Can rescue worker force you to use the hospital they contact with?

Forgot to add that typically police have enough tasks on hand and enough to deal with without becoming involved in someone's hospital choice.

Something doesn't sound right here.

I've never had any problems going to our hospital of choice. The paramedics have always been very, very cooperative and helpful, but I suppose it could vary by jurisdiction.

If we were in Detroit, I suspect we wouldn't have the same level of courtesy because Detroit's situation is so bad the paramedics have a rough time just performing their duties.

Bringing in the police sounds really uncharacteristic.

The paramedics take us to the hospital requested most of the time, but last time they thought it was stroke and wanted to go to the closest hospital I deferred to them but regretted it later when it was a UTI and the care was just awful.
One other time we were there at North Fulton by mistake the hospital names are similar. We request Northside Forsythe every time because the care is better and her doctors are affiliated there.
I didn't think they [EMTs] could force you to go to a hospital that you did not want to go to. I would call an attorney and possibly initiate an investigation. I think that it is a conflict of interest on their part.

If I had the time away from caregiving I would pursue this with a local tv investigative report team. You might be uncovering some type of kickback scheme. In Las Vegas, cabbies were getting kickbacks from the strip clubs where they delivered tourists. We're talking $50 +/- for each patron delivered. I agree with LadeeC, find out what the reasoning was for threatening to arrest you.

I suppose it depends on the jurisdiction, but our paramedics/ambulance workers always defer to us, with a few exceptions (head trauma, for instance, has to go somewhere that has the right kinds of facilities). It might depend on the reason for the emergency.

The best solution is to know about this stuff in advance. Who has POA if your mother is unable to speak for herself? Contact hospital staff and the possible agencies to get more information about the reasons behind their decisions.

As far as I know, the patient *does* get to determine where they want to go .. especially since, once there, it's hard as h*ll to get moved.

LadeeC