Blog Introduction

Welcome to the Star of Life Law blog!

My name is Pete Reid. I am a Firefighter/Paramedic with the Town of Hilton Head Island Fire & Rescue Division.  I am also a practicing Attorney in South Carolina.

Yes, you read that right!  I am both a Firefighter/Paramedic and an Attorney.  I get a lot of questions asking, ” Why on Earth would a lawyer become a firefighter and paramedic?”  It is a story that I am happy to tell, and you can get the scoop on the ‘About Me’ page.

The Star of Life Law blog will focus on the legal issues involved in providing emergency medical services and rescue to patients in the field. I hope to accomplish this by examining old, yet persistant EMS problems, current EMS topics of interest, and through case studies. For example, we will be discussing proper EMS documentation on patient care reports, negligence, malpractice, and professional responsibility for starters.

This blog should be of interest to First Responders, Basic Emergency Medical Technicians (EMT’s), Paramedics, Firefighters, Medical Directors, EMS Administrators, and well, you get the idea.  If you are involved anywhere in the EMS chain, this blog is for you.  I take that back.  This blog is actually for our patients, because they expect, demand and deserve quality patient care.

This blog is NOT about short-cuts or ends-around our responsibilities and obligations in providing quality patient care.  This blog is about ensuring that your livelihood and reputation is not ruined by preventable mistakes in providing that care.  No call is perfect, and we all make mistakes.  We must, however, educate ourselves, learn from our mistakes, and learn from the mistakes of others.

I solicit and encourage your input and comments.  I look forward to respectful debates in the comments, and hope that you will submit your questions or suggestions for posts on topics of interest and concern to you.

Let’s get started!