A neighbor of a dying patient left a critical note of the paramedics on their vehicle, according to media reports in the United Kingdom.
The West Midlands Ambulance Service (WMAS) posted the note on Twitter, showing that it was slipped under their windshield wiper while they were treating a man suffering from internal bleeding.
Sometimes we just don't know what to say. This was the note left on an ambulance today. At the time, the crew were helping a man who was extremely unwell after vomiting blood. They took him on blue lights to hospital where he was in a critical condition. #patientscomefirst ??? pic.twitter.com/RwCCVmZgrA
— WMAS (@OFFICIALWMAS) November 10, 2017
“You may be saving lives, but don’t park your van in a stupid place and block my drive,” read the note.
The medical workers were at the scene for 30 minutes to help the dying man. He was vomiting blood in Small Heath, Birmingham, on Friday, Nov. 10.
“Sometimes we just don’t know what to say,” WMAS said.
“This was the note left on an ambulance today. At the time, the crew were helping a man who was extremely unwell after vomiting blood. They took him on blue lights to hospital where he was in a critical condition,” the service continued, adding that “#patientscomefirst.”
The man later died at the hospital. The family said the death was made worse due to the note, the Daily Mail reported.
Care center manager John Hagans told the paper that the family was “absolutely horrified. They said it’s hard enough as it is, with the loss.”
“The man’s father said to me that it has just made it 50 times worse. The man had been clean for three months before he collapsed,” he said. “He was making active changes to change his life. He was somebody who had made poor choices but was now making the right ones.”
Crew alerted an extremely poorly patient to hospital… minimal on scene time, arrived at hospital to find this note… this patient was TIME-CRITCAL. ??? @OFFICIALWMAS pic.twitter.com/uGGAC2TUpI
— Tasha Starkey (@WMASTStarkey) November 10, 2017
The father added: “I have am absolutely disgusted that an individual complained about the ambulance’s parking. An ambulance is a sacred space. What goes on inside there, it shouldn’t be interfered with.”
“One of these days, heaven forbid that the man who left the note or his family might need an ambulance. He would shut down all of Small Heath to get an ambulance through,” he said.
“We do have a problem with parking but on this particular day, the ambulance was parked down an alley and wasn’t blocking anywhere.
“Ultimately, what kind of individual would be so vitriolic toward an ambulance crew.
“It’s very clear that if they’re not moving, then there’s obviously a significant amount of work going on in that ambulance.
“It’s the mentality of some people – no public spirit, no empathy, and no feeling. It’s all about them.”
Paramedic Clinical Team Mentor Sam Grimson wrote: “One of our crews encountered this delightful note after assisting a patient suffering a major internal bleed! The crew were not on scene long due to how poorly the patient was.
“We always try to park appropriately but sometimes it is not possible,” Crimson said.
