Who to call first? Not DAN?

[Jorbar1551]

"call 911 in an emergency. if you are driving home and feel weird...i would call dan first but try to find the nearest hospital" Jobar1551

i just figured that a dispatch wouldnt know much about diving emergencies. maybe one around a popular diving area like monterey might, but somewhere where only a handful of people dive like in a quarry like blue hole in nm.

this is a weird question but will dispatch know enough about diving emergencies to give you the right info or send the right help? if you call and say you feel weird driving home, i dont think they are going to think its a emergency call.

 

[Jorbar1551]

in n out makes 10.50 an hour to start out as

 

[Kevrumbo]

Sorry what? Thats exactly what I said. Staffed during the day, call in at night. There may be vollies there but Im quite sure a DOc is not spending nights there free of charge. Id be intrested in seeing the of hours of Tx numbers. That is, how much it is used at night. There always exceptions to every rule. . .

WC, the Catalina Chamber is staffed 24/7, 365 days a year. The facility is energized and active during the day, and can be brought back on-line at nights in as little as 10 minutes. The attending Doctor is in continuous radio contact with the Chamber Staff, as he's being choppered over from the Mainland, estimated-time-of-arrival 20 minutes day or night. Depending on the Treatment, the Doctor does spend nights over there (and of course he gets a consultation fee --whether from the patient's insurance or covered by LA County if the patient is indigent).

The Catalina Chamber essentially is an extension of Los Angeles County General/University of Southern California Hospital's Emergency Room --anyone can get treatment 24/7, 365 days a year regardless of ability-to-pay.

Sorry WC, contrary to your claim, there are "no exceptions" to this rule and policy for LA County. . .

 

[Wildcard]

Im sayinig THAT chamber is the exception to the rule. Most are not staffed like that. That is the beauty of teaching hospitals, funding for extras that are not profit making ventures. And like I did say, Im sure there is not a Doc standing by with the chamber. Did you come up with any off hours numbers?

 

[Kevrumbo]

I'll get that metric for you on my Crew Rotation next month (number of treatments in the off-hours, dusk-to-dawn).

I can tell you this WC: the veteran crews would rather have an aysmptomatic patient with omitted decompression/safety stop come in first for prophylaxis recompression treatment at 3pm in the afternoon, instead of the usual case of going back to the mainland in denial, developing symptoms overnight, and then choppering back to the Chamber from the mainland, presenting with Acute DCS --at 3am in the morning. . .

 

[Wildcard]

Well of course they would. Budget restrictions in non teaching hospitals prohibit off prime staffing in MOST (not all Im sure) cases. Same reason that level 1 trauma centers need outside funding to stay at that level, it just dosn't pay.
If your getting numbers, Id also like to see number of DCS related rides VS remaining hyperbaric Txs. if that is available. That is a very unique situation on the island.

 

[Kevrumbo]

PM sent. . .
--------------
Speaking of Budget Problems at a Level 1 Trauma Center:

40% of the Day-to-Day Operating Budget for the Chamber is dependent on outside contributions and donations ($100k was generated in our yearly '06 Chamber Day Drive).

Only 38% ($65k) of the Annual Funding Source is the actual contract grant from Los Angeles County; 62% ($108k) is from other Funding Sources.

See why we use a dedicated rotating Volunteer Crew to man the Chamber? No way this Dept. could function with paid Hyperbaric Technologists and EMT's operating it 24/7, 365. . .

 

[Wildcard]

Nor can the others which is why they are not staffed 24/7.
Thanks for the info BTW.

 

[Kevrumbo]

Anyway, additional and back-up Hyperbaric Chamber coverage in the Greater LA Area (whether it's 24/7 staffed or call-in, whatever . . .Service that's available and can be rendered 24 hours a day) is at Long Beach Memorial and UCLA Medical Center:
http://www.memorialcare.org/long_be...c-medicine/department-hyperbaric-medicine.cfm
http://oxyheal.com/Changes/region_pages/UCLA.html

On the Mainland, I’d still call 911 rather than DAN, or the numbers below to arrange treatment, or to handle a transfer to either of the two medical centers above for back-up, in case Catalina is busy or off-line for maintenance. . .

CATALINA CHAMBER
24 HOUR EMERGENCY LINE
(310) 510-1053
LA COUNTY MEDICAL ALERT CENTER (MAC)
(323) 869-0578
(then press 8)
http://wrigley.usc.edu/hyperbaric/TOP.HTM

 

[divinotter]

cool- I finally get to contribute something. I just went to Diver's Safety Day here in LA and a panel of 'experts' including those that actually respond here in a diver emergency (coast guard pilot, swimmer, Chamber admin, deco doctor, sherriffs, lifeguards, etc) had this discussion for us. I came up with the following idea based on their discussion. Here goes...
Having 911 on the dashboard isn’t enough. 911 goes through the Highway patrol and will eventually be routed to the right people. It’s so much more direct to have a flip chart in the glove box of the local numbers for each dive site you frequent, so you can communicate directly. Numbers you need to consider are the local lifeguard service, coast guard, 911 and Dan. It’s also good to have a little script written on the front page of what to say in case you get rattled or need to send someone else to make the calls at a nearby pay phone/ phone box. You need to know where that is before you get in the water and check to see if the cell phone service is working. Remember the key words Scuba Diving Emergency. If you call 911 a diving emergency could mean off a diving board into a swimming pool to them.