Question

You are en route to the ED with a critical patient when your ambulance's mobile radio fails. Which of the following may be used to contact the hospital?

1) Local law enforcement
2) Cell phone
3) Base station
4) Repeater

Answer 1

If an ambulance's mobile radio fails, the crew may use a cell phone, contact local law enforcement, utilize a base station, or use a repeater to communicate with the hospital.

Step-by-step explanation:

If an ambulance's mobile radio fails while en route to the Emergency Department (ED) with a critical patient, there are alternative methods that may be used to maintain contact with the hospital. These include:

• Using a cell phone to directly call the hospital. As cell phones have a radio receiver and a transmitter that can tune to assigned microwave frequencies, they can function in various locations by linking the call to the nearest broadcast tower, despite their low-intensity signal.
• Contacting local law enforcement or other emergency services that can then relay the message to the hospital.
• Utilizing a base station if one is in range, as it acts as a powerful two-way communication tool, especially designed for such critical fails.
• Implementing a repeater which can help in extending the range of the radio communication by retransmitting the signals over a greater distance.

Note that while using a cell phone in this scenario may be necessary, there is a reason why we're sometimes asked to switch off mobile phones in sensitive environments like hospitals, due to the potential for interference with medical equipment which also uses similar radio frequencies.