Is Los Angeles County looking for lawsuits? Because this is the way you get lawsuits
Ambulance crews told not to transport patients who have little chance of survival
The situation in Los Angeles County hospitals is so critical that ambulance crews have been advised to cut back on their use of oxygen and to not bring to hospitals patients who have virtually no chance of survival. Officials say they need to focus on patients with a greater chance of surviving.
The measures were taken as circumstances are expected to become even worse in coming weeks, when patients sickened over the Christmas holiday will need treatment, leaving officials desperate for ways to increase capacity and triage care to focus on the sickest patients.
Already, “many hospitals have reached a point of crisis and are having to make very tough decisions about patient care,” said Dr. Christina Ghaly, the L.A. County director of health services. (snip)
In a sign of the strain the surge is putting on medical supplies needed for severely ill patients, the L.A. County Emergency Medical Services Agency issued a directive Monday that ambulance crews should conserve oxygen by administering it only to patients who have oxygen saturation levels below 90%. To reduce demand on hospitals, the agency issued memos directing ambulance staff not to transfer to hospitals most patients who have virtually no chance of survival.
Yes, that is an official government agency, which is telling ambulance crews to follow these directives. First off, do EMTs have the authority to make these calls, particularly on who has a chance of survival? Sure, their experience will give them a clue as to those who won’t survive, but, that should be the call of a doctor. So, lawsuit time.
