[Libs-Or] when to call 911 for medical intervention when patron says no

[Leah Griffith]

We call 911 and our fire/ems come and they make the assessment and deal with the person if they refuse transport.    Obviously, when it is something minor we try to use good judgement (would we call if it was our child with the injury), but we've been faced with those situations too.

Because we have a combined fire/ems there is no charge to the patron unless they are transported so we aren't forcing a $1,000 bill on someone who regularly has medical issues that are alarming to us, but a normal everyday occurrence for them.

We also tell the patron that we are calling because we need to for our policies and that there is no charge to have the fire/ems come over.  That usually makes them ok with it.

Leah
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Leah M. Griffith, Director
Newberg Public Library
503 E. Hancock Street     Newberg, OR   97132
P 503-537-1256
________________________________
From: Libs-Or [libs-or-bounces at listsmart.osl.state.or.us] on behalf of Maureen Cole [mcole at ci.oregon-city.or.us]
Sent: Saturday, November 14, 2015 12:18 PM
To: libs-or at listsmart.osl.state.or.us
Subject: [Libs-Or] when to call 911 for medical intervention when patron says no

Hi everyone:
Yesterday we had a situation in which a person, with a scary but according to her non-life-threatening medical condition, had what appeared to be a seizure; however, she requested that we not call an ambulance. That request went out the window when she appeared to be having trouble breathing. But it raised the very real question-when do you call for medical assistance against a patron’s wishes?

Obviously, we all have to make judgement calls based on the information at hand. In addition to the person with the medical need, we have to think about the rest of the library. But, in your experience do you have any wisdom that helps quide you when this comes up? I believe all medical personnel would say call them immediately; what are your thoughts as a library employee charged with the safety of all patrons?

Thanks for your collective wisdom and feedback. Have a great weekend!
Mo

Maureen Cole
mcole at orcity.org<mailto:mcole at orcity.org>
Library Director
Oregon City Public Library
606 John Adams St.
Oregon City, Oregon 97045
503-657-8269 ext. 1010 Direct phone
503-657-3702 fax
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