Bitterly cold here today. The tones go off and we get a call and you feel like saying "Do we have to?" or "No, I'm not going, it's too cold!"
I guess it is all what you are used to and dressing warmly enough.
I'm hoping it will be warmer in Baltimore. Last year I had a nasty chest cold when I went. I had booked a hotel a mile away from the convention center thinking the $60 a night was a great deal, but it was a mile nearly straight uphill from the convention center and I would wonder as I staggered home against the night wind if I would ever make it, and then the elevator wouldn't work and I'd have to climb five flights of stairs, and then I'd sit in my room that looked out on the elevator shaft and watch the half black and white/half two-toned color TV, and cough like a dying man. I have another cold this year, but it doesn't seem to bad and this time I will only be a block away.
I'm driving down tomorrow with another medic and then will probably take the train back on Saturday, so I can be home in time to work Sunday morning.
Here's the sessions I'm looking to attend:
Wednesday evening:
Slap the Cap! Real Uses for Capnography taught by Bob Page. I caught a half hour abridgement of his class in Las Vegas and am looking forward to the whole class. he is a great teacher, and I'm hoping to expand my capnography knowledge and may get some thoughts on the capnography questions I have thought about, in particular, can you use capnography to distinguish between COPD wheezing and cardiac asthma wheezing of CHF in a patient with a history of both CHF and COPD.
Thursday
Morning:
Primary Care in the Streets -- a class about using medics for primary care
Early Afternoon
Cardiac Care and cardiac Arrest resuscitation: State of the Art
or
A Whole Lot of Shaking Going On! Understanding Seizures (also taught by Bob Page)
or
What Does the Future Hold for EMS?
Late Afternoon:
Pain Management: Analgesia and Sedation in the Field
Friday
Morning:
Mechanical Adjuncts for CPR
or
Selected Medical Emergencies
or
EMS New Technolgy Coming to Your EMS System: Is it Worth Having?
Early Afternoon:
Critical Issues in Ventilation
Late Afternoon:
Lightning Round- Report from the Eagles, which is ask a panel of docs your questions on any EMS issue
or
Spinal Immobilization: What We Thought We Knew!
or
Congestive Heart Failure vs. COPD
Friday Night:
Beer with the Bloggers
Last year when I went to JEMS they gave us a CD with the powerpoints and handouts from many of the speakers. I will probably look through this to gage whether I should go to a session or not. Sometimes the handout answers the questions so I don't need to go or it may make me want to go.
I'll report when I get back. If possible I will try to report from down there if I can get internet access.
Looking forward to seeing some of you down there!
