"Panic" codes

[burntbob]

panic code

The standard here is to say " vehicle number and 10-2000" as the panic code. You're not supposed to have to repeat it though if you can to give more details -- the police like to know what they might be running into.
The SOP is that Communications calls all vehicles to switch to another channel to free that one up, alerts the police to the units location and notifies the duty pager so the Paramedic Team Leaders respond.
It helps to work it all out in advance. We hustle when we get the equivalent from police and they do the same for us.

 

[WLSC2008]

Codes

My squad has a few different codes and signals.

We have a code for police in a non-emergency situation and we check up on our crews at night on strange calls and if they respond a certain way we send them assitance.

 

[Aileana]

We just use 10-codes for that. 10-200 is used when you need police assistance, and 10-2000 is you need police assistance IMMEDIATELY, life is in danger. We also have panic buttons.

 

[EMT007]

My department is all about the plain language. If my partner or I is in danger, we are supposed to say "help" on the radio. You can't say "we need some help up here for a heavy patient" or whatever, because just the word will send the entire world to your location code-3.

There is also a more covert "code-XXX" that would have the same effect, but I've never heard anyone use it.

We also have panic buttons on our radios, but there is no geographic location involved, and some dispatchers do the same "your emergency button has been activated, whats your status?" stupidity haha.

 

[MedicineMan975]

The Muskrat Code

Like I said, totally nonsensical. Yet, totally effective.

 

[MedicineMan975]

The Muskrat Code

Let me just say that were I work we have the "distress button" on our radios. But if you used it you had better be in grave need of police prescence. That being said,if one needed to alert dispatch or others about a possibly hostile situation there were few to little options.
At the hospital service I work for, I immediatley realized that even though there were hospital codes for a dangerous patient ("Code Male"/"Code Green") we the EMS service did'nt have one other than "Code 60". So to start a standard across my particular shift, me and my supervisor adopted a non sequitur that was unique enough so as not to be confused with anything else. So we, along with our anchor dispatcher, established the "Muskrat Code". Anytime the word Muskrat was used in conjunction with a gender ID, it was to inform dispatch and others that we were encountering a slightly to very agitated patient/family/bystanders.
So if we had a male patient who was combative, "Muskrat Sam" was thrown out. For a female, "Muskrat Susie". Throwing a "Muskrat" out was just a general alert for dispatch and others. Plus it was a good personal code for me and my partner when working a call when trying to give one another a heads up.

Like I said, totally nonsensical. Yet, totally effective.

 

[wolfwyndd]

We use the panic button on the radio. Dispatch will ask if we need assistance and if we DON'T answer, they'll send PD or PD and Fire depending on what kind of call we're on.

Interesting I was just told what to do if I was thought my life was threatened what to say and if I was just scared...Its a great idea to have the codes especially since sometimes I'm all alone at the station...it gets a little freaky!

No, I disagree with that. FEMA and the EMI is attempting to institue the Incident Command System nationally and one of the objectives is to be able to go two or three or twenty jurisdictions away for a disaster and NOT have to be retrained on communications technique. One of our neighboring counties uses 10 codes and when they get dispatched I have no idea what they are being dispatched on because I have no idea what their 10 codes are. If my squad has to go mutual aid to their county (which we have done on occassion, although very rarely) we're screwed because none of us know the 10 codes.

 

[mycrofft]

Two weird ones. Of course!

After a possibly fatal misunderstanding during a Guard exercise confusing "realworld" with "play", the ambulance med techs were given hats to keep on the seat of the ambulance. They would donn them to drive off. If under duress, they would take the red white and blue striped hat off and toss it onto the dashboard where LE could see it.
Where I am now, we have a panic button deal except it is never exercised and until two months ago the inmates could get ahold of the wires and yank them out, silencing the alarm and shutting off the flashing beacon.

Base Medical Center used overhead pages, "Dr Black" for hostage, and "Dr Charlie Brown" for bomb threat .

 

[marineman]

Our first responder group all carries portables that have a panic button on it but it's surprisingly tough to hit accidentally.

At the amublance service I'm riding with both medics carry portables with panic buttons and all three mobiles in the truck have panic buttons on them (2 in the front 1 in the back). The area I live in has a very low crime rate but we have a lot of cops so there's no verification or anything, if the button is pushed you'll have about 20 cops there within 2 minutes. I've never heard of one being activated by accident in my area but I'm sure it's happened, but our area all emergency services pretty well agree it's better safe than sorry.

 

[ffemt8978]

if the button is pushed you'll have about 20 cops there within 2 minutes.

It would take us two hours to get 20 cops here...provided they weren't busy with something else.

 

[marineman]

yeah we seem to have quite an abundance of cops that are extremely excited to do anything other than traffic work.

P.S. just noticed this thread is almost a year old, lockey maybe?