creative people, and that's one thing we have
to be, I think, is we just gotto start getting creative
because we're in territory rightnow, as far as public
perception and politics andthings like that in the
healthcare field, that isabsolutely uncharted, so we're
going to have to create thingsout of nothing to make some
(37:16):
positive changes for ourpatients and our.
You know, emts, paramedics,whatever you are in healthcare.
It's a little scary right now,so I'm glad we're able to come
together and try to make achange.
Ashley (37:30):
That's awesome.
Well, it seems like you guysare doing that and more.
Oh see, you guys, I told youSophie's incredible.
I just am so, so impressed andso grateful for all of the ways
that you're really just bringingattention to everything that
first responders do and thenadvocating for those first
responders.
It's like, hey, come, look atus, see what we can do, and now
(37:51):
help us Like, let's make bigchanges happen.
It's just, it's fantastic,sophie, tell me.
There are people listening thatare saying you know, this is
what I want to do, this is who Iwant to be.
I want to be Sophie.
She's such a cool person.
What would you tell thosestudents?
How would you motivate them topursue something in medicine?
That is so great.
Sophie (38:14):
I will say EMS is one of the most exhausting but most
rewarding things I've ever done.
And it's so unpredictable and,if you like, the chaos and
excitement and the sirens andthe speed and thinking under
pressure and thinking outsidethe box.
I think a lot of times you'llhear like paramedics are just
(38:37):
like the MacGyvers of healthcare.
We just have to work with whatwe got and it's sometimes not a
lot.
So if you are just excitedabout being a cowboy the
healthcare version come on overbecause it is so much fun.
And the cool thing about EMSand first responder roles
whether it's fire or the actualEMS role a lot of us do ride
(39:00):
along programs.
So at the company that I workfor for ground 911, you don't
even have to be in healthcare atall.
You can do a ride along with usfor the whole daytime shift so
you get to hop on the truck whenthe tones drop, you know you
get to ride in the back.
So that's a little weird but itis a lot of fun because you hop
in the truck, you can only seebackwards.
(39:23):
And then we arrive and you'relike, oh, didn't know we were
going here and you get toparticipate in, you know, the
conversations and learning andit's so fun to have students,
especially at our agency.
We do anything from high schoolstudents all the way up to
residents.
Physician residents will ridewith us and it's so cool to see.
(39:45):
You know how their mindset isand how their you know gears
turn on.
You know different types ofcalls and different types of
patients, because it's a lotdifferent than maybe how EMS
works.
So we take everybody.
Come ride with us, come seewhat we're about.
If you're a student, it's verysimple to get into most EMT
(40:07):
programs, especially at thebasic level, most community
colleges, some hospitals.
It gets a little more trickywhen you get rural, but a lot of
the times my friends and I, weall commuted to school.
It's worth it.
We drove an hour to school forEMT, advanced and paramedic.
(40:28):
All my friends on the podcastthey did the same thing and it
is worth it.
It's exhausting but I promisejust you take the chance,
because I was like this isgetting a little crazy.
Maybe again, maybe I shouldjust take a step back and do the
nursing thing.
But just take the chance.
I promise we have nursingstudents that ride out with us
(40:49):
and they say, man, I wanted todo this, I didn't even know this
was a possibility.
So it is a possibility, but Ialways tell those nursing
students who are about tograduate I'm like you can
consider all avenues, but ifyou're already licensed in some
(41:20):
other aspect of healthcare,there's still a possibility you
could fly.
Or something that's becomingmore prevalent is community
paramedicine, which is reallycool.
In a lot of places they'll putlike a mid-level provider and a
paramedic on a truck and that'ssuper cool and you get to do
more of that, like it's almostlike urgent care on wheels and
(41:41):
it's so awesome.
I mean, we are evolving everyday and I am very excited to be
here.
Ashley (41:46):
I'm so glad you said that we episode 10, I
interviewed exactly that a PAwho is urgent care on wheels and
his role is just incredible andhe gets to work with an EMT
every day and he absolutelyloves it.
I mean he thinks it is it is.
he thinks it is the coolest job.
So, um, and he actually worked,I think, in the emergency room,
if I, if I remember correctlybeforehand, it just wanted
(42:08):
something that had a little bitmore variety, wanted to meet
people where they were, andthose calls are very they're
varied as well.
You know it's not going to benecessarily the.
They're varied as well.
You know it's not going to benecessarily the the really,
really really seriously illpatients, but sometimes it is
and sometimes, because you'remeeting them in their house,
they will say I would like tostay in my house and he has to
(42:29):
make that decision and say youknow, I respect that, these are
your options, you know, and herehere we go, but these are your
options you know, and here, herewe go.
But, um, oh my gosh, Sophie, I'm, it's incredible.
Thank you so much.
Um, I think that our firstresponders truly are heroes, and
you guys see and do the hardestthings um in the most intimate
(42:50):
settings, with people oftentimeson their worst day.
Sophie (42:54):
So thank you for showing up.
Ashley (42:55):
Thank you for showing up um in the community.
Thank you for showing up in thecommunity.
Thank you for showing up atthose sites.
Thank you for showing up onlineand educating and teaching and
encouraging and inspiring.
Thanks for showing up on thepodcast space and thank you so
much for showing up in advocacy.
You're amazing.
Sophie (43:14):
Thanks for being on the show too.
Well, thank you for having meand thank you for what you're
doing.
I didn't know that EMS was apossibility for me until I
actually already graduatedcollege, so I am so happy that
you're doing this, becausepeople need to know their
options and I think that again,we're a little quiet heroes and
we don't tell people about allthe options and how cool this is
(43:36):
.
Ashley (43:38):
You know we love what we do and we just really, truly
wanted to shout it from therooftops.
That's a common theme.
Um, really, with everybody I'vespoken with, I don't care if
you're an MD, do, pa, pt, emt,paramedic, uh, doctor of
physical therapy we're justproud because we get to, we get
to help people.
It's our job.
It's the coolest job ever.
It is the coolest job ever.
(43:58):
Sophie, with Paramedic Sophieand Life in Sirens podcast.
Thank you so much.
You're the bomb.
You're the bomb.
Thank you so very much forlistening to this episode of
Shadow Me.
Next, if you liked this episodeor if you think it could be
useful for a friend, pleasesubscribe and invite them to
join us next Monday, as always.
(44:18):
If you have any questions, letme know on Facebook or Instagram
Access.
You want stories, you need.
You're always invited to shadowme next.
Hello and welcome to Shadow Me Next, a podcast where
I take you into and behind thescenes of the medical world to
provide you with a deeperunderstanding of the human side
of medicine.
I'm Ashley, a physicianassistant, medical editor,
clinical preceptor and thecreator of Shadow Me Next.
It is my pleasure to introduceyou to incredible members of the
(00:22):
healthcare field and uncovertheir unique stories, the joys
and challenges they face andwhat drives them in their
careers.
It's access you want andstories you need, whether you're
a pre-health student or simplycurious about the healthcare
field.
I invite you to join me as wetake a conversational and
personal look into the lives andminds of leaders in medicine.
(00:44):
I don't want you to miss asingle one of these
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which will automatically notifyyou when new episodes are
dropped, and follow us onInstagram and Facebook at shadow
me next, where we will reviewhighlights from this
conversation and where I'll giveyou sneak previews of our
upcoming guests.
Today on shadow me next, I'mjoined by Sophie Fuller, a
(01:07):
critical care flight paramedic,president of the Tennessee
Association of EMS Providers andco-host of the Life and Sirens
podcast.
In this episode, Sophie opensup about the burnout that almost
pushed her out of EMS and howsharing her stories online
sparked a creative revival thatreignited her purpose.
(01:27):
We talk about the chaos andcontrol of working in a
helicopter, the wildest patienttransport stories yes, someone
really used an ambulance to getto their drug dealer and the
deep-rooted teamwork it takes tosave lives from the air.
Please keep in mind that thecontent of this podcast is
intended for informational andentertainment purposes only and
(01:49):
should not be considered asprofessional medical advice.
The views and opinionsexpressed in this podcast are
those of the host and guests anddo not necessarily reflect the
official policy or position ofany other agency, organization,
employer or company.
This is Shadow Me Next withSophie Fuller.
Sophie, thank you so much forjoining me on Shadow Me Next.
(02:11):
We've chatted a little bitbefore now and I just have so
much respect for you and whatyou have done and what you have
created, even outside of therole, which is saving people, is
what you do for a living.
You're incredible.
I can't wait to have thisconversation with you.
Thank you for being here.
Sophie (02:27):
Well, you're too good to me.
I'm very excited to be here andI think what you're doing is
very important, because I had noidea what the heck I wanted to
do.
I just knew healthcare was theanswer.
Ashley (02:38):
Yeah, exactly, and I think a lot of us are in that
position, right, and we eitherwe either, you know, read about
a position, or we we talk to afamily member or a friend who's
been doing this job, or we seesomething on TV that we think
you know hey, maybe I'minterested in that, but until
you really get to step intosomebody's shoes and shadow them
, it uh, it really doesn'tbecome real to you, and it's
(02:59):
hard for you to see yourselfdoing what they do day in and
day out.
Sophie, you have, like I said,you have so many aspects of what
you do on the day to day.
All of them are equallyimpressive.
I don't know how you throw,keep so many balls in the air.
You're incredible.
Let's start, though.
Let's start with your, yourprimary jobs, your critical care
.
I can't even say your primaryjob because you have so many
(03:20):
primary jobs, but you, whatwe're here to talk about, which
is critical care?
Many primary jobs, what you,what we're here to talk about,
which is critical care?
Flight paramedic, tell us, tellus about your education leading
up to that.
How did you first decide it'swhat you wanted to do and what,
really, what steps did you haveto take to get?
Sophie (03:35):
there?
Yeah, definitely so.
For me, and I think for a lotof people, the only thing that I
knew of or had in mind wasnursing.
So I got a tech job at thelevel one trauma center because
it was so cool and I loved it.
I love the people I worked with.
But I realized that I maybedidn't want to work inside the
(03:56):
walls of a hospital, like I'msuper ADHD and I just needed
more chaos.
I know it gets chaotic in there, but I needed more.
And one of my friends was aparamedic and I was like you
know what, I'm going to try thatout.
So I went to EMT school.
So in this state you have to goto EMT school, then you go to
(04:16):
advanced EMT school and then yougo through paramedic school.
So while I was EMT and advancedEMT, I was actually a
firefighter.
So while I was EMT and advancedEMT, I was actually a
firefighter and that was a lotof fun, but I really loved the
medicine.
So I got a job at a 911 servicethat was in a neighboring
county.
(04:38):
I worked for about a year and ahalf before I went to paramedic
school, just to get someclinical experience under my
belt, because there's reallynothing quite like 911.
It is whack out here.
It's crazy.
So I did all that and I workedfull-time while going to
paramedic school, which is alsochaotic but totally worth it.
Paramedic school is threesemesters.
(04:59):
Advanced school is one semesterand then basic school is one
semester.
So what are we at?
It's like two and a half years,um.
And then, once I had worked fortwo years as a 911 ground
paramedic, I went to criticalcare paramedic school, which is
an additional semester.
Um, did that for a little whilewith a ground nine one or
(05:23):
ground critical care service,while working the 911 truck as
well, and I was like this is alot of fun, it's a lot more ICU
vibes.
I guess it's like mobile ICU, Iwould say.
And then I was like okay, I'mready for the next step.
So once I got all my certs andmy experience that the flight
(05:47):
company that I work for nowrequired, I applied after doing
an internship or a fellowshipwith them is what they call it,
and it's basically all theironboarding stuff.
But you get to do it before youeven apply or before you're
eligible to apply.
Just kind of see if it'sactually what you want to do,
because I would say that it'sprobably likely that you don't
(06:08):
want to test out if you lovebeing in an aircraft for the
first time on your first day ofwork and here I am.
So it's a lot of school afteryou get hired as well.
So I had to go to another stateand do training for a full week
with you know all the normal HRthings, but also clinical
(06:29):
education and then aircrafteducation, and you take about
six more months after your hiredate and then you continue doing
like regional intensive thingsand there's just a lot of
clinical stuff you do.
But then you have to throw inavionics into the mix, which is
not was not my expertise, stillis not my expertise, but it is
(06:52):
so cool, so very dynamic jobthat is so dynamic, that is so
cool and I just I love how therewas a next step which for you,
I'm sure was very motivating foryou in your current role.
Ashley (07:05):
You know you saw you got to see so many different
elements of things and you said,hey, look, there's another
avenue, let me pursue that, I'mprepared for this All the way up
to being a critical care flightparamedic.
So if you tell us a little bitmore about the distinction
between EMS and being aparamedic, aside from schooling,
you know what you get to do onthe day-to-day are there
(07:31):
differences there?
Sophie (07:32):
Yeah, definitely so.
For EMT, basics or advancedEMTs, some states only have EMT
and then paramedic.
So an EMT is basic life supportskills, so basic airways, basic
trauma, just you're not doing aton of invasive interventions.
It's kind of you're not doing aton of invasive interventions.
It's kind of obviously they'redoing cpr, they're placing
airway adjuncts, but they're notdoing things like intubating or
, you know, running cardiacarrest or things like that.
(07:53):
And then once you move up toparamedic, that's when you start
doing the more invasive skills,anything from obviously ivs,
medication administration allthe way up to cricothoratomies.
So like you do a lot of things,yes, and then when you get to
critical care, you can dosurgical crics, which is there's
a very wide scope in EMS, whichI love.
(08:14):
It is so cool, obviously lotsof continuing education.
But most services in my stateare what we call ALS services,
so a paramedic is required to beon the ambulance with an EMT or
another paramedic.
So the paramedic is essentiallyin most scenarios the lead
clinician.
(08:34):
So a lot of the times wecompare like medic and EMT to
like mid-level or doctor andnurse, just not because that's
really quite an adequaterepresentation, but for people,
especially lay people who aren'treally in the EMS or
pre-hospital setting.
(08:54):
It kind of makes a little moresense.
We do the decision-making andthen someone follows through
with the orders or we followthrough with the orders.
We kind of work as a team.
Ashley (09:03):
No, I think it's.
I was just as you were talking.
I was like this is a perfectrepresentation of the teamwork
model in healthcare and I thinkyou know an interview question
that would just be so amazing isdescribe why the teamwork model
in healthcare works so well.
You know, because you get tosee it every day.
You know, I mean, you guys areout there really Saving people's
(09:27):
life does sound dramatic, butthat's what you're doing, and
maybe you could give us a coupleof other examples where the
teamwork model really, really,really helps when you're
transporting a patient, eitheron ground or in the air, but I'm
sure you see it all the timehow it benefits your patients.
Sophie (09:42):
Yeah.
So it's really wild.
For the most part when you'reworking ground 911 or even my
ground critical care job, we arealone in the back typically and
your partner is driving yourEMT or your paramedic partner.
If you're swapping off calls,you're back there by yourself.
So teamwork is really importantas far as like maybe we need to
(10:02):
divert to a closer facility,maybe we need to upgrade to
emergency traffic.
You know there's.
You still have to communicatewith your partner even though
they're driving.
But one thing I absolutely loveabout flight is I get to be
right next to my partner, who istypically a nurse.
So I get to be myself and anurse and we get to collaborate
(10:23):
and we get to talk about thecomplexities of this patient and
make decisions together, whichis really cool.
It's not something that I wasused to and that transition was
a little weird, but it's amazingbecause the nurses have all the
experience in things like asfar as ICU side of things goes.
So all the drips and thingslike that and kind of the
paramedic is more like the.
So all the drips and thingslike that and kind of the
(10:45):
paramedic is more like theexpert on the ventilator and
things like that and some of thetrauma.
So it's a perfect.
I cannot imagine a better team,truly.
And then some agencies even havefor flight not only nurses and
paramedics, but also they'llhave PAs, nurse practitioners
and even docs on the aircraft.
So that's even cooler.
You get even more expertise andpeople who can do all kinds of
(11:07):
crazy stuff with you.
So I love it.
It's so fun.
Ashley (11:11):
When you're transporting these patients, especially in
the air.
Are these the sickest of thesick or the most injured of the
injured?
Sophie (11:22):
Yeah, so in a perfect world, typically, yes, these are
some very critically illpatients.
But sometimes we get things andwe're just like what?
This person is fine.
But most of the time, yes, solike if we're calling for air,
it's either because the patientneeds to get to a facility that
is quite a distance, or maybethey just need to get somewhere
(11:47):
in a quicker amount of time, ormaybe even the ground EMS
service doesn't carry somethinglike blood or the patient needs
to be intubated and they aren'table to rapid sequence intubate.
We kind of fill in the holeswhere they're needed, and it's
so diverse across the US whatground EMS can do, depending on
county or jurisdiction.
(12:08):
So for scene flights, it'softentimes because air needs to
do some kind of interventionthat ground can't, or they're
just really far away from amajor facility.
Ashley (12:20):
I would imagine it becomes a little bit complicated
for you if you're ever lookingto say move, you know, maybe to
a different state Would you haveto research kind of what you're
qualified for in that instanceit's not really as universal as
being like a doctor, for example.
Sophie (12:35):
Yeah, so EMS is obviously a lot newer than some
of the other healthcareprofessions, so we're still
ironing out all the kinks.
To get an EMT or paramediclicense, you have to take a
national registry Okay, sothat's standardized.
But as far as state goes,there's no like interstate
license you have to apply for,like reciprocity, in every
(12:56):
single state.
For the air medical I work for,I have two state license, just
because we're on the line.
So that makes things a littlemore complicated.
Boy do I wish there wassomething that could streamline
things.
But I think that it does workin a way that, like every
demographic that we serve, everyarea that we service, can be so
(13:19):
different that the EMS serviceshave to be different, because
the way you operate urban EMS iscompletely like it would not
work in a rural setting.
So I think that it is good to acertain degree.
But also it would give you know, our paramedics and EMTs on the
street more access to be ableto, you know, transfer to
(13:43):
different states and things likethat, and adapt for their
families.
So I think that is one thingthat puts limitations on us is
that you can't do like you can.
You can't easily do like travelnursing.
In the paramedic aspect.
There are travel contracts forparamedics.
It's just very.
You still have to get a licensein that state and everything
(14:05):
like that.
So, um, I think we should havean interstate license.
Ashley (14:09):
That's my shameless plug for all those people listening
who are in administration andhealthcare politics.
Yes, no, I think that's great.
I think that's great.
Um, it just it really I don'tknow.
It kind of touches me becauseour you know, we think of our
EMTs, paramedics, firefightersas our hometown heroes.
(14:30):
And you guys are like you said.
You know they are members ofthe community.
You guys are like knitted intothe community.
You serve this specificcommunity, you know, and I think
that it just it reallyhighlights that and, um, oh, my
goodness, I'm so grateful forthe paramedics and EMTs and
firefighters that frequentlycome to my house and my place of
(14:51):
work, because it's nothing likebeing in a crisis and seeing
you or seeing somebody that justsays I've got this, we're going
to handle this.
Take a seat or lay down if it'sactually you that's having a
problem.
Um, let's talk about a day inyour life.
I would love to hear about this.
So let's talk specificallyabout a day in your life as a
critical care flight paramedic,because I think, again, that is
(15:14):
so cool.
You mentioned, maybe having todrive the ambulance.
Sometimes you don't ever haveto fly the helicopter, right, oh
, gosh, I can I.
Sophie (15:21):
that would be so scary and I'm not sure I would ever
even make it off the ground.
Ashley (15:27):
Fair valid, valid.
So scary and I'm not sure Iwould ever even make it off the
ground Fair Valid, Valid.
Sophie (15:29):
But tell us about a day in your life.
I would love to hear about whatyou do.
All right, so I have to make apretty significant drive because
I live very urban and I wantedto work very rural, so that is
what I did.
So I drive a whopping two and ahalf hours to my air medical
gig.
Oh my goodness, I know that'slike cuckoo bananas, but it is a
great drive.
It's a great time to listen topodcasts and decompress and get
(15:51):
ready for the shift.
So I'll drive into work, grabsome coffee on the way, relax.
When we get there we do a crewchange so we will get our
narcotics keys and our radiosfrom the crew that is coming off
and then we'll meet with ourpilot.
We will do a shift brief.
(16:12):
We'll talk about the weather,if we're able to fly or not that
day, or if it's going to belike maybe, maybe not.
We'll just have to update as wego.
And then any concerns if we'reout for maintenance or there's
certain things, maybe we're in aspare aircraft or something.
He'll fill us in on that.
We sign a lot of paperworkbecause we still have to follow
(16:34):
FAA guidelines and things likethat, even though we're medical.
We get our helmets ready in thepilot's office and then we go
to the aircraft and we check theaircraft off, which is also fa
compliant, and then stateguidelines say everything we
have to have on the aircraft, um, and it's wild what we can pack
(16:56):
into that bad boy, because itis so much smaller than you
think it is.
It is crazy, um.
So we do all that and usuallyif we're not taking a flight or
doing some kind of education,we're either just hanging out
with each other, we're studying,we study a lot.
(17:17):
I know that's kind of weird,and that's one thing that kind
of changed from ground to fly iswe study a lot because there's
a little bit more time for it.
Um, but when we get a flight,it's just like if you were going
to get tones, um, or dispatchto a call on the ground, so
we'll get tones on our radio.
We will all.
(17:37):
Usually, as a paramedic, I'llgrab the blood from the cooler,
I'll go grab my helmet, um, andwe'll go straight to the
aircraft, um aircraft, when it'sready, when our pilot's ready
for us, either one of us isstanding in what we call it fire
watch, so they're making surethere's nothing crazy going on
with the aircraft and they'requite farther than the paramedic
(17:58):
is typically and I'll be rightat the nose of the aircraft and
then we will do walk arounds.
So the paramedic will start onthe nurse's side and the nurse
will start on the paramedic sideand we both walk around.
The pilot's already done hiswalk around.
We make sure it's super safe.
There's a lot of checklists andthings like that that we do.
We get into the aircraft, ourhelmets are already on but we
(18:21):
get to plug them in and we canhear what's going on through our
helmets, um, which is supercool unless you have a terrible
helmet.
So I just ordered a new helmetand I'm really excited.
And then we go through achecklist before we lift and
then as soon as we're lifted andeverybody is good to go and we
(18:44):
no longer have what we call asterile cockpit, so if we're
landing or lifting, we all arequiet so we can hear any
instructions from the pilot orif we see something that is a
safety hazard, we're able tocall that out.
So once we're up in the air, ourdispatch or our comms will talk
to us and let us know wherewe're going, what the
(19:05):
coordinates are if going.
You know what the coordinatesare if it's a scene or what the
hospital is, and then a generalidea of what we're going to and
how much the patient weighs andthings like that.
So it's a fun time.
Once we get to where we'regoing, you know it's a bad day
or you know it's serious.
I should say when they say, oh,thank goodness you're here, I'm
(19:28):
like, oh no, what are wegetting into?
It's a little different if it'sa scene flight.
So if it's a scene flight, it'stypically an EMS crew we're
picking up from, which is a lotof fun.
I get to see some of the peopleeither that are followers which
is crazy, or that I work with,so that's so fun our followers,
which is crazy, or that I workwith, so that's so fun and we do
a little rendezvous.
We talk about what's going onwith the patient they usually
(19:55):
have them on their monitor andthings like that so we'll swap
them over to all of our stuff,which just makes a big spaghetti
mess with all the wires.
So that's something I'mstarting to get the hang of is
cable management and then we putthem on our little cot and then
we take them over to theaircraft, load them in, which is
a very small space and a veryloud space, so we tend to
(20:16):
communicate with our eyes morethan our mouth.
And then we do the samechecklist again and then we head
to whatever hospital is mostappropriate.
We land and then take thepatient inside, give reports and
then head back to the aircraft,do all of our checklists again
and hopefully head back to base,unless we get another call on
(20:38):
the way.
Ashley (20:39):
Which happens.
You get other calls and thenyou have to go somewhere else.
Sophie (20:44):
Yeah, it does happen.
It could be a full day of justzing, zing, zing and we never
see the base, but it is fun.
We love to fly.
Even if it's just we're gettingup in the air and we're going
to a scene and we get canceled,I'm still happy to be in the air
.
So call us anytime.
Ashley (21:02):
What a cool thing.
I love how you really describedthe environment, because I
think so much I mean, you know,I don't appreciate the
environment that I work inenough.
I think in in clinic it's quiet, it's very clean, everybody is
listening to each other, there'sno usually there's no chaos or
(21:24):
background noise.
The amount of focus that youhave to have to perform all of
the safety checks to make surecords are not getting tangled
and you're not accidentallystrangling your poor patient or
one of the EMTs.
I think that it's these thingsthat attention to detail is so
(21:47):
easy to talk about.
But until you realize what canhappen if you are not attentive
to those details, you reallydon't feel like the full force
of that.
You know, and um, and a lot'son the line most of the time.
You know, when you guys, you,you can't just be skimming over
the little stuff.
Little stuff matters too.
Incredible.
(22:08):
Oh my God, that's so incredible.
Okay, sophie, you mentioned um,you mentioned running into
followers.
Uh, when you're on the ground,when you're picking up from EMTs
, I just I love this so much.
So, sophie, um, you areparamedic Sophie, on Instagram,
facebook, tiktok.
Paramedic Sophie, you havebuilt this amazing, strong
(22:28):
following through your Instagrampresence.
Tell me a little bit about whatinspired you to start sharing
these stories and yourexperiences and, my God, you
have so many.
You truly do.
Sophie (22:38):
You have such a strong following and I love that you
get to meet these people in reallife too.
It is so much fun to meetpeople in the wild, I say.
But really, what inspired me tostart doing this was I became
really burnt out.
I was working really hard and Iwas exhausted and I started to
(22:58):
take for granted the job that Ihad and the opportunity I had to
do what I do every day, whichis amazing, and I was around a
lot of people who are reallyburnt out too and that were
miserable doing this job, whichit can happen very easily.
It's exhausting many days, mostdays and I was able to start
(23:20):
sharing some of my stories, someof the excitement and just some
silly things as well.
On.
Tiktok is where I reallystarted and I realized that
there's people who love this jobas much as I do and are just as
eager or as excited to get intothe field as I was, and that
was so refreshing and it reallyhelped me recover from the
(23:40):
burnout that I was going through, and I was at a place before I
started sharing andcollaborating and hearing
people's stories on the internetthat I was going through, and I
was at a place before I startedsharing and collaborating and
hearing people's stories on theinternet that I was ready to
leave.
I was like I'm just going to goto nursing school.
I can't do this anymore.
It's hurting me and it washurting me, but it kind of
restored my excitement and mypassion and I am all things EMS
(24:04):
all day, every day, 24-7, andI'm not burnout.
So it was very exciting to beable to see people just as
excited as I was, and I don'tthink enough people understand
what we do.
So obviously, plenty of peoplewho are first responders in the
field follow me, but there'salso a lot of lay people as well
(24:24):
and it's really exciting forthem to be like no way, like
what the heck?
That's what y'all are doing,because we're not only running
emergencies, we're also doingsome wild, crazy, silly things.
So you're just like what wasthat?
That happened?
They called for that,absolutely they did, and it was
a lot of fun and those sillythings that we do every day.
(24:45):
It's really easy to get burnouton if there's no outlet.
So I'm glad that we can cometogether and laugh about it, cry
about it and celebrate it.
Ashley (24:54):
So if you tell me about one of the silly things, the
things that you're just like,are you kidding me?
What are we doing here?
What is an example of that?
Sophie (25:01):
All right, let's see no-transcript.
(25:32):
And they refused assessment,they refused vital signs, they
refused everything.
They just said I need to rideto the hospital.
We get to the hospital, theyeven signed my computer and
everything and they're like cool, I want to walk inside.
I was like all right, they jumpout of the side door of the
ambulance, they look at me andsay thanks, I just needed a ride
(25:53):
to my drug dealer.
I'm so serious, that reallyhappened.
That was so real and they ranfull sprint away and I was like
I guess I got to call mysupervisor now because I did not
know what just happened and Ithink about paperwork.
That really happened.
It was crazy.
Ashley (26:12):
Let's talk about quality questions Now.
Sophie and I did not have achance to discuss a quality
question, but this story thatshe's just told brings up a
topic that would make a greatquality question.
Something like describe a timewhen you witnessed misuse of
medical services, answer thequestion, but after answering,
(26:33):
make sure you have a follow-upresponse, something describing
perhaps how you stepped in toameliorate the situation or what
you wish you would have done,or even how the situation made
you feel.
Keep in mind that there's moreinterview prep, such as mock
interviews and personalstatement review over on
shadowmenextcom.
There you'll find amazingresources to help you as you
(26:55):
prepare to answer your ownquality questions.
Unreal, you really like you.
We probably should have calledpsych at that point.
Sophie (27:05):
Yes, they did look out for this person, because that
was why that was wild, that'sunreal the fact that they gave
you real information too.
Just close my mind yes, and wehad all their information and we
knew this person like we pickedthem up before they wanted to
come clean this right, theywanted to be honest, I'm not
going in there, oh my gosh.
Ashley (27:23):
Well, you see, it's okay .
It's such a good example,because I mean that's a really
good example of how it's amisconception, right that, and
it's a silly one that that EMS,emt, first responders,
paramedics, you guys are doinglife-saving things all day long,
which you are most of the time,but then people misuse
resources, like that person, andyeah, that was wild.
(27:46):
And that's a source of burnout.
Oh my God, it's a huge source ofburnout, absolutely, when
people are wanting to use you asa glorified taxi service, which
is not the first time that'shappened.
Maybe the first time theyadmitted to doing it for drugs,
but not the first time it'shappened.
Sophie (28:01):
Yes, that's why it was so wild, because they were
honest about it.
Ashley (28:04):
Well, bravo for the honesty, but bigger problems
there.
So I love that you addressedburnout.
It's such a huge topic rightnow in medicine and what's
what's so interesting to me, andas you know, is we're doing
jobs that people are desperateto do right now.
I mean, you're God, your jobsounds so cool to me and you
(28:28):
know, so many people I've talkedto are so excited and
interested in being a PA.
But you and I both know it doescome with challenges and it
comes with challenges that areknown.
Obviously we're going to havehard days where you lose
patients or where I have to tellpatients they have cancer.
Those are hard days.
But you know, the hard days arealso when, um, you are
transporting patients thatreally don't need transport and
(28:50):
doing that over and over andover, and you kind of start to
ask yourself why am I here, whyam I doing this?
Um, you know time away from yourfamily, you drive five hours
into work, you know, and that'sthat's these things build and
they build and there's a coupleof ways to deal with burnout and
I think people haven't reallyfigured out the perfect way, but
you figured out a great one andthat's using what, where you're
(29:13):
at right now and finding outhow to find joy in it again.
Finding the joy in what you'redoing, and for a lot of people,
it's talking to other people.
For a lot of people, it'sgetting oh, it's getting
students involved, which is whatI love doing.
I think it's fantastic.
For others, it's, you know,maybe making some type of a I
don't know a podcast which we'lltalk about, and I think it's a
(29:36):
great way to use a creativeoutlet to lean on your community
and to fight this terriblething called burnout, and it's
just going to provide so muchpassion and joy and infuse that
back into what you do.
So well done.
Sophie (29:51):
Thank you, I'm trying my best.
I just think we need tocelebrate the amazing things we
do more.
I think healthcare in generalis one of those like quiet hero
situations, like we don't talkabout all the good we do.
So I love to hear and share thegood we do, because that's what
matters most.
Ashley (30:09):
You have this incredible podcast that I am just so happy
to highlight.
I've loved listening to it.
Oh my God, you guys need like afull-blown TV show.
I think in life and sirenspodcast, um, you and a couple of
other colleagues uh, createthese fantastic episodes.
Tell us what kind of storiesthat you like to really showcase
(30:32):
in in your podcast episodes.
Sophie (30:34):
Yeah, so life and Sirens was basically born from our
long chats in the ambulance bayat like two in the morning,
where we come back and we wouldjust talk do listen, I'm not
gonna lie, um, and we wanted toshare that.
(31:01):
Just.
It kind of came after my socialmedia became something that
really was an incredible outletfor all of us actually.
So we talk about all kinds ofthings.
We talk about burnout, we talkabout anything from.
You know, we have some episodesthat are super heavy clinical.
We have some that are likelight clinical, from like asthma
(31:23):
exacerbations all the way up tolike RSI, so that's rapid
sequence intubation, if you'renot familiar, where we paralyze
and sedate people and intubatethem.
So we have a wide variety andso we try to touch on topics
that are relatable to plenty ofclinicians out there, from emt
basic to, you know, our flightpas and things like that, um.
(31:46):
But we also talk about the funstuff and the funny stuff and
the rides to their drug dealer.
I think we talked about that onepisode two.
We even have listener tales,which so exciting.
We had somebody talk about ahaunted station, which that was
kind of cool.
We all have stayed the night inthose haunted stations because
we work 24-hour shifts, which isspooky.
(32:07):
But I just think we have anopportunity to do a wide variety
of things.
We really just decide.
Honestly, I know some peopleare like man, you guys must
spend so much time preparing foran episode.
I'm just going to be honestwith you.
We decide, we get in, we walkupstairs to my attic, like in a
three story townhouse.
We walk all the way up to theattic, we sit down and we say
(32:28):
what are we going to talk abouttoday?
And that is how we decide.
I am so serious.
So it is very laid back, it isvery chill and it very laid back
, it is very chill and it's foranybody, everybody.
Ashley (32:43):
It's so true though I mean it's so off the cuff the
fact that you guys aren'tpreparing these conversations.
It also goes to show you howmany things that you experience
on the day-to-day that you couldtalk about.
Sophie (32:50):
Yes, it is seriously the weirdest job.
People just pick up theirphones and essentially call us
and we just show up right thenand we just walk right into
their homes and it is just likethat's wild, like what do you?
Ashley (33:04):
mean On a lot of their worst days too, yeah, and they
say come on in.
Sophie (33:09):
I don't know you, but I hope you can help.
Ashley (33:12):
Sophie, I'm just so impressed with you.
So you have this fantasticInstagram, instagram, facebook,
tiktok platform with ParamedicSophie.
You have Life in Sirens podcastand I think what, to me, what
is just the most amazing andmeaningful is the advocacy and
the leadership that you areinvolved in.
You are not only involved inthe Association of EMS Providers
(33:34):
, you are the president, so tellus about this association and
tell us why advocacy?
We've talked a little bit aboutthis, but why is it so
important in emergency medicineright now?
Sophie (33:48):
Absolutely so.
The Tennessee Association ofEMS Providers it is a mouthful,
so often we just call it theassociation.
It sounds spooky but I meanit's easier to say.
So it was formed out ofsuggestion by our state EMS
board director because we had aneducators association and we
(34:09):
have, like, the ambulanceservice association but we
didn't really have anything thatwas representing the people out
here on the street doing thework, representing the people
out here on the street doing thework, exhausted, tired and
burnout, and we needed a way toformally advocate for them.
(34:29):
So I am so lucky to be a part ofit and I was able to be the
board director of my regionbefore running for president and
it's an exceptional opportunityand I get to meet so many
people across the state and Ihad no idea some of the things
that our providers were dealingwith across the board and a lot
of it had to do with, you know,unsafe working conditions, poor
(34:51):
staffing, things that we dealwith in all aspects of health
care, in all aspects of healthcare.
But one of the biggest thingswe advocate for and especially,
you know, as far as politics go,things are kind of in a weird
place for health care, but wereally advocate for provider
mental health and our state isdoing some amazing things.
(35:12):
I know recently a bill was justpassed in our state that stated
you are diagnosed with PTSD andyou are in a first responder
role.
That it would be.
It could be consideredassociated with your job, so
then you could apply for, youknow, oji and it would be
(35:33):
covered.
So that's a really big step andI'm glad that we're doing it
here so maybe other states canfollow in suit.
That's not something we'respecifically responsible for at
the association, but we arefighting hard for things like
that.
And it's a great space too tobring providers together.
We do all kinds of continuinged and we do EMS nights out and
(35:55):
just a place for people, justlike social media, because
social media it's not foreverybody, especially some of
our more experienced providers.
So it's really nice to bringpeople together and be like
there are people out there, justlike you, who are so excited to
be here and they want to behere and they know that change
needs to be happening, so let'smake it happen.
So I think it's reallyrefreshing for a lot of people
(36:20):
and so important to Sophie.
Ashley (36:21):
Thank you so much for doing that hard work, because I
could imagine, after working,the days that you work and the
nights that you work, the24-hour shifts that you work,
and then coming and reallybreaking it down with your
colleagues in a way that you'rein a position of leadership.
So when you ask these questions, it's not just fleshing out the
problems, it's brainstormingand it's generating ideas and
coming up with solutions.
(36:41):
And as rewarding as it is, I'msure it's also a lot of really
hard work, but you're motivated.
I mean, you're motivated tomake it better.
You're seeing the fruit of yourlabor already, which is awesome
.
Sophie (36:54):
It is amazing and I work with a lot of talented and
enthusiastic and creative people, and that's one thing we have
to be, I think, is we just gotto start getting creative
because we're in territory rightnow, as far as public
perception and politics andthings like that in the
healthcare field, that isabsolutely uncharted, so we're
going to have to create thingsout of nothing to make some
(37:16):
positive changes for ourpatients and our.
You know, emts, paramedics,whatever you are in healthcare.
It's a little scary right now,so I'm glad we're able to come
together and try to make achange.
Ashley (37:30):
That's awesome.
Well, it seems like you guysare doing that and more.
Oh see, you guys, I told youSophie's incredible.
I just am so, so impressed andso grateful for all of the ways
that you're really just bringingattention to everything that
first responders do and thenadvocating for those first
responders.
It's like, hey, come, look atus, see what we can do, and now
(37:51):
help us Like, let's make bigchanges happen.
It's just, it's fantastic,sophie, tell me.
There are people listening thatare saying you know, this is
what I want to do, this is who Iwant to be.
I want to be Sophie.
She's such a cool person.
What would you tell thosestudents?
How would you motivate them topursue something in medicine?
That is so great.
Sophie (38:14):
I will say EMS is one of the most exhausting but most
rewarding things I've ever done.
And it's so unpredictable and,if you like, the chaos and
excitement and the sirens andthe speed and thinking under
pressure and thinking outsidethe box.
I think a lot of times you'llhear like paramedics are just
(38:37):
like the MacGyvers of healthcare.
We just have to work with whatwe got and it's sometimes not a
lot.
So if you are just excitedabout being a cowboy the
healthcare version come on overbecause it is so much fun.
And the cool thing about EMSand first responder roles
whether it's fire or the actualEMS role a lot of us do ride
(39:00):
along programs.
So at the company that I workfor for ground 911, you don't
even have to be in healthcare atall.
You can do a ride along with usfor the whole daytime shift so
you get to hop on the truck whenthe tones drop, you know you
get to ride in the back.
So that's a little weird but itis a lot of fun because you hop
in the truck, you can only seebackwards.
(39:23):
And then we arrive and you'relike, oh, didn't know we were
going here and you get toparticipate in, you know, the
conversations and learning andit's so fun to have students,
especially at our agency.
We do anything from high schoolstudents all the way up to
residents.
Physician residents will ridewith us and it's so cool to see.
(39:45):
You know how their mindset isand how their you know gears
turn on.
You know different types ofcalls and different types of
patients, because it's a lotdifferent than maybe how EMS
works.
So we take everybody.
Come ride with us, come seewhat we're about.
If you're a student, it's verysimple to get into most EMT
(40:07):
programs, especially at thebasic level, most community
colleges, some hospitals.
It gets a little more trickywhen you get rural, but a lot of
the times my friends and I, weall commuted to school.
It's worth it.
We drove an hour to school forEMT, advanced and paramedic.
(40:28):
All my friends on the podcastthey did the same thing and it
is worth it.
It's exhausting but I promisejust you take the chance,
because I was like this isgetting a little crazy.
Maybe again, maybe I shouldjust take a step back and do the
nursing thing.
But just take the chance.
I promise we have nursingstudents that ride out with us
(40:49):
and they say, man, I wanted todo this, I didn't even know this
was a possibility.
So it is a possibility, but Ialways tell those nursing
students who are about tograduate I'm like you can
consider all avenues, but ifyou're already licensed in some
(41:20):
other aspect of healthcare,there's still a possibility you
could fly.
Or something that's becomingmore prevalent is community
paramedicine, which is reallycool.
In a lot of places they'll putlike a mid-level provider and a
paramedic on a truck and that'ssuper cool and you get to do
more of that, like it's almostlike urgent care on wheels and
(41:41):
it's so awesome.
I mean, we are evolving everyday and I am very excited to be
here.
Ashley (41:46):
I'm so glad you said that we episode 10, I
interviewed exactly that a PAwho is urgent care on wheels and
his role is just incredible andhe gets to work with an EMT
every day and he absolutelyloves it.
I mean he thinks it is it is.
he thinks it is the coolest job.
So, um, and he actually worked,I think, in the emergency room,
if I, if I remember correctlybeforehand, it just wanted
(42:08):
something that had a little bitmore variety, wanted to meet
people where they were, andthose calls are very they're
varied as well.
You know it's not going to benecessarily the.
They're varied as well.
You know it's not going to benecessarily the the really,
really really seriously illpatients, but sometimes it is
and sometimes, because you'remeeting them in their house,
they will say I would like tostay in my house and he has to
(42:29):
make that decision and say youknow, I respect that, these are
your options, you know, and herehere we go, but these are your
options you know, and here, herewe go.
But, um, oh my gosh, Sophie, I'm, it's incredible.
Thank you so much.
Um, I think that our firstresponders truly are heroes, and
you guys see and do the hardestthings um in the most intimate
(42:50):
settings, with people oftentimeson their worst day.
Sophie (42:54):
So thank you for showing up.
Ashley (42:55):
Thank you for showing up um in the community.
Thank you for showing up in thecommunity.
Thank you for showing up atthose sites.
Thank you for showing up onlineand educating and teaching and
encouraging and inspiring.
Thanks for showing up on thepodcast space and thank you so
much for showing up in advocacy.
You're amazing.
Sophie (43:14):
Thanks for being on the show too.
Well, thank you for having meand thank you for what you're
doing.
I didn't know that EMS was apossibility for me until I
actually already graduatedcollege, so I am so happy that
you're doing this, becausepeople need to know their
options and I think that again,we're a little quiet heroes and
we don't tell people about allthe options and how cool this is
(43:36):
.
Ashley (43:38):
You know we love what we do and we just really, truly
wanted to shout it from therooftops.
That's a common theme.
Um, really, with everybody I'vespoken with, I don't care if
you're an MD, do, pa, pt, emt,paramedic, uh, doctor of
physical therapy we're justproud because we get to, we get
to help people.
It's our job.
It's the coolest job ever.
It is the coolest job ever.
(43:58):
Sophie, with Paramedic Sophieand Life in Sirens podcast.
Thank you so much.
You're the bomb.
You're the bomb.
Thank you so very much forlistening to this episode of
Shadow Me.
Next, if you liked this episodeor if you think it could be
useful for a friend, pleasesubscribe and invite them to
join us next Monday, as always.
(44:18):
If you have any questions, letme know on Facebook or Instagram
Access.
You want stories, you need.
You're always invited to shadowme next.
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