SEOEMS policies help protect drivers, citizens

Editor,

I read with interest your editorial in the April 17 Post, “Silencing sirens not the solution.”

The citizens of our area might be unaware of the policies, procedures and training that the Southeast Ohio Emergency Medical Services District long ago has established to minimize the risk of injury of damage caused by our ambulances while responding to emergencies running “hot,” or with red lights and siren operating.

As examples, no SEOEMS ambulance is permitted to proceed through a stop signal (stop sign or red traffic light) without first coming to a complete stop, making sure that all traffic stops, and then they go forward. Lights and sirens must be in use when going through the stop signal.

SEOEMS ambulances also may exceed the posted speed limits when responding in the emergency mode with lights and siren. However, SEOEMS policy limits the ambulance’s speed to 10 miles per hour more than the posted limit — to a maximum speed of 70 mph.

Further, SEOEMS requires one employee to be behind the ambulance watching for pedestrians or obstacles when the ambulance is backing up to maneuver or turn around.

SEOEMS ambulances respond to all emergency calls in hot mode (or what we refer to as code one). However, in most cases, we do no transport to the hospital with red lights and siren operating. This is because, except in the rarest circumstances, we consider the emergency to be complete after the squad’s arrival on the scene.

While initial training might give the student an hour or two of driving instruction, SEOEMS also has an ongoing driver-training program. All new employees must complete an Emergency Vehicle Driving Class developed by the State Fire Marshal’s office, including three hours of classroom instruction and two hours of hands-on driving and maneuvering exercises in an ambulance.

Additionally, all employees go through that same course every two years. During the year when the full class isn’t conducted, all employees must attend a three-hour classroom session to review the laws governing operation of public safety vehicles and the policies of SEOEMS regarding emergency driving operations.

These policies and procedures have been effective, as evidenced by SEOEMS’ exceptional track record of only a few accidents while operating under code one during the past 28 years.

Finally, your observations regarding the motoring public are on point. Emergency and public safety vehicles, including ambulances, fire engines, highway patrol and sheriff’s cruisers use their lights and sirens to request the right of way upon the highway.

State law requires motorists to yield to them, and a new Ohio law requires traffic to move over or slow down when approaching a stopped public safety or emergency vehicle. Drivers need to pay attention and pull to the right for siren and lights — not stop in front of emergency vehicles, move into the left lane or try to out run it.

Thank you for calling attention to this important safety topic.

— Eric Kuhn
SEOEMS Executive Director