In Michael Bay's high-concept motion thriller Ambulance (now on Netflix), Eiza Gonzalez stars as Cam, an unflappable paramedic who completes more and more ludicrous medical feats whereas held hostage at the back of an emergency automobile hijacked by bank-robber brothers Danny (Jake Gyllenhaal) and Will (Yahya Abdul Mateen II).

How ludicrous? When the movie hit theaters again in 2022, we requested UCLA Paramedic Program Director David Filipp whether or not Cam's actions are heretical — or precise well being care. Learn on for his solutions.

ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: There's a scene the place one of many characters will get shot within the chest and Cam performs CPR on him. Are you able to do CPR on somebody who's been shot within the chest or does that transfer issues round an excessive amount of?

DAVID FILIPP: No, really CPR is all you actually can do. If somebody's able the place their coronary heart's not beating, whatever the motive their coronary heart's not beating, you need to do CPR. They don't have a pulse at that time limit, so that they're useless if you happen to don't do it.

That gained't push extra blood out or something?

Whether or not it's a automobile accident or a gunshot or a coronary heart assault, if their coronary heart's not beating, their coronary heart's not beating. And the one manner we have now to do this is to artificially make the center pump, which is thru CPR.

There's one other scene during which the paramedic, Cam, has to carry out surgical procedure to take away a bullet from a sufferer whereas in a rushing ambulance. She FaceTimes a bunch of docs on her pc they usually information her by means of it. Is that even potential?

Telemedicine has been round on ambulances in some areas across the U.S. for a number of years. Town of San Antonio experimented with that a number of years in the past — an ER physician may really see the affected person at the back of the ambulance and supply some steerage to the paramedics. However having a doctor speaking a paramedic by means of surgical procedure can be terribly unlikely.

Particularly not throughout a high-speed automobile chase.

No. And albeit, we're transferring a bullet. It would trigger extra bleeding. In order that most likely wouldn't be one thing we’d do — it's slightly past our scope as paramedics. Even with the physician's instruction, we couldn't try this.

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Within the film, the paramedic really pulls out somebody's spleen as a result of a bullet is lodged there. However the spleen bursts. If somebody's entire torso is open as a result of they only had their spleen manually eliminated, can that somebody survive?

Spleen accidents are literally pretty frequent in trauma sufferers. Should you're impacted on the left by a automobile accident or a bullet or a knife wound or no matter, your spleen could be broken. And it's stuffed with blood and bleeds so much. So trauma surgeons usually take away spleens to assist a trauma affected person survive a very unhealthy accident. Paramedics wouldn't take away the spleen, however a trauma surgeon would definitely contemplate it if the spleen bleeding couldn't be managed. And you may reside with out a spleen.

Good level. Would a paramedic be capable of sew up someone who simply had their spleen eliminated at the back of an ambulance?

Some paramedics who work offshore in extraordinarily rural areas the place there isn't a medical facility shut might need the next scope of follow the place they will suture folks up, however it wouldn't usually be inner stitching.

I assume it might simply be the surface stuff. However let's say that's not the case and it's inner stitching like what clearly can be wanted right here. Is that particular person a goner or is it survivable?

Time is absolutely the issue. If we will get them to a trauma surgeon inside about an hour, their possibilities of survival are a lot, significantly better. The longer it’s till they get to a surgeon, the much less likelihood of survival they are going to have.

Oh, sure, Cam says that. She tries to get everybody to the hospital in below a sure variety of minutes.

Completely. There was an idea of the golden hour, which is from the time of harm till the time that particular person reaches a surgeon's desk. And if they will't attain it inside an hour, their possibilities of survival drop dramatically. However as paramedics, we don't have a golden hour — we have now a platinum 10 minutes to evaluate them and get them on the best way.

Have you ever ever had a spleen burst in your arms?

Oh, no. Effectively, I've had loads of sufferers who've had ruptured spleens. Once more, that's not terribly uncommon with a trauma affected person, however we're not going to open someone up and stick our arms of their stomach to carry their spleen. That's simply not one thing paramedics do.

Effectively, they do it on this film.

After all they do.

As a result of this man's dropping a lot blood, Cam hooks one of many drivers as much as donate blood whereas he's driving, as a result of he's O optimistic, and I assume that's the blood kind that may go to anyone?

O destructive, really.

Okay, O destructive. So is that potential? If somebody's driving, are you able to hook them as much as an IV after which hook it as much as someone within the again to provide them blood?

No, it's not. There are a number of different issues wanted for blood to be correctly matched to folks. It isn't nearly kind. And we wouldn't switch someone, particularly someone who's driving as a result of if you happen to've ever given blood, you [know you] can get lightheaded. So with all these lives at stake within the again, to be driving and giving blood on the identical time… yeah, no. It makes for an amazing story, however it's not practical.

Simply a few extra factual issues. Is a butterfly hair clip a usable clamp for an artery that's bleeding out?

In case you have a blood vessel bleeding, you need to do what you may to cease the bleeding. We have now medicines that may assist with that, or we have now tourniquets that clearly we use as a substitute, however the level is to cease the bleeding at that time limit. So I suppose [a hair clip] could possibly be used.

But when the paramedic has to sew the particular person up, would she sew the hair clip into them?

They must cease the bleeding and the stitching can be a secondary consideration. That's only a wound closure. So stitching the wound up wouldn't be a giant concern. Stopping the bleeding can be a giant concern.

So you may ostensibly, within the chain of significance, go away the clip in there?

Oh yeah. You bought to cease the bleeding first.

Can an ambulance face up to gunshots from the surface?

It sort of will depend on the caliber of gun getting used. You’ve lower-velocity weapons, like handguns, the place [the ambulance] could possibly face up to that. However a high-velocity gun like a deer rifle, which will penetrate the again of the ambulance. It additionally will depend on the place the ambulance sustains the gunshot as a result of elements of it are thinner than different elements. So it most likely may to some extent. I've been shot at within the ambulance as effectively.

Oh my god.

We heard it, however the bullet didn't come inside. So it simply will depend on the place on the ambulance it really happens.

Final query — a private one for you: Let's say you've had a really traumatic day. Can you flip it off? Or are you able to go have enchiladas after?

I feel that's a wonderful level as a result of one of many issues we actually fear about now’s the stress on the suppliers. One of many powerful elements is we don't get any actual follow-up on our sufferers. We look after them within the ambulance, they usually're left on the hospital, and we don't actually have a technique to circle again and go, "Hey, how did he do?" Or "How did she do?" We don't actually have any closure from these encounters. I've been in EMS for 40 years; I've been a paramedic 38 of these years. I've developed coping mechanisms to the place you may sort of flip it off when you should flip it off.

This interview has been edited and condensed for size and readability.

Ambulance is streaming on Netflix.

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