by Hal Newman
Jamie Flanz was one of my medics. He lost his way after he left EMS and ended up affiliated with a biker gang. He was murdered as part of a massacre conducted by rival gang members.
They singled Jamie out because he was a Jew and saved him for last so he could, presumably, be further tormented before they shot him at point blank range.
They should have singled him out because he was a good streetmedic. He was.
I still miss him.
I wrote this about his death:
“Jamie Flanz was murdered two springs ago. His passing had no connection to the EMS world other than the fact that his obvious state of death probably didn’t require a streetmedic to declare the absence of life signs.
He was a good medic and was a gentle, reassuring presence with many of our most senior patients. He put in many a shift at the last minute because I called and asked for his help.
It is the transient and intense nature of EMS that lifesavers often come and go without much in the way of heralding their arrival or their departure. They touch lives and impact universes and then they move on to live the rest of their lives.
There are, apparently, no guarantees on how long the rest of their lives will be. Maybe some of them have an inkling of sunset rapidly approaching and decide to go out flaming while others simply pull the bedcovers up over their heads.”
Be well. Practice big medicine.
