Drive Cams!

[EMTSteve]

We have a Drive Cam located just above our rear-view mirror that has one lens that faces the drivers’ cabin and another lens that faces out towards the front of the vehicle.

We are told that it automatically switches on during HARD breaking, a sudden stop or when the Code 3 lights are on.
Or we can hit a button located on the Cam to record a drunk driver or ourselves when we roll up on scene.
It can also be switched on by a supervisor remotely from his/her desktop computer.

I know of one incident when an EMT was power-breaking the rig (foot on the break and a foot on the gas making it burn out) on top of that he didn’t have his seat belt on.
Needless to say he was canned on the spot and his ADL was revoked.

Just wanted to know; do any of you have Drive-Cams in your rigs?
And when the little light on it starts flashing… what fun things do you say?
(i.e. things I have said...)
“Man I sure LOVE working for (your company here), it’s the best company EVER, I plan on working here until I retire”
Or “(Supervisor name here), is the BEST supervisor EVER, he/she has taught me so much”.

 

[daedalus]

We make smart a$$ comments and pretend to have conversations with our operations manager when the cam goes off, because she reviews all of the incidents. They lied to you about the camera activating during code three driving. Drive cams are incapable of this, and also only record 40 second incidents.

 

[reaper]

They cannot be remotely turned on. They are a closed system, that works off an inertia switch. Brake hard, turn sharp, accelerate to fast, sudden impact or sudden stop is what sets if off. They record 20 seconds prior to set off and 20 seconds after. They are great for accidents and reckless drivers. If it has been set off the light will be red. If you see the light blinking red, then smile, you just set it off.

I think every ambulance should have them installed. They saved a few lawsuits in the past from proving who was at fault!

 

[motownems]

I Completly agree with reaper, in regards to every ambulance/emergency vehicle should have them. I have heard of dashboard cameras saving more than a few policeman from lawsuits and such.

 

[reaper]

Well, You need to understand that drivecam is not a dash camera. It does not record all the time, just when it is set off.

 

[firecoins]

We have them and everyone should.

 

[mikie]

They cannot be remotely turned on. They are a closed system, that works off an inertia switch. Brake hard, turn sharp, accelerate to fast, sudden impact or sudden stop is what sets if off. They record 20 seconds prior to set off and 20 seconds after.

A- If it's closed, how does one obtain the video? Is there somesort of media (ie SD, CompactFlash) slot on the camera or USB connection?

B- How would they record 20 prior to being set off (ie by a sharp turn) if it just occurred?

 

[LucidResq]

B- How would they record 20 prior to being set off (ie by a sharp turn) if it just occurred?

I'm guessing it works like a cardiac event monitor. It is constantly keeping clips of a certain number of seconds temporarily recorded, and moves them to permanent storage after triggered.

 

[reaper]

Yes, They have a usb connection to download to a pc.

They record 30 seconds at a time. When it is set off, it sends the last 20 seconds to the hard drive and also the next 20 seconds to hard drive.

 

[marineman]

We have them and it has saved the company in 2 accidents that occurred while running L&S. It was a joke for a while that it would automatically go off any time you started talking bad about the operations manager (he reviews them) so now anytime we see them go off we start a conversation about how much we can't stand him.

The only problem with them is that the driveways to a few of our hospitals are so steep that it gets set off even if you pull in very gently. I like having them, if you drive within the limits and are safe there's no way a drive cam can get you in trouble but it can save you. Now if we are running L&S and another vehicle fails to yield or does something stupid we can hit the button to record, then send the video to the PD and the driver gets mailed a ticket. Also at special events it's a nice way to keep the memories. We have about 30 minutes of video from airforce 1 landing, president Bush getting off, driving at incredibly unsafe speeds down city streets in the motorcade, part of his speech, drive back to the airport, and airforce 1 departing. In that video it's funny if you watch the inside camera you can see the SS guy in the back reach for his gun every time they hit the button on the camera.

 

[pa3997]

Drive Cam policy.

Here is a question. Does anyone have a written policy in place defining what exectly the drive cam can be used for? We all know that things are said in the privacy of the ambulance which are not meant for other's ears. Obviously, if someone would be driving recklessly or breaking some sort of law, discipline would be warranted. But coming from a union shop, and being Shop Steward, I have concerns about this.

 

[JPINFV]

Considering that the ambulance is a mobile workplace, why would anything said on an ambulance be considered private? Shouldn't the same level of privacy be expected if it was any other worksite?

 

[pa3997]

Just asking if anyone else has a policy. Not interested in a back and forth of opinions.

 

[JPINFV]

No problem. Just confirming that unions are more concerned with demonizing management with fake concerns over 'privacy' than anything else.

 

[pa3997]

You certainly are entitled to your opinion. Even if it is wrong.

 

[JPINFV]

How is it wrong?

 

[pa3997]

Speaking in generalities of what unions are interested in doing to management is wrong.

My shop has a very good working relationship with management and we are both in agreement that a policy should be implemented. And also that the drive cam is a very good idea.

Are there cameras in every corner of a "workplace"?

Have you spent much time in an ambulance with a partner that you see more often than your family? If you have, then you may have shared personal information with him or her.

 

[reaper]

We didn't have a policy on it. We only had one time a driver was disciplined for what was said on the video. The driver was cut off in traffic. He rolled his window down and starting yelling some very vulgar language at the driver. He was fired, as soon as the video was downloaded. As he should have been.

The only ones allowed to see the video are the supervisor and the crew involved.

A good service does not care what the crews are talking about in private. That is their right to say what they want. That is why the good services do not need unions to protect them from management.

 

[tydek07]

So those of you that work for services that have the Drive Cams... Do they also incorporate RoadSafe, or do they feel the Cams are enough?

We have RoadSafe here, there has been talk about getting the Cams, but nothing has come of it yet.

tydek

 

[reaper]

I prefer the drive cam. It is video proof. Not some machine clicking off, when something goes wrong. With the drive cam, you can see what you did wrong.