Expectations

Kelly Grayson wrote in this article: 

'Partners tend to meet the expectations you set for them.
Require them to be a statue who occasionally hands you things and drives you to the hospital, and that’s what you’ll get. But expect them to be thinking clinicians who know how to provide the full spectrum of BLS care and assessment, and assist you with ALS skills as needed, and they’ll meet those expectations, too.'

Very true.

I teched for a medic once who pointed to the ambulance seat and said, 'Sit right there, darlin', and put your seat belt on. I'm going to take us to this call.' And I did. I sat right there and crossed my arms and watched him through narrowed eyes. I played fetch-and-carry, did precisely what he told me to do (minimal as those directions were), and had zero desire to go one step further.

But another medic and I would have running conversations as we worked calls. At one point in a call he said, 'I've ruled out [insert string of conditions here]."
I stopped what I was doing. "Yes, but how did you know that?"
"Because you've done your assessment. I know you would have found those things, would know what they meant, and would have told me."
His trust in me spurred me to do everything in my power to help him treat that patient, and it encouraged me to learn more and push myself further.

Job descriptions determine the structure of a team, but expectations put it in motion.