# How to navigate? (Ambulance Drivers)



## thejollyrogger (Jan 15, 2010)

So I was wondering, what is a good GPS system you can put in your rig?  Or perhaps someone has a good "streetmap", or "mapbook" that they like to use instead.

i'm asking because at AMR where I am, EMT's are allowed to bring GPS systems to put in their rig for their shift.

So what's some good suggestion? 

For GPS I was going to say Garmin Nuvi.  Which model I'm not sure. What do you think?


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## medicdan (Jan 15, 2010)

First, let me welcome you to EMTLife!
I might be old school on this, but I firmly believe you need to know your response area well, and cannot rely on a GPS unit for every call. With that said, I take a portable GPS with my on my shifts, but usually only for long calls.

The first few weeks you work in a new area, you should have the map out all the time. If you are working non-emergency, find all the facilities and homes you go to ofen. In your posted time, find the closest hospital to each of them. Then find the easiest way between them. How do you get from each posting spot to these facilities? 

Your truck should be equipped, at minnimum with a good street map of all the areas you cover, and a street guide. Learning to use a street guide takes a little while, but once you get it down, helps enormously with navigation.

You may consider buying yourself a good street map of your own, and circling common 
destinations for easy reference. 

You first few months at a company should be spent teching, learning the paperwork and protocols, etc, and with all your time in the passenger seat, learning the roads. You should always have a situation awareness of where the closest hospital it, and the easiest way to get there.

With all of that said, GPS units are great for long trips or extremely obscure streets (but the street guide is better). 

Last christmas I bought myself a GPS, I think it was the bottom of the barrel, but it works fine. My new phone (Droid) has one also, which actually works much better, so I have been using that for long trips. 

I wish you the best of luck, let us know how things go.


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## Shishkabob (Jan 15, 2010)

AMR should have a MAPSCO in every rig as they do here. Get proficcent in that. 

I too have a gps. Tends to be hard to "know your area" if it covers several thousand square miles covering 4 major cities, and living an hour away doesn't help either. 

You might have an old school partner who Hates you using a gps. Let them hate it as it's not their call. If they get mouthy remind them tgat even if they're a medic, they're your partner, not your boss (unless of course they ARE your boss).


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## NJFLGHTMDC (Jan 15, 2010)

*using GPS*

I remember a case here in NJ, in which the family tried suing the EMS system for not "getting there fast enough." Basically without getting long winded about it, The patients street wasn't in the map book, and didn't show up in their GPS unit. The lawyer for the BLS argued that they used the "technology available to them to try to get there." The family argued your statement that they should memorize every street in their local.
They lost the case, EMS was found at no fault because:
1. The BLS system only provided the Ambulance with a map book.
2. The GPS unit was a personal item of the EMT and it showed an "extra effort" on the EMT's part to make more options available to them.
Personally my system doesn't provide GPS for us we, MICU chase cars usually bring our own in.
GPS doesn't give you any other route besides the most direct, unless you choose Faster time in some models, but then it isn't alway the way with less miles. But could help if you find yourself in a court room arguing the same.
Just my 2 cents, and some food for thought.


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## DavidH (Jan 15, 2010)

Hi, I am a paramedic with the West Midlands Ambulance Service in England and all  National Health Service Ambulances are fitted with satellite guidance which is activated as the emergency hits the computer screen in the vehicle giving the route to the scene.  We often respond to emergencies outside our local area.  I respond as a single responder in a rapid response vehicle and will quite often run to calls in nearby towns.  Without the satillite guidance it would take me to long to reach the call.


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## NJFLGHTMDC (Jan 15, 2010)

*garmin*

I have a gArmin nuvi 205


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## MMiz (Jan 15, 2010)

I always used a Rand McNally street guide book and Garmin iQue 3600.  I found it far superior to the Garmin nuvi units I have now.  Unfortunately I haven't found a better replacement that met all my needs on the ambulance.


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## redcrossemt (Jan 15, 2010)

If you have a small response area, you should familiarize yourself with many of the streets by studying the map and just observing while on calls. A small map book should serve you well as you learn many of the streets, and for reference when you run to an unfamiliar area.

If you have a larger response area, you should be very familiar with major roads, and how to use your map book to look up addresses and route to and from the hospitals. 

I also think GPS is a nice addition and very helpful sometimes especially in a larger environment, even in just displaying the time, direction of travel, current street, etc. I have a Magellan Maestro and like it very much. I have our common facilities and all of the county's hospitals programmed into favorites for quick entry. 

I would note that GPS does NOT always give you the fastest routing, as there is traffic, construction, and other factors to consider. The nice thing is automatic rerouting... so I can choose to take a slightly different route based on my personal knowledge, and then the GPS will automatically choose the next best routing for me based on which direction I chose to take.


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## MrBrown (Jan 15, 2010)

A lot of guys here will bring thier own GPS and put it in the truck.  I use a Navman and it's bloody brilliant.

If I need to go somewhere I can generally get away with local knowledge and GPS backup; local knowledge gets me in the general area and we can just GPS it from there.

While we do have map books they are not very good for our trucks or solo responders which only have one officer; you can't read a map and drive.


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## NomadicMedic (Jan 15, 2010)

Here in the PNW it's a Thomas Guide and most guys bring a GPS. I have a Garmin Nuvi360 and while it's awesome for getting me to places that are 'off the grid', I find that I know my way to most of the spots we respond to frequently and can get there much quicker than the Nuvi plotted directions.

But, it does take time to learn where you're going.

If your response area is plotted on a grid (as most of the counties in Western Washington are) it's super easy to get around once you have the grid system  mastered. 

For example, I can get an address like 12704 SE 172nd Street and know almost exactly where the house is, what the cross street is and even what side of the road the house is on.  For most of those calls, I don't even bother with a map.

As the others have said, it's important to learn your area. Know the major cross streets, intersections and how to get to every hospital in your district.


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## Scott33 (Jan 15, 2010)

I have the Tomtom app for my iphone.

Doesn't do us any harm to be able to read a map either.


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## 18G (Jan 15, 2010)

As cheap as GPS units are now days I'm not sure why EMS companies aren't making these standard equipment. You can get a quality wide-screen GPS unit for around $130. I've seen them on sale for less than $100 around the holidays. 

I have a Garmin nuvi that I bought about two years ago when they were still somewhat pricey. I paid $250 at the time and it doesnt have the text-to-speech. I bought my girlfriend one the day after Christmas from Best Buy for $89.99 and its wide screen and has text-to-speech. Its a Magellen and works really well. 

I personally like Garmin GPS units. They are built really well and have a nice interface.


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