crcocr1

I am a [poor] third year law student studying for the bar exam in july. Although I am NOT a lawyer, the term "Motor Vehicle Collision" would be better from a legal standpoint as it does not denote accident or fault and leaves the determination of fault to a jury, if a case were to get to trial. Of course, any difference in terminology would be subtle as witnesses testify, documents are admitted into evidence, and the like. Personally, I agree with the comments of my fellow FF/EMTs. In the end, an individual is injured or dead. It is a worrysome event regardless of fault. We bear an ethical duty to assist the injured and protect personal property and should do so on or off-duty.

First and foremost, I am a law student studying the New York State Bar. I agree that No-Fault Insurance makes little sense if you truly are not the individual at fault. Secondly, I agree that giving FF/EMTs the same status as PD if FF/EMTs across the board act responsibly. There are too many instances where FF/EMTs go speeding down the road in excess of 20 mph in their personal vehicles or in an official vehicle because the nature of the call. [They almost always admit this after a call.] Although one might be able to rationalize it because "it was a cardiac arrest" or "there was a kid involved", if an accident occurs, the FF/EMT doesn't help anyone. Instead, s/he will be forced to visit lawyers, go to Court, and possibly face criminal penalties. In addition, the FD/EMS agency will suffer a black eye in the community. If we show the State that we can act responsibly and professionally, the Legislature will act reasonably. In turn, acting responsibly also will lower insurance rates, as insurance companies measure risk. Further the Legislature can mandate changes in the insurance law as well. Third, as a general matter, FF/EMS needs to act professionally, especially in a volunteer agency. This professionalism extends to how neatly we dress, how we act, and how we deal with the stresses in our lives. The public views us as professionals, and the Courts treats us like professionals. Granted, some chief officers/rank and file may act a bit irresponsible with policy and procedure, especially in the disciplinary arena, but this will change if we lead by example. Finally, with all this said, everyone be safe out there! JDR

There is a policy with STATFLIGHT that incidents outside a certain mileage area will result in an automatic launch for the Medevac Helicopter. For incidents within a certain mileage area, Medevac can be placed on standby and then launched on request. Either option, of course, is dependent on a Dispatcher, FD, EMS, or Citizen requesting MEDEVAC/HEMS services.

My two cents: Do the best you can with the time you have each day. Everyone should be happy there is an open forum to post pictures, incident alerts, and discussion topics. If the alert is a week or two late, the interested members still will get to know about it in time. If a picture or two fails to get posted, many other pictures exist to take its place. In the end, many know that EMTbravo does exist and its founder and administrators do their best to put up quality information.

As an EMT attending law school, I rely on this site to keep me apprised of the events transpiring in my county, and what my part-time employer (St. Francis Hospital) is recieving. Thank you for starting this website, and maintaining it. Joe

And when the fence fails to work, what then? It seems to me that there already is an impedment to jumping on the Tappan Zee Bridge, the five foot wall on each side. Someone has to consciously step up to get to the bridge's edge. Outside of staffing the bridge with suicide counselors, I don't see any other viable remedy that would in any way assist other than the pre-existing measures in place.

I've read somewhere that most motorists, however, often are confused by multiple sirens and therefore are susceptible to thinking that the ambulance is in front of them, rather than behind.

I completely agree with the NFPA regulation. If you think about the kinetics of injury, there are any number of ways that you could injury yourself, your fellow brothers and sisters, and innocent citizens if a helmet is worn or loose within the fire truck. It is preventative litigation at its best.

Its actually state law that every fire company conduct a background check on prospective members. Otherwise, the fire company could be liable for the acts of the prospective member, once admitted into the company.

It is my understanding that even if there were a conflicting decision, a firefighter charged with violating the bylaws and/or department rules only is entitled to procedural due process, meaning that as long the department follows the applicable law governing an administrative hearing in this regard (i.e. General Municipal Law, Town Law, etc.), it is protected regardless of any future criminal proceeding. If the accused firefighter feels aggrieved, he may appeal the decision to the trial court through an Article 78 proceeding to review the department's disposition. Criminal proceedings work differently because of constitutional concerns and a higher burden of proof. Remember that OJ Simpson was found liable in a civil proceeding, but not guilty by a criminal court, albeit in the State of California? Although there may be many good reasons for waiting until the criminal charges are resolved, it is possible to remove the accused firefighter nonetheless. I, however, am not an attorney and will not speculate as to the cost benefit analysis in waiting versus not waiting in this specific instance.

In an earlier post, a Member referenced citing statutory law so that it can be relied upon in the field. As a law student, I caution anyone to rely on any statute without the advice of counsel. In failing to do so, a Member or its agency may subject itself to criminal and civil liability due to any inaccuracy. With that said, I agree with many posts that caution must be exercised in responding to calls and that certain persons control the scene depending on the circumstances. I hope you all are safe and return home safe after each of your respective tours of duty.

Brian, I think if you review most major ambulance companies financial statements, you will see that, compared to 911 calls, most revenue is derived from inter-agency transports, in New York and nationwide. Although you might think otherwise from reviewing financials from your organizations, I have reviewed statistics from a much larger database, which includes Rural/Metro, AMR, etc. etc. You might see it similarly if you look around and see that some ambulance companies start off as solely inter-agency transports because there is less regulation (more liability but less regulation) and less overhead needed. Although Medicare/Medicaid rates still are the same as they were when the legislation was first enacted, EMS, much like hospitals in America, still derive a majority of income from Medicare/Medicaid. I can direct you to resources such as the American Ambulance Association and the American Hospital Association websites for statistics. Once these companies get their feet firmly planted on sound financial ground, they then expand to 911 transports to attract a larger employment base. One member's comment regarding NY being Right to Work State is absolutely correct. For the most part, NY is a Right to Work State. The EMS industry needs to advocate to become more regulated insofar as hour regulation, much like the health care industry, if we are indeed concerned that patient care is suffering from an overworked EMS worker. As a third year law student, and EMS worker, I look forward to representing the industry in my spare time. I agree with you insofar as the EMS industry needs advocacy. It is ridiculous when it does more call volume than Fire, yet gets paid half of the amount. Insofar as my original reply, I regret the reply because the comment was targeted toward low wage rates. So, I apologize if I distorted your comment. JDR

Actually, intraagency and intrahospital transports is how many private ambulance companies make money to keep their agency alive. Depending on where you work, regretfully, some patients transported on a 911 basis may not have monies to pay the bill, causing the ambulance company to either pay a lawyer to collect the fee OR eat the cost. Joseph Daniel Remy, 3L, EMT