Green light needed for doctors in rush

Doctors, nurses or midwives can use a roof-mounted green flashing light. Photo / Thinkstock

Doctors driving to emergencies should have green flashing lights on their cars, says a coroner who is calling for a ministerial review.

Coroner Ian Smith has issued the recommendation after the inquest into the death of a woman whose doctor was delayed from treating her when police stopped him for speeding.

Jacqueline Senibuli died after a cardiac arrest in Hutt Hospital on July 28, 2008. Her son Rangi Bell raised concerns that a doctor was delayed because police stopped him.

Dr Kevin O'Connor was an intensive care specialist who was urgently called back to the hospital to treat Senibuli. He was stopped by police when he was clocked doing 118km/h.

He told the inquest he had tried to explain the urgent nature of his journey but he did not have his doctor's ID and was breathalysed after being rude to the officer.

The officer did not issue an infringement notice but followed the doctor to the hospital.

The officer's superior, Sergeant Timothy Crumm, told the inquest the doctor had found himself in an "unsatisfactory situation". He then suggested a flashing green light, which are already allowed for medical personnel, may have helped.

The coroner picked up on the idea. "A green light does not allow the driver to speed, but other traffic, on seeing the green light, should make way for it," Smith said.

He said the delay of between two and five minutes would not have saved Senibuli's life but he was concerned the situation may occur again. "I would have liked to have seen a more pragmatic approach taken in the circumstances. Given the hour of the morning, the light traffic and road conditions prevailing, I believe that in this world there is still room for pragmatism, but at the end of the day it looks like it will take regulation to correct this situation," he said.

He made a recommendation to the Minister of Transport to review the regulations surrounding procedures for medical personnel driving to an emergency.

Police have suggested to the coroner that health boards should consult coroners to develop guidelines and policy.

New Zealand Medical Association chairman Paul Ockelford said it was an interesting recommendation.

"The use of green lights is worthy of review. The police should be sensitive to these issues. There would need to be a significant education campaign so people would recognise what the green light meant, especially as most police would not know what it meant," he said.

A Ministry of Transport spokesman said it was too early to say whether the minister would order a review.

Doctors, nurses or midwives can use a roof-mounted green flashing light, he said, and the Road Code makes it clear that other drivers must pull over and allow the vehicle to pass.