Posted on 03/06/2016 1:42:20 PM PST by NYFreeper
Two Virginia volunteer firefighters were suspended for transporting an 18-month-old girl to the hospital in a fire engine last Saturday, ultimately saving her life.
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
Sounds like it is time for some firehouse flu until the idiot in charge changes this decision. A little public outrage might help the cause, too.
You can’t make this stuff up!
They also know by now that no good deed goes unpunished.
If he thinks government is a bunch of idiots why does he support Medicare, every other social program, ans want single pay socialized medicine.
The girl must be white, heterosexual and, thus, a Republican. Therefor, a clear-cut crime.
There won't be any Firehouse Flu.
I’ve got no problem with using a non- transport vehicle in a true life or death. But...most of my kids have had seizure disorders and nearly every kids has a fever related seizure. Parents just don’t know it cause it happens at night.
The general treatment for a seizure is to let it run it’s course. A seizure concludes them the patient goes into a catatonic state. They are so exhausted from the seizure that they cannot wake up. Scary as can be but perfectly natural.
I’ve had kids seize indoors, outdoors and even at a hospital. Treatment is the same. Do nothing and let it run.
Of course there are exceptions but in reading the story, this little girl is in the situation my kids were in. She was examined and released.
The firefighters inclination was correct but their first aid training is lackng. They should appeal based on that.
“why does he support Medicare”
Uh, because the FedGov stole money out our paychecks at gunpoint all our lives, promising medical care after we retired, and revoking Medicare would condemn tens of millions of us to a premature death right after we retired from nearly working ourselves to death all our lives?
Really, that wouldn’t be too much different than Katie Hopkins’ euthanasia vans:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/british-columnist-katie-hopkins_us_55b904dce4b0a13f9d1b20e0
I’m a volunteer firefighter and volly EMT. If I were in the same situation I would ask for permission from medical command before transporting a patient in a fire truck. If command said no, wait for EMS then I would wait for EMS. One time I came within 30 seconds of asking for permission when EMS became available. This was a critical patient involved in an MVA that needed to be transported to an aero-medical landing zone.
In the meantime I would treat the patient and prepare the patient for transport. A fire truck is not set up to transport patients and my fire company is not insured to do so. Protocols are there for a reason. I don’t expect that my views are going to be praised but the liability is not worth it without permission.
The community will likely rise up and vote out the board member who suspended them and have a fish fry to honor the volunteers.
I'm guessing the one ambulance was out on call at the time. It was the Captain's call to take the child, and he may have lacked necessary EMT training, but on the surface it looks like he made the right decision. Hopefully after an investigation he and the Sergeant will be cleared.
(full disclosure: my daughter is a Paramedic and a volunteer EMT)
Oooh, didn't think about that point! Had the child died in the fire truck en route, that would have been a nasty lawsuit.
Not knowing the exact situation generally a seizure is not a life threat. Young children have febrile seizures when they run a temperature which you treat with cold packs and keep the airway open. Scary yes, fatal, no.
In PA where I live you have to be an EMT to give a patient O2 so they may be in trouble for that also. This is not a problem with the fire department, it’s a problem with the regional EMS council. It’s called practicing medicine without a license.
Yours is the right answer. I’m also an EMT. Med control can make or break you.
One other small point, EMS as with fire, will use the nearest truck that is available, mutual assistance. We use trucks from out of county if all ours are in service. Both fire and EMS do this. This was in my opinion a huge screw up on the part of the firefighters.
From what I read this wasn’t a life threatening situation. Sounds to me like the guys didn’t have enough EMT experience.......and that opinion comes from the wife of a certed EMT firefighter with 33 years.
Sounds like these were volunteers. A lot of the smaller/volunteer fire department personnel don’t have the proper EMT cents. Not sure why.
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