Elderly Woman Dies After Ambulance Crashes

[nomofica]

In the Edmonton Sun today (March 24th)

The Canadian Press

FAIRVIEW - Police and health officials are investigating an ambulance accident that killed an 80-year-old woman between hospitals in northern Alberta. RCMP say the ambulance driver lost control and hit the ditch Friday while taking the patient from Grande Prairie to Fairview.

The highway ws extremely icy at the time, and there were also high winds and blowing snow. Police say three ambulance attendants were also injured, but were treated and released from hospital. The woman died of her injuiries on Saturday.

Anyone been unfortunate enough to experience something like that?

IMO, makes long IFT's through the prairies in winter not so enjoyable (not that it would be to begin with...)

 

[Aidey]

Did the article say why she was being transferred? If the weather was that bad maybe they should have waited to leave.

 

[RESQ_5_1]

80 y/o woman dies after Ambulance crashes in Northern Alberta

http://www.edmontonjournal.com/news/Patient+dies+after+ambulance+crash/1421348/story.html

 

[ffemt8978]

Duplicate threads merged.

 

[jochi1543]

A few weeks ago we were coming back from Edmonton with a transfer in total whiteout conditions. We drove at 40 kmh for most of the trip (with multiple stops in between to talk to people whose cars were lying in ditches to make sure everyone was ok), and we called our service after about an hour and told them that there will not be any more transfers that day....some things are just not worth risking your lives for. A fractured hip can wait a day or two.

 

[nomofica]

We aren't given a choice as to refusal to transfer a pt. I have done code 3 transfers from Fairview to Grande Prairie in worse weather than this ambulance went thru. It's an average transfer time of 1 1/2 hours one way. We have been told to never question dispatch. And, the Drs that send these out are under the impression that we do nothing all day. My partner and I are the 2nd busiest crew in our entire health region. We have never been able to refuse a transfer in inclement weather even after voicing our opinion that the roads are unsafe. Also to note, this was a High-top van style rig.

It's not necessarily the weather, but general road conditions as well. If the wind was great enough, snow drifts would form on the highway. Went through that crap when I drove to Regina on New Years this year...

 

[Peace Memories]

Family/Compassion

Did the article say why she was being transferred? If the weather was that bad maybe they should have waited to leave.

I am a member of the immediate family and understand the road conditions in our area. Perhaps other safety measures could be installed/implemented so this does not happen to someone else's loved one. We are all still in shock. The saddnes lies deep within our souls. I am also concerned about the EMT's, they were doing their job and were very attentive all day. It must be an awful emotional strain for them - as they are trained to save lives......I can't imagine their individual pain!