Rode up on first accident outside of hospital....

Nurses General Nursing

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Hey my fellow RN's! I need some advice.

I was on my way home from my moma's house and rode up on a car accident. Medics were not on the scene yet. I pull over, get out of my car and head to the first car. The guy is on his cell phone, says he hit his head, but otherwise ok. I hear medics running hot to the scene. I asked him if he knew what happened and he said "yeah". He knew what year it was and then he tells me to check on the guy in other car.

The other car is in the middle of the highway and traffic was stalled. I run over to the other car and bang on the window and he is also on his cell phone, he states he is not hurt and he is ok.

So, I leave since both guys are ok, the one who hit his head was A&O, and I heard sierens.

On the drive home, I couldnt help but think did the guy who hit his head may needed a CT? What if he had a brain bleed? Then I thought, I didnt even have any equipment in my car (only the kit the American Cross give you when you complete BLS) and even that was in my other car.

Would you have stayed? I'm wondering if I should have stayed until help actually got on the scene, although both parties "seemed" ok.

Now I'm beating myself up over this......

Specializes in Peds/outpatient FP,derm,allergy/private duty.

I probably would have done what you did, Afrocentric RN. The guys were both alert and oriented, and you heard the sirens. The sirens that heralded the arrival of the people who's job it is to apply protocols to rule out brain bleeds, and since they didn't know you asked the questions or that you were an RN they wouldn't have changed anything they would do if you hadn't asked them if they were OK.

What's interesting to me is that sometimes these threads all go the other way with people adamantly insisting you never, never do anything!! I think I recall saying that if someone was spurting blood out of their femoral artery I would most certainly attempt to apply pressure as I know that person will die if I don't. I would do those things that if I did not - they would surely die - other than that I would be afraid of doing more harm than good.

In some countries other than the US they haven't got the "Good Samaritan" laws and a high potential liability for causing harm to a victim in your intent to help.

edit - Tyvin - unfortunately my BLS for Healthcare Providers does not include emergency accident scene management with associated issues such as fuel spills and electric wiring.

Specializes in Hospice / Psych / RNAC.

Unfortunate; all mine and many others do ;)

Specializes in Peds/outpatient FP,derm,allergy/private duty.
Unfortunate; all mine and many others do ;)

I feel cheated! But I'm in California which means that likely somebody whined about how hard the course was and they dropped their standards accordingly.

um, just out of curiosity, so just RNs can do this? how bout lpns? thank you! :) i would stop and help just because it's my human nature to do so even if i weren't an lpn... hoping i could make a difference for the better somehow :)

Specializes in Oncology; medical specialty website.

I don't keep PPE in my car. With the way my hands are chapped, there is simply no way I am going to expose myself to blood/body fluids at an accident scene. Sure, it would be nice if I stopped and helped, not so nice if I wound up with Hep C or HIV as a result.

Comparing stopping at an accident to a choking person in a restaurant is like the apple v orange comparison.

I have no idea how this turned into an RN/LPN thing. The OP was an RN. No need to take offense.

Specializes in PICU now, Peds and med-surg in the past.
um, just out of curiosity, so just RNs can do this? how bout lpns? thank you! :) i would stop and help just because it's my human nature to do so even if i weren't an lpn... hoping i could make a difference for the better somehow :)

I don't think anyone said that only RNs can do this at all. I know I as a person would be grateful for whoever would stop and help me and my family, I don't care if it's an RN, LPN, doctor, McDonald's worker, stripper, truck driver, etc etc etc :D Just do what you feel comfortable with and always keep your safety first!

I don't think anyone said that only RNs can do this at all. I know I as a person would be grateful for whoever would stop and help me and my family, I don't care if it's an RN, LPN, doctor, McDonald's worker, stripper, truck driver, etc etc etc :D Just do what you feel comfortable with and always keep your safety first!

sorry i misunderstood cause in the beginning of the post it was addressed to RNs hehehe... :) thank you! :)

Goodness, I'm quite surprised that so many of you would not stop, even if no one was at the scene already. It's sad how much fear over legalities and such can take over common sense and common decency.

It doesn't matter that you do not have the equipment available or even the skills of the EMS. There are still basic things you can do until someone arrives. What if someone needed CPR? Or was bleeding and needed pressure applied? (And of course be careful to protect yourself... that goes without saying.) Goodness, even if they seemed physically ok, do you know how nice it is to just know that someone is there to wait with you until EMS arrives?

I was in what could have been a very bad accident (spun off many lanes of traffic on the highway, to be stopped by a tree), and it was about 10 min before anyone stopped. My car was totaled but I was fine thank goodness, but you know how grateful I was to this person for just making sure I was ok? He told me he hoped that if his daughter were ever in an accident, that someone would stop to stay with her. And he stayed with me until all the emergency vehicles arrived. He had no healthcare training that I was aware of. He was just a parent who was doing what he would want done for his own kids.

After sleeping on this issue, I am ok with my issue to stop and make sure all parties were ok.

Also, I will be checking my BLS book sometime today to go over safety issues when arriving on the scene. I simply did not think about fuel tanks or anything like that, my first concern was the other parties.

I only regret not staying until EMS arrived, but in the future, I will stop at the scene if this happens again. I will also keep some gloves and shears in my cars from now on.

I simply can NOT stop if nobody has arrived, that just dont sit well with me. After all, I would want someone to stop and make sure I was ok if it were me.

Thank you all for your thoughts, suggestions, and opinions. It sure has given me alot of think about.

It is a personal decision (and perhaps a legal one depending on the jurisdiction) whether to stop or not if you are not on duty. Where I live, even off-duty EMS has no legal obligation to stop. However, should one stop they are required to stay until someone with equal or greater qualifications relieves them.

I am not an RN, yet, but I am an EMT. I am surprised how many nurses don't have a couple pairs of gloves and a pocket mask in their car. Takes up almost no space and is the most useful PPE. Add shears and a steth and you can do a lot of good for someone.

I will echo what others have said about scene safety. This has to be your primary concern whenever approaching any situation, whether it be an MVA or someone who was just knocked unconscious by a guy with a bat. It doesn't help anyone if you become another casualty.

Play these scenarios out in your head and decide what you would do ahead of time. That is going to lead to much better outcomes for all involved than making a snap decision as an accident happens as your driving down the highway at 70mph.

Specializes in Pediatric/Adolescent, Med-Surg.
um, just out of curiosity, so just RNs can do this? how bout lpns? thank you! :) i would stop and help just because it's my human nature to do so even if i weren't an lpn... hoping i could make a difference for the better somehow :)

Umm anyone can stop at an accident and assist, and LPN's, if they chose to assist, should also be protected under the Good Samaritan law.

Specializes in ED.
I feel cheated! But I'm in California which means that likely somebody whined about how hard the course was and they dropped their standards accordingly.

:rotfl: Baahaha!

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