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The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
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The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
Nadine R. Levick, MD, MPH, Pediatric Emergency Medicine, Columbia University, New York, Harlem Hospital center, 506 Lenox Avenue, New York, NY 10037, 212-939-2230, nadine.levick@columbia.edu
PURPOSE To enhance the understanding of occupant safety for EMS vehicles
METHODS A multi-disciplinary team was established, bridging EMS, public health, military, and automotive safety engineering and testing expertise. Based on prior studies on ambulance crash injury and fatality data in addition biomechanical testing, standard ambulance vehicles were configured with crash test dummies and medical equipment. Full vehicle to vehicle crash testing was conducted of 4 vehicles in intersection crash scenarios. Instrumented crash test dummies and medical equipment were positioned in the rear patient compartment in variable restraint configurations, and tested in both head on and side impact scenarios.
RESULTS Frontal and side intersection impacts resulted in partial rollover of the struck vehicle. In the 34 mph frontal and the 44 mph side impact full vehicle crash tests, occupant kinematics and forces demonstrated that unsecured occupants are a risk both to themselves and also to other occupants.
CONCLUSIONS The ambulance transport environment includes predictable and preventable occupant risks. Failure to use current methods of occupant protection for each occupant or to secure equipment effectively can result in catastrophic outcomes to all occupants. Standards for ambulance occupant safety need to be developed.
Learning Objectives:
Keywords: EMS/Trauma, Injury Risk
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.