Lax ambulance rules put paramedics, patients at risk

Local services set the “gold standard” for safety and training

When an ambulance driver using her phone’s GPS got distracted and crashed through a guardrail, rolling off an embankment in northcentral Ohio in August 2014, the consequences were dire: A 56-yearold patient was ejected and killed, and an EMS worker was injured.

The emergency medical service worker was not strapped in, and the patient was only partially restrained, a situation that is all too common in ambulances across the nation.

Unlike school buses, ambulances are not regulated by the federal government. While states set minimum standards for how they operate, it’s usually up to local EMS agencies or fire departments to purchase the vehicles and decide whether to require their crew to undergo more stringent education and training.

In the tri-state region, ambulance service is constantly monitored and upgraded.

“We take great pride in setting the standard for safety in the EMS industry,” said William Pitt, director of Operation-Tennessee/ North Georgia for Puckett EMS, one of the area’s largest emergency service providers.

Angel Ambulance is contracted to provide emergency transportation service in Catoosa County. Dewayne Wilson, who owns Angel and is the Walker County coroner, points out that ambulances and crews serving Northwest Georgia and Southeast Tennessee operate under strict regulations.

He said that many of the issues raised about ambulance safety are related to nonemergency wheelchair transportation vehicles — only required to meet ADA standards —and not to 911 emergency responses.

“The ambulance industry is regulated differently state to state and agency to agency,” he said. “We require our crews to follow and adhere to normal traffic laws while riding in a moving vehicle unless they are involved in direct patient care.

“The new stretcher requirements we adhere to also added shoulder straps a few years ago in addition to the three normal full body straps for safety. We only purchase vehicles from companies that have been approved and tested through crash testing.”

Puckett EMS is contracted to provide ambulance service to Walker and Dade counties, as well as several counties in Southeast Tennessee.

Pitt agreed with Wilson that local emergency service providers operate to a higher standard than most in the industry.

“When anyone calls Puckett EMS for help, they are trusting us with the life of someone precious to them,” Pitt said. “Our most important mission is to ensure that our patients and caregivers arrive at their destination safely.

“As a CAASaccredited ambulance service -- one of only seven in Georgia and two in Tennessee -- we meet the most rigorous ambulance safety standards in the industry. Our ambulances are crash tested beyond NHTSA requirements, all safety sensitive vehicle components are inspected daily by the crew and every 4,000 miles by a mechanic, and all equipment is tightly secured in the event of a crash.

“Additionally, our patients are secured with seat belts and shoulder straps, and