Pennsylvania Private Ambulance Accident Lawyers
When you or a loved one require emergency transport or ambulance services, the last thing you are likely to think about is that the emergency medical technicians responding to your call lack the necessary training and experience to properly assess and treat your injuries. With healthcare costs continuing to rise, many cities have attempted to save money by contracting private ambulance companies to treat and transport their citizens. Because privately owned ambulance companies focus primarily on profits, their drivers and paramedics oftentimes lack necessary training, experience, and certifications required by hospital and fire department based emergency response units. Too many times, shortcuts are unfortunately taken resulting in tragic consequences or wrongful death to unknowing innocent victims, and their families. As the number of private ambulance companies continues to grow, so does the number of accidents involving inadequately trained ambulance drivers and emergency services personnel responding to calls. In some cases investigators have revealed that the transport vehicle, van, or ambulance was defectively designed, converted, maintained, or suffered from manufacturing defects which led to a catastrophic injury or wrongful death. Statistics show more than 6500 hundred accidents involving ambulances in the United States every year, resulting in thousands of injuries and close to a 1000 deaths. Following an investigation into a number of ambulance crashes the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration released the following statistics. "78% of fatal ambulances crashes are a result of the ambulance "striking" another vehicle, and 48% of their drivers having been cited for moving violations, driving while intoxicated, license suspensions, or other motor vehicle convictions all within three years of their fatal crashes." Sadly it was determined that some of the ambulance drivers had been drinking or were under the influence of other intoxicants.
Private ambulance companies may provide savings to towns, but many times the discounted quality of care they provide to its citizens invites additional pain and suffering as well as medical negligence. Our experienced Philadelphia Emergency Services accident lawyers, understand that a careful independent evaluation and investigation is required in all Emergency service accidents. Ambulance liability exists when it can be proven that the actions of Emergency services personnel amounted to negligence, or the use and maintenance of a defective vehicle. These acts include but are not limited to:
- Failure to properly diagnose and treat a patient’s condition
- Improperly loading a patient into vehicle
- Failure to stabilize and secure a patient to a back board or gurney
- Negligent documentation of injuries
- Failure to follow a physicians instructions on how to care for a patient en-route to the hospital
- Inadequately staffed emergency response vehicles
- Driving through intersections, congested streets, and red-lights when not responding to a call
- Failure to administer necessary medication
- Failure to intubate
- Negligent hiring, training, and supervision of emergency personnel
- Equipment and Supply Failures
- Improper handling or dropping a patient
- Administering improper or expired medication
- Failing to document patient allergies
- Failure to assess injuries before rendering care
- Alleged misconduct
- Operating without required licenses
- Intoxicated drivers/ personnel
- Faulty restraint belts
- Improperly designed gurneys
- Broken equipment
- Failure to restrain a patient
- Improperly manufactured gurneys
- Improper use of equipment
- Faulty or defectively designed equipment
- Prematurely leaving a call without rendering required treatment
- Failure to request additional emergency services
- Inadequately trained paramedics
- Inadequately trained drivers
- Overloading of emergency response/ transport vehicles
- Improper conduct by emergency response staff members/ including unnecessary and inappropriate touching
- Failure to maintain records
- Faulty brakes on Emergency response vehicles
- Bad tires
- Failure to respond to a call
- Reckless driving
- Patient infections
- Unsanitary and improperly maintained vehicles
- Failure to restrain additional passengers
- Bad Faith
- Improperly administering (CPR) Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation
- Attempting to covering up medical negligence and personnel misconduct
- Unauthorized photographing of injuries
- HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) Violations
- Fraudulent Billing
- Theft
- Sexual abuse/ sexual assault
- Administering Blood without proper authorization
- Administering defective or improperly stored Blood
- Failure to yield for pedestrians
Our skilled Pennsylvania ambulance accident lawyers and Philadelphia medical malpractice attorneys possess decades of experience in the arenas of product liability, vehicle defects, and negligence and have decades of experience achieving substantial awards for generations of clients.
If you or someone you love was injured or killed while being transported in an ambulance, know you are not alone, and you like so many others may be entitled to financial compensation from the negligent party. Call Reiff & Bily today at (800) 421-9595 or contact us online to request your free consultation.
