EMS Transporting Priority 1 with NLT injury or illness

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Brent A. Ellis on May 19, 2009 at 10:14am

This is a legitimate complaint for sure. And "I" do not think you are at all wrong for venting your frustrations we are out there to make a difference and we do. we are not there to showboat. In my opinion using the lights sirens etc when we do not need to is a dis-service, and in some cases can be a safety risk in it's self. the eqipment is there for LT situations as you said. Not for us to use for our enjoyment.

▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Edward Fleming on September 15, 2009 at 1:51pm

Ralph i hate to say it but it must be a local thing that you all do because we sure dont do it we are not allowed to.

▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Ralph L. Carr IV on September 15, 2009 at 4:46pm

Edward,

I think we are in agreement. We do not transport Priority-1 unles it`s a life threat. The point I wanted to get across is, in other regions I have visited, I see NLT transported P-1. I was just curious is that was the norm elsewhere. I see it in our State`s capital city. I watched a City FD ALS unit run P-1 to the ER, open the back doors and a pt in tripod possition, NO line, NO O2, NO monitor in obvious distress. The crew told the ER doc......."we were just down the street".......So much for pt care......

▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by fireman1049 on November 8, 2009 at 9:54am

ok.. i have to put my 2cents in here... what was that crew thinking? just because they were only down the street is not an excuse to give propper pt care.. thats a BS excuse.. i have wrote up other basics for not following protocal.. how hard would it have been to administer an albuterol treatment?? what is so hard about giving a pt O2? what were they thinking of when they with held O2 from that pt who needed it?? i hope the ER doc chewed their butts out out for such a blatant disreguard of pt care.. no I.V.?? what if that pt crashed in the squad durring transport? they would be way behind the 8ball..i hope i never have to be transported by that squad if i visit Mi. god help those who are..sorry, i had to get on my soap box for this one..
as for transporting a NLT P1.. no excuse for it.. we dont even transport P1 unless its necessary..we do respond P1 to calls here as we are dispatched by 911..the reason being is a different topic for discussion... as for your other thought about driver training.. no-one and i mean no-one is allowed to touch the rigs (ambulances or apparratus) with out being certified to drive that individual truck or ambulance.. you must be qualified to drive them.. no exceptions!

▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Ralph L. Carr IV on November 8, 2009 at 10:40am

fireman1049,

Bro, we are the same wavelegnth. The doc and the ER....well....it was just a roll the eyes norm. A basic that is on rescue with me and he`s on our local FD is an ER tech at that ER. It`s a Level II trauma center says, that is about the norm from some of the city medic crews. It`s a fire based agency. I`m not saying all fire based agencies are like that, it`s just I`ve witmessed that type of attitude many times from fire based agencies. It`s a pisser for sure. Not sure I`d want to live in that city or be treated by them too. Now, other times I`ve witnessed these crews doing kickass care. My thinking is, it`s just like everything in life. A few bad apples spoil it. Make the rest of us look like idiots. There were 2 officers on that call. A Lt on the box and a Capt from the engine rode in with them.......WTF? So much for command and leadership.

▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Daniel Elsner on September 20, 2009 at 9:07am

My County has two Ambulances, and they almost never transport NLT with Lights and Siren or (Code 3) as we call it here in Burleson County. When they transport code 3 they have a damn good reason, not just so they can go back in service. that is just BS!!!

▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Jeff Gaudio on September 24, 2009 at 3:46pm

Hey Ralph.
Well in Fayette County, I just don't get it. In PA we're mostly dispatched by county 911 centers. We used to be dispatched E-1(emergency) or E-3(non-emergency).
So it kinda worked our but the crew still used their judgement whether they needed to respond "hot" or nice and easy.
Now we are given the dispatch then they say either ALS or BLS which doesn't make sense. Most of the time, we get called out for a patient that fell with no other chief complaints, or a possible fractured arm, they dispatch it ALS.

If the call sounds life threatening, or involves chest pain we will respond hot. But unless the patient has no need to be rushed to the hospital, we will normally transport nice and easy.

Same goes for the fire department.
Ex.
Co calls without symptoms,
phone lines down,
tree down, flooding,
Car fire or trash fire NOT endangering any exposures will be a non emergency response. And if we get called to an AFA, if the first truck arrives on scene with no smoke, no fire showing, we will downgrade to non emergency.

It's not worth the risk.
Now if I can only work with my guys on seatbelts, I'd be happy.

▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Ralph L. Carr IV on September 24, 2009 at 4:20pm

Jeff,

Yeah I really have no problem responding to calls P-1 (hot) if the basic caller info is vague or an alarm type response. ( say, a LifeAlert call ) My real beef is with agecies transporting P-1 (lights and sirens) for non-life threatening illness or injuries. Simple fractured arm, leg, belly ache, headache, twisted ankle, (fill in the blanks) when the pt presents stable, stable vitals, ect.. I have witnessed crews transporting active MI`s P-1.....Talk about adding stress to an already stressed heart? We do a LOT of OMG, SHIT Speciality Care Transports. Very few are transported P-1. The added stress to the patient and potential for a traffic disaster are not worth it.

There is a big "argument" from some "old timers" on a couple local FD`s in the county to the chief implementing new SOP`s for grass fire response. NO P-1 response to grass fires that have NO exposure issues per the caller. The old timers are complaining that it will cause loss of property and "maybe life"????

A good number of LODD`s are the result of crashes with apparatus. Not to mention the "whanker factor"...lights, Q and drive balls to the walls.......sigh.

There is one department in our county that should be renamed to WFD. 5 AM a Thursday, NOBODY awake in the villiage. A dispatch for a car fire on the highway. They come out of the woodwork lights and sirens blairing, flying into the parkinglot of the hall. It`s next to our station in that villiage. I call it the "Ashley Show". I make sure to walk outside to watch it.....They run into the hall, fire up the engine, second due engine, grass rig, squad & tanker. OH, 15 seconds after the initial dispatch, central comes over the radio with an "update". "Per LEO on scene, the fire is out, it was an axle". Low and behold they fire up all this equipment, hit the lights & siren BEFORE exiting the hall. Q blairing, sirens going on and on, a SOLID blast from the airhorns until I can`t hear them anymore because they are now outside the villiage driving what seems to be 100 MPH to the scene......Gawd....

I guess I`m somewhat a butt-munch when it comes to driving. After more than 2 million miles logged driving commercial and emergency vehicles, I have witnessed for too many stupid decisions on the roads to be amused by idiot drivers. I managed a delivery company for years, DOT mandated quarterly driver training, yet there are NO such mandates for emergency operators. Only suggested training.

Seatbelts are a NO BRAINER! "YO DUMBASS......Don`t you see enough in the streets to realize you should wear a damned seatbelt?? " Hot or Not!.....I`ve been known to put a rig in park until my partners put seatbelts on. They get so pissed. That`s the same dipshit that drives 100 MPH to a scene......Our ambulances are governed at 70 MPH (Thank Goodness).......

IF YOU DON`T EFFING GET THERE, WHO DID YOU HELP??

▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Jeff Gaudio on September 24, 2009 at 4:42pm

OMG!!! That story is a hoot about the "Ashley Show"! Wow. Talk about Whackers!! That does irritate me because it's idiots like that who are a severe risk to themselves and others & give responsible non-whacker firefighters a bad name. I swear that is the only reason they're in a fire dept. I bet once they get on scene of a fire, they're prob free-lance like crazy!...after driving like moorons to get there.

As far as the ambulance services around my area, they're pretty good about the proper use of the lights/sirens. Unless there is absolutely good reason to transport P-1, they transport nice and easy.

Oh ya and seatbelts. Well, I preached about that until everyone's ears bled, figuratively speaking.
I don't know what to do about it. Oh but they all have the "everybody goes home" stickers on their helmets. Whatever.

My shift's done at 8. I'm going home and having a glass of whiskey.

▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Ralph L. Carr IV on September 24, 2009 at 6:32pm

You suck!!

I go on at 8...lol...Have a couple shots for me. Make it scotch....say, an 18 yr old, single malt. :)

Yeah, that Ashley show is well, sad but oh so very true. Then again, you have to see this village to REALLY understand it. Where men are men and sheep are scared.

If they have "Everybody goes home" stickers on their helmets yet don`t follow the "game".....rip the stickers off I say! ( I know, but I sure would love to do that....argg)

▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by fireman1049 on November 8, 2009 at 10:11am

your right about the stress lights and sirens create on the pt.. ive watch a pts bp go from normal in the house, to Holy Crap while transporting P1..not good when the pt has a Hx of HTN.. throw in other medical problems and the pt is a train wreck waiting to happen in your rig while running P1 to E.R. for something like a not feeling well call intially..

seatbelts,, hehehe.. my chief solved that problem.. he chewes everyone out for it at once for not wearing them.. its a team effort when in the rig or the apparatus, so its not just one person who is guilty, its everyone who is guilty. after all, it is the law that u have to wear the seatbelt.. so no excuses..

▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by fireman1049 on November 8, 2009 at 10:24am

one thing your over looking about your Ashley show in the morning...
the law states, if you run lights u must run siren..
u have no idea how many times i have seen emergency vehicles rolling down the road on a call running lights but no sirens, and this has been durring the day as well as at night..
we have to remember to obey the laws that areset up for the safety of everyone, includding the civillians who are on the road, in the intersections and so on and so on..
which also includes doing 20 mPH through a school zone where the light is flashing 20 mph.. i have seen more fire trucks, ambulances, police, sheriffs deputies, and state police going hell bent through that school zone.. that really upsets me.. what if a little kid ran out in front of them?? what then?? another statistic that could have been prevented had they slowed down.. i have even watched ambulances transporting pts to a hospital with an active M.I. going on to the hospital go blasting through that school zone.. what happens when that squad hits a little child that runs out to see the lights and sirens?? they are fubred! that pts life has really been jepordized now..
i guess the best thing to say is that its a TEAM EFFORT. its not just one person, it takes everyone working together...

▶ Reply to This

• First
• Previous
• Next
• Last