Appropriateness of calling an ambulance

[eagledream]

This is a bit of a different thread and i doubt it has been done before. I work as a paramedic and was hoping to gauge when other people think it's appropriate to call 000 for an ambulance. I have worked for the ambulance service for 2 years and prior to entering this field i had a completely different opinion of what working for the ambulance service entailed. In the last 3 or 4 months i've attended patients complaining of;

-being unable to sleep (at 9pm)
- thirsty (at 3am, the lady had her bag packed ready to go to hospital, note, she didn't get a ride with us).
- paper cut
- numerous colds/coughs
- swollen fingers
- "generally feeling unwell"

I genuinely love the job i do and am grateful to be paid to do it. My pet hates though are people who call an ambulance because they think they'll be seen quicker in a hospital (not true). Our 'frequent fliers' can become frustrating at times as well. When do you think it's appropriate to call an ambulance?

 

[eagledream]

We'll go to anyone who calls an ambulance and in times past anyone who wished to go to hospital was taken. Such is the state of our public hospital systems now (and the impoved education and professionalism of the job) we can refuse to transport someone. No problems coming out to you with your bone sticking through the skin though mate

 

[Rosstickle]

-being unable to sleep (at 9pm)
- thirsty (at 3am, the lady had her bag packed ready to go to hospital, note, she didn't get a ride with us).
- paper cut
- numerous colds/coughs
- swollen fingers
- "generally feeling unwell"

WTF? Does this woman not own a tap?

Generally I'd say it would only be appropriate when you think you have something life threatening (serious chest pains, difficulty breathing, etc). If you break a bone I say just get someone to drive you down, unless it's your spine or a rib that punctured a lung.

 

[Rosstickle]

And isn't it something like $600 per call out?

 

[J-Train]

My old flatmate was a paramedic and she had heaps of stories like yours where people with very minor complaints would call 000. I think a lot of the time it was just old, lonely people looking to connect.

She used to get abused alot too and often couldn't get into houses to assist patients because friends/family members of said patient were abusive or violent due to alcohol or drug use.

She eventually took a post in the country instead, and drives the meat wagon around behind the races and attends the odd road smash, which i'd imagine would be pretty unpleasant as its 110 zones either side of the town she is based so if someone loses it, the result is normally pretty horrible.

 

[Ron]

Tonight i plan on calling an ambulance to fluff my pillows before i go to bed.

 

[J-Train]

Tonight i plan on calling an ambulance to fluff my pillows before i go to bed.

why don't you save everyone's time and just ask me to do it for you Ron?

 

[Scallop Industry Thug]

And isn't it something like $600 per call out?

Yeah those ambulance membership ads tell us we can owe 5000 or something after a call

 

[Scallop Industry Thug]

Tonight i plan on calling an ambulance to fluff my pillows before i go to bed.

Ask for tips from Tim Duncan. He had to fluff Dirk's pillows for 2 weeks

 

[eagledream]

rosstickle, i generally feel the same, even with regards to the broken bones but if someone is in legitimate pain and finds it difficult to move without aggrivating it i've got no problem coming out.

The most frustrating part is when you're out on a job like the ones i've previously mentioned and you hear a job such as "chest pain" "shortness of breath" "vehicle accident" etc etc go down in your area so now these people are waiting longer for an ambulance to arrive.

J-Train, what you've said is pretty much spot on, especially with regards to older people feeling lonely. We've got plenty of regulars who call 4 or 5 times a week because they live alone, have no family and are lonely.

I'm probably coming across as extremely pessimistic but let me re-iterate i absolutely love the job and couldn't imagine doing anything else. That doesn't mean it's not allowed to be frustrating sometimes though ;P

Rosstickle, it's actually approximately $750-800 for a callout depending on how far we take you but if you have ambulance cover ($50-60 per year for a single) you aren't charged anything.

 

[Embers]

I know a a ambo who got called to a gay couples house after he got a broomstick stuck up his pooper. My question to eagledream is do you have anything weirder than that.

Also my friend reckons about 20% of calls are people having panic attacks. Do you agree

 

[eagledream]

Embers, personally no, i don't have anything that can top that. I'm sure eventually i will though. However, i've got a colleague from another state who recently went to a female bleeding from the anus who stated that it was caused by an alien who was telepathically having sex with her...

 

[hamG]

When I was a kid I was alone and had a collapsed lung and passed out.

My mum later told me if that happens again I should call an ambulance.

She was probably right.

 

[Embers]

Embers, personally no, i don't have anything that can top that. I'm sure eventually i will though. However, i've got a colleague from another state who recently went to a female bleeding from the anus who stated that it was caused by an alien who was telepathically having sex with her...

Well what is your weirdest thing than. My friend also got called to a house after he got a fish hook stuck in his mouth and couldnt get it out. The guy refused to tell him how it got there too oddly enough

 

[eagledream]

Also my friend reckons about 20% of calls are people having panic attacks. Do you agree

nahhhhhh not 20%, it is pretty common though. The type/amount of jobs depends on the area you work in. I work in a pretty rough area so probably 30% of the work we do is mental health related.

 

[Brad Goodman]

nahhhhhh not 20%, it is pretty common though. The type/amount of jobs depends on the area you work in. I work in a pretty rough area so probably 30% of the work we do is mental health related.

Location: Adelaide

Do you service the whole metro area?

 

[Crumpler83]

Hmm I guess there are a lot of people out there who do think that getting taken to hospital by ambulance guarantees them quick entry through the emergency department, however I have a pretty sad story that shows the flipside of this and the effect these emergency room cloggers have on genuinely sick people.

A friend of my girlfriend's recently was suffering from a severe headache that was persisting for days on end. The ambulance was called, she was assessed by the paramedics on the spot and told to take a few panadol and go back to bed. She went to bed and was found unconscious by her parents a few hours later and eventually died from a brain aneurysm I believe. Poor girl was only 19 years old too

My mum has had a bit of experience working in hospitals and she believes the paramedics may have thought this girl was trying to jump the emergency room queue therefore they dismissed her symptoms as something minor. In some ways I guess these serial ambulance callers may have been responsible for making the paramedics think her case wasn't all that serious.

 

[weagles]

Location: Adelaide

Do you service the whole metro area?

 

[weagles]

I know a a ambo who got called to a gay couples house after he got a broomstick stuck up his pooper. My question to eagledream is do you have anything weirder than that.

Reminds me of this

[youtube]QhoIQPiqPiA[/youtube]

 

[Pettas]

Hmm I guess there are a lot of people out there who do think that getting taken to hospital by ambulance guarantees them quick entry through the emergency department, however I have a pretty sad story that shows the flipside of this and the effect these emergency room cloggers have on genuinely sick people.

A friend of my girlfriend's recently was suffering from a severe headache that was persisting for days on end. The ambulance was called, she was assessed by the paramedics on the spot and told to take a few panadol and go back to bed. She went to bed and was found unconscious by her parents a few hours later and eventually died from a brain aneurysm I believe. Poor girl was only 19 years old too

My mum has had a bit of experience working in hospitals and she believes the paramedics may have thought this girl was trying to jump the emergency room queue therefore they dismissed her symptoms as something minor. In some ways I guess these serial ambulance callers may have been responsible for making the paramedics think her case wasn't all that serious.

Heard about that..... friend of my friend....

Apparently a couple of weeks earlier she had a skiing accident or something and had to have fluid or blood or something drained from her head.

I would have thought if the paramedics heard she had serious head trauma a couple of weeks earlier they would have at least taken her in to make sure everything was alright.....

 

[Crumpler83]

Heard about that..... friend of my friend....

Apparently a couple of weeks earlier she had a skiing accident or something and had to have fluid or blood or something drained from her head.

I would have thought if the paramedics heard she had serious head trauma a couple of weeks earlier they would have at least taken her in to make sure everything was alright.....

Small world eh? A lot of people have heard about this one, she must have had a lot of friends.

Your point re. the paramedics is pretty spot on though, which leads to the question, were they negligent and if so what are the repercussions of paramedics making on the spot decisions that some may not be qualified to make? Is there a case to answer in the legal sense here? If I was a parent and this happened to my child I would be absolutely livid. She may have been alright if they got her into hospital in the first instance.

 

[Power King]

This is a bit of a different thread and i doubt it has been done before. I work as a paramedic and was hoping to gauge when other people think it's appropriate to call 000 for an ambulance. I have worked for the ambulance service for 2 years and prior to entering this field i had a completely different opinion of what working for the ambulance service entailed. In the last 3 or 4 months i've attended patients complaining of;

-being unable to sleep (at 9pm)
- thirsty (at 3am, the lady had her bag packed ready to go to hospital, note, she didn't get a ride with us).
- paper cut
- numerous colds/coughs
- swollen fingers
- "generally feeling unwell"

I genuinely love the job i do and am grateful to be paid to do it. My pet hates though are people who call an ambulance because they think they'll be seen quicker in a hospital (not true). Our 'frequent fliers' can become frustrating at times as well. When do you think it's appropriate to call an ambulance?

On face value, some of those things seem ridiculous.

- Being unable to sleep? If for no reasons, well then...
- Thirst? Just, no... (assuming she's at home and has a water supply)
- Paper cut? Just, no...
- Colds/coughs? It's surprising how many people out there don't really know anything about colds and coughs etc
- Swollen fingers? Depends on what may have caused it. Perhaps they were bitten by something that is potentially deadly. Perhaps it was rapid in onset and they had simultaneous symptoms such as their consciousness decreasing etc.
- Generally feeling unwell? What exactly does that involve...

It's hard to say when dialing for an ambulance is necessary, as you need to consider each case individually.

Being very general, I would say if someone's life is in danger and you think help may be needed before the time you would be able to get that person to hospital.

Freeloaders though would shit me off.

Sometimes people don't know what they've done is wrong though, in which case you should educate that person.

Hats off to paramedics by the way.

As for the sad case of the girl that died in the posts above - it would be interesting to know what questions the paramedics asked her and what information they were able to get...

 

[magic_johnson!]

you call an ambulance if you really need to go to the hospital and you can't get there without an ambulance.
RE: that 19yo girl... Couldn't her parents take her to the hospital?

 

[eagledream]

RE: Crumpler, thats an extremely sad and unfortunate scenario. I'd love to have been a fly on the wall to see how the patient presented at the time, what questions were asked and what responses were given.
How long ago did this happen? The profession has developed alot in the past 5-7 years so you would expect a more thorough assessment and subsequent transport to hospital.
I'd imagine that the paramedics would have a case to answer for if in fact they have determined that she didn't need to go to hospital and the patient has subsequently died. It's one of those jobs that 99 times out of 100 it seems like your average headache but there's always that 1 that catches you out.
Case in point, 2 weeks ago we were called to a nightclub for an assault. This is an extremely common occurance for a Saturday night. We were met with the typical beligerant obnoxious behaviour by a guy who'd had a few to many, got into a blue and been punched. He said he didn't want to come with us, he was fine, yadda yadda, even though at one stage he'd supposedly lost consciousness (prior to us arriving). We eventually managed to persuade him to come to hospital and he was later diagnosed with a fractured skull and an intracranial bleed. Had we not persuaded him to come he might've gone home to sleep and never woken up. You just never, ever know how serious something might be.

 

[Simon_Nesbit]

I've called an ambulance four times in my life.

1. Neighbour (elderly) had a stroke, and was convulsing on the floor. They didn't have a phone. He survived, but had another a few weeks later and passed away. The ambulance took nearly an hour to arrive - by which time he had regained some form of consciousness.

2. Coaching junior cricket, a kid got hit in the head from a beamer (no helmet) and was out cold. I was 15 and didn't know any better, but at least he got checked out, though they didn't come for an hour - and he was lying down under an umbrella asleep (oops!) when they did get there.

3. Was doing some minor renovations (replacing a door frame), including an existing light switch. It was dark in the room, so I grabbed the light switch and flicked it on(touching both sides behind the panel). I was thrown accross the room, my left arm was numb, and I'd got really cold. Luckily had my mobile, called 000 ordered the ambulance.

By the time they arrived 45 minutes later I'd regained feeling (still no strength but could move it), and was very light-headed.

They took me in, although it was another 2 hours or so before I was checked out, and another couple before they put a machine on me - a slight disruption in my heartbeat which came right over 24 hours or so.

One of the doctors went ape-shit when he found out it was nearly 4 hours from when I'd been shocked until they put the machine on me.

And the final time was when my son was having siginifcant trouble breathing for no apparent reason....in the end I agreed to bring him in as the nearest ambulance was 30 minutes away.

...so yeah, I'm not real impressed with how the service works.