Medic facts (From Penarth Times)

Medic facts

I AM writing to you with regards to the recent article you published about the gentleman who collapsed in Tesco"s garage in Penarth (Penarth Times, January 19).

As a paramedic of five years service I would like to point out a few things.

1 Firstly in the pre-hospital field, a paramedic can only defibrillate a patient who is in cardiac arrest - ie not breathing and absent pulse, with one of two rhythms, VF (ventricular fibrillation) or pulse less VT (ventricular tachycardia).

2 The gentleman concerned had a pulse rate as quoted of 255bpm - this could indicate a condition called SVT (superventricular tachycardia) which can be a highly dangerous condition, but within the pre-hospital field is an extremely difficult condition to treat and is NOT within our protocols to defibrillate due to the fact that the patient would need to be placed under general anaesthetic first before a cardioversion (defibrillation) could be performed. Also the hospitals can treat this condition with a range of medications that are not available to paramedics at present, and cardioversion is a treatment normally used when medication therapy is unsuccessful.

3 And finally, I would also like to point out the major safety issue of using a defibrillator on a garage forecourt. Bi-phasic defibrillators use an electrical charge of 200j to restore the heart"s natural rhythm. So, in conclusion, using high electrical charges in the presence of such highly flammable material is extremely dangerous and endangers the lives of the patient, the general public and crew alike.

I feel I speak for all paramedics and technicians who work on the road that none of us would ever withhold life-saving treatment to our patients, we are all here to do our job and serve our communities to the best of our abilities.

The service we provide to the public is a very personal one and many people do not fully understand what we can and can"t do within our roles until the time arises that we are called upon.

As paramedics and technicians we will always strive to do our very best for every patient who needs our care and skills in whatever situation we are faced with.

T Hutchins SRpara

Herbert Terrace

Penarth

* Editor says: We are grateful for the explanation provided. It certainly helps to clear up an issue upon which the Ambulane Trust refused to coment. We all appreciate the hard work and absolute dedication of ambulance crews and paramedics, whose lifesaving actions benefit so many in our communities on a daily basis.