XGEP
7 February 2004, 16:45
Okay, so today I get up and head up to Sunlight since I don’t have anything else to do. I get up there and ride the first lift about halfway up with a group leader for a youth group, and then I get on the other one and go all the way to the top. I start just cruising down and I’m about halfway when I see a lady lying facedown on the ground with people around and her groaning. I don’t see ski patrol so I stop and immediately realize that this just happened.
A ski instructor that pulled up the same time as me says to cross her skis and that he’s going to get ski patrol. So I get my skis off and start talking to the lady, find out that it’s her right knee that hurts and nothing else, it only hurts when she moves around, she didn’t hit her head, the knee popped, the rest of the people are with her (so I told them I was an EMT so they didn’t think I had just stayed at a holiday express last night), I find out her name and how old she is. Of course this is the first time since I’ve been out skiing that I didn’t bring my first aid kit so I really have nothing I can do for her till ski patrol arrives. I let her know that I’m just going to leave her alone and have her not move till I get some help; her cousin puts something under her head.
We wait probably 5 minutes for ski patrol while I keep talking to her. Two guys show up with the sled and I let them know who I am and start helping them with her. We have to get her rolled over and rotated about 90 degrees in order to get her into the sled in the right direction, so first we try and move her unhurt led over but as soon as her right leg moves she just screams bloody murder. So we put her other leg back where it was and get the splint out. With the splint we got her into the sled a lot easier. They start down and I get back in my skis, think about it and figure I might as well follow them down just to make sure. So I catch up and let them know I’m gonna follow them down, we get to the first aid shack and they get her inside. They get the half board and we get it underneath her and pick her up and put her on one of the cots and take the splint off her leg and prop it in position with pillows.
So one of the ladies running the first aid station calls for the ambulance and we work on getting her ski boot off. The left leg is easy and I basically take it off myself. The right one we cut the pant leg and used 5 people to hold the leg and one to take the boot off, she didn’t particularly like us right about then. So we get the boot, cut the sock off and make sure she still has a pulse in her foot and can move her toes and everything which she could. After that I pretty much just held her hand and explained we were waiting for the ambulance, she started having muscle spasms so I explained they were normal and part of the response from her body reacting to the injury. We find out that the ski patrol doc is there and he comes down to help out. Gets there only to find out she’s allergic to Morphine so he gives her the injectable equivalent to Tylenol, course it won’t kick in for about 15 minutes so she’s still feeling it.
The first aid people talk to me while we’re waiting, who are you, what are you doing here; where do you go to school, you wanna work for the ski patrol (got asked by 3 separate people)? Ambulance shows up and we get a vacuum splint on the leg and get her on the rescue cot. They take her out and drive off, I give the doc my contact information just in case and decide I really don’t feel like going up again so I head back to my car.
Not 500 feet away I see about 2 ski patrollers a bunch of other people and one of the ladies from the first aid shack, one’s immobilizing someone’s neck who’s laying on the ground. I go ‘oh goody’ and walk over just to make sure. Ask the lady if she needs a hand and she says yes so I stick around. Turns out the kid didn’t stop and ran headfirst into a sign next to the lodge. Right in front of a Ski Patrol training class, I hang out for probably 10 minutes not really doing much because they quickly have 8 people working on her. Find out she was in the same youth group I had ridden the ski lift up with, so I talk to the leader and find out her name and stuff, give it to the lady and let her know I’m going to leave. Head to the car and drive home while passing the ambulance on its way up for the other girl. Two patients in under an hour and I wasn’t even working.
A ski instructor that pulled up the same time as me says to cross her skis and that he’s going to get ski patrol. So I get my skis off and start talking to the lady, find out that it’s her right knee that hurts and nothing else, it only hurts when she moves around, she didn’t hit her head, the knee popped, the rest of the people are with her (so I told them I was an EMT so they didn’t think I had just stayed at a holiday express last night), I find out her name and how old she is. Of course this is the first time since I’ve been out skiing that I didn’t bring my first aid kit so I really have nothing I can do for her till ski patrol arrives. I let her know that I’m just going to leave her alone and have her not move till I get some help; her cousin puts something under her head.
We wait probably 5 minutes for ski patrol while I keep talking to her. Two guys show up with the sled and I let them know who I am and start helping them with her. We have to get her rolled over and rotated about 90 degrees in order to get her into the sled in the right direction, so first we try and move her unhurt led over but as soon as her right leg moves she just screams bloody murder. So we put her other leg back where it was and get the splint out. With the splint we got her into the sled a lot easier. They start down and I get back in my skis, think about it and figure I might as well follow them down just to make sure. So I catch up and let them know I’m gonna follow them down, we get to the first aid shack and they get her inside. They get the half board and we get it underneath her and pick her up and put her on one of the cots and take the splint off her leg and prop it in position with pillows.
So one of the ladies running the first aid station calls for the ambulance and we work on getting her ski boot off. The left leg is easy and I basically take it off myself. The right one we cut the pant leg and used 5 people to hold the leg and one to take the boot off, she didn’t particularly like us right about then. So we get the boot, cut the sock off and make sure she still has a pulse in her foot and can move her toes and everything which she could. After that I pretty much just held her hand and explained we were waiting for the ambulance, she started having muscle spasms so I explained they were normal and part of the response from her body reacting to the injury. We find out that the ski patrol doc is there and he comes down to help out. Gets there only to find out she’s allergic to Morphine so he gives her the injectable equivalent to Tylenol, course it won’t kick in for about 15 minutes so she’s still feeling it.
The first aid people talk to me while we’re waiting, who are you, what are you doing here; where do you go to school, you wanna work for the ski patrol (got asked by 3 separate people)? Ambulance shows up and we get a vacuum splint on the leg and get her on the rescue cot. They take her out and drive off, I give the doc my contact information just in case and decide I really don’t feel like going up again so I head back to my car.
Not 500 feet away I see about 2 ski patrollers a bunch of other people and one of the ladies from the first aid shack, one’s immobilizing someone’s neck who’s laying on the ground. I go ‘oh goody’ and walk over just to make sure. Ask the lady if she needs a hand and she says yes so I stick around. Turns out the kid didn’t stop and ran headfirst into a sign next to the lodge. Right in front of a Ski Patrol training class, I hang out for probably 10 minutes not really doing much because they quickly have 8 people working on her. Find out she was in the same youth group I had ridden the ski lift up with, so I talk to the leader and find out her name and stuff, give it to the lady and let her know I’m going to leave. Head to the car and drive home while passing the ambulance on its way up for the other girl. Two patients in under an hour and I wasn’t even working.