It was hard to sit out this Chicago Marathon and watch all of the athletes go at it, but I avoided thinking about it by volunteering. Chris Conroy used her leverage as one of the race medical team coordinators to get me a job on the mobile triage team. We were stationed at varying spots near the finish line. First, one block past the finish when the elite runners were coming in, then back by the fountain when the 3-4 hour runners arrived, and then even further back by the 27th-mile party area for the rest of the time. It turned out to be a very fun day and we were able to help a lot of people who were appreciative of the care! I had a fun team too: three student ATCs from North Central College, a communications guy (Librarian from the Lombard Library who is a ham operator), and then also for a while with some med students from UIC. Everyone was very friendly and nice and we talked a lot during the slow times. But there were some very busy moments when we had multiple emergencies at once like a possible MI, bad ankle sprain or strain, and someone about to pass out and dizzy. All in all, a good day!
