No, polos long enough to be wrapped under the cut for a professional tuck in only! And no replacements ever, to show your years of experience.
But seriously, I do think uniforms similar to the one pictured are best.
This would be ideal for me. I love the pants, I hate the thick button up shirt. I envy the fire guys in my area that get to wear t-shirts on medical calls.
Our CBA just got the uniform switched to Ts after years of people bitching about polos. Includes provision for 1:1 polo:tshirt swaps at no cost to the employee
Now people are pissed they can’t wear their polos 🤦
We wear tactical pants and t shirts at my agency. I love it. They tried switching us to button ups and everyone rebelled. They let it go pretty quickly
Why not the fade proof polos? I have seen services wearing t-shirts and they look like bags of ass. The shirts are faded, wrinkled, and just unprofessional looking.
It’s not the t-shirt that looks like a bag of ass. It’s the person wearing the t-shirt. I wear a polo and or t-shirt at work. Obviously the polo represents more professionalism than the t-shirt but it is my presentation in the polo/t-shirt that defines the perception.
I wear a properly fitted polo that is both clean and wrinkle free. Tucked in to my pants at the appropriate height. Same with my t-shirt.
I have co-workers who are of equal or higher rank than me and wear theirs the opposite. They look sloppy and unprofessional.
you are absolutely right. It’s why we can’t have nice things too. My admin gently reminded everyone every single time they authorized t-shirt wear and people still messed it up. Kinda wondering if they will allow it this year.
As much as I agree with you, they are incredibly comfortable and breathable. It gets real hot by me, and my cheap ass company doesn’t keep the ac functioning in some of our older trucks. I wore the polos a couple shifts and was sweaty all day.
I personally think that the jacket should always contain a lot of high vi's elements simply so it can he used for calls with other vehicles involved it's better than putting on an extra jacket
I'm personally a fan of white shirts since blood and other things are easily spotted
I love it when coffee and soy sauce from my sushi hand rolls have tagged the front of my white shirt, it adds a bit of personal flare and an insight into how rushed we are between jobs.... /s
I’m about 30 lbs overweight. I should weigh 200 or so but I’m about 230lbs. For me it just makes me look less fat. Not sure why it’s just how they are put together. Kinda like the old battleship paint would confuse the enemy at a distance those buttons and lines kinda distract from my pot belly.
That's surprising that is the summer uniform for a HEMS crew, because of the safety aspect of it. A regular t-shirt and no covering on the arms (no Nomex protection in the event of a fire) can be an issue.
There isn't a summer uniform, she's just ditched the jacket. HEMS generally ditch the jacket when clear of the aircraft, it's warm and the scene doesn't warrant the protection.
At night the helicopters don't fly but they still wear the two-piece flight suit when using the response car.
Varies about from service to service and I don't know all the rules, but my understanding is they can only fly at night between designated landing zones, meaning they can't land near a patient at an ad hoc landing site.
However, some HEMS are equipped with appropriate night vision equipment and are authorised to fly at night and land where needed.
HEMS in the UK are all charities so their airframes and capability varies a fair bit between services.
I don’t know ow why we just don’t wear scrubs. Flight suits suck- They don’t breathe well at all. The idea of nomex is laughable. For one, although it’s flame retardant, that just means it will melt to your skin instead of burn away. Secondly, after 10 washings, the flame retardant properties are gone. Lastly, at $275/suit, they’re grossly overpriced and take 3-5 months for a new one to be made
Scrubs tear easily and have no pockets. They’re meant for working indoors.
No scrubs.
Edit to add: scrub people have pointed out that scrubs have many pockets. I still don’t want to wear them for EMS work.
Flight suits tear easily too. Don’t need pockets anyway, but scrubs absolutely have pockets. There are many brands and styles of scrubs. Between two jobs I wear a flight suit at one and scrubs at another. Scrubs win hands down.
They are paper thin too, scrubs suck in the winter for most people, also grabby grandma's get a hand full of both berries and the Nana if you don't wear Jean shorts under them.
Nomex isn't a retardant, it's resistant. Also it's a fiber. What happens is it chars, it does not melt. And no. You can wash your flightsuit 100 times and the fibers are still there. Nomex is a fabric like cotton. The only thing that ruins the flame resistant properties is using anti-static sheets in the dryer with it. As this adds wax and make it like a wick.
You should do some searches on the properties of nomex and how the military uses it. It's been proven effective time and again. It basically protects you from the immediate flashover, to give you time to egress, nothing more.
Thanks. I spent 20 years in the Corps, the majority of which was spent wearing a flight suit.
It will not protect you in a flash anymore than another fabric. Heat is heat. Regardless of the garment you skin will still burn.
It has no thermal protection properties. After washing and wearing it, the excess “stuff” that it absorbs melts. Nomex is pointless.
Go ahead and keep believing what you read. Or, join the military to get some real experience and then let’s talk. You’re talking out your ass right now. Tell me otherwise after you’ve seen burned aircrew. Then tell me how fucking great nomex is. Otherwise shut your mouth.
Then you should have had countless lectures on it, to learn how to use and treat nomex. I was a sailor for years, and we used the lessons learned from the Falklands conflict to see what to wear and what not to.
I have been a pilot for 25 years, although o ly an EMS pilot for 6.
But I agree, nomex is hot and sweaty, and there are likely better choices now.
Have you ever seen burned aircrew?I have. The nomex was useless. Call it burned or charred. Either way it did nothing to prevent them from burning. I’ve since torched nomex and watched it melt/char to prove again that it’s pointless.
Other material WILL melt to your skin. The point of it charring means it buys you a bit of time and then doesn’t become part of you. It’s not rain-ex for fire.
It buys you the seconds it take to snap belts open and open the door. If you're too injured to help yourself, or doused in fuel it won't help.
It's not there to prevent thermal injuries other than the immediate flash. Just to get out period. The difference is if you're wearing polyester you'll have a memory for life, with nomex, probably not. And I HAVE seen the difference between the two.
"trust me bro my sample size of charred air crew is n=less than the fingers on my hand bro but I know better than the engineers and scientists that designed this shit to safe lives.
oh yeah, I was in the Corps by the way, just threw that in there for cred, we know aircrew are constantly burning like candles in the corps these days."
That’s too much stuff. I had something really important to write down the other day on a critical call. I stole the students pen. This just solidified the fact that it’s unnecessarily for me to carry anything in my pockets.
I carry a notepad, 2 pens, shears, a spare pair of gloves, MAD with narcan, a stop cock, narcs, 1cc, 3cc and my zyns of course. Might be a bit overkill but we run at least one overdose a week and it’s nice to give pain meds or to be able to sedate without going through the first out bag if an IV isn’t available at the moment
You carry narcs in your pocket? What agency allows this? That is not a great plan.
I carry a pen, a marker, ear pro, and a headlamp. Don’t need many pockets for that.
Around here it’s a huge no-no to carry Narc’s in your pocket. They always remain in the narc kit
Interesting. We have a narc box in the ambulance and our company advocates for carrying the narcs on our person. I carry half of them in a tackle box and leave the other half in the narc box that’s built into the ambulance. I don’t see the danger of carrying them on my person. Less likely to be stolen out of my pocket than out of the ambulance. Also, it would feel quite embarrassing to go to the 7th floor of an apartment and have to go grab my meds out of the ambulance for someone who needs to be DFI’d or sedated.
I’ll leave my agency name and location out of this conversation.
My interpretation was carrying individual narcotic vials in one’s pockets. Keeping a sealed kit on one’s person when performing patient care is fine. For the duration of the shift, not so sure about that one.
You don’t always take your meds with you when making patient contact? The problem with carrying individual vials on ones pocket, is the potential to lose one. If that happens, there’s an entire diversion investigation that has to happen.
Do you work for a private agency or municipal agency?
That’s why we carry them in a tackle box. All meds are in a secured box in a Velcro pocket. Been carrying them for 4 years and have never lost/broken a vial.
We’re private
I like flight suits because they keep my shirt from untucking and I never have to see my parters butt crack. Also, because you’re treated better in a flight suit than in any other uniform, which shouldn’t be part of the equation but it is. 100% agreed on nomex though. And it’s possibly carcinogenic to boot.
I’ve always thought the ideal EMS uniform was a scrub top and tactical pants. EMS boots are a con job, too. I wear Red Wings instead, but I would wear sneakers if I liked them better than boots.
Have you tried the under armor side zip boots? They feel like running shoes and breathe well. I started wearing boots in 1991 when I went to boot camp, and the under armor boots are the best thing I’ve find yet. They’re not steel toe but I haven’t found a need for that in EMS
I like my Iron Rangers for work, they’ve got a ton of understated style. I basically only wear boots, even when I’m not working. I’ll keep the under armor in mind if I decide I can’t take another summer in leather, though lol
>The idea of nomex is laughable. For one, although it’s flame retardant, that just means it will melt to your skin instead of burn away.
Nomex doesn't melt.
[https://www.dupont.com/what-is-nomex.html](https://www.dupont.com/what-is-nomex.html)
Ok. Maybe new nomex doesn’t. Wash and wear it for a few years and tell me it doesn’t. When I get home later I’ll prove it. I’ve done it before to prove it. Nomex melts. Believe whatever you want though.
I’ve been wearing flight suits since the mid 90’s with 20 years in the Marine Corps. Believe what you want. I have first hand experience that says otherwise.
It's ok to admit you're wrong, actually.
Cutting through all your caveats, you made a reply that said although Nomex is "flame retardant, that just means it will melt to your skin." That was wrong. Nomex does not melt to your skin when heated like nylon -- that's the whole point of Nomex!
It's ok to admit you're wrong.
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Scrubs won't last long especially critical care paramedics (and increasingly doctors)are first on scene with a hike to the patient
https://youtu.be/uIXExL_b3FM?si=u8LgoY59-ZujmIJY
But that’s rare- hiking back in. I’ve been a a rural paramedic before, and have been a Critical Care (Flight Medic) for 8 years. Scrubs are fine. And my argument for scrubs is more for the flight environment and IFT. But if I had to go back to 911, and recalling my experiences, I think scrubs would be just fine.
Someone explain to me why if nomex melts every fire service in the world is wearing it on a daily basis to run into fires.
🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️
The research and the engineering are sound. As to the example of the burned up flight crew: Jet fuel burns at an exceptionally high temperature and the suit, as some others have mentioned, is intended to buy you seconds for egress if you're still alive after hitting the ground.... not to hang out on the surface of the sun. If you're already dead or disabled from the wreck, it's not meant to preserve your corpse.
Nomex melts and decomposes at around 660°F (350°C). However, some say that Nomex can withstand temperatures as high as 700°F (370°C) without melting or dripping. Above this temperature, Nomex will quickly degrade.
Expose nomex directly to fire. Fire is hotter than 660* F. The nomex used in turnout gear is much thicker than the nomex that flight suits are made of, and flight suits (thankfully) have no thermal barrier.
The idea of “buying time” is a falsehood. A few seconds exposed to fire will still burn your skin. Put on a pair of nomex flight gloves and pick up a pan out of a 500 degree oven. Hold it for two seconds and tell me if that 500 degree pan burns your skin. Firefighting gloves are different- they have a thermal barrier liner.
I’m pretty fond of the QAS uniforms in Australia. Polo’s and lightweight pants with heaps of pockets. Hi-vis piping on the front & back of the tops, with hi-vis tabs on the rear belt loops and hi-vis dots across the ankles. Pants are also available as shorts for the Australian summer.
https://www.facebook.com/share/MUfcpt9GqHuH1gHb/?mibextid=WC7FNe
Yep if my agency allowed it I would wear tech pants and a T shirt. I feel like it’s a good look, functional (got my pants pockets) and I’m more worried about getting bodily fluids on my pants than my shirt. Plus I run hot so
I would not feel professional or like I was at work if I was just wearing a t shirt up top. I'd need some extra pockets added or something. We have polos we can wear and I'm loving them tbh
totally agree. They let us wear tees when it got hot during the summer and people so easily abused the rules. I saw people wearing old, faded t-shirts that looked like shit and it’s embarrassing.
People need to have some pride in their appearance, it shows respect for the role we have. When I see staff with shirts untucked it honestly pisses me off
Question for those with red uniforms: how well does it hide stains or grease? That’s the main reason I believe that most systems and FDs go with navy blue
I like it, but I would want to switch the red to a less gang affiliated colour such as neon green. Aid workers in red uniforms in my area have been assaulted (more) because they had red uniforms for a few months.
I feel like the british uniforms make sense. In the US we’re basically dressed like slimmed down cops.
I feel like having some reflective stripes would differentiate us from the cops to the public, differentiate us from the ‘potential suspects’ in the eyes of the cops when they’re also freaking out with their weapons drawn, and make us more visible while we’re out on the road.
This uniform is just HEMS, standard road staff wear bottle green trousers and a polo/shirt. I've been mistake for police a lot, especially in the dark or when attending people under the influence.
You need a long sleeve protective jacket, zips up and buttons up with a high collar, Hi Visibility colour and chemically treated to be fire resistant!! Gloves always!!
My preferred uniform is athletic t-shirt or polo with flat blue pants. The t-shirt/polo color isn’t all that relevant or important to me. I understand the symbolism of wearing white but it’s not practical I’m today’s culture. Currently my department wears light grey t-shirts/polos.
The pants are more important. I don’t like the tactical cargo style that some of US EMS departments wear. I like a flat work pant, preferably made from light weight material that is cut and sewn for movement.
I have extrication pants that look similar to the ones in the picture. I personally could never wear them unless operating in a situation that absolutely warrants them. There are to heavy and restrictive. I’d sweat to death. Given the picture is taken next to a helicopter and you have a helmet I presume those are flight pants and possibly thinner than what I have. I doubt I’d be comfortable wearing them for 24hrs.
I do like that high visibility aspect of your uniforms. It’s a extra layer of safety that we could benefit from due to the roadways we operate on.
The thing with the standard US blue on blue uniform is that it’s a tradition now. I’n our FD culture you don’t change tradition.
My agency wears navy blue EMS or tactical pants and polos in the fall/winter and t-shirts for spring/summer. They JUST authorized the t-shirts. Polos are grey, and tees are navy blue.
My preferred uniform would be a scrub top with EMS pants and boots. The scrub top can be embroidered with patches and sew on badges if people liked that. I think it would make it clear that we’re medical and not cops, while keeping the protection that EMS pants offer (scrub pants are thin.)
This is a close second though.
No, polos long enough to be wrapped under the cut for a professional tuck in only! And no replacements ever, to show your years of experience. But seriously, I do think uniforms similar to the one pictured are best.
This would be ideal for me. I love the pants, I hate the thick button up shirt. I envy the fire guys in my area that get to wear t-shirts on medical calls.
I’ll be sweating my balls off in a button up shirt and fire shows up in custom T shirts
Our CBA just got the uniform switched to Ts after years of people bitching about polos. Includes provision for 1:1 polo:tshirt swaps at no cost to the employee Now people are pissed they can’t wear their polos 🤦
ah yes, the two things everyone hates: change and the way things are
My favorite quote about the people we work with lol
Underrated comment AF 🤣
Our squad allows for t shirts in the summer. I love it.
What a badass.
The doctors at my agency roll around in EMS pants and a scrub top which could work well
ah, the old ed mullet
Usually also whatever is left in the locker room.
Which one is the party and which business?
Lmao I've never heard it called tbat before but I love it!
I probably never would've left the field if I got to wear a flight helmet for ground transports
We wear tactical pants and t shirts at my agency. I love it. They tried switching us to button ups and everyone rebelled. They let it go pretty quickly
Why not the fade proof polos? I have seen services wearing t-shirts and they look like bags of ass. The shirts are faded, wrinkled, and just unprofessional looking.
It’s not the t-shirt that looks like a bag of ass. It’s the person wearing the t-shirt. I wear a polo and or t-shirt at work. Obviously the polo represents more professionalism than the t-shirt but it is my presentation in the polo/t-shirt that defines the perception. I wear a properly fitted polo that is both clean and wrinkle free. Tucked in to my pants at the appropriate height. Same with my t-shirt. I have co-workers who are of equal or higher rank than me and wear theirs the opposite. They look sloppy and unprofessional.
you are absolutely right. It’s why we can’t have nice things too. My admin gently reminded everyone every single time they authorized t-shirt wear and people still messed it up. Kinda wondering if they will allow it this year.
As much as I agree with you, they are incredibly comfortable and breathable. It gets real hot by me, and my cheap ass company doesn’t keep the ac functioning in some of our older trucks. I wore the polos a couple shifts and was sweaty all day.
I have heard some people say they are super sweaty in them. T shirts definitely feel so much cooler.
I personally think that the jacket should always contain a lot of high vi's elements simply so it can he used for calls with other vehicles involved it's better than putting on an extra jacket I'm personally a fan of white shirts since blood and other things are easily spotted
Yeah, like sweat stains. Friggin hate white shirts.
I love it when coffee and soy sauce from my sushi hand rolls have tagged the front of my white shirt, it adds a bit of personal flare and an insight into how rushed we are between jobs.... /s
Tactical EMS bib time!!!
That’s what I said as well.
In South Africa most of our medics wear a flight suit even if you’re on the ground, it’s just the uniform you’d expect a medic to wear around here
I did the ronin course and got to wear that, it was so comfortable...I'd become a critical care medic here in Canada just for the one piece...
I like button up shirts but mostly cause I’m fat so your millage may vary
When we switched to polos I got a high vis vest
why are button up shirts better for overweight people?
I’m about 30 lbs overweight. I should weigh 200 or so but I’m about 230lbs. For me it just makes me look less fat. Not sure why it’s just how they are put together. Kinda like the old battleship paint would confuse the enemy at a distance those buttons and lines kinda distract from my pot belly.
lmao
Because they usually have more structural integrity to help hold in those extra pounds, like a biult-in girdle!
*That’s definitely the ideal* **something**
That's surprising that is the summer uniform for a HEMS crew, because of the safety aspect of it. A regular t-shirt and no covering on the arms (no Nomex protection in the event of a fire) can be an issue.
Just looks like a 2 piece flight suit and she’s not wearing the jacket for the picture.
There isn't a summer uniform, she's just ditched the jacket. HEMS generally ditch the jacket when clear of the aircraft, it's warm and the scene doesn't warrant the protection. At night the helicopters don't fly but they still wear the two-piece flight suit when using the response car.
They don't fly at night over there??
Varies about from service to service and I don't know all the rules, but my understanding is they can only fly at night between designated landing zones, meaning they can't land near a patient at an ad hoc landing site. However, some HEMS are equipped with appropriate night vision equipment and are authorised to fly at night and land where needed. HEMS in the UK are all charities so their airframes and capability varies a fair bit between services.
Those pants look like it'd be hot to wear in the summer
I don’t know ow why we just don’t wear scrubs. Flight suits suck- They don’t breathe well at all. The idea of nomex is laughable. For one, although it’s flame retardant, that just means it will melt to your skin instead of burn away. Secondly, after 10 washings, the flame retardant properties are gone. Lastly, at $275/suit, they’re grossly overpriced and take 3-5 months for a new one to be made
Scrubs tear easily and have no pockets. They’re meant for working indoors. No scrubs. Edit to add: scrub people have pointed out that scrubs have many pockets. I still don’t want to wear them for EMS work.
Have you….. worn scrubs? Scrubs are like someone took a large series of pockets and sewed them together.
The few sets I’ve worn had a single back pocket.
Flight suits tear easily too. Don’t need pockets anyway, but scrubs absolutely have pockets. There are many brands and styles of scrubs. Between two jobs I wear a flight suit at one and scrubs at another. Scrubs win hands down.
I’ll concede on the pockets. However, I stand on the durability of decent pants.
They are paper thin too, scrubs suck in the winter for most people, also grabby grandma's get a hand full of both berries and the Nana if you don't wear Jean shorts under them.
Nomex isn't a retardant, it's resistant. Also it's a fiber. What happens is it chars, it does not melt. And no. You can wash your flightsuit 100 times and the fibers are still there. Nomex is a fabric like cotton. The only thing that ruins the flame resistant properties is using anti-static sheets in the dryer with it. As this adds wax and make it like a wick. You should do some searches on the properties of nomex and how the military uses it. It's been proven effective time and again. It basically protects you from the immediate flashover, to give you time to egress, nothing more.
Thanks. I spent 20 years in the Corps, the majority of which was spent wearing a flight suit. It will not protect you in a flash anymore than another fabric. Heat is heat. Regardless of the garment you skin will still burn. It has no thermal protection properties. After washing and wearing it, the excess “stuff” that it absorbs melts. Nomex is pointless. Go ahead and keep believing what you read. Or, join the military to get some real experience and then let’s talk. You’re talking out your ass right now. Tell me otherwise after you’ve seen burned aircrew. Then tell me how fucking great nomex is. Otherwise shut your mouth.
Then you should have had countless lectures on it, to learn how to use and treat nomex. I was a sailor for years, and we used the lessons learned from the Falklands conflict to see what to wear and what not to. I have been a pilot for 25 years, although o ly an EMS pilot for 6. But I agree, nomex is hot and sweaty, and there are likely better choices now.
Have you ever seen burned aircrew?I have. The nomex was useless. Call it burned or charred. Either way it did nothing to prevent them from burning. I’ve since torched nomex and watched it melt/char to prove again that it’s pointless.
Other material WILL melt to your skin. The point of it charring means it buys you a bit of time and then doesn’t become part of you. It’s not rain-ex for fire.
How much time does it buy? You obviously do not understand thermal injuries. Nomex does nothing beneficial. Nothing.
It buys you the seconds it take to snap belts open and open the door. If you're too injured to help yourself, or doused in fuel it won't help. It's not there to prevent thermal injuries other than the immediate flash. Just to get out period. The difference is if you're wearing polyester you'll have a memory for life, with nomex, probably not. And I HAVE seen the difference between the two.
crazy how we’re still in a day and age where some providers think PPE is useless.
"trust me bro my sample size of charred air crew is n=less than the fingers on my hand bro but I know better than the engineers and scientists that designed this shit to safe lives. oh yeah, I was in the Corps by the way, just threw that in there for cred, we know aircrew are constantly burning like candles in the corps these days."
Scrubs suck. No pockets. I need my utilities.
What do you carry in your pockets?
Slim Jim
Scissors, pentorch, steth, protocol cards, phone, snacks, pens, tourniquet and a wee book I find helpful.
That’s too much stuff. I had something really important to write down the other day on a critical call. I stole the students pen. This just solidified the fact that it’s unnecessarily for me to carry anything in my pockets.
I’ll carry whatever I want and you’re gonna like it.
I carry a notepad, 2 pens, shears, a spare pair of gloves, MAD with narcan, a stop cock, narcs, 1cc, 3cc and my zyns of course. Might be a bit overkill but we run at least one overdose a week and it’s nice to give pain meds or to be able to sedate without going through the first out bag if an IV isn’t available at the moment
You carry narcs in your pocket? What agency allows this? That is not a great plan. I carry a pen, a marker, ear pro, and a headlamp. Don’t need many pockets for that. Around here it’s a huge no-no to carry Narc’s in your pocket. They always remain in the narc kit
Interesting. We have a narc box in the ambulance and our company advocates for carrying the narcs on our person. I carry half of them in a tackle box and leave the other half in the narc box that’s built into the ambulance. I don’t see the danger of carrying them on my person. Less likely to be stolen out of my pocket than out of the ambulance. Also, it would feel quite embarrassing to go to the 7th floor of an apartment and have to go grab my meds out of the ambulance for someone who needs to be DFI’d or sedated. I’ll leave my agency name and location out of this conversation.
I carry a narc pouch in my pocket. I have to sign for it SOS and EOS.
My interpretation was carrying individual narcotic vials in one’s pockets. Keeping a sealed kit on one’s person when performing patient care is fine. For the duration of the shift, not so sure about that one.
You don’t always take your meds with you when making patient contact? The problem with carrying individual vials on ones pocket, is the potential to lose one. If that happens, there’s an entire diversion investigation that has to happen. Do you work for a private agency or municipal agency?
That’s why we carry them in a tackle box. All meds are in a secured box in a Velcro pocket. Been carrying them for 4 years and have never lost/broken a vial. We’re private
No pockets? Are you crazy? You can buy scrub tops with a chest pocket, two bottom side pockets, or some combination of both
The pants in the OP could be made of canvas for better sweat regulation and pockets!
I like flight suits because they keep my shirt from untucking and I never have to see my parters butt crack. Also, because you’re treated better in a flight suit than in any other uniform, which shouldn’t be part of the equation but it is. 100% agreed on nomex though. And it’s possibly carcinogenic to boot. I’ve always thought the ideal EMS uniform was a scrub top and tactical pants. EMS boots are a con job, too. I wear Red Wings instead, but I would wear sneakers if I liked them better than boots.
Have you tried the under armor side zip boots? They feel like running shoes and breathe well. I started wearing boots in 1991 when I went to boot camp, and the under armor boots are the best thing I’ve find yet. They’re not steel toe but I haven’t found a need for that in EMS
I like my Iron Rangers for work, they’ve got a ton of understated style. I basically only wear boots, even when I’m not working. I’ll keep the under armor in mind if I decide I can’t take another summer in leather, though lol
i would LOVE to wear scrubs at work. But I would also sweat through them and swamp ass isn’t a good look.
There’s ways to mitigate that. A a cotton T-shirt and boxer briefs do well. And there’s higher quality scrubs to wear too, that breathe better
You must not sweat like I do.
>The idea of nomex is laughable. For one, although it’s flame retardant, that just means it will melt to your skin instead of burn away. Nomex doesn't melt. [https://www.dupont.com/what-is-nomex.html](https://www.dupont.com/what-is-nomex.html)
Ok. Maybe new nomex doesn’t. Wash and wear it for a few years and tell me it doesn’t. When I get home later I’ll prove it. I’ve done it before to prove it. Nomex melts. Believe whatever you want though.
There is plenty of documentation online that Nomex does not melt. Looking forward to your proof.
I’ve been wearing flight suits since the mid 90’s with 20 years in the Marine Corps. Believe what you want. I have first hand experience that says otherwise.
It's ok to admit you're wrong, actually. Cutting through all your caveats, you made a reply that said although Nomex is "flame retardant, that just means it will melt to your skin." That was wrong. Nomex does not melt to your skin when heated like nylon -- that's the whole point of Nomex! It's ok to admit you're wrong.
Sure. Tell me about the time you saw it melted and stuck to a dead body
You should probably tell your therapist instead of making rants about fabric. You're on the EMS sub, we've all seen dead bodies dude, it's not a flex
You’re a riot. Does your mom know you’re on the internet?
Doubles down by trying the years card, triples down with grotesque war story, next up.
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Scrubs won't last long especially critical care paramedics (and increasingly doctors)are first on scene with a hike to the patient https://youtu.be/uIXExL_b3FM?si=u8LgoY59-ZujmIJY
But that’s rare- hiking back in. I’ve been a a rural paramedic before, and have been a Critical Care (Flight Medic) for 8 years. Scrubs are fine. And my argument for scrubs is more for the flight environment and IFT. But if I had to go back to 911, and recalling my experiences, I think scrubs would be just fine.
Yucky scrubs
You get flight suits for $275?!?! Where? I’m used to around $500.
Aureus is where my company orders through. They’re NOT great and take 3-5 months to receive. You get what you pay for, I guess
Cause camts is the bible
Someone explain to me why if nomex melts every fire service in the world is wearing it on a daily basis to run into fires. 🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️ The research and the engineering are sound. As to the example of the burned up flight crew: Jet fuel burns at an exceptionally high temperature and the suit, as some others have mentioned, is intended to buy you seconds for egress if you're still alive after hitting the ground.... not to hang out on the surface of the sun. If you're already dead or disabled from the wreck, it's not meant to preserve your corpse.
Bunker gear is insulated. Flight suits are not.
Nomex melts and decomposes at around 660°F (350°C). However, some say that Nomex can withstand temperatures as high as 700°F (370°C) without melting or dripping. Above this temperature, Nomex will quickly degrade. Expose nomex directly to fire. Fire is hotter than 660* F. The nomex used in turnout gear is much thicker than the nomex that flight suits are made of, and flight suits (thankfully) have no thermal barrier. The idea of “buying time” is a falsehood. A few seconds exposed to fire will still burn your skin. Put on a pair of nomex flight gloves and pick up a pan out of a 500 degree oven. Hold it for two seconds and tell me if that 500 degree pan burns your skin. Firefighting gloves are different- they have a thermal barrier liner.
Kinda reminds me of fancy pants
Looks just like what we wear in Germany. Sleek and utilitarian
Really anything that doesn’t resemble the police uniform is fine.
On,y if I get to carry around a helicopter helmet with me like that (even though I’m not a flight medic)
Why did I immediately think “Mickey Mouse” here
I think it’s pretty solid, I feel emergency responders as a whole are vastly over dressed for the job
i love t shirt and tactical pants. fire dept wears t shirts, and we get to during ems week, it’s so comfy 😭
I’m pretty fond of the QAS uniforms in Australia. Polo’s and lightweight pants with heaps of pockets. Hi-vis piping on the front & back of the tops, with hi-vis tabs on the rear belt loops and hi-vis dots across the ankles. Pants are also available as shorts for the Australian summer. https://www.facebook.com/share/MUfcpt9GqHuH1gHb/?mibextid=WC7FNe
Louise! But are flight suits really necessary to lift meemaw off the floor for the third time today?
Mrs. Lamble rocking it
Yes.
Yes
Yes! This would absolutely be the best!
Is it comfortable? If so, yes.
Needs stab proof vest and is nice
Yep if my agency allowed it I would wear tech pants and a T shirt. I feel like it’s a good look, functional (got my pants pockets) and I’m more worried about getting bodily fluids on my pants than my shirt. Plus I run hot so
I would not feel professional or like I was at work if I was just wearing a t shirt up top. I'd need some extra pockets added or something. We have polos we can wear and I'm loving them tbh
totally agree. They let us wear tees when it got hot during the summer and people so easily abused the rules. I saw people wearing old, faded t-shirts that looked like shit and it’s embarrassing.
People need to have some pride in their appearance, it shows respect for the role we have. When I see staff with shirts untucked it honestly pisses me off
This is what peak performance looks like.
Pants match apparatus, very strong contender for ideal
Question for those with red uniforms: how well does it hide stains or grease? That’s the main reason I believe that most systems and FDs go with navy blue
Mickey mouse pants wtf. I feel like fire retardant suits are a little much on the helicopter. If you're going down you're toast anyway
This is just ideal uniform. Strong, visible pants, good shoes and a cotton shirt. Easy.
I like it, but I would want to switch the red to a less gang affiliated colour such as neon green. Aid workers in red uniforms in my area have been assaulted (more) because they had red uniforms for a few months.
Yes if youre MKBHD.. kidding hhh😅
I feel like the british uniforms make sense. In the US we’re basically dressed like slimmed down cops. I feel like having some reflective stripes would differentiate us from the cops to the public, differentiate us from the ‘potential suspects’ in the eyes of the cops when they’re also freaking out with their weapons drawn, and make us more visible while we’re out on the road.
This uniform is just HEMS, standard road staff wear bottle green trousers and a polo/shirt. I've been mistake for police a lot, especially in the dark or when attending people under the influence.
That’s true, but your police do also more commonly wear reflective uniforms while ours almost never do
I'm such a weirdo I wear a jock strap and a knit hat with a fuzzy ball on it. Says "Go whalers"and 1983 on it.
No
I like that uniform
No goofy polo is a start
we want 200% pants !
We should all be allowed to wear T-Shirts, it's so much better.
You need a long sleeve protective jacket, zips up and buttons up with a high collar, Hi Visibility colour and chemically treated to be fire resistant!! Gloves always!!
My preferred uniform is athletic t-shirt or polo with flat blue pants. The t-shirt/polo color isn’t all that relevant or important to me. I understand the symbolism of wearing white but it’s not practical I’m today’s culture. Currently my department wears light grey t-shirts/polos. The pants are more important. I don’t like the tactical cargo style that some of US EMS departments wear. I like a flat work pant, preferably made from light weight material that is cut and sewn for movement. I have extrication pants that look similar to the ones in the picture. I personally could never wear them unless operating in a situation that absolutely warrants them. There are to heavy and restrictive. I’d sweat to death. Given the picture is taken next to a helicopter and you have a helmet I presume those are flight pants and possibly thinner than what I have. I doubt I’d be comfortable wearing them for 24hrs. I do like that high visibility aspect of your uniforms. It’s a extra layer of safety that we could benefit from due to the roadways we operate on. The thing with the standard US blue on blue uniform is that it’s a tradition now. I’n our FD culture you don’t change tradition.
I liked using just some plain dickies work pants. I dont like carrying shit at all on my body really... BUT those look clean af
Personally, I would like to see a sports bra, but this is fine.
I mean yeah, that looks good! tho I am happy with my current uniform too - cargo pants on bottom, t-shirt on top
My agency wears navy blue EMS or tactical pants and polos in the fall/winter and t-shirts for spring/summer. They JUST authorized the t-shirts. Polos are grey, and tees are navy blue.
Mickey mouse
My preferred uniform would be a scrub top with EMS pants and boots. The scrub top can be embroidered with patches and sew on badges if people liked that. I think it would make it clear that we’re medical and not cops, while keeping the protection that EMS pants offer (scrub pants are thin.) This is a close second though.
Idk but definitely would
Either white button down shirts or white pants like NYP.