LifeLine Critical Care Transport - Clarian Health Partners - CCTFatal accident

Date: 4/3/2009 0055 EDT

Program: LifeLine Critical Care Transport - Clarian Health Partners
	Downtown Heliport
	51 S. New Jersey Street
	Indianapolis, IN 46204
	

Model: 2005 MedTec / International 4300

Type: Type I

Weather: Light rain. Not a factor.

Road: Wet

Injuries: 
	Driver/Operator - injured
	Civilian driver of involved vehicle - fatal
	

Description: 
	One of our pediatric/neonatal teams had just completed a patient
	mission and the driver/operator was repositioning the ambulance to the
	program?s dedicated parking area.  Approximately 1 block from the
	hospital, a small SUV traveling the wrong way on a one-way street
	impacted the ambulance head-on.  The Indianapolis Metropolitan Police
	Department (IMPD) officers investigation the crash say the driver of
	the SUV struck the ambulance at approximately 80 mph.  The collision
	sent a ladder on top of the SUV through the windshield of the
	ambulance. The steering wheel stopped the ladder from hitting the
	driver/operator. The driver/operator was surrounded by other traffic
	on the street that is 3 lanes wide, one-way in the northbound
	direction.  She observed the SUV coming at her, flasher her headlights
	and activated her emergency warning lights in an attempt to attract
	the other driver?s attention.  She was able to slow the ambulance down
	to ?less than 20 mph, and maybe even almost stopped? prior to impact. 
	The other traffic beside her allowed no room to maneuver out of the
	SUVs path. The impact moved the ambulance approximately 9 feet
	backwards from the route of travel. The ambulance sustained moderate
	damage.    
	
	Paramedics transported our team member to Methodist Hospital with
	shoulder pain.  She was admitted overnight for observation and
	released the next day.    
	
	The driver of the SUV died at the scene.  Police say the driver of
	the SUV hit several newspaper boxes two blocks away before hitting the
	ambulance.  The crash was being investigated by the Fatal Alcohol
	Crash Team, officers who handle crashes where drunk driving is
	suspected.  No cause has been released yet.
	
	Take away points:  All of our driver/operators are required to have
	EVOC.  In an after-action debrief, our driver/operator advised that
	this training was helpful in keeping the ambulance in its lane and
	controlling the deceleration prior to impact.  She was able to self
	extricate and attempted to provide care to the driver of the SUV until
	other motorists and bystanders intervened.  Even though the reposition
	for parking is only two blocks from the emergency department entrance,
	mandatory seat belt use clearly helped reduce injury.

Source: John R. Clark, Operations Manager

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The CONCERN network shares verified information to alert medical transport
programs when an accident / incident has occurred. Please share the above
information with your program staff. If you have further questions, please
contact the CONCERN Coordinator, David Kearns at 800 525 3712 or email:
coordinator@concern-network.org.

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