Patient Abandoment Question

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rabidrider

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I am a NREMT certified/liciensed EMT in Florida and I just started a job in Enviromental Health and Safety with a aircraft company. It is our policy here if there is a minor head injury that needs medical attention but not emergency care we must drive the patient to the hospital or urgent care facility and drop them off. My question here is I am pretty sure that would be considered patient abandonment but I am not sure as I was not hired as a EMT but they do have my sert and liciense on file. Do you guys think it would be in my best interest to either wait with the patient (if supervisor agrees) or if I cant make up some kind of waiver to cover me? If so does anyone know of somewhere that could point me in the right direction to figure out what I need to do.
 
Just walk them to the triage desk and your golden if your worried about it.
 
As Paramedics, we take people to the hospital and leave them there all the time. Once they are checked in and care has been transferred to the hospital, there is no abandonment. Even if the patient is moved to the waiting room, the hospital has still assumed responsibility.
 
I don't know about waiting room, but if you go to the triage window, ensure you speak to someone of your licensure level or greater, you are set.

That said... what kind of vehicle (ie, private or company) is being used for transport? If anything, that is where the issue comes in. What happens when that vehicle is at fault in an accident resulting in the death of the to-be patient?
 
If you are not working as an EMT at the company then there is no patient abandonment issue. You are not working as an EMT, it sounds like they just want to hire someone who has a little medical knowledge to help make the determination if the patient really needs the ambulance or not. Most likely the company is looking to try and keep their accident rate low. Most calls for an ambulance would likely be classified as serious by OSHA and then would warrant an investigation by them.
 
If you were not hired to work as an EMT, then it's doubtful you have a medical director. Without one, you can't function as an EMT at work, or take on official patient care.
 
If EMS response is not in your official job description, you are trained but have no duty to act. You are simply a lay person with a bit of knowledge.
 
In mosts states you would be a Good Samaritan with no duty to act. You might want to clear up with your management though of what their expectations are if they have your cert on file. That sounds sketchy if the poop where to hit the fan.

What do you need to do? Drive the Pt to the hospital or call an ambo like any bystander would do. And tell your boss you are not an EMT on his dime.
 
I figure if you're not transporting a patient in an ambulance, then its not a patient abandonment issue. This job sounds more like you have some first aid related responsibilities, and that you're responsible for driving people to the ER/walk-in if they need a ride but can't drive themselves, and don't quite need an ambulance.

If you have any concerns, talk to your supervisor. I'm sure s/he would be more than willing to answer any questions you may have.
 
Do you have a medical director? If not, you are not operating as an EMT and that law does not apply to you.
 
Or, if you're really concerned, consult an attorney instead of a random group of people on an internet message board with no first hand knowledge of your situation.
 
You're not working as an emt, so really you're doing nothing more than driving a friend to the hospital. However, it would be nice if you talked to triage instead of just dumping them off in the parking lot.
 
rabidrider said:
It is our policy here if there is a minor head injury that needs medical attention but not emergency care we must drive the patient to the hospital or urgent care facility and drop them off
Click to expand...

Well what if there is a serious toe nail injury? I mean its not a minor head injury, but its serious...
 
One interesting aside would be that an Urgent Care / Clinic does not fall under EMTALA. We do transports sometimes to these types of locations and if our patient is not "accepted" then we have not transferred care and still have the responsibility to provide care.

(Just something to keep in mind)
 
Thanks guys it thats about what I thought but wanted to be clear. I am not employed as a EMT but having the cert and all did get me quite a bit more on my pay check. I am basically the guy the bandaids boo boos all day long.
 
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