Providing your own ER transport vs calling an ambulance

[KnitWit]

I wanted to mention this separately because I don't want to appear that I am scolding RoughCollie for her call on this, but it is not usually best to provide your own transport even if you think you can drive faster because there are life-saving methods that an EMT crew can apply en route that may make all the difference in the world. Sometimes, every second counts when it comes to meds and treatments. Even if not a matter of life and death, again, things can be started in route that minimize permanent damage.

 

I want to stress that I am NOT making a judgment on RoughCollie's decision for *her* situation about which I know *no* details such as distance, etc. I have relatives who work this job and have heard sad stories of things that could have been avoided had people not chosen to self-transport. I think that in emergency situations, it is natural think of "getting there fast" rather than "getting HELP fast". Calling 911 gets you *help* fast.

 

Okay, that is my unsolicited public service advice for the year. :)

[texasmama]

Ambulance transport can be very expensive, and some people do not have the resources to afford this. In an emergency, of course it is best to call 911, but I would be hard-pressed to call 911 for someone, as I have a hospital located 5 minutes down the road from my home. It would need to be a situation with someone not breathing or having had a limb cut off or having fallen off the roof (and danger existing in moving the person). Otherwise, I would do my best to quickly drive someone to the ER.

[Parrothead]

I've got to say it depends on where one lives. I do believe if one is 30 minutes or more from the closest hospital it might be best to start heading toward the hospital.

 

I've backed up plenty of traffic to get a patient from his POV into the ambulance when the two met on the highway.

 

Each situation is different. Sometimes the best thing to do is to go against the norm.

[KnitWit]

That is why I mentioned *location*. The situation just prompted something I have heard over and over. It is the mindset of getting quickly to the help and not realizing that in most cases, help can get to you more quickly.

 

And, of course, I'm mostly referring to life/death, serious situations in question.

 

My post is *less* about RoughCollie and more about just mentioning the way we tend to think in emergencies. :)

[cathmom]

texasmama is right - years ago my dh had a kidney stone. He worked for a hospital but at an off-site location, still probably less than 2 miles away. He was in intense pain and had no idea what it was. I **wish** someone had driven him, but instead they called an ambulance. The EMT figured it was probably a kidney stone but wasn't able to do anything en route. Plus, they waited for the ambulance to arrive, by which point my dh could have already been there.

 

Then several weeks later, we got a bill for over $400 - a significant portion of our income at the time. Most expensive 2 miles EVER. :)

 

Now when I was bleeding out after a miscarriage a half hour away from the hospital? Yes, my dh called 911.

[Dana]

I didn't even think of calling an ambulance when my son had his anaphylactic reaction. My husband was driving us to the ER and I was in the back. I ended up injecting the Epi-pen on the drive.

 

It wasn't until we were admitted and told to call an ambulance next time that it even entered my mind that it was an option.

 

So the reminder is definitely good.

(in our defense, we weren't certain an allergic reaction was happening and were headed to hang out in the ER parking lot while we figured things out.)

[Parrothead]

That is why I mentioned *location*. The situation just prompted something I have heard over and over. It is the mindset of getting quickly to the help and not realizing that in most cases, help can get to you more quickly.

 

And, of course, I'm mostly referring to life/death, serious situations in question.

 

My post is *less* about RoughCollie and more about just mentioning the way we tend to think in emergencies. :)

I'll agree, most of the time one will get care faster if one simply waits for the ambulance. In my case I'm on the same road and in the direction the ambulance would have to come to get me to the hospital. Ask me how many times a day I hear the sirens and see an ambulance and fire truck scream past the house.

 

But in other cases it simply is easier and faster if a patient is ambulatory to take them in to the ER in a POV. Common sense must be used.

[m0mmaBuck]

I think your location, medical situation, and finances all come into play. Another thing to keep in mind when making the decision to call or to drive is that ER's prioritize the people who come in on the ambulance meaning those who drive themselves may spend hours sitting in the waiting room while those who arrive by ambulance get taken back to the triage/treatment areas upon arrival.

[KnitWit]

I think your location, medical situation, and finances all come into play. Another thing to keep in mind when making the decision to call or to drive is that ER's prioritize the people who come in on the ambulance meaning those who drive themselves may spend hours sitting in the waiting room while those who arrive by ambulance get taken back to the triage/treatment areas upon arrival.

 

Yes! Thanks! That was the other thing I was trying to remember!

[athena1277]

I think your location, medical situation, and finances all come into play. Another thing to keep in mind when making the decision to call or to drive is that ER's prioritize the people who come in on the ambulance meaning those who drive themselves may spend hours sitting in the waiting room while those who arrive by ambulance get taken back to the triage/treatment areas upon arrival.

 

Not trying to disagree, but is this always true? I seem to remember someone saying that sometimes people who could have been taken to the hospital without an ambulance insist on the ambulance, but are then made to wait like anyone else. Does that really happen? :confused:

[Parrothead]

I think your location, medical situation, and finances all come into play. Another thing to keep in mind when making the decision to call or to drive is that ER's prioritize the people who come in on the ambulance meaning those who drive themselves may spend hours sitting in the waiting room while those who arrive by ambulance get taken back to the triage/treatment areas upon arrival.

This triggered a memory.

 

I was probably bored and nosy when the dispatcher send an EMS crew to a certain house. I got there just behind EMS. A very dignified older (should I specify southern) lady came out the the house, handbag on her arm and in her Sunday best. She walked to the ambulance where the medic opened the back door and helped her in.

 

I double checked the house to make sure it was locked (as if she wouldn't have locked up before she left ;)) then went about my business. A while later I met up with the same crew and asked what that call was about. Seems that particular lady used the EMS system as chauffeur service.

 

The same crew brought her back home about 7 hours later. She'd waited several hours for the doc to see her.

[cathmom]

Not trying to disagree, but is this always true? I seem to remember someone saying that sometimes people who could have been taken to the hospital without an ambulance insist on the ambulance, but are then made to wait like anyone else. Does that really happen? :confused:

 

After several ER visits, I concluded that they treat you like you're already dead unless you are actually dying and then they see you right away. :D

[stephanier.1765]

I think your location, medical situation, and finances all come into play. Another thing to keep in mind when making the decision to call or to drive is that ER's prioritize the people who come in on the ambulance meaning those who drive themselves may spend hours sitting in the waiting room while those who arrive by ambulance get taken back to the triage/treatment areas upon arrival.

 

That's what I've found too. We thought my dh has having a stroke (it turned out to be Bells Palsey) so I drove him to the ER. Even though the drive was only 15 minutes, we waited in the ER for 4 hours before even seeing the person doing the admitting (triage nurse). It took a lot of complaining and begging by me for them to even see him in that time. Ridiculous! So now we call 911 in any situations like that one.

[OnTheBrink]

I think your location, medical situation, and finances all come into play. Another thing to keep in mind when making the decision to call or to drive is that ER's prioritize the people who come in on the ambulance meaning those who drive themselves may spend hours sitting in the waiting room while those who arrive by ambulance get taken back to the triage/treatment areas upon arrival.

 

ER's prioritize based on injury/illness, not how you arrived at the hospital. The EMT alerts the hospital while en route whether they're bringing in an emergent, urgent, or non-urgent patient. If you arrive at the hospital via ambulance with a broken finger, you're going to be waiting hours. LOL

[elegantlion]

We are now five minutes from a hospital since our move last fall. The seriousness of the situation would determine whether we would call an ambulance. I know if I'm conscious I'd rather go by car.

 

Dh has an incident that required an ambulance about a year ago. He wasn't at home and needed an ambulance. $1200.00, ouch. The ambulance cost more than the entire rest of his visit combined, including a cat scan.

[Sandy in Indy]

I do think *some* weight is given to your method of arrival. I had to take dh to the ER on his doc's orders several years ago, and a man was sitting there with chest pain/possible heart attack. He'd driven himself in and been waiting **8 hours.** (And the ER didn't appear to be overflowing or anything!) DH's doc had made arrangements for him and we whisked right into a bed--I almost felt that we should have given it to the other man! (DH wasn't in pain or trouble at the moment but he did have a heart cath the next day followed by a triple by-pass the day after that.)

 

In the long run, I'd rather pay the bill than wonder if my loved one would have been better off in the ambulance.

[Starr]

It's a sad state of affairs when we have to make medical decisions based on how much it will cost. :(

[asta]

DS drank a bottle of Tylenol once upon a time (he was 2 & figured out the chair, the cabinet, the cap...). We called poison control and headed to the ER. Poison control called the ER and they were waiting for us.

 

So I think that sometimes there can be a balance: "Hey - we're having this emergency and we're heading out NOW. Can you tell County General we're on our way?"

 

Or do they not do that any longer?

 

 

a

[Country Mouse]

Seems that particular lady used the EMS system as chauffeur service.

 

The same crew brought her back home about 7 hours later. She'd waited several hours for the doc to see her.

 

This happens all.the.time.

 

You would be shocked to know what some people call 911 for.

[Pax]

I can remember arguing with the 911 folks when my husband called them 4 years ago. I was 7 months pregnant and hemorrhaging but was certain I didn't need an ambulance. In my mind, if I needed an ambulance, that meant there was something seriously wrong with my daughter (which we already knew there was). I talked them out of coming to pick me up even though I was laying in a pool of blood. I passed out on the 10 minute car ride there and almost died.

 

It is extremely odd how our brain works in an emergency.

[Pax]

DS drank a bottle of Tylenol once upon a time (he was 2 & figured out the chair, the cabinet, the cap...). We called poison control and headed to the ER. Poison control called the ER and they were waiting for us.

 

So I think that sometimes there can be a balance: "Hey - we're having this emergency and we're heading out NOW. Can you tell County General we're on our way?"

 

Or do they not do that any longer?

 

 

a

 

We also had this experience when we called our doctor's office during the day about something. They instructed us to go straight to the ER and the ER was ready for us.

[FaithManor]

It is going to depend on your state and ER. In Michigan, calls are run two ways, ALS and Basic. Basic transports are not potentially life threatening and the patient is stable. These patients will go through the triage system of the ER the same way everyone else does. If others have arrived ahead of you, and you are not in bad shape, patients in worse condition will be taken ahead and you will wait and that is especially true if the ER is busy. Also, some states do not have very good training programs for their medics and so your medical assistance can be limited. Michigan medics are considered "field doctors" and they are taught many, many life saving procedures plus they diagnose and medicate for life threatening conditions. As a result, Michigan is eliminating their reciprocal licensing agreement with other states because they get too many medics from other regions whose only training beyond EMT is to start I.V.'s and intubate and they don't have enough pediatric training to begin with. Florida, California, Washington, and New York are four states that come to mind that have excellent medic programs and training on par with Michigan.

 

If you are taken ALS, then as a general rule, you will be treated immediately unless there has been something tragic occur on a large scale. If the ER is dealing with multiple life threatening injuries from say a pile-up on the freeway, heart attacks, etc. then they'll be calling staff from other floors, but you may have a wait because there just simply aren't enough hands. The situation in Joplin comes to mind. Fires in large complexes with large numbers of individuals with burns, cardiac and lung complications from smoke inhalation, etc. These don't happen every day, but they do happen.

 

Paramedics do have a lot of pull in the triage department. However, you should never expect your paramedic to try to get you ahead of someone else in greater need. They are medical professionals with more triage training than B.S.N's even, and they will access the situation appropriately. DD recently had a patient with a pinched nerve in the back...too much pain to walk, much less drive, and definitely needed medical attention and pain meds. However, that is not life threatening. He was run basic, but since the back pain was clearly not resulting from a spinal injury and though she did begin an IV and morphone drip, he was not taken back to be seen immediately because the ER was dealing with a pediatric grand mal seizure, a major heart attack victim, and a police officer with a gun shot wound. Her patient was absolutely FURIOUS that he didn't get taken back immediately because he assumed coming by ambulance meant he got to go first. Sorry sir, the seizing three year old showing signs of serious neurological damage, the guy intubated, bagged, and still no heart beat, and the police officer needing blood, all must be treated first in order to hopefully save lives. Your back injury is not killing you!

 

So, don't assume that going by ambulance makes you first. But, when things are busy, if you are in a serious state, a paramedic is your best friend. He/she will treat you and see to it you are treated promptly or remain with you in the ER continuing treatment while he/she waits for a doctor to free up. If your condition calls for it, your paramedic will not leave you. But, you will be go through the triage protocol both enroute and in the ER.

 

In urban areas, unless the hospital is very, very close, it is usually best to call the ambulance because of traffic concerns. They can navigate areas your driver might otherwise be just sitting in and waiting for a chance to turn, etc. If there is any chance of neck or vetebraic injury, definitely you need a back board. It is not safe to deliver a baby in a moving vehicle, if labor is moving very rapidly, you need to call. If the patient is unresponsive, not breathing, etc. call 911. Dispatchers are trained medical personnel and they can talk the caller through CPR, controlling bleeding, clearing an airway, etc. none of which can be done while driving a car.

 

But, if you are rural and the patient is ambulatory without back injury or broken leg that needs to be mobilized, then you might do well to call 911 and tell them you are transporting the patient. This lets them know you are heading out yourself and if the situation were to worsen, you might need to have an ambulance along your route to pick up transport from there - they will notify both police and ambulances along your route to look for someone running with their flashers on and possibly in need of assistance before reaching the ER. Our local EMS will even meet you at specified corners, parking lots, etc. if their ETA is not good to your home and meeting halfway is the best solution for saving someone's life. Check with your EMS to see what their regulations are on that subject.

 

We live 50 minutes from the nearest trauma center, but 6 minutes from a little ER with an attending physician and pediatric crash carts. So, often the best solution is to meet at the hospital, have the doctor stablize the patient if possible and then have medics transport by ambulance or call for the helicopter.

 

Every family should learn more about their EMS before they need it. Some communities really value their EMS and they fund it through their taxes so that the ambulance company is not totatlly dependent on insurance pay outs and going under from uninsured patients. Our area does this - your bill is covered if you don't have insurance. There is tax money, government grants, and private donors who pay for that. Other areas do not fund their EMS's to any major degree, refuse millage for upgrading services, etc. This leaves the company running only a few rigs, some of whom will be EMT/EMT only which means their ability to treat you is limited, and only have a few stations/staging areas in which case, you've got a long wait time if you call.

 

Faith, whose dd is almost done with her externship and is studying for her paramedic licensing exams.

[Twilight Woods]

I think your location, medical situation, and finances all come into play. Another thing to keep in mind when making the decision to call or to drive is that ER's prioritize the people who come in on the ambulance meaning those who drive themselves may spend hours sitting in the waiting room while those who arrive by ambulance get taken back to the triage/treatment areas upon arrival.

 

not always true. Patient's that are walk-in are taken back based on severity of symptoms. So if you come in with a headache [not acute no other life threatening issues] yes you will wait longer compared to someone who has walk in with possible TIA symptoms.

 

on the flip side,

 

If you come in by ambulance b/c your back hurts you could very well end up in the waiting room after seeing a triage nurse. Again severity of symptoms.

[Parrothead]

This happens all.the.time.

 

You would be shocked to know what some people call 911 for.

I used to be LE and a firefighter, so no, *I* wouldn't.

[Twilight Woods]

This happens all.the.time.

 

You would be shocked to know what some people call 911 for.

 

:iagree:

 

or the "customers" who automatically say "Im having chest pains" so they can be brought back right away.

[Parrothead]

 

It is extremely odd how our brain works in an emergency.

I've another story for that involving fire. But it is long. Suffice it to say that as a firefighter I'm great putting out someone else's mess. My own fires tend to make me loose my mind and my training. :lol:

[sunshine_librarian]

I also understand that those who are transported by ambulance get treated before walk-ins to the ER. So you really wouldn't save time driving, since you'd then have your standard ER wait instead being treated right away.

 

ETA: Maybe the hospitals in my area are particularly lacking though. Every time I have been sent to our ER for myself or family we either wait hours or decide our physician must have overreacted by sending us there and go home because we can't even get triaged after hours of waiting. The only two exceptions I had were the one time I was transported by ambulance less then 1/4 mile to the ER after a biking accident and was treated right away and the time I insisted on driving 45 minutes to the Children's Hospital for our 4 week old (at the time) ds (I only had to wait 1/2 hour there and as soon as we were triaged he was admitted).

Edited May 27, 2011 by sunshine_librarian
Read some of the other responses

[dirty ethel rackham]

It depends on where you are and what the situation is. I can get to a hospital in less time than it would take for an ambulance could get to my house. I live within waking distance to the closest ER, but the closest source of an ambulance is 3 miles away. Plus, the ambulance has a specified route they must use to get to the ER, which is longer than the way I can get there. If I needed to provide CPR or to control bleeding and didn't have another person to do the driving, waiting for an ambulance would be better. In the stroke situation, I could be at the ER before a 911 operator would finish her triage questions and decide to send one.

[mazakaal]

And you also have to consider whether it is a wise use of emergency services. When I was bleeding extremely heavily after a miscarriage, I was told that I was probably better off having a friend drive me to the hospital to leave the ambulance for someone who might be more in need of it than me.

[FaithManor]

Sunshine librarian,

 

Again, being transported by ambulance does NOT put you automatically ahead of the other patients. Not only do the medics triage their patient by symptoms and medical history before arriving and call that information in, but you will be met by a triage nurse as well. The triage nurse and medic will confer about your condition. If you were not a priority 1 transport/ALS, you do not get moved to the head of the line automatically. The most severe case in the ER is treated first and down the line to the guy with the stubbed toe that called the ambulance and demanded transport because he had good insurance and thought, "Why drive when I can be carried?"

 

Triage, triage, triage...that's the name of the game.

 

Faith

[G5052]

We've unfortunately had a lot of experience. It helps that I'm a former EMT, but I've been fine driving for all but the suspected heart attack and cases where the person could not move. When we were dealing with post-surgical problem that rendered the person immobile and that I knew would require hospitalization, I called a private ambulance because the surgeon was an hour away and calling 911 would have sent us to the local hospital and then a long wait to go to the regional hospital where the surgical team was.

 

In my experience, asking the 911 operator what to do can be a big help if you are unsure. In our area at least, there are cases where they will note your route and tell you to go ahead and drive them in if you have a cell phone.

[EKS]

There are a few reasons to call 911 rather than drive yourself (or your family member) to the ER. The medics can give life saving treatment on the spot and on the way, if necessary. But another equally important reason-- which a lot of people are unaware of--is if you arrive in an ambulance, most of the time you will be seen in the ER right away.

 

ETA: My perspective might be a bit skewed. We live in an area where the closest hospital is 45 minutes by ambulance away, and the closest *good* hospital is a ferry ride away and takes almost twice as long. Even if a patient is transported by helicopter, it still takes quite a while to package them up and get them to the helicopter. So the presence of a medic or EMT becomes more necessary. In contrast, the EMS folks can usually be here within a few minutes.

Edited May 27, 2011 by EKS

[justamouse]

My hosp is less than a mile away. I could ahve them in the ER faster than it would take the rig to get to me.

[twoforjoy]

Ambulance transport can be very expensive, and some people do not have the resources to afford this. In an emergency, of course it is best to call 911, but I would be hard-pressed to call 911 for someone, as I have a hospital located 5 minutes down the road from my home. It would need to be a situation with someone not breathing or having had a limb cut off or having fallen off the roof (and danger existing in moving the person). Otherwise, I would do my best to quickly drive someone to the ER.

 

Same situation here. We are a five-minute (or less) drive from two major hospitals. Unless it was a situation like you describe, where it would be dangerous to move a person or they needed immediate assistance, it would make more sense for us to drive over.

 

I had a situation once where a woman passed out in front of my house. I called 911 to get an ambulance over for her. They were aware she was breathing and conscious when I called, and it took over 40 minutes for an ambulance to arrive (I live in a major city, if that makes a difference). It would have been faster to have driven her over. My husband once had a student have a seizure in one of his classes. He called 911 and it took 20 minutes for an ambulance to arrive, even though the campus is literally blocks away from a major hospital. In that case, too, driving would have been much faster.

 

It's my understanding that, in a situation where medical attention is needed immediately, they do get an ambulance out to you quickly. But, since we have a pretty underfunded system providing services to the entire city, if you are not deemed as having immediate need, you often have to wait quite a bit to get an ambulance. So, in my situation, it would be much faster to drive to the hospital, or even to call my husband from work and have him drive home and drive us over (which would take about 10 minutes total), than to call 911 and wait, unless it were an extremely serious situation where care was needed right at that moment.

[flopsymopsy]

Well, it is a hard decision. I took my dd to a doctor's appt(she had been seen 3 days before) because she was ill. Her oxygen levels were considered too low. She sounded awful with congestion but was not struggling to breath. The doctor called the hospital and spoke to pediatric specialist and he instructed that she be brought in immediately. I truly did not feel it was necessary but was taken off guard and did not want to go against medical advice. They called an ambulance she was transported to the hospital(needed no supportive care and no sirens for the trip there). We sat another 3 hours in the ER until her doctor called to check on her. After hearing we had been sitting in the ER, she pushed for admit. She did have pneumonia and a 3 day hospital stay BUT really did not have any major supportive care(if I left against medical advice insurance would not cover it). She could have been driven to the hospital and she could have been treated at home with close follow up. My other daughter came down sick 8 weeks later.....pneumonia and I was insistant that she be treated at home. She had a worse case. Yes, we went to the doctor everyday, yes she had some painful antibiotics shots but she recovered in the comfort of her home without the huge medical bill. My opinion on hospital specialists are not very high. They treat based on protocal and not the individual patient. That's what I have experienced anyway!

[Country Mouse]

I used to be LE and a firefighter, so no, *I* wouldn't.

 

LOL, okay, but I am still shocked at what some people call 911 for :001_smile:.

[amy g.]

My dad was dehydrated, and his body was beginning to shut down. His doctor said that an ambulance would be paid for by insurance, but would have to take him to the closest hospital.

 

He needed to be taken to MD Anderson where they had his records and specialists who understood the experimental drugs he was taking. It took us 2 hours to get him in the car, but the ER doctor agreed that making the choice to not call an ambulance saved his life.

 

Every situation is different.

[kwickimom]

I would be at the hospital before an ambulance could get to me. Of course if I was having to give CPR or something and I was alone I would call an ambulance.

[RoughCollie]

We live 20 minutes from the hospital. It takes an ambulance 20-30 minutes to get here, 15 minute to stabilize and load the patient, and 20 minutes to get to the hospital.

 

So I saved 40 minutes by taking DH to the hospital myself. He was wobbly, but he could walk. If he had not been able to walk to the car, I would have had to call the ambulance. He was also Totally Against my calling the ambulance, even though I thought he would be seen sooner if he arrived in style. (He was seen immediately, especially since he had had a stroke a month ago.) It was free, btw, b/c we subscribe to the service each year. He also has very good health insurance.

 

When I called an ambulance when my femoral artery was bleeding after I had surgery, the ambulance's GPS broke and they got lost, and then stopped by a train. They arrived a good 45 minutes after I called them. Another ambulance company heard over the scanner (I guess) that they were lost, and a paramedic came out to take care of me, and then rode in the ambulance with me. The ambulance company's EMT drove his car to the ER for him.

Edited May 27, 2011 by RoughCollie

[KnitWit]

Yes, I'm sorry, I should have clarified better. Calling an ambulance does not guarantee that you are seen first. What is DOES do is get the assessment over *en route*, so by the time you get there, if you are a TRUE emergency, you will be seen rather than getting in line for a triage nurse.

 

I didn't mean to give the impression that the mode of arrival would give you first priority. Also, *of course* there are situations that you can determine are not necessarily needing 911. But heart attack and stroke symptoms are misleading.

 

We experienced this in our own family when my father thought he had heartburn. He wanted Rolaids and someone to drive him in *just in case* it wasn't heartburn. THANK GOD the people he was with called 911. He was having a MASSIVE heartattack! He had 100% blockage. The treatment that he rec'd on a VERY short ambulance ride not only saved his life, but also left him without the damage that he could have had after surviving this! He was in surgery within 30 min. of arriving at the ER.

 

I understand the expense when you have crappy or no insurance, but an ambulance ride is cheaper than long term ICU care, occupational therapy due to permanent damage, or...God forbid...a funeral. :grouphug:

[fhjmom]

I live about 2 minutes from a regional medical center. The nearest fire station with ambulance dispatch is at least 8 minutes away, assuming that station's crew is not out on another call. The next closest are more like 10-15 minutes, and these are just drive times, which would not include dispatch and loading time.

 

I have a background in sports medicine and have been trained to triage. Unless it is unsafe to move a person without medical support or the person cannot be moved b/c they are unconscious, we are driving to the ER.

 

Also in my experience, our ER is very good about triage. The time I had to transport DS (about 2 YO at the time) with severe croup (strider to the point of not being able to get enough oxygen and lips starting to turn blue), I carried him in, the nurse slid open the window, took one look at DS, and opened the door and had us in a room, with a doctor present, in under 2 minutes. We were in an ER treatment room being evaluated in about the same time it would have taken to connect the call then explain the situation to a 911 operator, and for him/her to even start dispatch.

 

I do think it is a good reminder though for people to think through which would be the best response in different scenarios depending on their own circumstances.

[Lara in Colo]

Another point about ambulances is that they will take you to the nearest hospital. There are several hospitals in this town I would literally have to be passed out to be admitted to. I would rather drive further to get better care.

[lionfamily1999]

This has probably been said already, but ...

 

Not everyone lives in such an area that ambulance transport would be a viable option. Not just because it will take them longer to reach the hospital, the half hour wait time for them to arrive can be catastrophic.

 

I think there should be a pa reminding folks that we don't all live in the same areas with the same advantages.

[DarlaS]

Ambulance transport can be very expensive, and some people do not have the resources to afford this. In an emergency, of course it is best to call 911, but I would be hard-pressed to call 911 for someone, as I have a hospital located 5 minutes down the road from my home. It would need to be a situation with someone not breathing or having had a limb cut off or having fallen off the roof (and danger existing in moving the person). Otherwise, I would do my best to quickly drive someone to the ER.

 

 

:iagree:

 

Someone freaked out and dialed 911 last fall when my ds started feeling light-headed in his history class at the community college.

 

The discussion had been a little graphic, he's a tad sensitive (:svengo:) and even though he kept telling them he was all right, an ambulance took him to the hospital on campus. He could have walked there. Our insurance was billed over $500. Kiddo just needed a little air...

[DarlaS]

I think there should be a pa reminding folks that we don't all live in the same areas with the same advantages.

 

 

 

:iagree::iagree::iagree:

 

I love this.

[fhjmom]

I will add a very valid reason to justify the ambulance call:

 

If there is a chance a person will be needing specialized treatment, the emergency responders will have information from the hospital on where is the best place to transport.

 

When I was working as an athletic trainer, we had a football player have delayed symptoms from a concussion and we had to transport him by ambulance. Even though we were minutes from the regional medical center, the regional hospital referred him to a larger trauma center about 30 minutes away. Due to possibly neurological involvement, they did not have the staff and equipment available at the larger trauma center to treat him. The ambulance drove right past our regional hospital on the way to the trauma center.

[LizzyBee]

Where I live (very rural), we can be at the hospital before an ambulance would even get to our house.

[Punks in Ontario]

Generally from our rural home, driving is quicker. The only times we've called an ambulance has been when it was 1. a stranger, or 2. when transportation was impractical (200 lb dh in back spasms upstairs;hemmorrhaging adult). There are times and places for both.

[KnitWit]

I think there should be a pa reminding folks that we don't all live in the same areas with the same advantages.

 

Wow. Must everything on this board be turned into something negative? Of COURSE we don't and OF COURSE situations will be different.

 

Of course.

:confused:

[Audrey]

I wanted to mention this separately because I don't want to appear that I am scolding RoughCollie for her call on this, but it is not usually best to provide your own transport even if you think you can drive faster because there are life-saving methods that an EMT crew can apply en route that may make all the difference in the world. Sometimes, every second counts when it comes to meds and treatments. Even if not a matter of life and death, again, things can be started in route that minimize permanent damage.

 

I want to stress that I am NOT making a judgment on RoughCollie's decision for *her* situation about which I know *no* details such as distance, etc. I have relatives who work this job and have heard sad stories of things that could have been avoided had people not chosen to self-transport. I think that in emergency situations, it is natural think of "getting there fast" rather than "getting HELP fast". Calling 911 gets you *help* fast.

 

Okay, that is my unsolicited public service advice for the year. :)

 

:iagree: And I think it is a good Public Service Announcement. Too many times we fail to think in a crisis. It's hard for many people to keep a level head in an emergency, so reminders like this are a very good thing.