Here's one of the many things I'm pissed off about these days...
See this picture? It's a picture of a CAP Ground Team member checking on the health of one the littlest survivors of Hurricane Katrina.
Our Teams were the first uniformed responders that 80% of the people we encountered had seen after the storm.
This particular GMT has a Paramedic License. He gets to wear a badge on his uniform that identifiers him as a medical professional.
So what medical direction is he operating under in this picture? What liability coverage does he have?
None of this was cleared up over the last year or so. The Health Services issues were once again tabled at this week's National Board meeting, reportedly due to, "concerns about medical malpractice."
Give me a break.
I've heard people say that, "We don't train EMTs in CAP." Well I've got news for them, we don't train pilots either! But we equip pilots, and we insure pilots, but we do not train them to be pilots.
So let's treat the medical professionals on the ground the same way.
We need to take the rescue part of Search And Rescue (SAR) seriously... just as seriously as the flying part. That means taking care of the boots on the ground.
The speciality track was actually approved at the board. Now comes the hard work of creating the framework. Anyone interested can follow on http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CAP_HEALTH_SERVICES/
1Lt Thomas Cooper
RN, CEN, EMS RN
Posted by: flyerthom | August 14, 2006 at 10:34
hehe, that is one cool senior member. Man, he saved my feet...
Posted by: Lieutenant Locke | August 14, 2006 at 16:59
Here's the down and dirty.
CAP has liability coverge on AF missions but the member has no personal liability. The Federal Tort Claim Act (FTCA) gives that protection to the corporation. CAP members can be personally sued and even the Good Samaritan Law doesn't protect you from being sued. It only says that if you prove you didn't commit an act of gross negligence, the lawsuit could be dismissed. It is expensive to defend yourself.
CAP does not have liability or medical malpractice coverage away from AF missions. You act in a CAP uniform, it is assumed you act on behalf of CAP. And CAP won't be able to defend us...we're on our own!
MG Pineda has approved me to work on the following Federal Legislation:
1. The Professional Volunteer Act which has already been introduced in the House says that professional volunteers working in a national disaster have personal liability coverage unless they commit gross negligence. It also means that Nationally Registered EMTs and Paramedics can work in ANY state. Mississippi wouldn't let us work if we were from another state.
2. Federal Legislation to put CAP members under the same law as Guard and Reserve members for job protection for CAP training, meetings and missions. Several states, including Iowa and Missouri, now have this as state laws.
Getting these laws passed will be a great start and will allow use to better use our personnel. I have senators and representatives who have agreed to co-sponsor and support these laws. With the National Board over, I can work hard on this. Watch the North Central Region website in a couple of months. We will post progress on these laws. I may even ask for everyone's help in contacting your states senators and congressmen to support this.
Steve W. Kuddes, Colonel CAP
Commander, North Central Region
Posted by: casper | August 14, 2006 at 21:10
Excellent news, Col. Kuddes.
As a physician and CAP medical officer, I stand ready to assist you in these endeavors.
One quick correction, we're not there yet in Missouri but we're working hard on it! Our Legislative Committee is pushing this issue forward and working hard on increasing our visibility with our state legislature to gain a seat at the table.
I'll contact you privately, sir, to bring you up to date on our efforts in Missouri.
Capt. (Dr.) David A. Miller
Assistant Medical Officer
Recruiting & Retention Officer
Chair, Legislative Committee
Missouri Wing
Posted by: DrDave | August 14, 2006 at 21:25
Colonel, explain exactly how FTCA covers only the corporation and not the individual member, please. This is a very crucial thing, and members have been led to believe by CAP that their participation in USAF-assigned missions provides them with substantial if not impenetrable liability protection. If this is not the case, CAP may have a serious problem on its hands.
You may recall the problems we had with pilots refusing to fly Cadet Orientation Flights and other corporate-status-only missions not too long ago. Like most members, I'm entirely willing to contribute my time and talents to CAP in whatever capacity necessary, but I'm not willing to risk my personal fortune (meager as it may be) for the privilege of doing so.
Posted by: Blackwing | August 23, 2006 at 21:23
p.s., where'd the guy in the photo get that snazzy vest? That should be essential ground team/UDF team gear.
Posted by: Blackwing | August 23, 2006 at 21:24
Regarding the issue of personal liability and FTCA coverage, I found the below comment within the Jun 06 BoG minutes:
(Emphasis mine) No disrespect to Col Kuddes intended, but I think I'll take Col Hodgkins' word over his on this.Posted by: Blackwing | August 24, 2006 at 00:34
p.s., where'd the guy in the photo get that snazzy vest? That should be essential ground team/UDF team gear.
Posted by: Blackwing | August 23, 2006 at 21:24
I suspect (but can't prove) that he's wearing a Dyna-Med EMS Utility Vest. I used to see the velcro panels on their site too, but I can't find them.
Posted by: Nick | August 25, 2006 at 20:24