Ambulance transports from a state prison: a unique service staffed by prisoners.
The Journal of the Kentucky Medical Association · 2007-03-01 · Observational study
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To describe an emergency medical service (EMS) staffed by convicted felons and to determine the nature of emergencies at a state penitentiary. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed runs performed by the prison EMS for 2003. For each run, we recorded emergency run or a non-emergency transport, location of the patient, whether or not the run was staffed with a nurse or physician, and whether or not an automated external defibrillator (AED) was used. We also determined the cost of operating the service. RESULTS: During 2003, the prison EMS had a total call volume of 477 transports. The AED was used 8 times with one patient surviving to hospital admission neurologically intact. There were 357 emergency runs and 120 nonemergency transports. The majority of emergency transports, 305 (85%), were for medical complaints. The actual cost of operating the service for 2003 was $35,421. There were no attempted escapes or injured providers. This study shows that the majority of emergency transports in our prison were for medical conditions. CONCLUSION: The use of state prisoners as EMS providers results in substantial cost savings and most transports were for medical emergencies.