Taking Vitals

[tskstorm]

Who made the complaint- the family or the ER? Did the patient code or something?

Pt's family member. No the 13 year old with her menstrual cycle did not code!

[WolfmanHarris]

Pt's family member. No the 13 year old with her menstrual cycle did not code!

Did something go wrong over the course of her care? I mean all cynicism aside, most people sue over a perceived wrong, not just because they're scammers with dollar signs in their eyes. The wrong may not be grounds for a suit (providers were rude) or it may be a shotgun approach (care screwed up by MD, sue the whole continuum of care), but there is still a perception of being wronged somewhere.

Unless they're crazy. My one and only complaint against me the patient was horribly unstable. I won't go into details but when I followed up with the Sup, I was told that when he called to follow up with the Pt. she immediately started screaming at him and hung up. That and mine and my partner's incredibly detailed incident reports and the narrative of the ACR made the complaint go away.

[tskstorm]

Mom's complaint was that we didn't take vitals among other things (I only shared this part because it was relevant to the thread the rest isn't)

I probably should have mentioned when I was being interviewed I was informed mom was a certified EMT-B.

It scared me more that she was a trained EMT calling for her daughters menstrual cycle then anything else.

Nothing within the course of care with us went wrong or had any affect. 30 seconds from putting the vehicle into drive and back into park. I can not speak for what may or may not have happened inside the hospital which they requested to go to.

[WolfmanHarris]

Mom's complaint was that we didn't take vitals among other things (I only shared this part because it was relevant to the thread the rest isn't)

I probably should have mentioned when I was being interviewed I was informed mom was a certified EMT-B.

It scared me more that she was a trained EMT calling for her daughters menstrual cycle then anything else.

Nothing within the course of care with us went wrong or had any affect. 30 seconds from putting the vehicle into drive and back into park. I can not speak for what may or may not have happened inside the hospital which they requested to go to.

10-4. Hope I didn't sound judgmental. Nosy sure. But I wasn't implying that I thought you guys had f'ed up. Actually the mom as a Basic makes it all quite clear. Also brings to mind a cliche about glass houses.

[tskstorm]

10-4. Hope I didn't sound judgmental. Nosy sure. But I wasn't implying that I thought you guys had f'ed up. Actually the mom as a Basic makes it all quite clear. Also brings to mind a cliche about glass houses.

Didn't take it that way at all.

Thanks for your opinion.

[HERBIE1]

Mom's complaint was that we didn't take vitals among other things (I only shared this part because it was relevant to the thread the rest isn't)

I probably should have mentioned when I was being interviewed I was informed mom was a certified EMT-B.

It scared me more that she was a trained EMT calling for her daughters menstrual cycle then anything else.

Nothing within the course of care with us went wrong or had any affect. 30 seconds from putting the vehicle into drive and back into park. I can not speak for what may or may not have happened inside the hospital which they requested to go to.

I hate to say it., but I am not surprised. Calling 911 for menstrual cramps or bleeding is something I think every urban provider has dealt with.

The fact that the mom was allegedly an EMTB is also not surprising, but I would also suggest she's probably full of BS. I've had people claim they were "nurses", and I've asked a few routine questions about a patient's medications or PMH and they finally admit they were "only" LPN"s, CNA's, or Medical Technicians.

Looking for a lotto settlement, maybe? Maybe the hospital told them that calling 911 and going to an ER was silly and they decided to get even with everyone because she looked so foolish?

[tskstorm]

I hate to say it., but I am not surprised. Calling 911 for menstrual cramps or bleeding is something I think every urban provider has dealt with.

The fact that the mom was allegedly an EMTB is also not surprising, but I would also suggest she's probably full of BS. I've had people claim they were "nurses", and I've asked a few routine questions about a patient's medications or PMH and they finally admit they were "only" LPN"s, CNA's, or Medical Technicians.

Looking for a lotto settlement, maybe? Maybe the hospital told them that calling 911 and going to an ER was silly and they decided to get even with everyone because she looked so foolish?

It is possible and likely it was a lie. She might have been looking for a settlement, but I know she didn't get one. Patient care was never compromised.

[Mario1105]

First some backround:

I have recently started a new job, about a month ago. I will be working with the critical care transport team out of the local children's hospital. But since I haven't driven before, and I will be required to drive halfway, I am down at the company's corporate office getting some driving practice. Right now I am doing mostly interfacility transports, which I have not done before. I do have some 911 experience.

Now here is my problem:

I have worked with this same partner for 4 shifts now. After we load the patient, I usually shut the doors, he gets in, I get up front and start the truck. Put on my seat belt, and ask him if he is ready to go. I do this because I know some people prefer to get some of the paperwork and vitals out of the way before getting underway. From the beginning, he told me that I do not need to wait, that he is fine to do it while I am driving. Yesterday, After an extremely busy day of 7 back to back calls, we got a call to the NH that we were just leaving, to take a pt to the ER, emergency, no L&S, for hypotension. Upon arrival, the nurse stated that the patient had been having hypotension for about an hour, first BP being 90/50. Thirty Minutes later, it was 85/50. The patient stated she had been nauseas earlier in the day, and was feeling flushed now.

When we arrived at the hospital, The charge nurse asked what her BP was on the way. My partner stated it was 100/50. The nurse said, oh good it came up, and walked away. My partner asked for her signature, gave her the paperwork, and she walked away. After the call, as we were making up the stretcher, he made a comment about the call being BS anyway, and it began a conversation that really disgusted me. He hadn't taken the patient's BP, or any vitals, nor does he ever take any vitals. He makes them up on the state forms, and he had lied to the nurse about the pt's bp. I was really upset. I asked him to explain himself, and he said its just a transport its not really important to take vitals, and he can't hear with all the noise. When I pointed out that i always give him the opportunity to do them before taking off, he just shrugged his shoulders and walked away.

I feel that what he is doing is wrong. I am just not sure what to do. Do i report this to a supervisor? I am afraid to make a big stink of this, as I don't want to be seen as the new girl that comes in and causes a ruckus. But I also want to make sure that my partner isn't compromising patient care!

Some advice please!

hate to say it snoop but if something goes wrong and you dont report it you just as at fault so you better do something. Also what if there testing you to see if you would be a good employee so you should really say something

Edited June 1, 2010 by Mario1105

[jonas salk]

A while back I was working BLS at the end of my medic class, Working with a brand new EMT, 3rd or 4th shift, we were working a 911 service, picked up a 13 yr old female with her menstrual period. Long story short, pt vomited, we took her down stairs, mom signed RMA for stair chair, get in vehicle take vitals, palp abd, it was warm out A/c was on pt was cold, put a blanket around her, txp around the corner (Literally 35 seconds from pt's door to ED doors.)

Case closed right?

Its never that simple, my partner and I were told to write incident reports and to come down to be interviewed, because a complaint was made, among the complaints was we didn't take vital signs.

Now by the time the complaint trickled down to me, I had seen another 250+ patients between work and school over the next 2-3 weeks. I couldn't remember which way was up with the patient, and I was driving. During my incident report and interview I specified I remember vital signs being taken but I did not remember who took them. I can attest to this because I know if I don't take them my partner did or as suggested I would have taken them myself, no reason not to they take just a few moments. I would need to review the ACR to be specific (which has a check box for who took the vitals.) I was also asked if my partner took vitals from the time we left the scene to the hospital, honestly not knowing I told them I didn't know, I was focusing on being a good driver if even for a short drive. This was my story and I stuck with it, however my partner being new, when interviewed admitted to not remembering who took the vitals and couldn't remember if we actually took them. He was fired on the spot.

Point here, is if someone asked you did your partner take vitals? What would you say, since you know the answer?

Are you willing to lose your job or your certification/license for this partner?

Not a decision to be made lightly, but a decision that will have an impact on your career, and on your opinion of yourself.

My only concern with this story is why the heck did you stairchair her?!

And what's a RMA?

[tskstorm]

My only concern with this story is why the heck did you stairchair her?!

And what's a RMA?

RMA is refused medical assistance. As per local Abdominal pain protocol, she should have been carried down the stairs by stair chair. We offered the pt and pt's mother refused it, and signed accordingly.