Question... are we supposed to help? Good Samaritan.

Nurses General Nursing

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Hi all. I have a question. As nurses or nursing students, if we see an accident say on the side of the road, are we supposed to help and render medical assistance?? How does this tie in with the "Good Samaritan" Act? We are supposed to discuss this in nursing class tomorrow. I found some info. on the net, but it mostly talked about physicians.

Thank you! E

Wow, that reply is very disturbing.:(

Specializes in ICU, CCU, Trauma, neuro, Geriatrics.

How can you help?

In most areas EMS is just a few minutes away, calling for help can be the best thing you can do in many emergency situations. Police are usually trained as first responders, carry protective gear and AED's so alerting them quickly will help the victims quicker. Assuring people that help is on the way can be very good assistance, a bit of crowd control helps even more. Don't let anyone move trauma victims they could have a spinal injury. Your nursing 'calm and reassuring' communication skills can be just what is needed. No gloves, don't touch, personal safety is my priority. Once the police arrive you can ask for a pair of gloves to hold pressure or immobilze c-spine if you like, identify yourself by training skills, nursing student, cpr trained, nurse etc.

In a mall or other simular public place, yell for security to get the AED, most malls have them along with personal protective gear.

Specializes in High Risk In Patient OB/GYN.

To snowfreeze:

Okay, even if EMS are just "a few minutes away" (and there are lots of places where this isn't the case...the average wait time last year was 27 minutes in my area--we're all volunteer, if that explains anything), you as a health care professional should know that a few minutes of chest compressions/assistive breathing could mean the difference between life and death, or extent of brain damage/organ failure.

Or that a few minutes of firm compression on a bleeder could be enough to save the person from getting DIC or just plain bleeding out.

No one is saying not to call EMS. But if a car 10 yards in front of you slams into another car, and it's safe for you to assist, why not call and help? I always carry a few pairs of sterile gloves in my car just in case I am needed (and I'm not willing to risk contracting HIV or Hep).

Hi all. I have a question. As nurses or nursing students, if we see an accident say on the side of the road, are we supposed to help and render medical assistance?? How does this tie in with the "Good Samaritan" Act? We are supposed to discuss this in nursing class tomorrow. I found some info. on the net, but it mostly talked about physicians.

Check with some lawyers in your state and find out if you have a duty to act or not. Then you will be certain in your own state, anyway.

If you do help, Good Sam laws will protect you as long as you are not negligent or otherwise committing malpractice. If you try to suture a wound but nurses in your state are not authorized to do that, you can be sued, for example. But if you apply pressure and have the person rest while awaiting EMS, that is OK. Familiarize yourself with your state's Nurse Practice Act. For instance, can you remove a stinger from an insect sting? Or just apply over-the-counter first aid med? Or what?

I do think you should never identify yourself as a nurse or nursing student at an accident scene. Just keep that little secret to yourself. You needn't give your name, either.

I will gladly step over your body as I am going on my way...I might be nice and call 911 for you but that is it.

Gee, Kyrshamarks, how did you come by this attitude?

Good Samaritan law holds us not responsible for anything that goes awry with our good intentions...

This could not be farther from the truth!!! You will be held to the highest accountability of your licensed practice, no matter if you are a bedside nurse with no trauma experience or not.

If you are not accustomed to emergency care, you would be delivering care our of your scope of practice, but still be held accountable for any mistakes you make because you have established a nurse/patient relationship.

Do not be misled by your good intentions on how litigious our society has become.

Remember, even though you do everything right does NOT mean you won't get sued, and have to pay to defend yourself!!!

Call EMS and pray not to become too involved yourself.

I will gladly step over your body as I am going on my way...I might be nice and call 911 for you but that is it.

:eek:

My god....I hope I am never YOUR patient. :uhoh21: WHY are you a nurse and WHO made you so bitter?!?!

If it's a conscious adult, you'd probably want to get their consent first. 'Hi, I'm George, I'm a [emt, nurse], I'd like to help, ok?'

The other thing I remember from EMT class is if you do decide to help, don't leave until you're relieved by other EMS.

Specializes in Pulmonary, Cath Lab, Float Pool.

You know in this day and age I would be cautious about offering help outside my place of employment and to strangers. I have a family to think about. My health and our livlihood could be affected by helping that stranger. I also feel I am a good nurse to my patients. Lets not blast someone who is upfront about her actions. They are her opinions, not ours.

Specializes in ICU-Stepdown.
I will gladly step over your body as I am going on my way...I might be nice and call 911 for you but that is it.

Damn glad that the person who stopped to find out why a motorcycle was laying in the ditch on the side of the road (my near-fatal motorcycle accident in march of '01) didn't have your attitude. I was lucky on several counts -not the least of which was this person stopping to render aid to a biker who was hit by a hit and run drunk driver.

You will not be held liable if you don't exceed the scope of your training and abilities. Thats the essence of the good samaritan law. As nurses, that limits our scope (and liabilities) -we rarely would have a 'jump kit' (when I was a paramedic, years and years ago, each of us had a kit that included intubation gear -we kept it with us at work and play, the county supplied it for use in such eventualities) -in a nutshell, call for help, render CPR if needed, hold c-spine or a pressure point to stem the bleeding. Perhaps even stop a would-be hero from yanking someone out of a car and turning them into a quad in the process.

If your attitude is that of Kyrshamarks, pray that someone else comes along.

I can understand why someone might be reluctant to stop and help, especially at night or in an isolated area. It would be very easy for someone to stage an accident or act like they need assistance and then assault the person rendering help. Also, if you have kids in the car, you might not want to leave them alone by the side of the highway. It's not always an easy decision. I'd definitely call for help, though.

I agree with Running with Scissors. I just graduated in this past May and this subject came up when I was in school. We were told that it is our choice on whether or not we wanted to stop and assist with aid, but we had to realize that because we are licensed as nurses, we would be held to a higher standard than an ordinary person who came to help. The Good Samaritan Laws may not be enough to cover us as professionals. And of course, we also always have to be mindful about what our scope of practice is.

I had instructors say that they might not stop because of the "sue-happy" society that we live in today or they would stop, but may not identify themselves a a nurse.

Me, I would definately call 911 first and foremost. After that, I would really have to assess the situation at hand to see if I would be able to help. (I am new and still gaining experience and have no trauma experience whatsoever).

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