April 2014 - case study 2
Date: 31 March 2016
- Details:
A teenager sustained an elbow injury at school, which appeared to be a dislocation. The school staff were concerned that the attending crew did not offer the child any pain relief and did not immobilise the arm. The child’s father was asked to take the patient to hospital, and the school considered that she should have been conveyed by ambulance.
- Findings:
The paramedic accepted that the patient was assessed as having a pain score of 10/10 and that pain relief should have been offered. Immobilisation of the arm had been considered by the Paramedic but rejected due to the position of the arm, and this decision was found to be justified although the use of supportive padding could have been an option. The investigation found that the patient should have been transported to hospital in the ambulance, primarily so that pain relief could have been provided.
- Lesson learnt / action taken:
The crew members were interviewed under the Trust’s ‘Variations in Clinical Practice and Clinical Competence’ policy. The paramedic is writing a case study describing how the incident should have been dealt with, taking into account the concerns raised regarding patient care.
- Date:30 March 2014