Don’t Try This While Drinking

Designated Passenger

I had two patients from a single car crash. He was the driver and she was the front seat passenger. Neither was wearing a seat belt. She told us that he was very drunk and went to get in the car to drive away. Though she was also drunk, she was afraid to have him drive while being so drunk so she jumped in the car with him “to make sure he was OK.” He caused a crash in which they were both seriously injured and brought to the emergency department.

We, in the emergency department, are all in favor of designated drivers but I am pretty sure that the people who came up with the idea of a designated driver did not were not thinking of a Designated Passenger.

Hot Tubbing

A middle-aged man had so much to drink before climbing into the hot tub at the hotel that he soon slumped under the water and nearly drowned before other guests noticed him. They pulled him out, started CPR and called 911.

Because of the effects of the alcohol and the near drowning, he had to be placed on a ventilator and be admitted to intensive care. He had a significant chance of having permanent brain damage or even dying because of the lack of oxygen to his brain while he was under the water.