EMT using non service provided drugs

[samiam]

Need an opinion, say you have a patient with severe asthma that albuterol would be indicated. per your protocol you can administer nebulized albuterol. Your service does NOT provide you with albuterol on the trucks.
Four scenarios:

You are also an asthmatic and cary your own solution for personal use. Use your own?

You have some that you were given for a different patient by the hospital that you transported previously but didnt use it.

The patients family member provides you with some prescribed to the patient.

A bystander provides you with some.

In all these cases you can confirm its the correct dose and med.

Do you accept the outside drug and use it?
Do you call med control/a supervisor for permission?

 

[NomadicMedic]

No.

No.

If it's prescribed to the patient, yes. (This is in my protocols)

No.

 

[CALEMT]

You are also an asthmatic and cary your own solution for personal use. Use your own?

Hell no.

You have some that you were given for a different patient by the hospital that you transported previously but didnt use it.

Absolutely not.

The patients family member provides you with some prescribed to the patient.

If its in your protocol then yes.

A bystander provides you with some.

Sketchy but still hell no.

Why do these sound like homework questions?

 

[NomadicMedic]

I was thinking the same thing.

 

[samiam]

Not a HW question. Had a similar scenario where we had the meds from the patient before and then had another transfer for a ashmatic and luckily had no issues but was thinking about what I was going to do if there were.

 

[akflightmedic]

Do you know the 5 rights (or 6 rights for some) of drug administration?

Or get REALLY technical and say there are 8.

 

[EpiEMS]

Four scenarios:

You are also an asthmatic and cary your own solution for personal use. Use your own?

Definitely not - this is not prescribed for the patient.

You have some that you were given for a different patient by the hospital that you transported previously but didnt use it.

Definitely not - this is not prescribed for the patient.

The patients family member provides you with some prescribed to the patient.

My protocols permit me to assist with administering the patient's own albuterol. Generally, this would be OK - it's the right drug at the right time, prescribed to the right person, etc.

A bystander provides you with some.

Nope! Not the patient's drug! Among other things...

In all these cases you can confirm its the correct dose and med.

Do you accept the outside drug and use it?
Do you call med control/a supervisor for permission?

The only case where I would consider administering a bystander's medication would be on an airplane (I'm thinking maybe an EpiPen or...Diastat?) or be or out in the middle of nowhere - and even then, I'd contact some sort of medical direction.

 

[Summit]

Well obviously this question is in the dangerzone.

How bad is the patient? Are you somewhere where the situation will become critical? (Remote area, wilderness, 2 hours from the shore). If so, what do you know about these other nebulizers? Are they just albuterol? Do they have any doses left? Were they properly stored? Are they unexpired?

Does this patient have an albuterol rx just not on them or they ran out?

What exactly does the protocol say?
Is it specifically for nebulized albuterol they don't provide you with (which is notable liability)? Call med control
Or for albuterol by any means (which they didn't provide any)? Call med control
Or is it to assist patient with own meds? Call med control unless it is the pt own meds

Anyway, call med control.

And ask why you don't have albuterol in 2016 if you have a protocol.