Warning Lights @ Sirens use in EMS

[Nate]

Usually that is the case, you are dispatched to one thing; turns out to be another thing. People and even dispatch don't always know what is going on.

[Dustdevil]

Usually that is the case, you are dispatched to one thing; turns out to be another thing. People and even dispatch don't always know what is going on.

That sounds like a good study topic right there.

[vs-eh?]

Usually that is the case, you are dispatched to one thing; turns out to be another thing. People and even dispatch don't always know what is going on.

All alpha's aren't alpha's and all echoes aren't echoes...

It would be interesting to see a study based on dispatch priority and what ended up being the chief complaint in EMS opinion and hospital opinion. Hmmmmm....

A classic examples...The alpha "sick person" that is the pre-arrest CHF'er. The echo choking that is the guy that has had a vitamin suck in his throat for 2 hours...

[Just Plain Ruff]

Dust, I didn't think I made it sound like I diagnosed calls via dispatch, I never have and never will.

I completely agree with the dispatch info not being right. With constant short response time that I was experiencing being 3-4 minutes to get to anywhere in my city we seldom ran L&S.

With longer times then heck yes, run hot.

And I never said that I trusted what dispatch sent us on. Case in point, had a guy who fell off the roof, onto a cinder block, trauma code, ruptured esophagus and when we intubated the patient we kept getting chest rise and fall, visualized the cords and the tube goin in but with the rupture esophagus we were getting stomach rise also.

The call came out as a fall. Heck when we got there we met the victims wife who was putting an ACE wrap on her ankle and we intially began to ask her questions as a patient until she said, I'm not the patient, it's my husband in the back yard. Well by then he was full trauma code. So NO I don't trust dispatch and what they give us, it's a rarity that I trust them and thats usually for calls from the ER to the nursing home only.

[Phoenix_Pixie697]

Dust, I didn't think I made it sound like I diagnosed calls via dispatch, I never have and never will.

I completely agree with the dispatch info not being right. With constant short response time that I was experiencing being 3-4 minutes to get to anywhere in my city we seldom ran L&S.

From my experience it's not whether or not dispatch has it right, it's whether or not the family if really freaking out or not.. which is a fifty/fifty thing. As for running hot, only when I have to via my protocols, because in general, people tend to do stupid things, which is why I have job security.

PP [/font:8a1030c508]

[Ace844]

From my experience it's not whether or not dispatch has it right, it's whether or not the family if really freaking out or not.. which is a fifty/fifty thing. As for running hot, only when I have to via my protocols, because in general, people tend to do stupid things, which is why I have job security.

PP [/font:9d2083d79b]

As far as the dispatch accuracy issue...I believe that one of the links I posted at the top of my original post covers this issue as well....

[Richard B the EMT]

There's a phrase computer programmers use: GIGO. From what I'm told, it means "Garbage In, Garbage Out." What you put in, is what you get back out.

The call-takers and dispatchers can only work with what they are given by the caller to the 9-1-1 Public Safety Answering Point. If a caller reports a call as an injury, they'll dispatch the call as an injury, and when the crew arrives to find out it's a CPR run, well, SURPRISE!

We've established that some callers lie to the call-takers, reporting a CPR call, when, in fact, it is a minor injury. They will "explain" it by saying "I wanted to get the ambulance here quicker", or in the mistaken belief that, "If the patient is brought in by ambulance, they're gonna be seen sooner, after all, an ambulance transport signifies an emergency!" These folks never had Triage explained to them.

For any "civilians" reading this, Triage is a French word that means "To Sort Out". We'll determine who, due to the seriousness of the patient's illness or injury, will be transported or seen first, and it ain't dependent on how long you've been waiting!

[Ace844]

Hi All,

I'd like to hear what some of the docs who post/frequent here think of these issues....Any takers?!?!?!? :idea: :!:

[Guest]

Here in our little corner of the world, we always respond to a call L & S. We might not go to the ED that way, but as stated here in practically every post, we never really know what it is we are up against until we actually arrive at the scene.

[Just Plain Ruff]

I agree when in doubt go L&S but when the call comes in as a injured right ankle or something like that then is LIghts and sirens warranted??

It all comes down to what information dispatch gets from the caller.

I worked for a service that would triage the call. If it was an emergency call but not determined a lifethreat, (eg chest pain, ejection, long fall, cardiac arrest etc etc etc) the closest unit would respond L&S and the farther unit would go non-emergency. Usually the differences in response times would be no more than 2-4 minutes. If the first in unit determined that it was a non-emergent patient then they would say continue non-emerg but if they needed us to upgrade we always could. I found that to be a great idea.

Any life threat call would have both units respond emergency.