How do you react if you are first at an accident?

Burnsy2023 · 21 Dec 2011 at 12:22

hurfdurf said:
I have a friend who is a surgeon who has said he won't help it he is off duty because his insurance won't cover him and he has heard too many stories of his colleagues getting sued after the incident for getting involved and ambulance chasers convincing people that proper care wasnt taken. Not sure I could not get involved myself.

You actually have quite a lot of protection in life threatening situations. Have a look here on the legalities: http://www.resus.org.uk/pages/legal.pdf

panyan · 21 Dec 2011 at 12:27

Dup said:
I think generally most are scared of what they might find.

+1

PMKeates · 21 Dec 2011 at 12:32

When I first arrive at an accident my primary intention is to find a way to integrate myself blamelessly in the event in order to claim compensation.

TRNC · 21 Dec 2011 at 12:38

hurfdurf said:
I have a friend who is a surgeon who has said he won't help it he is off duty because his insurance won't cover him and he has heard too many stories of his colleagues getting sued after the incident for getting involved and ambulance chasers convincing people that proper care wasnt taken. Not sure I could not get involved myself.

Not true. My wife is a Surgeon and they are actually legally bound by the oath they took becoming a doctor to help!

PMKeates · 21 Dec 2011 at 12:45

I'm sceptical of that TRNC. I'm not sure your profession would change your legal obligations in that situation and the UK does not have a samaritan law compelling anybody to intervene. In Switzerland, for example, you would be required to help, but that would be regardless of whether you were a banker, surgeon or farmer.

Burnsy2023 · 21 Dec 2011 at 12:48

PMKeates said:
I'm sceptical of that TRNC. Your profession wouldn't change your legal obligations in that situation and the UK does not have a samaritan law compelling anybody to intervene. In Switzerland, for example, you would be required to help, but that would be regardless of whether you were a banker, surgeon or farmer.

Indeed. It's all in the document I linked to.

A person, whether a healthcare professional or a member of the lay public who witnesses a situation ‘on the street’ where resuscitation might be required is under no obligation to assist, provided the situation was not caused by him. However, if that person does choose voluntarily to intervene to render assistance he will assume a duty of care towards the individual concerned.

hurfdurf · 21 Dec 2011 at 15:00

Burnsy2023 said:
Indeed. It's all in the document I linked to.

Depends if this oath trumps it, I doubt it but I'll enquire more next time I see them.

Unbeliever · 21 Dec 2011 at 17:25

I've stopped a couple of times, bad accidents etc. Stopped at a man who'd been knocked down, had to stop a couple of people from moving him to minimise any injuries. I couldn't drive past, but like others have said only stop if its safe to do so.

I deal with a lot of RTA's in work (police officer) and one thing that really irks me is rubber necking. The amount of times i've been to an RTA on one side of a dual carriage to then have to deal with another from idiots staring.

Minstadave · 21 Dec 2011 at 17:28

TRNC said:
Not true. My wife is a Surgeon and they are actually legally bound by the oath they took becoming a doctor to help!

But advised by our medical protection agencies to only provide help if you're identifiable as a doctor by those at the scene.

Aleksandrs · 21 Dec 2011 at 17:41

panyan said:
Dup said:

I think generally most are scared of what they might find.

Click to expand...

+1

+2

It's hard for me to say what I'd do until I am met with the situation, but it's not just scared of what I'd find, but its more that I would feel inadequate in the situation. I don't know much first aid, I don't carry anything in the car and I've heard stories before where people have gone to help in accidents but ended up doing more damage than good because they didn't know what to do right.

I think if no one was there I would perhaps pull up in front of the accident if I could and park to the side and phone 999 and just let them tell me what to do.

pepsilol · 21 Dec 2011 at 17:49

Draeger said:
Very briefly - DRA, stabilisation, glass management to begin with. Casualty carer and assistant medic enter the vehicle and begin work assessing casualty condition and degree of entrapment ( if any ), packaging them and maintaining the c-spine.

Plan A extrication and plan B ( rapid ) extrication put in place and commences. Casualty removed, make vehicles safe, gather details of vehicle and casualties involved. Make-up kit. Hot debrief. Job done.

I don't want to be rude here, but am I the only one thinking what a load of "over-jargonated" BS?

I don't literally mean BS as it is actually quite accurate, just felt like it

PMKeates · 21 Dec 2011 at 18:08

'Glass management'

Do you tell the glass what to do?

Clearcut · 21 Dec 2011 at 18:11

When I was 19 I was travelling to work as a passenger when we heard a huge bang. We went round a bend and saw a car had driven straiight underneath a lorry.
We got out (against my better judgement) to see if we could help. Two of the three in the car had been decapitated and it smelled like a butcher's shop. I have spent the last 20 years terrified and afraid of cars.

It is for that reason, now I have finally passed my test, that I would be very apprehensive about getting out if the same situation arose.

Draeger · 21 Dec 2011 at 19:30

pepsilol said:
am I the only one thinking what a load of "over-jargonated" BS?

It would appear so, yeah. :cool:

Curio · 21 Dec 2011 at 21:48

I've never been in the situation (fortunately) so I'm really not sure how I would react. I'd like to think I'd be straight out to help, but the thought of what I may see might make me freeze. I dunno. I remember when I was a kid I overheard our neighbor telling my mam about how she had just been first on the scene when a local retarded man had fallen under a lorry and it ran over his head. That has always stayed with me and it makes me wonder how I would act. I guess the chances are I'll find out one day