Title 10 Regulati on of Activities
Division II. License Code
Chapter 10.47 Emergency Medical Transport
Section 10.47.080 P
ati ent Care and Transfer
The procedure for pati ent care at an incident and for the transfer of care of such person(s) is as follows:
Medical Command at the Scene.
Fire Personnel on Scene First.
Upon arrival on the scene of a medical emergency where pati ent care is being provided by fire protection district personnel, the ambulance crew seeks out the officer or paramedic in command of the incident.
Fire personnel remain in charge of the incident in accordance with state law.
Fire personnel remain in charge of pati ent care until it is specifically relinquished to the ambulance personnel.
Ambulance Crew Scene First.
Where the ambulance company has arrived first on the scene of a medical emergency, the officer in charge of the subsequently arriving Spokane fire department unit seeks out the ambulance attendant in charge for a report on the condition of the pati ent, any treatment that may have been provided, and any other necessary informati on.
Following this transfer of informati on, the fire officer may assume command of the incident and utilize fire resources to assist pati ent care to the extent possible.
Order of Authority.
Pati ent care at an incident is subject to the following ascending order of authority:
First responder.
Emergency medical technician (first arriving, either fire or private).
Paramedic or flight nurse (first arriving, either fire or private).
Physician.
ALS (Advanced Life Support) supervising physician.
Medical program director.
Pati ent Care Procedures and Protocols.
Pati ent care procedures and protocols shall comply with the Spokane County pre-hospital pati ent care procedures and protocols established by the Spokane County EMS council, East Region Trauma Council, and Spokane County medical program director.
Concerns about pati ent care procedures, including compliance, should be referred to the Spokane County EMS council.
Pati ent Transfer.
Loading of pati ents into the ambulance is under the direction of ambulance company personnel.
The ambulance company assumes responsibility for pati ent care from fire personnel in accordance with subsection (A)(1) of this section, except that advance life support pati ent care may remain the responsibility of the advance life support personnel providing the pati ent care if such ALS provider accompany the pati ent during transport.
Should the condition of a pati ent or the number of pati ents necessitate more than the ambulance company’s personnel in the pati ent compartment to appropriately treat the pati ent(s), the ambulance company and the fire officer shall mutually determine if the Spokane fire department will provide additional personnel to assist with pati ent care en route to the hospital.
Selection of Hospital.
The order of priority in transporting pati ents to hospitals shall be consistent with pati ent care procedures as established by the Spokane County EMS council.
Date Passed: Monday, June 4, 2007
Effective Date: Wednesday, July 11, 2007
ORD C34041 Section 1 (Recodificati on)