Ambulance Drivers

[Guest]

With EMS in the news alot lately and many terms being used. I ask what Driver alone means and what qualifications they have? any feed back would be appreciated.

[ENG47INE 17]

In Dobbs Ferry if i'm not wrong you go out with 3 experienced drivers.

[TRUCK6018 50]

Driver alone would mean no EMT or medic on board. Rightfully, a NYS certified ambulance can not be operated with only a driver. To comply with NYS DOH, a certified ambulance must have an EMT or medic committed to patient care to respond (or just to be operated. Otherwise, the ambulance is "out of service" and must be identified as such (out of service sticker on the DOH inspection).

Edited May 1, 2006 by TRUCK6018

[huzzie59 75]

Bureau of EMS Policy Statement

Policy Statement # 01-04

Date 05/16/01

Subject Re: EMT Staffing

Standard for Voluntary

Ambulance Services

Supercedes/Updates New

There have been issues raised about the EMT staffing standard that became effective January 1, 2001 for voluntary ambulance services. Article 30 of the Public Health Law states that "the minimum staffing standard for a voluntary ambulance service shall be an Emergency Medical Technician with the patient." The following is intended to help clarify the meaning of the law. This policy is written for ambulance service operation. It does not address first response service operation.

A voluntary ambulance service must have an Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) or higher, attending to the patient at the scene and in the ambulance while transporting the patient to the hospital.

If a voluntary ambulance service has a written response policy in place in which an EMT is allowed to respond directly to the scene from home or work, the ambulance may respond to the scene of the emergency even if an EMT is not on board.

If the EMT responding directly to the scene is delayed and the only other ambulance crew available are Certified First Responders (CFR), the CFR may begin care. It is acceptable to have a CFR as a part of an ambulance crew. The EMT assumes responsibility for care upon arriving at the scene.

If the EMT does not arrive at the scene and another service is immediately available with appropriate staffing, the patient should be transported by that service. If no other service is immediately available the patient should be transported. An intercept with an appropriately staffed ambulance or first response service should be sought while en route to the hospital.

Continual and repeated failure of a service to assure an EMT arrives at the scene to provide care may result in the Department taking disciplinary action against the service and/or the individual.

A service may send an ambulance and equipment to the scene of an emergency if they know another service will provide the EMT staff necessary to perform patient care. The service sending the ambulance would share responsibility for the care being provided. These types of mutual agreements to share the staff and equipment must be done in writing in advance.

The staffing standard requires one (1) EMT with a patient. Therefore, an ambulance must be staffed with at least one EMT. While it is preferable to have more than one EMT if there are multiple patients, the law does not require it. In the event of a multiple patient situation, the EMT would assume supervision of the care being provided to the patients being treated and transported.

If only one (1) EMT is available to staff the ambulance crew, that EMT must be the patient care provider and/or supervise the patient care being provided. The EMT may NOT be the driver of the ambulance when a patient is being transported. NOTE: In a multiple casualty incident (MCI), local or regional protocols should be followed.

An ambulance should NOT respond to the scene of an emergency if it is known, in advance that an EMT is not available, as previously discussed in this policy. It is recommended that all ambulance services preplan for the lack of staffing by written mutual aid agreements with neighboring ambulance services and by alerting the local Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP) or dispatch authority as early as possible when you know that EMT level staffing is NOT available. Careful pre-planning, mutual aid agreements and continual recruitment programs are necessary to assure sufficient EMT staffing.

Issued by:

Edward Wronski, Director

Bureau of Emergency Medical Services

[Guest]

If the EMT responding directly to the scene is delayed and the only other ambulance crew available are Certified First Responders (CFR), the CFR may begin care. It is acceptable to have a CFR as a part of an ambulance crew. The EMT assumes responsibility for care upon arriving at the scene.

Thanks for the reply I just found the same info

You kinda have to be a lawyer to understand this mumbo jumbo !

How do agencies respond driver alone when the drivers have little or no medicial training ?

According to the above rule does everybody on a rig need to be at least a CFR ?

Continual and repeated failure of a service to assure an EMT arrives at the scene to provide care may result in the Department taking disciplinary action against the service and/or the individual.

Has this ever happened in new york?

[Eagle24 2]

How do agencies respond driver alone when the drivers have little or no medicial training ?

According to the above rule does everybody on a rig need to be at  least a CFR ?

Continual and repeated failure of a service to assure an EMT arrives at the scene to provide care may result in the Department taking disciplinary action against the service and/or the individual.

Has this ever happened in new york?

←

Driver's can respond with the rig as stated, if an EMT is already enroute to the scene...I think it depends on the agency, but I'm pretty sure if you are just a driver you do not need to have medical training(it would help the EMT out though if you did). A driver's main responsibility is the rig, not the patient. I don't think everyone has to be "CFR level", as long as there is at least an EMT on the crew who can assume responsibility over patient care. Finally, if you can't roll the rigs-you get paid crews to do it, or you get absorbed by other neighboring agencies-pretty sure it's happened before, and will continue to happen...

[IzzyEng4 427]

In CT you have to be 18 to drive an ambulance and it is up to the agency if the driver has to be certified or not. The driver has ro at least know CPR and First Aid. A majority of the VAC want drviers to be MRT certified. If an agency allows uncertified drivers, then the minimum of one EMT and one MRT, on the ambulance or responding directly to the scene makes a full crew.

Also to all ambulance drivers are usually required by their agency to take a safe driver / apparatus course weather it is a state, federal, insurance agency or ambulance agency driver training to meet the standards. I forget what group sets the driver standards nationally.

That has been my experience.

Edited May 2, 2006 by IzzyEng4

[Guest]

in many volunteer agencies to be classified as a driver you need to usually be a minimum age of 18 and this in my case as just a driver (hopefully EMT soon) you are takin out by an officer in the bus and you get a baisic understanding for how to operate the lights,sirens, know how to use you mirrors and turning after learing the baisics you are cleared to drive at 18 you will be allowed to drive with a EMT in the ambulance only you can't drive with no EMT to the scene and from or even up the block to get groceries.