SHOULD I CALL THE EMTs?
It had been a long second week of freshman year. Roommates Sally and Morgan were ready for the weekend. On Friday night, they heard about an upcoming party and decided to check it out. The beer was plentiful, and even though they were underage, Sally and Morgan were welcome to drink as much as they wanted.
As the night progressed, Morgan, who had very little experience with alcohol in high school, started to feel sick, so Sally helped her back to the dorm. When they got to the dorm bathroom, Morgan passed out next to the sink.
Sally wasn't sure what she should do. She had heard that there were EMTs (Emergency Medical Technicians) on campus to help in this situation. But she'd also heard that when you called the EMTs, you got fined and "written up." She didn't want to get in trouble or to make trouble for Morgan, but she thought her friend might be really ill.
Found at: http://www.scu.edu/r/ethics-center/ethicsblog/thebigq/10564/Should-I-Call-the-EMTs
This is a very serious situation where Morgan’s wellbeing is in jeopardy. Morgan could possibly wake up fine the next day, but taking that chance is not a good idea. Sally should either first call her RA to explain the situation and ask for help with Morgan because they may have experienced other situations similar to this. If she does not call the RA, Sally should call an EMT. If Morgan is seriously ill, she will need the medical attention immediately. It is important to not put Morgan’s life in danger because of worry for getting “written up”. They may also learn a lesson out of this situation that could refrain them from making bad decisions in the future. But, sitting back and not doing anything about Morgan’s state is a bad decision because Morgan’s life could be in danger. We should always take precautions with alcohol consumption, and if Sally is ever unsure about someone’s health, medical professionals should be called to help deal with the situation no matter the consequence.
ReplyDeleteI agree with what Peyton is saying, a lot is what I said in my own response, but she brought up some points that I didn't even think about for the situation. Such things as getting the RA just passed over my head, and that this would be a learning experience for them, and tough one but one that was much needed because they had no experience with alcohol at all, so now they no there limits if they drink after this.
DeleteSitting back and doing nothing in this situation is the worst thing possible for Sally to do. Sally and other freshman may think it is "okay" for her just to sleep it off and be okay but that is a big risk. Sally is unsure what kind of danger Morgan is in and her life depends on Sally making the right decision and calling for help. A small fine so petty in comparison to the price of someone's life. Alcohol consumption for someone that doesn't know there tolerance can be dangerous, especially now that Morgan did go unconscious so Sally should call the EMT. Your friend may wake up in the hospital and be mad at you saying "I'm fine" but it is better to be precautious and safe. Rather your friend being alive and mad at you for a time being, than your friend no longer being there at all.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree. The comparison to getting a small fine and getting written up is definitely worth it for saving someones life. I'm sure Sally would want to be treated the same way if she was in Morgan's position, so doing the right thing and getting medical attention is very serious.
DeleteQuite honestly, neither of them should've been drinking in the first place, and you should always pace yourself and stay hydrated when drinking alcohol, especially when you are unsure of your tolerance. However, both drank and now Morgan is in danger. Passing out when drinking is a sign of alcohol poisoning, and Sally needs to go to the EMTs and get her friend help, no matter the consequences on herself. The consequences should've been thought about and taken into consideration before the drinking started. Sally should get Morgan help as soon as possible.
ReplyDeleteI do agree, however, in most cases, even here and berg, young students do drink and mistakes are made. she should still notify the emt though.
DeleteI think you're right with the fact that if people do drink at the very least they should pace themselves and drink water to stay hydrated. Sometimes in these situations people worry too much about long term consequences rather than immediate ones like the welling being of their friend.
DeleteI agree with the fact that neither should have been drinking, but, students drink on the weekends and knowing that they need to be aware of the consequences that can happen. Sally should defiantly call EMTs but she could try to get more help from an RA as well.
Deletethis situation is very serious, and should be treated as such. The worst thing that sally could do in this situation is not call anybody, because if something is wrong with morgan then the situation will just become even worse in the morning. Even though these two should not have been drinking in the first place it is college, and there is a lot of underage drinking so the situation is not very uncommon. sally should not be worried about the possible fine/ write up becasue morgans safety should come first. So in the end sally should make sure that she calls the EMT,s and make sure that morgan gets the help she needs no matter what the consequences may be.
ReplyDeleteI agree that this situation is very serious and action should be taken. I feel like before calling the EMTs, Sally should go to someone else trustworthy to explain the situation and see what they would do as well. such as an RA because they have probably dealt with this situation before.
ReplyDeleteThis could potentially be a life threatening situation and alcohol poisoning is very serious. Sally needs to do what is best for Morgan, even if that means being fined and written up. Really, neither of them should have been drinking, but it is college and it is very typical for underage drinking to occur. They should have been more careful, but the EMT should most definitely be called since she obviously drank way too much and could have even been drugged without knowing it.
ReplyDeleteYes, I totally agree with what you're saying. Sally should take the responsibility in doing what is right even when knowing there are consequences followed by these actions. But in all reality someones life should always come first no matter what. I do feel like an RA can be involved before calling the EMT because RA's are trained for these type of situations so they would know what to do in this problem.
Deletethough neither of them should have been drinking, quite of few of us have been in this type of situation. sally should at least call for some other assistance where someone who is sober can asses the scene since both of them are drunk. I think they should contact the ra and if that does not work, the emt should be notified immediately.
ReplyDeletei agree although underages should not drink, college is a place where a lot of people experiment with alcohol. It would defenitly be smart to go the RA before going straight to the EMT,s.
DeleteFor Morgan and Sally this is a very scary and life threatening situation, but also is a very hard choice for Sally even though it should be easy but it would be hard for anyone if they were put in the situation. The reason it is hard is that she doesn't want to get Morgan or herself in trouble for drinking since they are both underage, which is very serious. But Sally needs to get over the fear of getting in trouble because if Morgan is passed out and she can't get her up then she could have alcohol poisoning which can kill you if a person is not treated right away, and that is a lot worse than getting in trouble for drinking and getting a fine.
ReplyDeleteThis is a very serious situation that can put Morgan's life at risk. It is very hard to tell that maybe the next morning she’ll wake up just fine but taking that chance is very risky. Sally was smart to take Morgan back to the dorm after she realized that Morgan was getting very ill. Even when getting back to their dorm she should still keep a close eye just incase something would go wrong. In this scenario something did go wrong and Sally is afraid to say something because she doesn’t want to get in trouble and she doesn’t want Morgan in trouble. Honestly her best option would to be to pull her RA aside and ask for help and guidance. I also feel like that the EMT should be called either way just to stay on the safe side. It's better to be safe than sorry especially if someone’s health is on the line. Sally shouldn’t let the fact that both of them will get in trouble because it was their choice to drink so learning from their consequences will treat them a lesson on how to be smarter later on in life.
ReplyDeleteNot doing anything in that situation would A. be very dangerous for her friend because there is a very real possibility of alcohol poisoning which can kill you and B. ins't something a real friend would do, if you don't have your friends best interest in mind I feel like you're not a very good friend and wouldn't consider you a friend of mine afterwords either. If say you do call the EMTs and you get in trouble at the very least you're friends not dead and its not the end of the world. If they don't call the EMTs and your friend dies thats on you for letting it happen and you could face manslaughter charges.
ReplyDeleteI think that if you really do not know what to do and are in a pinch making sure that she gets medical help is better safe than sorry. There could be a few things that could be wrong. If she really did not want to get written up, then I would say get someone older who has more experience with drinking to help you out just because then someone who has a better understanding of what can take place taking better care of the situation because Sally did drink as well. Ultimatly I feel that she should just get the help from the EMT's
ReplyDeleteThis case is a serious one. Morally, she should definitely help her friend by calling the EMT's. To put it bluntly, not calling the EMT's just so you both don't get written up for underage drinking, is a selfish act. However, her friend may not be in danger completely, so, finding someone who is experienced and who knows how to keep her safe and help sober her up for the morning to come, without getting in trouble, is advised.
ReplyDeleteMany college students have faced this situation. Many do not want to call the EMTs because they worry about the long term consequences. I believe that Sally should call the EMTs. But, before that she could always think about getting ahold of the RA on duty to see if he/her could help the situation. Morgan might wake up and be mad at you for calling the EMTs, but calling them is more important because you never know what is exactly happening to her.
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