Steven Velásquez - Granting "Sirenity"

Thanksgiving Dinner during WWII As a photographer and paramedic, I have been blessed (sometimes cursed) with the ability to permanently capture the world around me in vivid, exquisite detail, in " History Windows " (pictures). Each profession, I believe, has made me better at the other. Saturday night, I worked with Jamie. It was our first time together though we had known each other for years. The call volume was steady. A little of this, a little of that. Some needed advanced life support and others not. Around 02:30 in the morning, we went to the address of a 92 year old female who was having gastrointestinal discomfort. She had recently been hospitalized for the same and probably would benefit by returning tonight - just not with the care of the paramedics as she was completely stable. I disconnected my equipment and explained to the family that the local EMS agency would be taking their mother back to the hospital. Across the bed from me was the patient's son...

by Steven P. Velasquez December 30, 2013 Recently, an overnight call in a nursing home provided a much-needed shot in the arm for me. I often write about the issues we face in the pre-hospital world like being underpaid, underrecognized and often undermined (sometimes) by people who perform our type of work for free (volunteers). Sometimes I and other writers highlight the blunders and failed expectations and place an accusatory, blaming beam of light squarely upon them, those pesky volunteers. The irony there is that when one works in EMS in New Jersey, unlike any other career, they most often begin as a volunteer EMT before moving into career departments or becoming paramedics or other allied health professionals. Volunteering is a sort of proving ground, a place to cut one's teeth and learn this trade, before moving into a career position (or continuing a life of dedicated volunteerism). So the discomfort lies in being so frustrated at the very system that produced - YOU. N...