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STAR Flight Nurses
Howard
Polden: A Farmer on the Edge
Who would
have thought our Fearless Flight Nurse (FFN) Howard Polden had an Achilles Heel?
Surely not this Tri-Athlete, ex- IronMan, ex-military and former New Yorker! The
ugly truth exposed itself one day during a medicine call in a county we will not
name. Howard and his partner, Stef, responded to a rural residence for what they
thought was going to be a routine medicine patient.
This
patient lived in a home where the farm animals roamed freely through the
residence. On this particular day, the chickens had come to roost in the house.
There were chickens in the kitchen. There were chickens in the bathroom. There
were chickens watching television. And, most unfortunate for Howard, there were
chickens in the bedroom where his patient was lying on the bed in distress. Stef
thought this was very amusing until he realized Howard was acting a little
freaked out. “I hate birds! There are *&@@^ chickens everywhere!” Howard
exclaimed. Seeing his chance to make this situation even more entertaining, Stef
encouraged the chicken that was now strutting toward Howard and his patient to
become an active member of their medical team. Instead of removing the offending
fowl, he watched the bird hop up onto a stool next to them. This precocious bit
of poultry continued to watch Howard with his beady little eyes as he drew some
medicine into a syringe. It was just too much for Howard.
Apparently Howard suffers from alektorophobia; also know as “fear of chickens”.
This story circulated around SF for weeks - usually accompanied by Stef doing
his best chicken imitation. We all thought this was pretty funny considering
Howard just moved to a farm in Blanco County. Howard was doing his best to
convince us he knew how to be a farmer, but the chicken incident blew his
cover. Please join us at STAR Flight to help Howard overcome his
fears. We have chosen to us the desensitizing technique of phobia treatments.
Send any photos you have of chickens to Howard at Howard.Polden @ci.austin.tx.us.
Thank you for your assistance in helping this Farmer on the Edge.
Howard
Polden, RN, BSN, CFRN, CCRN has been with STAR Flight
since October 2004. He brings a vast a vast amount of experience from
across the nation. A New Yorker by birth (and dialect - is that caw-fee
or coffee...?) "How-ad" has over 20 years of nursing and critical care
experience and has worked for aeromedical agencies in New Mexico and Central
California. He's also able to claim the impressive distinction of
completing three Iron Man competitions and numerous other Marathons and
Triathlons. He recently married the only woman in Texas who can run
farther and bike faster than him. They have purchased a ranch in rural
West Texas where Kelly is doing her best to teach Howard how to back a horse
trailer, muck a paddock, and not run screaming like a six year old school girl
at the sight of an armadillo. |
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