The Paramedic Version Of Rescue Me

[N1Medic 69]

This show is premiering this coming Monday night on TNT. Sounds interesting.

Drama a dose of reality

Watch TNT's new drama "Saved" and you'll think paramedics drink, gamble, blast music going to calls and have sex in ambulances.

A little, but not all, of that is true, according to a group of paramedics at St. Vincent's Hospital Manhattan, who viewed "Saved" with the Daily News.

"This is very entertaining," says paramedic Eric Jimenez.

"Saved" launches June 12 on TNT and stars Tom Everett Scott as Wyatt Cole, an off-beat paramedic who slips in a Nirvana CD on the way to calls, wears his shirt unbuttoned and has sex with his ex-girlfriend, a doctor, in his rig.

"It's happened," says 17-year veteran Phil Eguiguiurens, the paramedic supervisor at St. Vincent's. "A long time ago, but it does happen."

Paramedic Lainie Froehlich cringes at that idea, though she says everybody has stories about such extracurricular activities. "The back of the bus is so disgusting," she says. "You think about what goes on in there, you don't want to do that."

Generally, the paramedics who watched with The News liked "Saved," but had concerns about the impression that Cole's character being a gambler would leave with the public.

"There's a huge perception that what people watch is what they actually think," says paramedic Joe Pataky.

The real paramedics all picked out a couple of medical mistakes - such as the wrong drug being administered to a cardiac arrest patient.

And they each related to a scene where paramedics confront a dog, and another dealing with an emotionally disturbed man who thinks he's John the Baptist. The guy eventually runs around the emergency room and steals an ambulance.

"Oh yeah, I'm good for one John the Baptist, or another saint, every day," says Jimenez, who does keep an iPod in his rig for when he's on the way to calls.

Among the songs on his playlist? "Danger Zone."

All contents © 2006 Daily News, L.P.

[mikeinet 37]

was on tonight... anybody catch it? I could only watch from the middle... i wont lie - i was pretty lost as to what's going on and it was the first episode. Maybe I missed a lot in the first half.

[Remember585 815]

It had a few funny moments. Aside from some of the played-out usual EMS storylines, it isn't too bad. I would say I would watch it next week, but I have other plans...

[Guest emtb23]

I wasn't crazy about it. Not as good as Third Watch, IMO.

[Guest WolfEMT]

I turned it off after 20 minutes... I was expecting a cross between Rescue Me and Third Watch, but basically, I got a soap opera with unrealistic dialogue instead.

[NWPFD05 1]

why wasnt he wearing rubber gloves? maybe there playing it into his character? it weird because he didnt have them in every scene, but his partner did, idk?

[res6cue 67]

I stumbled upon it while flipping channels and watched for about 5 minutes. That was more than enough for me. In those 5 minutes, I saw just about every lame cliche covered. Black father leaves his family/kid and tries to come back into their lives, not having a good time of it. Strung out medic whose outlook is basically "life sucks, people die all the time, I see it every day, I've seen it all, blah blah blah". Said medic bangs a nurse in the back of the bus while parked outside the ER, only to have her tell him she's moving in with another man. Kid loves the FD/EMS so much that he burns his apt down to get their attention. Fire victim miraculously brought back to live without ever even having CPR performed on her (I'm no medic, and it's been a loooong time since I was a tech, but asystole to v-fib back to asystole then back to v-fib then once again back to asystole for over a minute then to NSR seems pretty damn far fetched to me without any CPR being performed before, between or after shocks were delivered). Yada yada yada...horrible show. Saying that it wasn't as good as Third Watch is pretty much as bad as it gets, because Third Watch sucked hard too.

Edited June 13, 2006 by res6cue

[vodoly 535]

Bring back TLC'S Paramedics That show rocked

[cas2383 22]

Show sucks in my opinion wont last more than a season if that....

[trauma74 111]

Show sucks in my opinion wont last more than a season if that....

←

I second that!

[Guest Rich DD]

I wasn't crazy about it. Not as good as Third Watch, IMO.

←

I felt the same way. The dog thing.... bull s***!! The EDP... Ok we have a few of them here who try to Ninja us as we pass to the next job.

But the fire scene was a little much... guys with out airpacks in the fire building, ladder pipe in broken stream shooting UP in the air, and then the code...... need I say more???

It was ok if you like to sit and find mistakes, and criticize each scene, and laugh at the screw ups.

[Guest WolfEMT]

It was ok if you like to sit and find mistakes, and criticize each scene, and laugh at the screw ups.

←

Like not inflating the bag on the non-rebreather. But then again, every medical show (including "ER") does that...

[roeems87 0]

I wonder how many people out there really think this is how modern medicine operates in EMS... if they look at that, they must really think we're all pretty low-life and pathetic...

[WAS967 97]

Bring back TLC'S Paramedics That show rocked

/sign

[ems-buff 81]

Bring back TLC'S Paramedics That show rocked

←

/sign

←

Yea i miss that show, it a shame that you can only see it on discovery health Only on direct TV, maybe if enough people call in to cablevison they will put discovery health on over here, B/c i even see it in Pa on regular cable.

[Guest WCDES636]

The sex scene in the back of the ambulance kinda reminded me of the old days in a certain Vac.

[Guest]

The sex scene in the back of the ambulance kinda reminded me of the old days in a certain Vac.

←

All I could think about is no matter how much I BBP the back of the bus it is still a disgusting thought as to the calls and skells that were back there from the night before. I will neither confirm nor deny the facts of what goes on behind closed doors but never would I ever consider that!

As for the show, I would watch it again but I think I have to go wash my car in the rain, or re-fold my clean socks that night!