QUEENSLAND AMBULANCE SERVICE LIVE EMERGENCY TELEPHONE CALL

[ktmbikerider]

A brilliant call. Firstly from the call taker involved. Well done - i relate to this all the time - I too am a 000 Calltaker & this sounded like one of those calls where you just have NO IDEA where its leading too.....'Not Well' will not get you a Code 1 Ambulance. Secondly, a call from members of the public who cannot provide accurate information to the emergency services. At no point did i think this warranted an "Emergency Light s & Sirens Response" Very frustrating.

[Tesseract1976]

A loss of consciousness and confusion w/ possible head back injury is not a joke and the ambulance should have been sent right away. The 911 operator should be charged with negligence.

[src05202156]

I'm an EMD in the UK, the EMD on this call did well, trying to assertain what the problem was, but you can only go so far in questioning if the caller, or the patient doesnt know. With the info given from the call, i would have gone card 26 sick person.

[markjames]

sounds like dame edna making an emergency hoax call

[SampsonandSimba25]

The Australian emergency medical dispatches by law must send an ambulance when you have made a call to the ambulance on 000. If it does not seem serious, they should still send paramedics out ASAP just to check out the patient.

[belojama]

To me it sounded suspicious, The Medical Dispatcher did a great job and didnt lose his temper. Had he had a full stroke then he would have been alot more unresponsive and had significant signs & symptoms - facial drooping, change in behaviour, slurred speech etc. It sounds like he had a TIA (small stroke that self resolves). The reason he had to wait an hour was not out of spite from QAS, it was obviously due to lack of resources at the time and the fact this case was not a high category case.

[AustraliaProud]

belojama

No, he didn't lose his temper, but any EMD can expect to be challenged by situations like these from time to time, and some far more demanding. The ability to hold one's temper, is an essential prerequisite character profile for this role. Just an open question, do you think the EMD did enough to ease the anxiety of the elderly mother? And yes, strategic protocol and timing will always be determined by the limitation in resources.

[AustraliaProud]

belojama

Incidentally, I understand the casualty had suffered an embolic stroke and later suffered a second one, leaving him permanently brain damaged and unable to cotinue to work!

[Shazza036]

I am a Student EMD and after listening to the recording it is clear to me that my first initial response would have been "Making funny noises" (Agonal Breathing), which would have given a 6-Echo-1 Response (1A Lights and Sirens).... then after Key Questioning reconfigure this to either a (protocol 18 Headache) 18-Charlie-4 (Lights and Sirens), assuming the patient complained of a sudden onset of severe headache or (protocol 28 Stroke) 28-Charlie-6 (Lights and Sirens).

[frequently80]

@Shazza036 An 'echo' response for a conscious and breathing patient? From her initial statement that "he's had a few drinks and is acting funny" would have lead me to 'overdose' as the chief complaint. But a protocol 28 is not far off the mark either. Either way this man would have gotten a lights and sirens response whether you chose any of the responses you have mentioned -and that's the end result.

[frequently80]

@Shazza036 My advice take the initial complaint and run with it. Don't over intellectualise it like this kid did. I know you are going through your training now and you want to be precise but really when you are out on your own do you want to get straight 'A's' or do you want to save a life?

Having a call not go to queue for almost 5 minutes is unacceptable in terms of both patient outcome and community expectations.

[74Aimz]

@cam1611 he should have lost his job... he was hopeless. obviously there was a problem if he couldnt tell anyone where he was and what happened! Im glad i live in NSW if thats how QLD phone opperators deal with calls like this!

[74Aimz]

Thank god the man wasnt dying! Thats disgusting!!

[74Aimz]

Thank god the man wasnt dying! Thats disgusting!!

[viruk78]

Considering the mother of the pt was an extremely poor historian and unable to portray events leading up to the incident, I think the dispatcher did a damn good job. The Ambulance have a limited amount of resources in each area of operation and at least this EMD was trying to ascertain the validity of the call. All too often Ambulances are despatched to stubbed toes or shaving cuts (without any exaggeration or word of a lie), when there is a cardiac arrest or AMI just around the corner.

[belojama]

@viruk78 Or hoax calls... had a few of them lately.

[viruk78]

Considering the mother of the pt was an extremely poor historian and unable to portray events leading up to the incident, I think the dispatcher did a damn good job. The Ambulance have a limited amount of resources in each area of operation and at least this EMD was trying to ascertain the validity of the call. All too often Ambulances are despatched to stubbed toes or shaving cuts (without any exaggeration or word of a lie), when there is a cardiac arrest or AMI just around the corner.

[shaynesshadow]

I think this clip is a pile of crap...well done tho...our comms are better than this!!

[mwethereld]

I spent several months at the Roma St station in brissy as a dispatch officer for the QPS, i quit because of stress i was 19 at the time, to me this sounds as if the man is altered, not knowing if hes in the kitchen or not and not being able to see everything, clearly sounds as if there is some sort of brain injury and also the fact the mother is obviously concerned enough, hindsight is 20/20 and shoulda coulda woulda, didnt, shows perhaps how overworked the system is here,,, thanks Anna Bligh!

[AussieGirlNSW]

Hey Anna,

Yep, I can understand that. I guess that a hundred things go through your mind when you take a call like that. "shoulda coulda woulda" says it all, aye. I have every sympathy for all parties in this.

Thanks for your comment.

[wakeoforion999]

dude has an altered mental status/confusion. either of those is a priority response without question here in america. for good damn reason too.

[bryzie26]

ATTN: Those with negative comments

Do any of you know anything about medical emergencies? In some cases the patient will not display symptoms of the illness (eg: silent MI). I'm an ambulance officer in QLD and I think the EMD did a good job, however, he could have asked other questions such as "What is his skin like?" "Is he experiencing pain/numbness or tingling anywhere?"

I think everyone who has made nasty remarks about the callers should wake up to themselves and have a reality check!

[qldambulance]

@bryzie26 Andrew Bryant, you are NOT a paramedic, nor are you an ambulance officer and you've never been one. You are a student EMD, and you've only just started your training to say the least. Stop pretending to be something you're not, or ever will be, and leave the ambulance work to the paramedics and student paramedics.

[rapps101]

Complete sympathy for the 000 operator. I do this for the police, talk with the ambulance regularly and have no tolerance for this crap. Never send a crew to an unknown situation

[Barrenmore]

I am thinking that this is a regualr call on 000.

I use to be an EMD and know exactly what is happening and can understand the EMD's responses. QAS EMD's run use 31 different cards to deal with an emergency call these range from falls to cardiac arrest.

This EMD was finding it difficult work out which card to use as there is no "I don't know what is wrong card".

[frozenflame456]

shows how smart some of us qlders are lol

[shadowblueful]

dazzed an confused,.....the bloke was sure sign of a stroke!

[shadporn]

@shadowblueful. Sound medical assessment champ. Here are a few provisional to consider for "dazed and confused" INTOXICATION, hypoglycaemia, hyperglycaemia, significant pain from any cause, poor cerebral perfusion secondary to cardiovascular collapse (anaphylaxis, AMI, PE etc), low IQ (and save the nasty comments about that one cause trust me it is relevent). That is without even thinking too hard about it. cerebral disfunction can be lots of things, benefit of hindsight it was a CVA here

[jad01jad01]

Is everyone in society getting so precious these days that as soon as you spill some sugar on the kitchen bench we feel the need to call emergency services just because our taxes pay for it.

From a clinical point of view, the caller was a scatterbrain.

Caller states the patient is conscious, not injured and not a psych case and he even talks coherently to the operator......so he's not seriously ill or injured which makes me think why they called the ambulance...simple, because they can.

[AustraliaProud]

"A scatterbrain" ? That's harsh!

She was an 80yr old lady. Considering the circumstances she held it together remarkably well. You can't expect someone in that situation to speak with eloquence and clarity. He son had suffered an embolic stroke and later suffered a second one. These can kill and he's been left permanently brain damaged! Stroke victims MUST receive attention quickly. Hardly the equivalent of spilling sugar. He can no longer read and subsequently had to leave his job.

[shadowblueful]

ahhh excuse me dickhead! s stroke is the next best thing to a fucking heart attack! grow apair!

[unclewooly]

did you even bother to read the more info in the side box? When people write in the describtion box, it's not for them. It's for you!

[AustraliaProud]

I have a certain sympathy for the operator. The Ambos are under pressure and if they're sent on a wild goose chase, another genuine call could result in a fatality.

I've heard Ambos being called by people who are drunk and just want a lift home, or someone can't get the lid off a bottle...really dumbarse stupid calls. This time the dispatcher lacked empathy, he misread the call and got it completely wrong. Should he have lost his job, idk, probably not, imo!

[coover65]

What many don't realize is that while the EMD is asking questions, the despatcher next to him/her is already sending an ambulance.

All these questions need to be asked so that an ambulance is either sent lights and sirens or not.

Quite often an ambulance rocks up with the caller still on the phone.

Listen to the patient....no slurred speech, no pain, not complaining of anything specific, doesn't sound short of breath.

[batman75757]

OMFG send the fucking ambulance FFS.

We pay for this shit in our electricity bills , this fuckwit on the phone should be sacked immediately.

[belojama]

@batman75757 Whilst taking the call, there is a dispatcher already sending an ambulance. They dont wait till the end of the call before sending someone.

[slk320k]

Very interesting.

My guess was stroke.