We kicked the month of May off in grand style up here in the mountains with two days of snow. Shoot, we set a new record for annual snowfall this winter in our section of Colorado, and the leading edge of our cold front collided with a warm front over the southeast resulting in Tornados that cost seven people their lives. Add to that the rapid snow melt in Maine and southeastern Canada resulting in flooding, and Boy Howdy! Spring has sprung with way too much job security for quite a few of us.

But all that pales in comparison to the folks in Myanmar, the country formerly known as Burma, who are still picking up the pieces from a cyclone.

Yes the busy season is on us as we prepare to kick off the 35th National EMS Week. (May 18 - 25)

According to Dr. Brian J. Zink's book ANYONE, ANYTHING, ANYTIME: A History of Emergency Medicine, the first National EMS Week was created by President Gerald Ford as a peace offering to the American College of Emergency Physicians, in 1974.

In 1973 the EMS Act was created and passed both the House and Senate by popular majority and was signed into law by President Richard Nixon. This occurred at a time of fiscal conservatism with an emphasis on reducing the national debt. The EMS Act was one of the very few new initiatives to pass both houses and actually survive to be funded and signed into law.

After President Nixon's resignation the reigns of power were taken over by President Gerald Ford, a fiscal conservative. President Ford, while recognizing the value of the EMS Act, in an attempt to balance the federal budget, vetoed appropriations to the Dept. of Health, Education & Welfare, HEW, that funded the programs created by the EMS Act.

Members of the relatively newly formed American College of Emergency Physicians, ACEP, rallied and lobbied Congress and to have the funds reinstated to the Federal Budget. The public and political groundswell of their efforts were so successful that President Ford gracefully accepted the override of his veto.

In acknowledgment of the popularity of modern EMS the president created the first National EMS.

This is just one of the many bits of history Dr. Zink shares in his historical look at the history of ACEP. From its inception by several doctors from various specialties who were all practicing early emergency medicine back in the days when every doctor, no matter what their specialty, had to take call in the ED. ANYONE, ANYTHING, ANYTIME documents a few visionaries who not only said there has to be a better way to come up with a consistent application of emergency medicine, but actually enjoyed it and wanted to develop a body of best practices.

From these early efforts by a handful of Docs from a half dozen cities, creating educational seminars, to the idea of forming standards and eventually creating a recognized specialty of emergency medicine, the efforts of four decades of work are painstakingly documented in Dr. Zink's account.

Make no mistake, this is not a thrilling page turner. No accounts of ED daring do or "There I was..." Tales from the ED. This is a dry historical work about the folks who created a large part of what comprises the art & practice of EMS, both in the field as well as the ED that we have today.

Is ANYONE, ANYTHING, ANYTIME a "must read" book about our brief modern history? Heck no! However it is a very thorough and concise account of how we got to where we are today. If you are interested in how we got here, then this is a book well worth tracking down.

ANYONE, ANYTHING, ANYTIME
Brian J. Zink, MD
Elsevier - Mosby, 2006
ISBN: 1-56053-710-8
$45.00 at Amazon.com

Radically switching writing styles is Dr. Heidi Kraft's memoir, RULE NUMBER TWO: Lessons I Learned in a Combat Hospital. Lt. Comdr. Kraft was a Navy Psychologist deployed to Iraq. In January of 2004, Dr. Kraft was practicing as a staff psychologist in Pensacola, Florida. She was married to a Marine Corps Aviator and they were raising 15 month old twins when she was notified by her commanding officer that she was being deployed in 11 days to Iraq.

Dr. Kraft was part of a 4 person team, a psychiatrist, herself and two psych techs responsible for the mental health needs of over 10,000 sailors and Marines as well as the mental well being of her own medical colleagues of a Marine Corps Surgical Unit based out of an air base located between the Suni Triangle and the Syrian border.

What follows is the account of her 7-month deployment, the conditions in which they practiced their craft, and some of the many people they helped or attempted to help under less than ideal conditions. Everything is covered, from family issues and maintaining her spirits through letters and all too short online computer visits with her children, to local conditions which included encounters with the dreaded Camel Spider which can out sprint any human.

The title for her memoir, RULE NUMBER TWO was inspired by a line from the TV show M*A*S*H: "There are two rules of war. Rule number one is that young men die. Rule number two is that doctors can't change rule number one."

Talk about your CISD. Dr. Kraft's accounts range from palliative care for those they knew they couldn't save but were to stubborn to die right away to helping young service men and women work through their fears and not only do their jobs, but not let their fellow marines down.

All in all, RULE NUMBER TWO is both an entertaining read and a look at taking care of our own under some harsh and extreme conditions. And aside from being a good read that is well worth tracking down through your local library if nothing else, Dr. Kraft literally puts her money where her mouth/pen is. Ten percent of all the proceeds for the sale of her book are donated to the Injured Marine Semper Fi Fund.

RULE NUMBER TWO
Dr. Heidi Squier Kraft
Little, Brown & Co., 2007
ISBN-10: 0316067903
$23.95 ($16.31 at Amazon.com)

Switching genres, the folks at MedFilms have assembled a short 10-minute DVD entitled DECONTAMINATION FOR HEALTHCARE. This is an awareness film at best. It literally travels through the decon process at warp speed dropping the occasional nugget along the way.

Two points they do make, the first doing just a fair job, is how to cut the clothing off an individual who can't undress themselves. But the true gem of this overview is demonstrating how to coach a walking individual, through a thorough self-decon via pantomime.

The decon person is in a Level C with a PAPR, Powered Air Purifying Respirator, which can be a bit noisy. Add to that the sounds of the shower and a nearby generator and well, verbal communications can be challenging.

Also, a number of our patients may be non-English speaking. Either way, this was an effective method of coaching the individual through a thorough self-decon. With that said, it is obvious that his film was made and produced for the institutional educational market. It serves as awareness of what may be expected if a decon has to be set up or to understand why patients need to go through decon and the delay it creates. Or lastly, why your patients are showing up at your facility wet and wrapped in paper sheets or oversize trash bags with holes cut out for the head and arms.

DECONTAMINATION FOR HEALTHCARE is pricey at $275.00. For more information on this DVD visit MedFilms web page at www.medfilms.com. To locate DECONTAMINATION FOR HEALTHCARE go to their catalog and it can be found in either the General Info or the Safety preparedness portions of the catalog.

That's it for this issue of Book Corner. I had hoped to write about distance learning and do a review of ZERO HOUR: AMERICA'S HEROES but production delays have set the release of this educational game/simulation back until June. So keep your fingers crossed and I will share the 411 in next month's issue.

Lastly, heartfelt condolences and best wishes to EMT Bonnie Ames, her family and coworkers for her recovery from last month's devastating ambulance accident which resulted in among other injuries, the amputation of her right arm. Let's not forget our sister medic now that other news has replaced the announcement about her and her partner's accident. Good luck & best wishes Bonnie for a safe, speedy and hassle-free recovery.

Fundraising efforts are underway to help the injured responders. For more information visit the website for the RPS/Regional EMS Benevolent Fund.