Woman dies after hospital dials 911

[Cowperson]

A man pulls up at a hospital emergency entrance and frantically indicates to staff his niece in the car has just stopped breathing. The staff dial 911 to have paramedics come to bring her into the hospital only feet away.

She dies.

White Rock, BC.

The hospital's response has reignited a fierce debate over the institution's reaction to people who go to the emergency department requiring assistance to get out of a car and into the hospital.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/sto...Story/National/

Comments?

Cowperson

[Looger]

reminds me of the situtation in a town i used to live, mackenzie bc.

they closed the hospital and kept an emergency station, figuring they'd medevac any serious stuff to prince george.

they spent more on medevacs in the first year on pregancies alone then the hospital costs would have been.

so they re-opened it, less some great doctors etc...

the medicare system in bc is kinda spotty, it doesn't work all that well, there's usually one piece or another on strike, and there is a dire shortage of nurses.

surprising that happened in white rock, not to poke fun but it is mostly a retirement community. i'd think healthcare would be a high priority there...

[Alexandria]

I don't know.. This doesn't seem as bad as the case when 911 isn't called. There was an incident here not long ago where a neighbor ran over a little 2-year-old kid (who crawled behind his car as he was backing out the driveway). Both he and the child’s father were modified and rushed the little child to the hospital that was only a couple blocks away.

The problem was that the hospital wasn't really the place for that kind of trauma. For about 2 or 3 hours they frantically tried to assess what damage was done and save the little girl. They were calling in different doctors and they finally transferred her to another hospital that might have better facilities to deal with the injuries.

The doctor with the correct experience and expertise didn't get her until 4 hours after the accident occurred and was not able to save the her. The doctor felt that if he had gotten the child sooner, it would have made a difference and she would have survived.

911 has a system in place for these kinds of trauma injuries. They have the resources on hand and tools and experience to quickly assess the problem and move a patient to the best possible facilities.

A hospital front desk doesn't have this. As silly as it sounds, the best thing would have been for that hospital to have called 911 as soon as the child was brought in.

Of course in both cases they should still help the person while they are at the hospital. Probably a combination of both the staff and 911 should used.

As for patients who have stopped breathing, CPR should be administered ASAP.