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Set Medic

Set Medic

A set medic is either an EMT or paramedic who provides emergency medical assistance to individuals involved with TV or film productions. As a set medic, you work on set with actors and other production crew. Your responsibilities include waiting on standby for medical issues that arise during shooting. Other duties include advising the production team on safety issues regarding various parts of films, shows, or music videos. When working as a set medic, you travel to shooting locations, often for long periods. You may work around water, at heights, in studios, or any other place a production takes place.

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Job Description

The Set Medic spends time on the movie or film set watching after the actors, crews, and observing many of the stunts for safety issues. Duties & Responsibilities: In preparation for the film shoot, the Set Medic must first coordinate the emergency contacts in the area the movie is being filmed. He or she must learn where the hospitals and urgent care facilities are located. He or she must figure the estimated time it would take services to get to the production site. He or she must be equipped with all the proper phone numbers for the fire department, police, and hospital so that no time is wasted getting the proper emergency care. He or she must also coordinate with the production staff if an ambulance stand by is needed or a physician should be called to set.

In the event of an emergency or accident, the Set Medic is the first responder and should be right on top of any minor or major accident or injury. He or she is the primary health resource onset and should be prepared as such. Must be able to clearly fill out multiple medical reports and have proficient communication skills Set Medics should be equipped with the necessary supplies and equipment in case of emergency. This may include resuscitation and trauma equipment, automatic external defibrillator epi-pens oxygen, cervical collars, and kits for both severe and simple injuries. Must also have all basic first aid supplies. International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees 19‐02 Steinway Street Astoria, NY 11105 Phone: (718) 906‐9440 Fax: (718) 777‐1820 Requirements: Must be licensed as a Registered Nurse or Paramedic in Local 52s geographic region with at least 5 years experience in a 911‐type facility. EMTs should have 5 years 911 experience with additional specialty training e.g. Lifeguard wilderness 1st aid skills. Must have vast knowledge and be quick thinkers to respond to an urgent emergency. Local 52s Medical director will review resumes. Must be comfortable in extreme weather conditions such as heat, snow, rain, and wind and must also be willing to work long, and many times late, hours.

Responsibilities

In addition to their Health and Safety responsibilities, Set Medics are responsible for gathering and recording injury and illness-related information required by state and federal law and Production company policy. Regardless of payroll company, your Production Manager needs information on every employee who suffers a work-related injury or illness.

Please remember that the forms you are required to fill out are legal documents, so be as accurate and thorough as possible.

If you have any questions when filling out forms, call the injured employee’s payroll company‘s Workers’ Compensation Department for assistance:

When you start work:

  1. Obtain Location Set Medic Packet from your Production Manager or payroll company.
  2. Review the paperwork requirements.
  3. Participate in the Injury & Illness Prevention Program:
    1. Read and understand safety literature:

      a) Obtain and review the General Safety Guidelines for Production (Form 1), sign the Employee Acknowledgement Form and turn it in to the Production Manager. Additional information is available from the IIPP Manual, which can be obtained at www.safetyontheset.com along with all AMPTP Safety Bulletins and other safety info.

      b) Read the distributed AMPTP Safety Bulletins related to the specific hazards that you may come into contact with on the production (i.e. helicopters, firearms, appropriate clothing, etc.)

    2. Attend and participate in safety meetings to review the following:

      a) Safety aspects of the day’s activities and the hazards of the location.b) Elements of the Emergency Plan, such as the location of emergency equipment, exits and telephones on site, and emergency procedures, such as evacuation plans in case of fire, nearest hospital name, location, and phone number, etc. Set up your equipment accordingly. If an injury is severe, dial 911 or your facility’s emergency response number for treatment and trasnportation of the patient to a hospital. (ensure the employee’s supervisor has arranged for a return ride from the hospital.) then immediately call the line producer. If you cannot reach the line producer, call the production manager and the production safety consultant immediately. You may leave voice messages – but you must continue to call until you speak to a live person. Serious Accidents, Injuries and Mishaps Serious accidents, injuries and mishaps are incidents that require transportation by ambulance, visitation to the hospital by one or more employees, any treatments greater than general first aid, or any serious property/asset damage.

For all serious injuries, the Set Medic/First Aid attendant must do the following:

  1. Notify the Line Producer of the injury.
  2. Provide the patient with Workers’ Compensation Form or local equivalent. (The patient must sign and date a receipt. If the patient refuses the form, be sure to document this in your notes.)
  3. FAX completed forms to the appropriate Workers’ Compensation Department:
  4. SEND a completed copy of the form to your Production Executive with that day’s production report. Safety Responsibilities of the Set Medic – Revised August 2014 38
  5. Fill out Employer’s Report of Occupational Injury or Illness (Form 5020) or local equivalent. Record the patient’s recounting of events in quotes. Do not speculate.
  6. FAX completed Form 5020 (or local equivalent) to the Production Safety Consultant at (818) 954-2805 .
  7. Complete a Refusal of First Aid form if the employee refuses to be treated at the scene of the incident or transported to the hospital.

 

Non-Serious Injuries If the injury is NOT severe but requires medical attention:

  1. Provide the employee with a medical authorization slip for the employee’s payroll company.
  2. Refer the employee to a clinic from the employee’s payroll companies list of approved clinics. (If out of Southern CA, use the closest occupational health clinic or emergency room.)
  3. Arrange for transportation of the employee to the clinic if the employee is not capable of driving.
  4. For follow-up treatment, have the doctor’s office of hospital contact the payroll company’s Workers’ Compensation Department for proper authorization. If referral to a specialist is needed, contact the Workers’ Compensation Department and they will make the necessary arrangements.
  5. Offer the employee Form DWC-1 or local equivalent.
  6. Complete Form 5020 or local equivalent and fax it immediately to the employee’s payroll company’s Workers’ Compensation Department and to your Production Manager.
  7. Mail the original Form 5020 the Workers’ Compensation Department of the employee’s payroll company.

 

If the employee “may have been injured” or does not want to go to a clinic:

  1. You must offer Form DWC-1 or the local equivalent to the employee.
  2. Tell the employee if he or she later decides to seek medical attention for the injury to first call his/her payroll company’s Workers’ Compensation Department.
  3. You must complete (to the best of your knowledge) Form 5020 or the local equivalent and send it to your Production Manager. When completing the form, record what the patient says. Do not speculate.
  4. Document the injury on the Log Sheet and in your Nursing Notes.
  5. Fill out the Accident Investigation Report (Form 9) and give it to the Production Manager.
  6. If the patient refuses medical attention, fill out the Right of Refusal of Medical Aid Form (Form 16) and give it to the Production Manager. Form 9 and Form 16 are for documentation of the Safety Program and are to be completed for every injury or illness in addition to any Workers Comp forms.

 

Document work-related injuries and illnesses:

  1. Log Sheets – follow the instructions below. At end of week, send ORIGINAL log sheets and nursing notes to your Production Manager.

    a. Use one log sheet for each day if patients are seen. 
    b. If no patients are seen, use one sheet for several days (Write the date and “No Patients Seen.”)
    c. Complete ALL information on log sheet –
    • DOI: Date of Injury
    • TOI: Time of Injury
    • MOI: Mechanism of Injury
    • LOI: Location of Injury
    d. Narrative – if you complete detailed nursing notes on a separate form, circle “yes” in the narrative column and return your original notes to the Production Manager. e. WC Packet – you are to give WC Packets to employees who sustain significant injuries, even if they decline further treatment at the time of the injury. Circle “yes” on the log to document the WC Packet.

  2. Work Comp (WC) Packet and the procedures required are different for each payroll company. Contact your Production Manager or the payroll company at the beginning of production for the WC Packet and procedures for your show.
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