Ambulance gets into a accident?

[traumaluv2011]

Alright so I had a thought today. What if you're driving a patient to the hospital and you hit a car. The ambulance barely gets any impact and you're crew and the patient are all fine, but the person you hit had rolled over or has some other severe MOI. What is the correct way to go about this? Assuming you can still drive the ambulance. And what if your patient is stable? Unstable? So there's two scenarios in here.

What would you do in those two scenarios?

I personally would call for mutual aid and transport the unstable patient.

Maybe for a stable patient, go and evaluate the accident, take pictures if possible (for the police). If you have an extra crew member maybe they could stay behind and hold c-spine on the patient until further help arrives.

This just seems like a gray area judgement call.

 

[Handsome Robb]

Do not pass go, do not accept $200, go straight to jail. You just "fled" from the scene of an accident my friend. You call for backup/mutual aid, and assess the other parties involved providing you are competent and alert enough to do so. Maintain everyone including the pt you were transporting to the best of your abilities.

Ambulances are exempt from some traffic laws, not all.

Just my thoughts on it and my protocols. If you've been in an accident, fender-bender or more severe, your unit is 10-7 with or without a patient onboard.

 

[VCEMT]

In your scenario, I'd be kissing my job goodbye. I drive with due regard, sir. I never hit another vehicle, unless I am punching one with my fists of fury.

If I were to get hit by another vehicle, while transporting. I'd notify FCC and request an additional ALS and/or BLS unit and fire. My rig may have a scratch, however, my supervisors would consider my rig out-of-service. The pt. would be transfered to another unit.

Well, since I have still alarmed a collision and I am alright. Grab triage tags, it is an MCI. Time to check my partner and the pt. How's my partner? How's the pt? What injuries have the other vehicle's occupants sustained?

 

[looker]

If you worked for me and left an accident scene you could consider your self fired. Not only that but I would personally report you to state/county ems.

 

[ArcticKat]

Indeed, call for ambulances to transport your patient and anyone in the car who needs one and render aid as best you can. Do not leave the scene until cleared to do so by the police and your supervisor.

There is only one scenario here, you new situation trumps whatever condition your patient is in.

 

[Tigger]

Alright so I had a thought today. What if you're driving a patient to the hospital and you hit a car. The ambulance barely gets any impact and you're crew and the patient are all fine, but the person you hit had rolled over or has some other severe MOI. What is the correct way to go about this? Assuming you can still drive the ambulance. And what if your patient is stable? Unstable? So there's two scenarios in here.

What would you do in those two scenarios?

I personally would call for mutual aid and transport the unstable patient.

Maybe for a stable patient, go and evaluate the accident, take pictures if possible (for the police). If you have an extra crew member maybe they could stay behind and hold c-spine on the patient until further help arrives.

This just seems like a gray area judgement call.

The only difference between a car hitting your ambulance and you hitting a car with your ambulance is that the latter will probably see you being terminated immediate, especially with a patient on-board.

Beyond that, the situation is the same. Stay where you are. At no point is it ever a good idea to leave the scene of an accident unless you feel that you are in imminent danger. Call for more ambulances, a supervisor, and the police. As stated above, an ambulance involved in an MVC should be taken out of service. Ideally, the driver of the damaged ambulance should asses the occupants of the other vehicle and render care as appropriate. The tech, barring any untoward circumstances, should not leave his patient or the ambulance. Getting into an MVC does not relieve you of your responsibilities to your original patient until another unit assumes care and transports, no matter how stable you feel they are, or how serious the "MOI" of the other car is.

 

[Handsome Robb]

At no point is it ever a good idea to leave the scene of an accident unless you feel that you are in imminent danger.

Even then, move your rig out of imminent danger and park it. Stay on scene. Do not leave.

NRS 484.219 Duty to stop at scene of accident involving death or personal injury; penalty.

1. The driver of any vehicle involved in an accident on a highway or on premises to which the public has access resulting in bodily injury to or the death of a person shall immediately stop his vehicle at the scene of the accident or as close thereto as possible, and shall forthwith return to and in every event shall remain at the scene of the accident until he has fulfilled the requirements of NRS 484.223.

2. Every such stop must be made without obstructing traffic more than is necessary.

3. A person failing to comply with the provisions of subsection 1 is guilty of a category B felony and shall be punished by imprisonment in the state prison for a minimum term of not less than 2 years and a maximum term of not more than 15 years and by a fine of not less than $2,000 nor more than $5,000.

NRS 484E.020 Duty to stop at scene of accident involving damage to vehicle or property.

The driver of any vehicle involved in an accident resulting only in damage to a vehicle or other property which is driven or attended by any person shall:
1. Immediately stop his or her vehicle at the scene of the accident; and
2. As soon as reasonably practicable, if the driver:censored::censored::censored:8217;s vehicle is obstructing traffic and can be moved safely, move the vehicle or cause the vehicle to be moved to a location as close thereto as possible that does not obstruct traffic and return to and remain at the scene of the accident until the driver has fulfilled the requirements of NRS 484E.030.

Those are Nevada laws, just an example.

 

[DesertMedic66]

Any time our ambulance makes contact with anything we go out of service even if it's a CPR in progress. If it's another vehicle that hit us/we hit then we will call in for another unit to take over the transport. If it's a light pole or something that is not a human/vehicle then we must stop transport, call the supervisor, assess the damage and let the supervisor decide if we may finish the transport or if we need to call in for another unit.

 

[Tigger]

Even then, move your rig out of imminent danger and park it. Stay on scene. Do not leave.

With possible caveat of a crazy person with a weapon in the other vehicle.

In all serious though, this is not a scenario that should be played around with, the company or agency needs to have a written policy regarding company vehicle MVCs.


Sent from my out of area communications device.

 

[traumaluv2011]

Just to clarify with everyone, I'm not a driver so you don't have to worry. And I won't be for another 2 years. I also just got certified last month. I'm sure they probably go over something like that in whatever emergency driver training or what not. And I knew that fleeing from an accident is against the law, but I didn't know if an ambulance with a patient had any exception.

So now I will know what to do in case that should ever happen. I drive cars for a living anyway, I've never been in an accident *knock on wood* and I have a ridiculously clean driving and criminal record.

 

[rmabrey]

Everyone(large majority anyway) eventually hits something, That said never leave the scene of an accident, no matter what condition the Pt is in

 

[AlphaButch]

Alright so I had a thought today. What if you're driving a patient to the hospital and you hit a car. The ambulance barely gets any impact and you're crew and the patient are all fine, but the person you hit had rolled over or has some other severe MOI. What is the correct way to go about this? Assuming you can still drive the ambulance. And what if your patient is stable? Unstable? So there's two scenarios in here.

What would you do in those two scenarios?

I personally would call for mutual aid and transport the unstable patient.

Maybe for a stable patient, go and evaluate the accident, take pictures if possible (for the police). If you have an extra crew member maybe they could stay behind and hold c-spine on the patient until further help arrives.

This just seems like a gray area judgement call.

At my service, no one's leaving in that ambulance. It's considered out of service until it's inspected by our mechanic. Also not allowed to touch anything unless necessary for patient care (this goes for any MVC) until cleared to do so by police or on-scene supervision. Either another truck will come for a patient transfer or arriving 911 will take them. The crew involved in the accident will be coming back to station for some paperwork, testing and evaluation (after the police and on-scene supervisor permit them to leave). They will most likely pulled from the field until cleared by the state and city EMS depts pending the accident investigation - so they'll either make themselves real handy around the station or go on unpaid leave until it's resolved.

 

[jamesm]

I was looking around and found what happens In Queensland Australia

Should an accident occur whilst proceeding on code 1 responce to an incident, an only minor damage has been sustained whitch dose not reduce the vehicle's operational capacity and no person has been injured, the ambulance may continue on the initial response only after:

a. the chicle has stopped and the driver has exchanges all relevant details with other parties
b. the officer has received approval from Communication Centre to continue; and
c. Motor vehicle accident reporting procedure are applied as contained in the Chicle accidents policy

To find this it's located on The Department of Community Safety's website
http://www.communitysafety.qld.gov.au/CRTI/PDF/Vehicle_Code_of_Practice.pdf