Category Archives: Stories from the ditch

On the way back from an air transfer this afternoon, I fell asleep in the back of the plane. I dreamt that when we’d landed with the patient, we realized that although we’d remembered her coat and bag, we’d forgotten … Continue reading →

When we got to the scene of the MVA this morning, we saw that the pickup involved had jumped off the road just before a low bridge, flown eighty nearly horizontal feet into the frozen creek bed, and stopped in … Continue reading →

Yesterday, GP and I were waiting for a helicopter that was late coming out of the bush, lazily drinking coffee and flicking through the many possible flash patterns on our new dash strobe to pass the time. Ditch: “Nah, I … Continue reading →

It often blows me away how staggeringly rude medical professionals can be to one another in emergency situations. You’d think that in the hectic mess surrounding a dying multi-trauma patient on his way from an ambulance cot to a small … Continue reading →

Here’s the reaction most people have when I tell them I’ve been busy with the ambulance: “Oh, that’s good!… uh, bad?… um…”

Drunk patient: “So when do I get to fight one of you guys?” Mounties [With calmly eager grins]: “Whenever you want.”