Detroit EMS: No Unit Available...PERIOD!

Last September, FOX 2 tailed an ambulance for an evening to find out. What we found was that over half the ambulances were broken and out of service, over-worked paramedics who were driving around without so much as a road map. The rigs had no computers or GPS systems.

(This is the first piece I cut with Charlie LeDuff)

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• Detroit
• EMS
• ambulance
• medic
• unit
• life support
• injury
• 911
• emergency
• hospital
• shot
• Charlie LeDuff
• Fox 2
• Detroit News
• WJBK
• Matt Phillips
• michiganeditor
• response time
• fire
• firefighter
• Detroit Fire Department
• Detroit EMS

[captnbutternuts]

The video fails to point out that fact that abusing the system is the biggest problem. People have become so dependent upon the system to take care of them that they call 911 for everything. And the EMTs are obligated to transport. This places a heavy burden on the taxpayers as well as the people who are in genuine need of an ambulance. It is easy to play the blame game but the abusers are to blame just as much as any city official.

[danbasting52]

It is not just Deteoit. Every city weather they have 50 ambulances in the plan or a city with only 1. People call 911 for everything. It is our legal obligation to transport. EMS abuse is everywhere. Rich people as well as poor abuse EMS and that is why it takes 12-20 minutes to get a truck.

[0419JOHN]

2:47 only in detroit can you smoke in the ambulance!

[smercer1992]

My mind is blown at the number 18 ambulance for the city of Detroit. Here, we have at least 12 that I know of off the top of my head at all times. That probably doesn't count the small stations I don't know of in my area ( I don't work for my cities EMS ) We're a good size city.

Lakeland FL.

[TyCoolie]

You have to get creative with your EMS coverage. If you use Queuing Theory to determine how many ambulances you need at what times, you can use a variety of staffing techniques (24-hour shifts, 10-hour shifts, 8-hourshifts, etc) to make sure you have enough ambulances without having ambulances on duty when they are not needed.

[megasully]

Freaky the way things work. 18 Ambulances for an ENTIRE city. Here is little old Virginia, Mn, a city of 9000 people, we have 4. All Full Paramedic Units, and 4 BLS Units from surrounding communities to call.

[seanchen07]

where da money at?

[pomomary]

This is sad. Makes me feel lucky to live in the small city that I do, as one who has taken care of my elderly parents, one who had a massive stroke the other who had a heart attack, I've needed their help and I have never waited more than 5-6 minutes for either the FD or EMS to arrive. Its never the fault of the actual responders, they can only do so much with what they are given.

[tkelko1]

I'm a former Paramedic & find this completely disturbing. The city can't even provide rigs w/a map??? I applaud the paramedic crew who brought this to light! That took a lot of guts...Damn politics and mismanagement at it's worse. I hope it brings changes..as for that stations comments from the viewers, I remember those calls where nobody in the house wants to take patients in themselves. TOTAL MISCONCEPTION that ambuance gets you seen faster, we walked non-emergent pt's to the waiting room.

[CyanoticFuture]

@beezel08 If the city cant put enough people in squads on their own municipal FD, what makesyou think that they can or will pay a private company to back them up?Private companies arent going to do it for free,and sure as hell will not rely on the average Detroit citizen to pay their transport fees.

[AlfredRusselWallace]

abuse of ambulance service is by far the major problem. If we weren't tied up dealing with bullshit all the time we'd be available to handle real emergencies and have good response times