Beware Exploding Lighters!

[RustiePyles CPG]

Anyone who has spent any time in or around welding, forging, flame cutting, or heavy grinding knows that plastic butane lighters are a no no. I spend enough time with hot sparks flying around me that I have zero desire to keep a small canister of pressurized flammable gas in my pocket.

 

[OverMountain]

Was there an o2 tank involved? Seems out of the norm especially for modern designs that go through testing.

Had a friends MIL burn their house down lighting a cig on an o2 tank.

 

[Pipeoff]

I don’t buy in to the exploding lighter. My insurance company would hire a forensic engineer to look more closely into the cause. Was he smoking while filling the lighter, did he fall asleep while smoking or the extreme attempted suicide by lighter.

 

[condorlover1]

Perhaps a case for our ace investigator @ashdigger !

 

[sham]

exploding lighters.... sounds like a fun gift to put in the box pass

 

[kcghost]

Well, there's always that one guy. Well actually two. The guy who may have did it and the guy repeats the story.

 

[sittingbear]

Any idea of what kind of lighter? I worked at a drop forge factory after high school & we were only allowed to have Zippos on the floor. Pressurized/butane lighters will explode if they get too hot.

No, I did not get an opportunity to ask many questions as my patient (singular) said, "I don't feel much like conversation."

 

[sittingbear]

I suspect the OP used those terms intentionally so as to not reveal the patient's gender for confidentiality reasons...HIPAA rules and all that.

This is correct. We are asked in my profession to refrain from using personal identifiers, such as names, ages, race, and gender, when discussing events outside of the care team. HIPAA takes precedence over good grammar. Besides, the patient's gender has zero relevance to the explosive properties of the lighter (although something tells me that if I were to reveal the patient's gender as female, some would say, "Ah, well, there's the problem!").

 

[lraisch]

You said an elderly patient, but then referred to him in the plural seven times.

So, was it one guy, or two, or five, or an entire crowd? Did you mean to say "elderly patients"? Either that or you used a plural pronoun in error. (There is no "C")

Asking because an accurate idea of the (apparent) explosive power of lighters is important to many members of this board. (Modern matches get suckier every year)

Odd, I read the post and did not notice any discrepancy. Maybe I'm just used to "medical speak".

 

[woodsroad]

I say the old dude was freebasing.

 

[georged]

This is correct. We are asked in my profession to refrain from using personal identifiers, such as names, ages, race, and gender, when discussing events outside of the care team. HIPAA takes precedence over good grammar. Besides, the patient's gender has zero relevance to the explosive properties of the lighter (although something tells me that if I were to reveal the patient's gender as female, some would say, "Ah, well, there's the problem!").

You're aware that gender is a grammatical construct while sex is a biological one, right?

Since the former is impossible to physically encounter in an ER (or anywhere else), while the latter is impossible to avoid when dealing with any lifeform on Earth (outside of a few deep-water aquatic species that are both male and female at the same time, or can toggle back and forth depending on life phase), it looks like the HIPAA people are worried about something, well, kinda weird. Medicine being a "dealing with the real world" sort of activity, and all.

 

[georged]

I say the old dude was freebasing.

Bingo:

Comedian Richard Pryor burned while "freebasing" - UPI Archives

www.upi.com

 

[RustiePyles CPG]

I say the old dude was freebasing.

 

[woodsroad]

You're aware that gender is a grammatical construct while sex is a biological one, right?

Since the former is impossible to physically encounter in an ER (or anywhere else), while the latter is impossible to avoid when dealing with any lifeform on Earth outside of a few deep- water aquatic species that are both male and female at the same time (or can toggle back and forth depending on life phase), it looks like the HIPAA people are worried about something, well, kinda weird. Medicine being a "dealing with the real world" sort of activity, and all.

I think that the OP was doing it's own best to maintain that HIPAA thing, while still telling a good story. When someone uses a narrow opening like that to justify a delivering a screed on stupid pronouns/"they are coming to get us", not only is it rude to the OP, who was just trying to weave a tale and keep their job, but it just isn't a good look. Chill, man!

 

[TheIronMonkey]

Odd, I read the post and did not notice any discrepancy. Maybe I'm just used to "medical speak".

Traditionally, with grammar, pronouns need to agree in number. "An elderly patient" is singular, so using "they" does not agree in number—it should typically be "he" or "she"—however, these days, gender fluidity and such appears to be bending the rules where usage of "they" is now acceptable when referring to one person. Language is constantly evolving and rules change.

 

[georged]

I think that the OP was doing it's own best to .... [etc]

Can't tell if you just pulled off the best smartass gag in recent memory, or are serious.

(gonna go with smartass until further notice)

 

[woodsroad]

Can't tell if you just pulled off the best smartass gag in recent memory, or are serious.

(gonna go with smartass until further notice)

Always good to refer to a living person as an inanimate object, eh?

 

[AJL67]

Also it could happen as Richard Pryorlit “themself” on fire dipping an Oreo into homogenized milk.

Since sadly some of you are too young to know / remember this .. can't find the clip about him dipping the cookies in the milk and it' exploding lol

 

[georged]

Always good to refer to a living person as an inanimate object, eh?

Indeed.

It's so sad that there's no provision to avoid that already built into the language, innit?

 

[simong]

Besides, the patient's gender has zero relevance to the explosive properties of the lighter (although something tells me that if I were to reveal the patient's gender as female, some would say, "Ah, well, there's the problem!").

Maybe, maybe not.
Women do struggle with lighters though, always have done.