I've always been suspect of the good samaritan laws: It's interesting up here, because every province has it's own good samaritan law, Alberta's reads:
2 If, in respect of a person who is ill, injured or unconscious as the result of an accident or other emergency,
(a) a physician, registered health discipline member, or registered nurse voluntarily and >without expectation of compensation or reward renders emergency medical services or first aid assistance >and the services or assistance are not rendered at a hospital or other place having adequate medical facilities and equipment, or
(b) a person other than a person mentioned in clause (a) voluntarily renders emergency first aid assistance and that assistance is rendered at the immediate scene of the accident or emergency,
the physician, registered health discipline member, registered nurse or other person is not liable for damages for injuries to or the death of that person alleged to have been caused by an act or omission on his or her part in rendering the medical services or first aid assistance, unless it is established that the injuries or death were caused by gross negligence on his or her part.
The scary part about that is that
a) it specifically says only first aid assistance - which isn't defined. If I find you having fallen down a cliff and
move you rather than treat you in place, is that still first aid? Is pulling you out of a crevasse first aid, or
should I instead be trying to merely keep you warm futilely instead of pulling you out.
b) has that caveat of "gross negligence"
So in spite of it all you can get drawn into a costly legal battle just as pika was.
It gets more interesting in Quebec, which has french Napoleanic code instead of english common law as the
basis for civil stuff - in Quebec you have duty to rescue - in other words you are required to render assistance
to the best of your ability.
While It would all make no difference in how I'd act in helping someone, it still disturbs me - I don't have things like former army medic training to fall back on if it came to that in court.
Previous Topic
Index
