EU rules at thier finest
THEIR GOVERNMENT AT WORK
EU rule: Ambulance crews
take break while man dies
Heart-attack victim forced to wait 20 minutes,
although emergency vehicles 5 minutes away
Posted: January 6, 2007
5:00 p.m. Eastern
c 2007 WorldNetDaily.com
When a 73-year-old Londoner collapsed at a betting shop on New Year's Eve afternoon, his luck had run out - thanks to European Union rules that required two nearby ambulance crews to be kept on their 30-minute breaks.
A paramedic arrived by rapid-response car in a matter of minutes to the shopping center where the unnamed senior was stricken and began caring for the man. Witnesses say he made desperate calls on his cell phone in an attempt to have an ambulance dispatched.
The London Ambulance Service, which has launched an investigation of the incident, confirmed that two crews were on a mandated break at a station five minutes away from the shopping center, but they could not be disturbed, the London Daily Mail reported.
(Story continues below)
Under rules mandated by the European Working Time Directive, adopted in December, ambulance crews working shifts between six and 10 hours long are allocated a rest break of 30 minutes and cannot be sent out on 999 calls - the UK equivalent to 911 emergencies in the U.S.
LAS dispatched an ambulance from a neighboring community, but it did not arrive for over 20 minutes after the original emergency phone call.
"We dispatched a rapid-response car, which arrived at the shopping center within eight minutes at 1:30 pm, the member of staff being able to start treatment immediately," a spokesman for LAS said. "An ambulance was sent at 1:32 pm after it became available from attending another incident and, according to our records, arrived at the shopping center at 1:41 pm and at the patient a few minutes later.
"The man stopped breathing shortly afterwards and efforts were made to resuscitate him both at the scene and on the way to North Middlesex Hospital, where he arrived at approximately 2:10 pm."
"It is disgusting," said eyewitness Sheldon Trevatt of Edmonton. "The man worked all his life paying his national insurance. If that ambulance had been there earlier I think his life would have been saved."
EU rule: Ambulance crews
take break while man dies
Heart-attack victim forced to wait 20 minutes,
although emergency vehicles 5 minutes away
Posted: January 6, 2007
5:00 p.m. Eastern
c 2007 WorldNetDaily.com
When a 73-year-old Londoner collapsed at a betting shop on New Year's Eve afternoon, his luck had run out - thanks to European Union rules that required two nearby ambulance crews to be kept on their 30-minute breaks.
A paramedic arrived by rapid-response car in a matter of minutes to the shopping center where the unnamed senior was stricken and began caring for the man. Witnesses say he made desperate calls on his cell phone in an attempt to have an ambulance dispatched.
The London Ambulance Service, which has launched an investigation of the incident, confirmed that two crews were on a mandated break at a station five minutes away from the shopping center, but they could not be disturbed, the London Daily Mail reported.
(Story continues below)
Under rules mandated by the European Working Time Directive, adopted in December, ambulance crews working shifts between six and 10 hours long are allocated a rest break of 30 minutes and cannot be sent out on 999 calls - the UK equivalent to 911 emergencies in the U.S.
LAS dispatched an ambulance from a neighboring community, but it did not arrive for over 20 minutes after the original emergency phone call.
"We dispatched a rapid-response car, which arrived at the shopping center within eight minutes at 1:30 pm, the member of staff being able to start treatment immediately," a spokesman for LAS said. "An ambulance was sent at 1:32 pm after it became available from attending another incident and, according to our records, arrived at the shopping center at 1:41 pm and at the patient a few minutes later.
"The man stopped breathing shortly afterwards and efforts were made to resuscitate him both at the scene and on the way to North Middlesex Hospital, where he arrived at approximately 2:10 pm."
"It is disgusting," said eyewitness Sheldon Trevatt of Edmonton. "The man worked all his life paying his national insurance. If that ambulance had been there earlier I think his life would have been saved."
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ah, the "XXX Corps" syndrome, stopping for tea while good men die [xx(][:(!][V] 0 -
quote:Originally posted by KSUmarksman
ah, the "XXX Corps" syndrome, stopping for tea while good men die [xx(][:(!][V]
That's "National Insurance" for ya.0 -
I'm on duty for 24 hours at a time and have no guarantee that I'll get to eat, sleep or even use the bathroom. This is why we carry drinking water, some snacks and a roll of toilet paper on the Engine. We have to leave meals half cooked or eaten quite often. Just last shift we ordered dinner and before it got delivered we had to leave. We then stopped by the restaurant on the way back. Nothing like have a sub that was made 1 hour ago. [:(]
Anyone involved with making this Ambulance crews policies should be charged with manslaughter.0 -
Typical labor-union mindset. 0 -
As somebody that had to leave several meals to respond to emergency calls I can't understand the mindset that brings this about. A simple adjustment of staggered lunch breaks keeps this from happening.
They did report there were two crews on break. Just stagger the breaks, and a man lives.0 -
did the ambulance CREW refuse to come because they were on break or did they just not get called?? 0 -
They did not get called, as it is against the EU rules to call them while they are on break. And since the UK is part of the EU, they have to go by those rules. 0 -
welcome to the democrats vision for a new and "better" america 0 -
nationalized and socialized healthcare taken to its logical conclusion strikes again. 0 -
quote:Originally posted by Alpine
As somebody that had to leave several meals to respond to emergency calls I can't understand the mindset that brings this about. A simple adjustment of staggered lunch breaks keeps this from happening.
They did report there were two crews on break. Just stagger the breaks, and a man lives.
way too commonsensical for the Eurocrats.0
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