Gift for annual Quartzsite Forum Rally attendees

[HueyPilotVN]

I have a gift for attendees of the annual Q Forum Rally.

Last year I had a caridovertor/difribillator implanted in my chest.

I also sold my RV and do not plan on traveling like I have for most of my adult life.

I carried a defribillator and portable oxygen tank in case I or someone else needed it.  Fortunately, no one ever did.

I was sitting here at my desk and Renae heard a beeping sound.  We searched all over till we finally found the source of the noise in a cabinet.  It was the defrib's low battery warning.  I thought to myself that they would be better used if I gave them to the forum to have at the rally's.

We need to find someone that is usually at the rally to take them.

You do not have to know how to use it because it talks you thru the procedure of how to use it.  It will not shock the patient unless the diagnostic test warrants it.

I carried it in an unlocked belly storage compartment and told people where it was and to just get it if they needed it at various campsites.

A few years ago at the Q big tent there was a vendor that sold me a replacement battery and a second pad pack.

I just opened it an when I touched the open switch it started to go thru the instructions, however since the battery was beeping I will order a new battery and include it.

The oxygen tank need to be refilled, but many places can do this.  I had it refilled at a hospital once.

It is free for the forum and we just need a custodian that will usually be there.  You might just save someones life, maybe your own.

Send me a message if you could do this,

 

[Tom]

That's very kind of you Bill. Hopefully, a QZ regular will step forward.

FWIW we've done something similar with our cruising boat club. However, each cruise has a designated 'cruise leader', and they pass the defibrillator to the next cruise leader. We also have a large "first aid" flag that's flown from the boat that has the defibrillator on board. If someone is in need of it, there's no time to waste hopping from boat to boat to find it.

 

[PancakeBill]

Great idea with the flag!  Wonderful gift for the forum Bill,  blessings to you.

 

[HueyPilotVN]

I know that there are several of the Framily that are there most every year and I quess that if you were to miss a year you could give it to another that will be there.

I am not asking anyone to take on being a doctor or EMT, just asking for you to carry the tools.

The defribillator will give directions for use out loud and will not shock without running a diagnostic EKG first and detecting a need for shock.

Mostly you slap on the pads and listen.

There would possibly be someone else that has done it before.

You can certainly use it how ever you wish,  I would suggest that you might even take it along on your off road trips at the Qz .

I already ordered the battery and after thinking about where to get the Oxygen tank filled I came up with a medical gas place here in Havasu and I will fill it there.

 

[Arch Hoagland]

Isn't it just amazing how far medicine has come in this day and age.

Mighty kind of you Bill to give that away...might just save somebody's life some day.

 

[HueyPilotVN]

Update:

I think that Framily members that attend Quartzsite may be concerned about the responsibility or liability of using this on someone having a heart attack.  I have not had any of the QZ bunch to respond.

I do think that there would be very little liability in trying to save someone with the same equipment that hangs on the walls at most airports.  It really is a simple device to use and certainly is preferable to doing nothing in a cardiac emergency.

You might consider rotating the person that has the equipment by handing it off to a different person that will attend next year.

I did have a member of the Forum that has another unrelated organization that could use the equipment.  If no one wants to be willing to just have it available at QZ then I might give it to them.  My first choice is the folks in this group that I have come to know.

I have already ordered a new battery pack and I spent the morning trying to get the Oxygen tank refilled.

The refilling of the tank has been a problem.  I went to Praxair here in town.  They only sell to medical suppliers like LinCare also here in LHC.  Lincare will only refill it with a prescription.  I offered to get my Cardiologist to write one.  No, they said I have to enroll in a medical gas delivery plan for ongoing delivery.

Life certainly gets complicated.  I told them that it was going to be donated for emergency use.  Did not help in Arizona

The last time I refilled it was at one of our emergency hospitals where I just handed it to someone and said fill it.

I can order a new full tank online, (figure that one out) for about $100 and have it shipped for another $100 including tax and handling.

Anyway, I will hold off until I can determine if anyone wants to have it at the gathering.

This is the first time that I have had to spend 3 to 4 hundred dollars to give something away.

 

[UTTransplant]

Bill, I, for one, am not worried about liability, but I just don?t know if it would get its best use with us. Even at Q, the odds that someone would need it where we were is small. I can see the advantage in giving it to someone who would be in larger groups and therefore have a higher probability of it being used. The oxygen tank is another issue. Do you have a friend who can get you the Rx for oxygen? I know people who travel to higher elevations from a lower one sometimes get oxygen bottles for short-term use; my MIL did. There has to be somewhere that will refill a single bottle. That might be very helpful if a person gets COVID.

 

[Rene T]

Do you have a friend

That?s part of the problem and don?t ask me how I know.?? ??

 

[UTTransplant]

That?s part of the problem and don?t ask me how I know.?? ??

Ahh, but Bill is a MD and probably has a lot more medical contacts than we do.

 

[Boat Addict]

With the If and and butts , I would look around at some volunteer fire departments or EMS services in some rural communities and see if they can use it ..this came from my qualified wife that has dealt with liability insurance issues in the off hours

 

[Tom]

I don't recall us talking about the potential liability issue of using the 'talking' defibrillator in our cruising boat club. OTOH we had a couple of MDs and at least one RN in our membership, although they weren't necessarily in attendance at any particular club cruise.

Along with the defib unit, for years we had a large bag of first aid supplies that was passed from one cruise leader to the next. Due to issues of periodically replenishing/replacing supplies, the Board recently voted to no longer maintain the bag/supplies, reasoning that each boat should be advised to carry their own first aid kit on board. But they (the club) still carry the defbrillator to cruises.

Fortunately or unfortunately, in the 35 years we've been members of the club, we've seen a very small number of accidents requiring medical attention, and a couple that required transport to an ER. I don't recall the defibrillator being used. Accidents typically happened at night when (younger) folks were partying and hopping from boat to boat barefooted. Bare feet and wet fiberglass don't mix, and I'd yell at anyone who attempted to hop aboard our boat without wearing boat shoes; It didn't matter if it was day or night, or folks were sober or inebriated.

 

[Rene T]

Ahh, but Bill is a MD and probably has a lot more medical contacts than we do.

When did he become a MD?

 

[HueyPilotVN]

I am not an MD.  Maybe confused because I designed and manufactured mobile hospitals.

 

[jackiemac]

Not sure why there would be a liability issue?

    " You do not have to know how to use it because it talks you thru the procedure of how to use it. 
        It will not shock the patient unless the diagnostic test warrants it."

Frankly I'd be astounded at anyone who needed this treatment to sue you for using it, and if you hadn't they would probably be dead.

Very kind and generous offer Bill.  Perhaps the Quartzite PD or Fire Department would be a decent alternative if no one here takes up your offer. I'm sure someone could collect and drop off.

 

[Tom]

Jackie, liability laws here are very different from the UK, as we found when we stumbled on a fatal accident en route to Cardiff airport in the wee hours. I had a protracted dialog with the UK (Welsh) Investigative Officer.

 

[garyb1st]

Litigation often has less to do with actual negligence than perception.  The belief without actual proof that someone did something wrong.  There's a reason the US has more attorneys than any other country. 

 

[Great Horned Owl]

Update:

I think that Framily members that attend Quartzsite may be concerned about the responsibility or liability of using this on someone having a heart attack.  I have not had any of the QZ bunch to respond.

I do think that there would be very little liability in trying to save someone with the same equipment that hangs on the walls at most airports.  It really is a simple device to use and certainly is preferable to doing nothing in a cardiac emergency.

As far as liability goes, unless the user were to deliberately do something that they knew to be wrong, any use of an automatic defibrillator will be covered by Good Samaritan laws, and the user would be absolved of any liability https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Good_Samaritan_law#United_States.

Lest anybody have any fears of using one, they really are easy. Some years back I was the Director of Quality Assurance and Regulatory Affairs. One of our products was an automatic defibrillator. To test the ease of use, we gathered together several groups of adults, and also 8 to ten year old kids. None of them had ever used a defibrillator before. Although, I'm sure that most of them had seen defibrillators used on TV programs such as ER.

,One at a time, we sent each of them into a room with a defibrillator, and Resusci Anne. For those who don't know, Anne is the manikin used to teach CPR. We told each of them that Anne was unconscious, that this box was a defibrillator that might save her life. They were told to turn it on, and to do whatever whatever it told them to do. An observer was in the room to grade each person's performance.

We were not surprised that nobody completely failed. We were a bit surprised that on the whole, the kids slightly outperformed the adults. The main difference being that the kids were less hesitant.

Joel

 

[HueyPilotVN]

Update:

I finally found a home for the Defibrillator and Oxygen tank.

I did have one response that was for an unrelated group and I was about to call him but I found what to me was a better solution.

Renae"s son Casey is a paramedic.  He, his wife and the grandson are visiting.  I suggested that he carry it with him in his private vehicle in case he ever needs to use it for someone when he is off duty and does not have access to one.  It may save someone's life.

He had no qualms about using it as he routinely uses the same type equipment. 

Casey is the kind of guy that would always stop and help if he saw the need.

 

[jackiemac]

Well done Bill, great idea! Hope you're enjoying your new home!