Seattle patient’s 10-hour wait for ambulance raises concerns about 911 triage systems

DrParasite

DrParasite

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www.ems1.com

10-hour ambulance delay puts Seattle’s 911 call triage under scrutiny

A Seattle woman waited more than 10 hours for a nurse-ordered ambulance, raising concerns about the city’s 911 nurse triage system and response standards.
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www.ems1.com

Seattle patient’s 10-hour wait for ambulance raises concerns about 911 triage systems

Experts say differences in nurse line oversight, response-time standards and dispatch protocols across U.S. cities could affect how quickly patients receive care
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Yeah…Unacceptable. I hope her family wins and Seattle and AMR get hit hard.
This is a total abdication of responsibility.
 
CCCSD said:
Yeah…Unacceptable. I hope her family wins and Seattle and AMR get hit hard.
This is a total abdication of responsibility.
Click to expand...
From the Seattle article:
In court papers filed last month, AMR asked a judge to dismiss the lawsuit’s claims against the company, arguing Hogan’s estate can’t demonstrate AMR’s conduct was the proximate cause of her death. An attorney for AMR cited the April 10 calls and the length of time before Hogan’s body was found.

Her estate’s lawsuit alleges her ambulance wait was too long, accusing Seattle and AMR of gross negligence.

“Ms. Hogan dialed 911 because she was having an emergency that required emergency services to transport her to the emergency department,” the active King County lawsuit alleges. “Defendants breached the duty of care.”
Click to expand...
I agree with AMR; I think the lawsuit against them should be dismissed. The AHJ (in this case, Seattle), is 100% at fault here. They referred the caller to a 3rd party. They have no visibility to the ETA of the ambulance from AMR; they forwarded the call to the nurses line, and then it became out of sight out of mind. And they don't have any metrics. In addition, they don't do any follow ups on the patient's condition. This is a systemic failure on Seattle's side; while AMR might have failed the patient, it doesn't look like they violated any of the terms of the contract.
 
I understand the potential benefits of nurse triage at dispatch and the possibility of alternative destinations, but there should be a cap on response times under this program as well, especially since the patient called 911 several more times.

As far as AMR leaving after no-contact at the scene, that depends on their protocols. Was a callback attempt made, did dispatch have any info that the patient said they were going to leave by other means? In my region, for no answer with a potential patient inside, we start law enforcement and let them attempt to make entry or at least make the decision to not make entry.
 
AMR is the contracting agency. They are complicit. Especially driving away at 0230 without really trying. Give me a break. 10 hours later and they expect an instant response…with the patient telling them they can’t walk..

AMR: Promise the World. Delivering Sub Par for YEARS.
 
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