Polite Dissent

Richard Dragon #11 “Out of the Past, part 5″
Chuck Dixon, writer
Scott McDaniel, pencils

After being a little harsh on the last issue of Richard Dragon, I thought it would be a good idea to check out the most recent issue and see if it’s any better.

It’s a great deal better.

The scene: Two policemen are attacked by Lady Shiva. She kicks one in the head/neck/chest (the art’s not exactly clear) knocking him backwards. The other policeman is thrust face first through the passenger’s side window of the squad car. Luckily, this happens right outside the emergency room and emergency personnel are watching.

ER Person #1: Get a crash cart and call the pee-dee!
ER Person #2: Get backboards and neck braces!
ER Person #1: This one needs a trach!
ER Person #3:Concussions all around is my guess.
ER Person #4: Get an O.R. prepped!

Let’s look at this line by line:

“Get a crash cart and call the pee-dee!”
Crash carts are generally used for cardiac emergencies, and there is no evidence that either of the cops has suffered this sort of injury. Still, it doesn’t hurt to be prepared.
Nit picks: The line has a weird emphasis (on “crash” instead of “crash cart”) and who writes pee-dee instead of P.D.?

“Get backboards and neck braces!”
Right on the money. Either of these police officers could easily have suffered an injury resulting in an unstable spine. They need to be immobilized until the full extent of injury can be determined.
Nit-pick: Another line with bizarre emphasis. “Neck braces” makes more sense than “neck braces.”

“This one needs a trach.”
Someone with significant face, jaw or neck trauma may be unable to breathe because of this injury. If this is the case, a tracheostomy may be required. Going face first through a window could lead to this sort of injury.

“Concussions all around is my guess.”
That’s a pretty bold statement for someone to make without actually examining the patients. The cop who went through the window undoubtedly has a concussion, but it’s unclear whether the other cop would.
This statement is perfectly representative of the “medical know-it-all.” These are the people who are absolutely convinced that they know what’s going on and are only too happy to share their opinion — an opinion that’s usually wrong. The character talking about concussions is undoubtedly one of these “know-it-alls” and — even though you can’t see it in the panel — all his coworkers are rolling their eyes.

“Get an O.R. prepped!”
Probably a safe bet, but I’d still leave that call up to the trauma surgeon.

Overall some entirely competent medical dialogue. My only complaint is that it seems a little too stock, that these are the identical phrases thrown in by writers of comics/books/television/movies as “generic emergency medical phrases.” Still, they work in the situation so one has to give credit where credit is due.