EMT Charged With Ignoring Dying Pregnant Woman

[Jazzy]

The New York emergency medical technician accused of standing by while a pregnant woman died of an asthma attack faces criminal charges and could serve time in jail if convicted.



Melissa Jackson, 23, surrendered today to face charges of official misconduct for failing to try to save the life of 25-year-old Eutisha Rennix in a Brooklyn bakery last December. If convicted, Jackson could be sentenced to a year in prison.



She and her boyfriend, EMT Jason Green, 32, were on their lunch break when Rennix suffered the asthma attack at the Au Bon Pain bakery. But the couple allegedly did not administer the life-saving measures they were trained to. Instead, Jackson called a dispatcher for help.



Jackson's lawyer, Benjamin Heinrich, says that call for help was enough. He told AOL News that Jackson is absolutely not guilty of the charges against her. She acted, he told the New York Daily News. She called directly to the dispatcher.



The Rennix family is suing the city for wrongful death. Their attorney, Sanford Rubenstein, says the family wants to make sure such a tragedy never happens again. We want to let this arrest set an example for EMS workers across the country -- that if you fail to respond, you will be criminally prosecuted, he told AOL News today.



Link: http://www.aolnews.com/nation/article/emt-charged-with-ignoring-dying-pregnant-woman/19670533

 

[The Dragon Master]

She should get more than a year in prison

 

[Evil Eye]

Aren't these people under oath to help people?

 

[Jazzy]

Aren't these people under oath to help people?

As a Paramedic I can tell you that I am under no oath to help people. We are like anyone else as that we are hired to do a job and work certain hours. With that being said, there is no way in heck I ever consider myself off duty when I see that a person(s) needs medical help. The woman here in this story is a disgrace to the medical professsion.

 

[Evil Eye]

I think this is the thing I was thinking of:

http://www.edubook.com/what-is-the-hippocratic-oath-and-where-did-it-come-from/10346/

Also, it states that you should never ignore someone in need of care that you can provide

 

[Jazzy]

I think this is the thing I was thinking of:

http://www.edubook.com/what-is-the-hippocratic-oath-and-where-did-it-come-from/10346/

Also, it states that you should never ignore someone in need of care that you can provide

The hippocratic oath is an oath for doctors that they take upon graduation. Upon my graduation, we were not sworn in under this oath. Common sense would tell any medical professional that you NEVER ignore someone in need even if you are off duty that day. Unfortunately, there are some that feel while off duty like this EMT having lunch, they do not need to respond.