Philly Medics Investigated Following Death of Pregnant Woman

The medics got to the scene in 3 minutes. That is pretty good. They got the patient out to their truck in 8 minutes. That is pretty good. They got to the hospital in 7 minutes – with a total elapsed time of 23 minutes from dispatch. That is pretty good.

So what is the problem?

According to the family of Joanne Rodrigues, Philadelphia Fire Department medics walked into her house last Monday without any equipment. The family says the medics then “start looking at [Rodriguez  who was 9 months pregnant, had fallen, was complaining of difficulty breathing, and was on medication for a blood clot]  and say ‘okay ma’am I need you to sit up.’ My niece is telling them ‘please, I can’t breathe, I’m weak, I can’t move’ and she was like ‘you need to do your part.’ The EMT is telling her she needs to do her part.”

And then there was this issue at the ER where the medic unit’s doors would not open….

View more videos at: http://nbcphiladelphia.com.

 

About Curt Varone

Curt Varone has over 45 years of fire service experience and 35 as a practicing attorney licensed in both Rhode Island and Maine. His background includes 29 years as a career firefighter in Providence (retiring as a Deputy Assistant Chief), as well as volunteer and paid on call experience. He is the author of two books: Legal Considerations for Fire and Emergency Services, (2006, 2nd ed. 2011, 3rd ed. 2014, 4th ed. 2022) and Fire Officer's Legal Handbook (2007), and is a contributing editor for Firehouse Magazine writing the Fire Law column.
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