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DT4EMS

DT4EMS

Kip Teitsort, Founder
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I learned something very interesting at the conference I was just at..........

What do you think the #1 reason for lawsuits against EMS is?
 
dropping patients
 
Awe crap..... they do that up there too? Bwahahaha!!

Nope. That's not it. I will tell you it threw me for a loop too.

Mind you this is coming from JR Henry. He is a leading expert in EMS lawsuits.
 
Negligence!

but that is a catch-all term... how is the provider negligent is the big question.
 
Negligence would be true, but like you said pretty broad term.

Can you be more specific?
 
DT4EMS said:
Negligence would be true, but like you said pretty broad term.

Can you be more specific?
Click to expand...
Gross Negligence ;)

Eww... that's gross....
 
Patient Restraint?
 
2nd choice is Refusals...
 
Believe it or not, even though the things you listed were all there, they only comprised approximately 20% of all cases.

The number one reason is crashes.
 
Wow I'm suprised, but I guess it makes sense. My husbands grandfather and some family members were hit by an ambulance once, they ended up with 100k out of the deal. 2 passengers died on impact and his wife died 2 weeks later in the hospital. He never told me what happened to the EMS workers.
 
Yeah, I was surprised too. I was really expecting patient care issues to be the top of the list. Truth told, patient care issues only comprised a small number of the whole picture.

Documentation is where most people still get hung up. They may have provided the most awesome patient care, but their report didn't reflect that.
 
Wingnut said:
Wow I'm suprised, but I guess it makes sense. My husbands grandfather and some family members were hit by an ambulance once, they ended up with 100k out of the deal. 2 passengers died on impact and his wife died 2 weeks later in the hospital. He never told me what happened to the EMS workers.
Click to expand...


Did he mention police or firemen?

Because we, EMS Employees, vollies, privates, etc; do not exist.
 
I just read that crashes was the #1 reason on one of my CEUs at EMS-CE.com

Makes sense :sad:
 
The words "Due Regard" are in most state laws that discuss emergency driving.

Obviously if you were involved in a crash, you would be hard pressed to show you were acting with "due regard".
 
TTLWHKR said:
Did he mention police or firemen?

Because we, EMS Employees, vollies, privates, etc; do not exist.
Click to expand...

No apparently he was crossing an intersection and the ambulance was running hot but without lights and sirens. He doesn't go into much detail after the accident.
 
Wingnut said:
No apparently he was crossing an intersection and the ambulance was running hot but without lights and sirens. He doesn't go into much detail after the accident.
Click to expand...
Ok...

how can one run "hot" without Lights OR sirens?

just curious.
 
MedicStudentJon said:
Ok...

how can one run "hot" without Lights OR sirens?

just curious.
Click to expand...


I think that is called "Speeding". :)

Most agencies have removed "Code 2" (lights NO siren) from their SOP because of the way most laws read "Must have audible siren AND lights" activiated to be considered in "Emergency Mode".
 
DT4EMS said:
MedicStudentJon said:
Wingnut said:
No apparently he was crossing an intersection and the ambulance was running hot but without lights and sirens. He doesn't go into much detail after the accident.
Click to expand...
Ok...

how can one run "hot" without Lights OR sirens?

just curious.
Click to expand...
I think that is called "Speeding". :)

Most agencies have removed "Code 2" (lights NO siren) from their SOP because of the way most laws read "Must have audible siren AND lights" activiated to be considered in "Emergency Mode".
Click to expand...

Perhaps she meant that they were transporting a patient, without lights or siren.
 
MedicStudentJon said:
Perhaps she meant that they were transporting a patient, without lights or siren.
Click to expand...


No, they probably meant speeding...
 
DT4EMS said:
I think that is called "Speeding". :)

Most agencies have removed "Code 2" (lights NO siren) from their SOP because of the way most laws read "Must have audible siren AND lights" activiated to be considered in "Emergency Mode".
Click to expand...
By Maryland law, the only requirement for an emergency vehicle to be considered operating in emergency mode is for the siren to be on.

I think that seems a bit backwards, both based on this comment, and based on what I've seen. I've seen emergency vehicles operating with lights only, and no siren, many, many times.

The only comment my EMT instructor made on this is to remember the law, but consider the need of the patient over the law.
 
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