By EMS1 Staff
SYRACUSE, N.Y. — EMS providers in Syracuse are concerned about the amount of potholes around the city, and said they pose a risk for patients being transported in ambulances.
CNY Central reported that EMS providers with TLC Ambulance have to take extra precautions with their patients due to the bumpy rides that the potholes cause, according to EMS manager Ed Binns.
“If we have a patient in the back, if they have neck pain or back pain, they’re going to feel every bump, every bounce, every jolt,” Binns said.
Binns added that the transports that are supposed to be safe could now potentially be dangerous for both the patient and the EMS provider.
“If we’re giving medications, if we’re starting IVs on the patient it is very difficult when the road is bumpy sometimes,” he said.
According to Binns, EMS providers try to wait for stopping points such as red lights and stop signs to put in IVs, but sometimes treatment has to be quicker.
“Time is tissue. Time is brain tissue, is cardiac heart tissue,” Binns said.
Not only are patients in critical condition affected, Binns said, but patients with certain symptoms can be negatively impacted by the bumps.
“This enhances the nausea. We do carry medications that will take care of that, but a trip like this will sometimes enhance the nausea,” he said.
Binns said he hopes the Department of Public Works can fix the issue soon.
“I know they’re busy I mean, this time of the year there’s not much you can do about it,” he said. “They do as much as they can; we just have to deal with it.”
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