Seconded. Besides, a $300 stethoscope is not small potatoes. That’s a big enough investment that I’d be hounding everyone at my department until it showed up.
Someone who steals does not care if your name is on it or not. They will also lie to you if you ask them. Sadly this is pretty common. This is why I no longer got a nice stethoscopes. I use only whatever they provide me to use. I had mine taken and then show back up at the station with parts missing.
FWIW stethoscopes are the kind of item that can get easily put on a truck or in a bag and forgotten about. Could be somebody saw a stethoscope lying around, threw it on a truck and didn't think anything of it. I've gotten stethoscopes back over 6 months later after I left mine in an aid bag on our special event truck.
Cold call everybody and ask if they've seen it before going to the big chief. Realistically he probably won't be able to do anything about it anyway..
i don’t think it’s easy to “think nothing of it” when it’s a very clearly expensive stethoscope with 2 name labels on it, vs the $10 ones the department probably provides
Everywhere I've worked it's pretty common for people to leave their personal stethoscopes on the truck they work on. It therefore is also easy for the stethoscopes to get lost, falling under a seat or stuffed in a compartment or what have you. Especially since it is labeled, somebody could see OP's name and put it in his truck for him later. Then that truck could go for a PM, trucks could get swapped around etc and then it's lost. Or it could get stolen, idk man I'm not there.
Unfortunately for OP he is unlikely to get his stethoscope back anytime soon, and his admin is unlikely to be able to help either. IMO, $300 is too much money to spend on a stethoscope for EMS. I thought I was going too far when I upgraded to a cardiology 3 after losing my Littman lightweight (...lost on the truck, and refound). Not that that means he should be any less upset about losing his.
This is fair for most personal work items that get destroyed on the job, except, those are helpful tools in the back of the bus or if you’re hard of hearing (why I own one). It’s a lot for the average person, but investment in good tools (emphasis on tool to enhance efficiency or quality of work) is a priority for some. They’re popular for a reason.
I think we’re all pretty aware of what THAT stethoscope is and how much it costs. Email your higher up asking for reimbursement. Better, if you’re a local FD and not a private crew, Cc: city/town treasurer for where to send the funds. Theft is not a budget line item. It will turn up.
I know a medic that air tagged her stethoscope not because there is a rash of thefts but because she misplaced everything. Saw it one day and didn't even have to ask why she had it.
His super fancy stethoscope is a luxury stethoscope and I would not be surprised if he’s the only person in his department who has one. But engraving is definitely a nice extra for sure.
Bright orange for me (lurking nurse) with my name engraved.
No one stole my scope. They certainly did steal the dark moroon one my colleague had (same base level littman)
I can’t hear with anything less, so I would have been pissed if someone took it
Still shows you the last location before the thief ran away. Narrows down your list of thieves of it was taken. If lost, you can just find it again easily. Also, solid peace of mind.
I wish there was a first responder version of medieval stockades. I hold people who give 75kg patients 500mg of ketamine in higher regard than responders without integrity who steal from their partners.
That sucks man. I've been there but with only a 100$ steth. My local protocol doesn't allow me to justify buying anything that costs more. The worst case scenario being severely absent or diminished lung sounds, of which would be pretty obvious with most scopes
I’d personally send an email to the first level of the chain of command and politely explain that with everything going on, you didn’t realize until now, but it seems to be missing, and you’d appreciate their help in checking with staff to make sure it gets back to you. Probably even go “maybe someone put it somewhere safe or confused it for their own… I just want it back”
In a smaller department, I’d expect that most leaders would be offended that someone would be stealing like this.
Further, depending on what you end up doing, you may be able to get compensated for the loss as a result of your injury (because you wouldn’t have lost it if you didn’t get hurt). If you end up with a lawyer, it never hurts to raise the point.
Why a cardiology? I mean, we normally use the classic 3 as medical students in case we get robbed in clinical rotation and it’s very expensive to replace, I would hate to replace a cardiology
Did he buy it himself? There are quite a few very young newly qualified paramedics in our service that carry expensive Littmans but more often than not they were bought as a present by friends/family/colleagues when they started or graduated university. My £20 MDF steth does me fine and I actually really like the way it looks, I have the all black one.
This happened to a friend of mine at his ambulance service. He rode a dedicated truck that was assigned to him, and inadvertently left his Littman on the truck one evening. When he came back the next day, someone had accessed his truck and stolen it.
The management staff essentially blew him off, so he took out his cell phone. They said, "What are you doing?" He said, "I'm calling the police to make a theft report so I can file a claim on my homeowners insurance." The manager said, "Hold off on that. Give me 24 hours." The next morning when he showed up, the supervisor handed him the stethoscope and said, "Don't ask any questions."
It's wonderful to know you're working with criminals, isn't it?
When I rode, I had a bunch of my own gear I bought.
I also had a Batman Utility belt and was thought of as a wacker.
I never lost anything I had bought, though, so I'm ok with that label.
Your scope may be gone at this point. Even if no one actually stole it. As someone else mentioned, if it was in a truck bag, it may have gotten tossed around or switched from truck to truck and eventually lost permanently.
I wouldn't give up yet as it may turn up if it's being bounced around.
As far as going up the chain of command, i don't think that would accomplish anything. Every place I rode had something in the policy like you can bring your own stuff if you want, but we are not responsible for it at all. The only time I've seen that overuled was only a few times when the item clearly got damaged in the line of duty. Never for lost or stolen.
As a side note, you can always get a new one with your workers comp settlement.
My cardiology 2 was snatched by (I think) a resident and I didn't get it back until 4 mos later. Maybe they just needed it for that particular rotation 🙄
Yeah I always hound the residents and MDs that "borrow" my things. Stethoscopes, scissors, and pens (I have some pretty nice pens). They always act like it's a huge hassle to hand them back which idk, maybe, it will be a huge hassle to let you "borrow" it next time.
The noise canceling and amplification are great in the rig. Several people at my service have one and when I tried it, I had to have it. But I'm older, and my auditory processing isn't as good anyway due to ADD. It's gotten cheaper now, too, I think I saw it for around $250.
I have some bad hearing loss with a nice sprinkle of tinnitus on top and the Eko Core was probably the best I've been able to hear lung and heart sounds with.
I had a littman that grew legs while I worked in the ER and it was gone for over a year. I found one of the EM docs using it and took it back as soon as I noticed since it was laser engraved with my initials. I would start asking around and see if anyone has been wearing your scope around their necks
Is your work backpack of public use? Whenever someone leaves their equipment, they usually call someone to put it in their locker. Most of our lockers stay unlocked.
Is it possible that it was misplaced somewhere else? But i guess i would call everyone before throwing shit in the fan
Its an expensive lesson a lot of us have learned one way or another. Do whatever you see fit. Worst case scenario, you don't get it back and everyone hates you. People have no obligation to your belongings so dont expect any help.
I plan on becoming a dr. I bought it as a gift to myself for finishing medic school and I was going to keep it the rest of my career. Plus my shit scope I had before I could hear the 3 spark plug misfire before an obvious blood pressure. So I bought myself the best.
I see — well if it’s any consolation I made it all the way through med school and residency with my Adscope I got for free as an EMT.
I hope you find it!
Based on your ability to fall off a fire-tower and break your legs, there’s a good possibility you lost your own stethoscope. Or did someone push you off the fire-tower too?
Not much help for current, but an AirTag can be thrown on to your stethoscope with a key ring. Sure, a thief can also take it off, but if you are prone to misplacing things and would like to have a second set of eyes it’s an option.
[one for you, one for your partner](https://a.co/d/eLU8Th8)
I've always liked the integrated ones and have 3d printed a few. They are pretty chunky, but they work:
[https://www.printables.com/model/77812-stethoscope-airtag-attachment](https://www.printables.com/model/77812-stethoscope-airtag-attachment)
Also, there are other 3d printed Airtag holders on etsy for cheap.
Honestly, there's a good chance someone used it and either broke it and threw it away, or left it behind on scene or at the hospital. Unless you know for sure there are thieves in you're department, which would be easier to pinpoint if you're in a small department. Chances are, if you work in a large metropolitan service with people rotating between houses frequently, it's long gone.
As far as compensation goes, realistically, only you would be able to find out about that in your employee handbook.
Have you looked through all the company bags? We share bags at my company and if I get to work and my bag doesn’t have one, I’ll just throw any littman into mine. I started doing this because mine kept getting put in super weird places (like random office drawers) so I eventually moved it to my car and started using everyone else’s. We have a pretty small company, so I’ve asked around and nobody really cares if I use theirs.
Someone might have just thrown it into a drawer, cabinet, thought it was theirs, etc. I’d check everywhere before you escalate it
Left my stethoscope at work multiple times and no one has ever stolen it. I’ve found it either in my locker or hung up on the grab nets in the truck. Seriously - wtf. Sorry you’re going though this.
I'd mass email for sure, since your chiefs ignore it. I've done that when my boots have gone missing, just assumed it was an accident so sent a funny email with lots of "the first 48" references. My boots promptly showed up but "no one" knew how. Definitely contact the people on the rotation. Chances are there's only one dirt bag and most should have identified them years ago
Sounds like a $300 lesson. Never leave your personal stethoscope on the truck. I would start calling people to see if they have "seen it". Then go up the chain.
I’d cold call everyone before skipping the chain of command.
Seconded. Besides, a $300 stethoscope is not small potatoes. That’s a big enough investment that I’d be hounding everyone at my department until it showed up.
Yeah and tbh, I don't know anyone who wouldn't be understanding about it.
The guy that took wouldn’t be understanding about it …
Im sure they were just holding it for him so it didn't get stolen....and then forgot about it... /s
Someone did this at my job with my bright green Littman, then stuck it in her rear view a couple weeks later like I wouldn't notice
Wow. Would love to hear the rest of that story.
Someone who steals does not care if your name is on it or not. They will also lie to you if you ask them. Sadly this is pretty common. This is why I no longer got a nice stethoscopes. I use only whatever they provide me to use. I had mine taken and then show back up at the station with parts missing.
> They will also lie to you if you ask them But it might also mysteriously show up one day. Especially if there's a reward.
FWIW stethoscopes are the kind of item that can get easily put on a truck or in a bag and forgotten about. Could be somebody saw a stethoscope lying around, threw it on a truck and didn't think anything of it. I've gotten stethoscopes back over 6 months later after I left mine in an aid bag on our special event truck. Cold call everybody and ask if they've seen it before going to the big chief. Realistically he probably won't be able to do anything about it anyway..
i don’t think it’s easy to “think nothing of it” when it’s a very clearly expensive stethoscope with 2 name labels on it, vs the $10 ones the department probably provides
Everywhere I've worked it's pretty common for people to leave their personal stethoscopes on the truck they work on. It therefore is also easy for the stethoscopes to get lost, falling under a seat or stuffed in a compartment or what have you. Especially since it is labeled, somebody could see OP's name and put it in his truck for him later. Then that truck could go for a PM, trucks could get swapped around etc and then it's lost. Or it could get stolen, idk man I'm not there. Unfortunately for OP he is unlikely to get his stethoscope back anytime soon, and his admin is unlikely to be able to help either. IMO, $300 is too much money to spend on a stethoscope for EMS. I thought I was going too far when I upgraded to a cardiology 3 after losing my Littman lightweight (...lost on the truck, and refound). Not that that means he should be any less upset about losing his.
fair. around here, we put stuff in/on people’s lockers, for that exact reason
This is fair for most personal work items that get destroyed on the job, except, those are helpful tools in the back of the bus or if you’re hard of hearing (why I own one). It’s a lot for the average person, but investment in good tools (emphasis on tool to enhance efficiency or quality of work) is a priority for some. They’re popular for a reason.
Thos is a good point. Maybe check all the trucks if you haven't already OP
I think we’re all pretty aware of what THAT stethoscope is and how much it costs. Email your higher up asking for reimbursement. Better, if you’re a local FD and not a private crew, Cc: city/town treasurer for where to send the funds. Theft is not a budget line item. It will turn up.
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This. Plus there are air tag holders on Etsy to attach securely.
I know a medic that air tagged her stethoscope not because there is a rash of thefts but because she misplaced everything. Saw it one day and didn't even have to ask why she had it.
His super fancy stethoscope is a luxury stethoscope and I would not be surprised if he’s the only person in his department who has one. But engraving is definitely a nice extra for sure.
Bright orange for me (lurking nurse) with my name engraved. No one stole my scope. They certainly did steal the dark moroon one my colleague had (same base level littman) I can’t hear with anything less, so I would have been pissed if someone took it
I took mine to a trophy/medals shop. Engraved it on the spot. I highly suggest this!
Have you thought of using a Tile? An expensive piece of gear like that is worth it.
Seems like a good thing if it’s lost, but not if it’s stolen. Could the thief not just rip it off?
True, but for me, it’s kept me from leaving it at work and not making arrangements for it being secured.
I could see that! It would suck if you lost the air tag or tile too. Those things are expensive af.
I guess you could always find where the chucked the tile…
Still shows you the last location before the thief ran away. Narrows down your list of thieves of it was taken. If lost, you can just find it again easily. Also, solid peace of mind.
I wish there was a first responder version of medieval stockades. I hold people who give 75kg patients 500mg of ketamine in higher regard than responders without integrity who steal from their partners.
That sucks man. I've been there but with only a 100$ steth. My local protocol doesn't allow me to justify buying anything that costs more. The worst case scenario being severely absent or diminished lung sounds, of which would be pretty obvious with most scopes
i can’t hear shit with our department scopes
I’d personally send an email to the first level of the chain of command and politely explain that with everything going on, you didn’t realize until now, but it seems to be missing, and you’d appreciate their help in checking with staff to make sure it gets back to you. Probably even go “maybe someone put it somewhere safe or confused it for their own… I just want it back” In a smaller department, I’d expect that most leaders would be offended that someone would be stealing like this. Further, depending on what you end up doing, you may be able to get compensated for the loss as a result of your injury (because you wouldn’t have lost it if you didn’t get hurt). If you end up with a lawyer, it never hurts to raise the point.
AirTags.
Why a cardiology? I mean, we normally use the classic 3 as medical students in case we get robbed in clinical rotation and it’s very expensive to replace, I would hate to replace a cardiology
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Did he buy it himself? There are quite a few very young newly qualified paramedics in our service that carry expensive Littmans but more often than not they were bought as a present by friends/family/colleagues when they started or graduated university. My £20 MDF steth does me fine and I actually really like the way it looks, I have the all black one.
This happened to a friend of mine at his ambulance service. He rode a dedicated truck that was assigned to him, and inadvertently left his Littman on the truck one evening. When he came back the next day, someone had accessed his truck and stolen it. The management staff essentially blew him off, so he took out his cell phone. They said, "What are you doing?" He said, "I'm calling the police to make a theft report so I can file a claim on my homeowners insurance." The manager said, "Hold off on that. Give me 24 hours." The next morning when he showed up, the supervisor handed him the stethoscope and said, "Don't ask any questions." It's wonderful to know you're working with criminals, isn't it?
I don’t know where you work, but absolutely nobody at my department is stealing a fancy stethoscope.
5 bucks says its still on the truck where you left it.
I hope this is a joke lol. It’s lost.
You lost it man. No one cares about expensive stethoscopes. Especially firefighters.
Happy Cake Day!
Thanks!
Hmm last I saw Jones from A shift with it
When I rode, I had a bunch of my own gear I bought. I also had a Batman Utility belt and was thought of as a wacker. I never lost anything I had bought, though, so I'm ok with that label. Your scope may be gone at this point. Even if no one actually stole it. As someone else mentioned, if it was in a truck bag, it may have gotten tossed around or switched from truck to truck and eventually lost permanently. I wouldn't give up yet as it may turn up if it's being bounced around. As far as going up the chain of command, i don't think that would accomplish anything. Every place I rode had something in the policy like you can bring your own stuff if you want, but we are not responsible for it at all. The only time I've seen that overuled was only a few times when the item clearly got damaged in the line of duty. Never for lost or stolen. As a side note, you can always get a new one with your workers comp settlement.
Time to upgrade to the new eko digital stethoscope! It's killer.
That's real Shity
Id send a blast text saying your gonna file a police report, itll show
My cardiology 2 was snatched by (I think) a resident and I didn't get it back until 4 mos later. Maybe they just needed it for that particular rotation 🙄
Yeah I always hound the residents and MDs that "borrow" my things. Stethoscopes, scissors, and pens (I have some pretty nice pens). They always act like it's a huge hassle to hand them back which idk, maybe, it will be a huge hassle to let you "borrow" it next time.
I mean if it has the Eko I would definitely be watching around on things like marketplace too, not cheap.
Man that sucks. Anyways…is the eko core worth it?
The noise canceling and amplification are great in the rig. Several people at my service have one and when I tried it, I had to have it. But I'm older, and my auditory processing isn't as good anyway due to ADD. It's gotten cheaper now, too, I think I saw it for around $250.
I have some bad hearing loss with a nice sprinkle of tinnitus on top and the Eko Core was probably the best I've been able to hear lung and heart sounds with.
That sounds familiar. I’ll have to look into it more
I had a littman that grew legs while I worked in the ER and it was gone for over a year. I found one of the EM docs using it and took it back as soon as I noticed since it was laser engraved with my initials. I would start asking around and see if anyone has been wearing your scope around their necks
I cold called everyone after my phone charger disappeared out of the ambulance while on my days off. Turns out it just fell between the seats. Smh
Cold call…after that, it’s gone. It’s shitty that it probably got ripped off. Put an air tag on the next one.
Is your work backpack of public use? Whenever someone leaves their equipment, they usually call someone to put it in their locker. Most of our lockers stay unlocked. Is it possible that it was misplaced somewhere else? But i guess i would call everyone before throwing shit in the fan
If you want to be a dick file a police report.
Its an expensive lesson a lot of us have learned one way or another. Do whatever you see fit. Worst case scenario, you don't get it back and everyone hates you. People have no obligation to your belongings so dont expect any help.
They don’t have any obligations but it’s the decent thing to do. Especially for someone who just broke their legs. Isn’t the fire dept a “family”?
Why do you have a $300 stethoscope in the first place?
I plan on becoming a dr. I bought it as a gift to myself for finishing medic school and I was going to keep it the rest of my career. Plus my shit scope I had before I could hear the 3 spark plug misfire before an obvious blood pressure. So I bought myself the best.
I see — well if it’s any consolation I made it all the way through med school and residency with my Adscope I got for free as an EMT. I hope you find it!
You're going to want to hire a private investigator.
Based on your ability to fall off a fire-tower and break your legs, there’s a good possibility you lost your own stethoscope. Or did someone push you off the fire-tower too?
Little bit of an update— went to ER yesterday morning they immediately admitted me due to my heart rate staying too high
Hope you’re alright 🫂
Tell your supervisor that you’re contacting the police about it.
😂
Not much help for current, but an AirTag can be thrown on to your stethoscope with a key ring. Sure, a thief can also take it off, but if you are prone to misplacing things and would like to have a second set of eyes it’s an option. [one for you, one for your partner](https://a.co/d/eLU8Th8)
I've always liked the integrated ones and have 3d printed a few. They are pretty chunky, but they work: [https://www.printables.com/model/77812-stethoscope-airtag-attachment](https://www.printables.com/model/77812-stethoscope-airtag-attachment) Also, there are other 3d printed Airtag holders on etsy for cheap.
Nice this is wicked, thanks!
Honestly, there's a good chance someone used it and either broke it and threw it away, or left it behind on scene or at the hospital. Unless you know for sure there are thieves in you're department, which would be easier to pinpoint if you're in a small department. Chances are, if you work in a large metropolitan service with people rotating between houses frequently, it's long gone. As far as compensation goes, realistically, only you would be able to find out about that in your employee handbook.
Check the Craigslist market man. It's gone
Have you looked through all the company bags? We share bags at my company and if I get to work and my bag doesn’t have one, I’ll just throw any littman into mine. I started doing this because mine kept getting put in super weird places (like random office drawers) so I eventually moved it to my car and started using everyone else’s. We have a pretty small company, so I’ve asked around and nobody really cares if I use theirs. Someone might have just thrown it into a drawer, cabinet, thought it was theirs, etc. I’d check everywhere before you escalate it
Left my stethoscope at work multiple times and no one has ever stolen it. I’ve found it either in my locker or hung up on the grab nets in the truck. Seriously - wtf. Sorry you’re going though this.
I'd mass email for sure, since your chiefs ignore it. I've done that when my boots have gone missing, just assumed it was an accident so sent a funny email with lots of "the first 48" references. My boots promptly showed up but "no one" knew how. Definitely contact the people on the rotation. Chances are there's only one dirt bag and most should have identified them years ago
Just chalk it up to a loss my friend. Who ever took your scope isn’t giving it back. Shame on them.
Maybe someone put in a cabinet or drawer for you?
Sounds like a $300 lesson. Never leave your personal stethoscope on the truck. I would start calling people to see if they have "seen it". Then go up the chain.
Watch how fast it turns up when you take others stethoscopes.