- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OTJN8APVbD0
- http://www.myfoxtwincities.com/story/20142219/investigators-medical-mayhem
List date(s) this work was published or aired.
11/19/2012
Provide a brief synopsis of the story or stories, including any significant findings.
We investigate crashes involving ambulances. We discovered the vast majority of emergency medical calls DO NOT warrant a lights and sirens response, yet that’s the common practice and it puts public safety at risk.
Explain types of documents, data or Internet resources used. Were FOI or public records act requests required? How did this affect the work?
State data of ambulance crashes, crash videos obtained through open records law,county data showing the number of medical emergencies with “hot” responses. We found only 7 percent of the emergency medical calls actually warranted a lights and siren response from EMS.
Explain types of human sources used.
EMS dispatch experts.
Results:
Story was praised by EMS community nationwide for tackling a subject that runs contrary to conventional wisdom.
Follow-up (if any). Have you run a correction or clarification on the report or has anyone come forward to challenge its accuracy? If so, please explain.
no.
Advice to other journalists planning a similar story or project.
It’s all about the data. Talk with EMS people in your community. They can guide you to importance sources that are off the beaten path.