Legal Issues
The legal issues topic contains news and information about legal issues affecting EMS personnel, agencies or departments. Find the latest news from personnel misconduct, to disciplinary and harassment cases, to malpractice lawsuits, as well as advice to prevent legal action with EMS training, documentation and management.
What we can learn about retention from EMS rising stars
Doug Wolfberg raises concerns about New York City Mayor Eric Adams’ mental health directive
“EMS providers are effectively being required to intervene and transport persons merely because they are homeless and apparently mentally ill”
Attorney Nenye Uche said he hopes the Chicago Fire Department will cooperate as the family looks for answers about the death of Erin Carey
Erin Carey, who was shot in the head and severely wounded, was covered with a sheet and left unattended as paramedics treated others hit by gunfire at a party
EMS leaders respond to Star Tribune report of administering ketamine to agitated, restrained patients in Minneapolis
Larry Blanding allegedly led police on a chase after stealing a paramedic rescue truck while responders were on a call
“I will stab you with a rusty spoon if you sleep in my bed,” Richard Cuccurullo allegedly said in a Facebook post
“FDNY EMTs and paramedics are protected by New York state law. Assault is a felony punishable by seven years in prison,” the new decals read
The EMS program at Metropolitan Community College’s Penn Valley Campus is under scrutiny after several students claimed they are not being properly taught
Do your part to limit the spread of infectious disease and hospital-acquired infections by improving your hand hygiene practices
Employee turnover costs money and morale points, so how can organizations raise retention levels among workers?
Adopting clinical data registries to measure performance will allow EMS to integrate fully with systems of care
Adam Zaharick was sentenced to 1 to 4 years in state prison for stealing an ambulance outside an emergency department and driving it to a drug store
The medical examiner’s office ruled Jesse Reed’s death a “suspected homicide” with “blunt force injuries” listed as a contributing cause of his death
Improving patient outcomes, hospital relations and the community narrative with data analysis
The EMT said he told the patient she needed to put out a cigarette before she could be transported to the hospital, and she then snubbed it out on his chest
Paramedic chiefs and field providers have much to learn from the FBI’s ongoing summary and analysis of active shooter incidents
Bruce Moeller offers strategies for tackling the aging population, dubbed the “silver tsunami,” at Fire-Rescue Med 2018
A section chief from St. Louis considers the scope and impact of opioid response on EMS providers and the role they play in combating the crisis
Innovative community paramedicine programs may offer a strategy to evolve EMS response from resuscitation to a recovery-oriented system of care
Is widespread naloxone administration by non-medically trained responders preventing overdose patients from reaching definitive care?
EMS can apply the four-lens foundation for the science of improvement to reducing opioid overdose deaths within their communities
Training, PPE and scene assessment will minimize the risks of opioid exposure to fire and EMS responders
AMR paramedic Liz Day said she was unfairly suspended after jumping into the water in an attempt to save drowning victim Xzavion Epps
A lawsuit claims an employee who found Gloria Fanning in “a state of distress” inside a float tank did not call 911, but called her boss instead
Lt. Andrew Hughes-Hill, 26, who was stabbed to death, was known for his positive attitude and love for emergency services
The family of William Comstock claims his prescription opioids left him “to battle the horrors of a tormented mind for the remainder of his days.”
The post mentioned a patient who died after suffering a heart attack in a backyard chicken coop
The shattered glass sprayed into the paramedic’s eye during the attack
The patrol says the stash was a record fentanyl seizure in Nebraska and estimates the drugs may have been worth up to $20 million on the street
Ashley Flores’ family filed a wrongful death claim against Los Angeles County and Sheriff Jim McDonnell, alleging that multiple 911 calls were misrouted
EMS1 leaders reflect on the fitting theme of EMS Week 2018, and how their colleagues have furthered their own careers and contributions to the field