Ambulance Company’s Carelessness Costs Woman Her Life and Insurance Company Half a Million Dollars

Sharon Hill, a 53 year-old Pinellas County resident died as the result of what she thought would be a routine trip in an MMG Transportation ambulance van. Ms. Hill, a double amputee, regularly used MMG’s services to take her to medical appointments, but on her last trip she violently hit her head on the vehicle’s dashboard and broke her neck.
This was an injury that never should have happened. Regulations required that Ms. Hill and her wheelchair be secured during the trip, but MMG failed to provide safety straps in the van. Ms. Hill even mentioned to the driver on that fateful day that she had never been transported before without the straps, and the driver commented that the straps had been removed and not put back.

During the trip the driver stopped short in traffic which caused Ms. Hill to fall from her unsecured wheelchair and hit her head. At the hospital, she was diagnosed with a very serious cervical fracture – a fracture of the anterior arch of atlas — and her head was placed in a halo to keep both her head and her neck stable. She eventually was transferred to a rehabilitation facility, but she never recovered. She was never able to return home, where she had been living independently despite her disabilities. Her injuries from the ambulance incident were just too serious, and she died in May 2008.

MMG Transportation’s insurance company agreed to pay Ms. Hill’s estate $500,000. “Every year people are injured needlessly in accidents that occur during transport,” said Ms. Hill’s attorney, Philip DeBerard. “Many products, such as floor straps, wheelchair locks and harness systems, are available to secure wheelchair patients in ambulances, and this company failed to protect our client.”
There is a lesson in this for other businesses that transport people. DeBerard said, “You can protect your facility and residents from this type of tragedy by developing guidelines for the safe transport of wheelchair passengers and by providing appropriate training for implementation. Proactive risk management is an ongoing challenge, but all of the time and trouble is definitely worthwhile if accidents such as this can be avoided.”

The following guidelines for safe transport of passengers should be considered:
• Appropriate training for guideline implementation.
• A preventive maintenance schedule for each vehicle, according to
the manufacturer’s recommendations. Keep a log of monthly
inspections.
• A visual checklist to perform routine safety inspections. Service
vehicles as needed, and keep reports and corrective action receipts
filed with the vehicle maintenance records.
• Provide an appropriate number of staff to adequately meet the needs of
the passengers while en route (e.g., residents at risk for seizures,
dependent on oxygen, or confused and unable to fasten their safety
restraints, etc.).
• Visually check equipment for proper working condition before loading
residents. Make sure safety straps are not frayed, torn or broken.
• Set both wheelchair brakes and fasten safety restraints before raising
the lift to the level of entry into the van.
• Always fasten restraints according to the vehicle’s manufacturer
directions when transferring a wheelchair into the vehicle. The
operator should verify that the wheelchair restraints provided on the
van are compatible with both the resident and the wheelchair to
secure the passenger in place.
• Develop an audit system in which the fleet manager randomly travels
with drivers to assess their skills and knowledge. Provide training
based on needs.