This was a long-term patient of mine...

http://abclocal.go.com/wpvi/story?section=news/local&id=5869241


By David Henry
SPRING GARDEN, Pa. - January 3, 2008 -- A northeast Philadelphia woman died while waiting more than an hour for an ambulance on New Years.

It was 2:39 New Year's morning when 55-year-old Deborah Payne called for help from her apartment in the northeast.

No medics were available so the dispatcher sent a fire truck with EMTs onboard. They administered oxygen and called for a backup supply, as they waited over an hour for an ambulance.

The first available came from a fire station in South Philadelphia.

**************************************************************

Nicest lady you'd ever want to meet...HIPAA prevents me from discussing anything related to her case but just..so...sad.

I'm not one to dwell over the failings of society - as a clinician I have a somewhat 'battlefield' mentality when it comes to medical/dental crises and how they're managed...but for crying out loud, you HAVE TO SHOW UP to deal with whatever you have to deal with.

I hope our new Progressive, intellectual Mayor can help deal with this problem.

around, that city is too great to let it fall. I lived in the suburbs for 18+ years as an adult, and Philly will always be my home.

I personally know several who have left the job because of all the stress, not the least of which is they can no longer endure carrying 300 plus pound people down several flights of stairs.

I don't want anyone to think I'm assume this woman who died was obese, and even if she was she did not deserve to die waiting for an ambulance. No one should die for that reason. But this is just another example of our broken health care system.

and yes, we are busted up in health care.

cruising the the universe on PCP when I worked in a hospital up near Seattle. 5 of us took a beating trying to get him into isolation. Once we got him in to the room, it took less than minute for him ot calm down. (pink painted room w/pink light bulb, worked every time).

Psychologically...the way one is beat up is beyond the comprehension of those not in the Medical or first responder positions.