On Jan. 10 at approximately 3:45 p.m. after playing bingo a man tripped on a floor mat and hit his head violently against the side of the beverage counter in the dining hall of the Baker Senior Center. 911 was called immediately to request emergency medical services for him. The man’s left side of his head was braced against the side of the beverage counter, and his body was twisted to the left on the floor, the 911 operator insisted the caller not move the injured person.

When the ambulance arrived the drivers brought in a gurney which did not have locking wheels so two bystanders were asked to hold the gurney in place. The ambulance drivers did not bring in any equipment to secure the injured man’s neck. One of the drivers sat the injured man up and told him not to move his head, while the other driver went to get the medical bag.

Onlookers were surprised that they did not check the injured man’s pulse or take his blood pressure.

The injured man complained that his legs hurt, and he could not move his arm, but no efforts were made to make him more comfortable. One driver asked if he should secure the injured man’s head. Then the other driver stated “no, the brace is just a precaution.” The drivers then attempted to pick the injured man up, but his legs would not hold him, and the injured man fell back to the floor.

One driver then instructed the other one to go and get the back board from the ambulance. A police officer arrived and was able to help get the injured man on the back board. One driver asked the injured man on the back board to put his arms across his chest, but the injured man could not move his left arm.

I was an onlooker and the one that held the gurney, I was deeply concerned over the level of care and medical knowledge exhibited by the ambulance crew. I have several questions.

Under Baker County’s new emergency response program with Metro West Ambulance Service are all their ambulance crew state licensed EMT’s or EMR’s? If not, what formal training do they have? One of the ambulance drivers’ jacket said he was from “Bay City.” Is Metro West rotating people here from all over the state? If so, how many of them are familiar with Baker County geography in order to reach a caller as quickly as possible? Please note the education and training required by the Oregon Health Authority for EMT’s on the OHA web page.

Overall, this was the most unprofessional treatment of an injured person I have ever seen accompanied by a complete lack of compassion.

JoAnn Illingsworth

Haines