What happens in the medical field when someone calls off? For some healthcare workers it may put more of a workload on everyone that shows up to work. But let’s look at the EMS side of things. How does EMS handle it when someone calls off? It’s not like you can just divide up the work and give more to each person. This can be a huge issue especially around the flu season. EMS agencies can’t force you to work if you are sick and vomiting every time you get up or move. Can EMS just not have the responders to show up to an emergency call? What happens when you call 911 and there is no one?
Calling off!
Yes, EMS workers do get sick, and they do get injured. Unfortunately, most of the time when you call off there is no one to replace you. So, let’s say you work on an ambulance and it’s you and your partner. But your partner fell ill and called off an hour before your shift. That means now instead of “XX” number of ambulances on the road we will have “X” number of ambulances. This doesn’t just leave your partner partnerless, but it also affects the company as well as the 911 system. The dispatcher cannot say to the person they are talking to “sorry we had a call off we will try to get to your emergency as quickly as we can.” We must respond and send an ambulance no matter what.
What happens when all ambulances are on emergency call?
We run into this a lot of times. The first step is dispatch will try to get ambulances to clear (be available to take emergency calls) from the hospital. Sometimes the crew can be available at the hospital. Meaning they are finishing up paperwork, getting supplies, or using the facility. If the crew had to, they could leave the hospital and take an emergency call. That’s always the goal. The nice thing sometimes when crews hear that status is low or at a level 0 (meaning no ambulances available), they will rush and get back into service as quickly as they can. The second step if this all fails is to call for mutual aid. This means the dispatcher will call other agencies or city dispatchers to see if they can help take emergency calls if we get an emergency call in our area. Most cities and agencies will help each other out but sometimes they are just as busy as we are, and they cannot provide any resources. The dispatcher then will have to prioritize the calls from worse to not so bad and the worse ones will get the ambulance while the not so bad ones might have to wait. This is where the fire department and police show up. There will always be someone that responds to an emergency call and starts treatment or getting basic information and vitals (blood pressure, respiration count, SPO2 reading (oxygen level) and doing an assessment. You sometimes will not even realize the ambulance is delayed. This is one reason multiple first responders show up to the scene (your residence) when you call 911. They are also there to help EMS carry you out, gain access to you, or get you onto the stretcher.
What happens to the partner who is partnerless.
Just like any job many people do end up calling off. They might have their own family emergency, might be ill, on vacation, or they just need a day off. The first step is pairing people who do not have partners together. They will try to get the start times and off times as close at they can. It can be like rebuilding a schedule that was partially built. They will sometimes move people with partners around to fit the schedule better (meaning split partners up and pair them with different people). If the call offs get bad enough the supervisor will pair themselves with a partner and upper management to even the dispatchers will start to hit the road. This is why it’s crucial that everyone who works at an EMS agency (including the office) have a first responder medical license like EMT-Basic or EMT-Paramedic.
Is there a time ever when you call 911 and no one shows up?
I do not want to say no but for the most part someone will always show up. Now I am sure it could happen if there was a big enough MCI (mass casualty incident) like in New York when the terrorist flew the airplanes into both World Trade Center Towers. Even if the EMS agency knows status is getting low, they will start calling other agencies and cities to start helping before there are no first responders or ambulances. EMS has always had a staffing problem due to the low wages. When you can make more at a fast-food restaurant why would you want to work somewhere that has crazy hours, low wages, uncomfortable ambulances, no breaks, and treated like crap by most patients. EMS and all first responders know how to deal with low staffing and will always show up for your emergency call.
How does your job deal with call offs? Does it make more work for someone else or for everyone else?
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