Incident Command Systems Experience Paper

Through my experience I saw many examples of how Incident Command Systems functioned in small scale incidents. Each shift as part of the morning briefings a layout of responsibilities on a medical call was established to ensure efficient and effective treatment of the patient. However, there was a mutual aid call that I experienced where this structure of responsibilities was not present by the neighboring department. The call was for a full arrest and we were transporting. The situation that caused the issue was that all the individuals that were part of the initial response were paramedics. It was an engine company that was staffed with a firefighter paramedic, engineer, and captain; however each had their paramedic certification and participated
in treatment. When we arrived on scene the captain who should have been in the incident commander position was treating the patient. Each person had completed a part of the treatment. Worst of all when asked what treatment was given so far no one could give a specific answer. This delayed our ability to help and created complications when trying to determine what medications could be given while enroute to the hospital. This serves to show that it is important to even rely on the basics of ICS when responding to medical emergencies.