"Jail Nurses Are A Pain In The Butt". OK, and here's why:

mycrofft

Still crazy but elsewhere
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Jail medical services are designed to do two things:
1. Let the arrestee and incarceree leave in as good or better shape than they came in ("better" being due to basic care for medical conditions needing immediate attention, or detox and food).
2. Meet emerging conditions so item 1 above is met.

They are not designed to act as a receiving station for arrestees in acute severe detox, needing treatment for facial fractures and other serious injuries secondary to their crime or their arrest, in childbirth, etc.
Drunk...sure. Pregnant (and pregnancy is tested for)....sure, at least until it is determined to be a risky pregnancy and the charges are minor. Stabilized at the hospital and not requiring care beyond what the jail can reasonably offer....ok.
Arresting officers don't want to waste their time in emergency rooms, but that's how it is. If they want to ask you if the jail nurses will accept a given patient, then it's between you and the arresting officer, but your safest answer is "no"; once you say they will, and they won't, then the officer will think you are as "useless" as the nurses (when it comes to dropping a sick or injured person at an inappropriate treatment facility).

All the time, transporting or arresting officers will try to fob off inappropriate patients on jail intake screeners to save time; don't get caught in that. If the pt goes sour, you will be involved.
 

adamjh3

Forum Culinary Powerhouse
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I was actually thinking about Pts as arrestees the other day, started to make a thread, and decided I couldn't get my question out the right way. Do we (EMS personnel) have the ability to make sure an arrestee who wants/needs to go to the hospital gets there? Could, in theory, a police officer override our decision and say the patient doesn't need to be seen at the ER?
 
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mycrofft

mycrofft

Still crazy but elsewhere
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Even if he or she is wrong, how do you prevent an officer from doing it?

Simple. Write a statement that you think the officer is wrong, sign it, then demand they sign it before you do their bidding. Amazing how they will rethink it. I used look them in the eye and say, around witnesses, "I'm telling you officially that this patient is in need of immediate emergency care beyond our ability".
 

firecoins

IFT Puppet
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You need to be assertive but nice. I have convinced cops to let us take the defendants to jail to protect their arrest.
 

medicRob

Forum Deputy Chief
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Jail is a pain in the butt too, I think you know why.

:lol:
 

DrParasite

The fire extinguisher is not just for show
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Simple. Write a statement that you think the officer is wrong, sign it, then demand they sign it before you do their bidding. Amazing how they will rethink it. I used look them in the eye and say, around witnesses, "I'm telling you officially that this patient is in need of immediate emergency care beyond our ability".
I had a patient in the county holding area for court need to go to the hospital. County Sheriff didn't want him to go if it was a chronic condition, let the jail RNs handle it, but acute needed to be treated. The officer called the Sgt. I told the Sgt (politely) I think he should go. If he is not going to be going, then I want her name and badge number documented for the chart. She promptly called the Lt for his opinion. Lt said the same thing, don't take him if it's chronic. I said if that is the case, then I want his name and badge number documented for the chart. He promptly called the Captain of the court, who called the County DA for advice on what to do.

end result: patient wanted to be transported to ER, pt was transported to ER, and court was rescheduled. and everyone was happy.
 

EMTinNEPA

Guess who's back...
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True story on a call to the prison in our coverage area...

"So what's going on with this gentleman today?"

"Chest pain."

"Ok. When did it start?"

"45 minutes ago."

"Did you do anything for him?"

"We did an EKG and put a 22g in his right wrist with half normal saline KVO."

"O....K... Did the EKG show anything?

"No clue."

"May I see it?"

"No, it's for the hospital."

"Any meds?"

"We gave him one dose of Nitro."

Needless to say, the second I got in the truck, I did my own 12-lead, gave him Aspirin, put an 18g in his left hand, and gave him more Nitro lol.
 
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mycrofft

mycrofft

Still crazy but elsewhere
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These all sound familiar.

Remember that over 80% of escapes involve Medical, either through lax security at medical facilities, vulnerability during transport, or by medical staff knowingly aiding the inmate :ph34r:
I have to say that many officers, in my opinion the most mature and professional, realized they were being paid the same whether in the ER or doing paperwork in Booking, so they took care of business and everyone came out the better for it. Once when I detected they had palmed off a psychotic, we had them come back and take the inmate away to where they were supposed to be in the first place.
 
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