You Know You Work Rural EMS When… (#12234)

Today I overheard an ambulance service somewhere out in the sticks get dispatched to a “Car Vs. Pedestrian” on a rural backroad. This particular backroad is known to be a real rural speedway, where cars just fly down the road far from any prying eyes of the local traffic cops. Any vehicle/pedestrian interface on this road would be sure to be a real messy call and the rural ambulance service that got dispatched to the call made a pretty good turn-out time.

About ten minutes after dispatch, the county dispatcher came back over the radio and cancelled the response. Apparently the “Car Vs. Pedestrian” wasn’t Vs. a human pedestrian… it was a Car Vs. Deer. Sure, the deer was probably walking at the time it was hit, but even with as rural as this ambulance service is, they don’t handle veterenary emergencies.

To her credit, the dispatcher made sure to inform the ambulance crew that the “Patient has left the scene”.

Now, you may think that the rural dispatcher was just being cheeky and funny when she informed them that the deer scampered away. However, then you wouldn’t be in rural EMS. The dispatcher, who probably has known every crew member since Sunday School did the crew a favor by letting them know that the deer wasn’t there. Us rural folk know that fresh deer meat out of season is a rare delicacy and that the first person to get there gets the carcas.

I’m not incinuating anything… just sayin.