EMS employees resign after alleged abuse caught on video
CATSKILL, N.Y. (NEWS10) – Two EMS employees in Catskill have resigned after an alarming surveillance video has made its rounds on social media. The video depicts alleged mistreatment of a patient.
Catskill Town Supervisor Patrick McCulloch said that video caught the town’s attention immediately. He said the town launched an internal investigation into the behavior of those two town employees.
On Friday evening the Town of Catskill Emergency Medical Services (EMS) responded to a call off Main Street.
An EMS crew member can be heard directing the patient to, “Come on down.” A person can be heard responding with, “He’s very weak.” That EMS member responds with, “I can’t carry him down the stairs. He’ll have to go on his butt and come down.”
What the video does not show is the patient, who resides on the second floor of an apartment building, as he struggles to make it down the stairs to the ambulance. The struggle continued as he approached the ambulance.
The man can be seen attempting to get on the ambulance. As he’s on his knees, with his left arm on the gurney he falls over. The EMS can be heard telling the man to “Get up!” McCulloch said the town was alarmed and acted fast.
“In the town, we take patient care at the utmost importance, first and foremost. So when I saw the video, I felt it was our duty to act on this and be as transparent with the public as we can,” said McCulloch.
With the news of the two EMS employees resigning, McCulloch tells me the town considers the internal investigation closed but they’re still reviewing their policies to improve service.
“We’re trying to get a copy of the call itself to see if we can run through the whole scenario with George June, the administrator, to find out how the call went out, what it was dispatched as,” said McCulloch.
McCulloch said like most EMS throughout the country, they are short staffed. Two other employees will have to back fill those slots for now.
“We are currently looking into the possibility of getting body cameras for the ambulance staff,” said McCulloch. “I think it shows the town’s commitment to the safety of the public and our employees.”