Case Studies

Articles that are accompanied by fictional but plausible scenarios.

Abusing the 911 system: what’s your take?

People struggling with headaches, toothaches, and even feelings of loneliness are calling 911 — often several times a day.
This chronic abuse is overwhelming what industry experts call the 911 “safety net” system. It’s also wasting what could add up to billions of dollars every year, paid ultimately through higher taxes and medical fees.
This costly [...]

Netizens: 911 system better than China’s own

To listen to the 911 call made from Michael Jackson’s own home on the day he collapsed, click here.
The death of pop icon Michael Jackson has led to unexpected criticism of China’s emergency medical system.
Netizens praised the American 911 dispatcher who handled the Jackson emergency call and criticized differences between the Chinese and American emergency [...]

Houston Firetrucks Crash, Injuring 11

Image courtesy of Mayra Beltran, Houston Chronicle.
As part of our safety campaign, we will be highlighting over the course of April methods and case studies relevant to increased safety in our fire and EMS response system
The two fire trucks that crashed in Montrose on Monday morning, injuring 11 people, were en route to what firefighters [...]

Firefighter, Paramedic Loses Job over YouTube

A Milwaukee firefighter was fired and a department paramedic resigned Monday over accusations that they shot what department officials described as a derogatory video at a city firehouse and posted it on YouTube.

Paramedic Edgar Brooks resigned, and firefighter Marcus Eastern was fired, according to an e-mail from department spokeswoman Tiffany Wynn.
Brooks was hired in 2005. [...]

The Whole Scene: 6007 Shady Wood Circle

Part 2 of a series of in-depth reports on fireground tactics.
Report
00:04 - April 27, 2008: Montgomery County fireboard (”county”) dispatches Station 53, Lower Providence Fire Department, to 6007 Shady Wood Circle for a house struck by lightning.
- Neighbors call fire emerging from rear of the house and smoke inside.
- Police report heavy smoke.
- Engine 53 [...]

The Whole Scene: 5129 W. Columbia Avenue

Firefighter-EMT.com is proud to present, in conjunction with FiregroundAudio.com, a series of in-depth analyses of fireground tactics using photographs, on-scene audio and more. This is provided in the hopes that our readers, wherever they may be, will be able to learn from incident records that are more readily available in the United States.
Report
02:25 - April [...]

Case Study: Using a CPAP on a CHF patient

Written by Jim Augustine, MD
The Situation
Attack One responds to a call for a person who can’t breathe. A concerned husband meets the crew at his house’s front door. His wife sits in the back bedroom in severe distress — they can hear her breathing from the porch.
The crew quickly moves to the patient, the lead [...]

Case Study: Chest Pain Patient

At approximately 1530 hours, Rescue 24 responds to a person complaining of chest pain. Upon arrival, the crew performs an initial assessment. It reveals a patient in moderate distress, diaphoretic and with cool skin, but alert, oriented and cooperative. The patient, an overweight 64-year-old male, informs the crew that he was watching television when he [...]

Case Study: Anaphylactic Shock from Bee Stings

We will regularly publish articles that deal with real life cases, leaving you to contemplate what sort of actions you would take if you were on-scene. What would you do?
A 29-year-old old man was working with others at a construction site. The workers encountered a beehive, and the man was stung several times by a [...]