Ambulance service
I am writing in response to the article that appeared on March 7 about the slow response by ambulance services (“Ambulance response report irks supes”).
The problem could be that the ambulance drivers have to wait until the hospital emergency room employees acknowledge their presence and accept the patient.
Quite some time ago I had a sudden onset of a heart problem when I was out of town. I was taken to the nearest hospital, where I was promptly treated. I was told that I could not go home and was asked if I wanted to be admitted to that hospital or be transferred to my local hospital. The decision was made to transfer me there via ambulance.
Everything went well until we got to the emergency room of my local hospital. The ambulance personnel moved me from the ambulance to the emergency room, where they stood and waited for someone to assist us. It was quite a wait.
I began looking around the emergency room, trying to determine what was causing the delay. There were quite a few employees standing around. Some looked at us and did not respond. It was at that moment that I heard the ambulance driver comment to his co-worker, “See, I told you it would be like this. It happens every time we bring someone here.”
Finally someone on the hospital staff responded by walking from the spot where they had been standing (and doing nothing) over to the ambulance personnel. I was admitted to the hospital and stayed overnight.
The incident was very disconcerting, and I should have complained to the hospital administrator at the time. However, I did not. I now regret not doing so because there is no way of knowing how many other times this occurred.
As I said, this happened some years ago. However, I will never forget this total lack of concern.
Let’s pray that none of these people are still employed at my local hospital and also pray that this situation has gotten better over time.
Ignored Patient
