Baby Dies When EMS Sent To Wrong City- Now A Discussion on VOIP Experiences

[ENGINEERS WIFE]

Internet phone service questioned after baby death
Updated Thu. May. 1 2008 10:37 PM ET

CTV.ca News Staff

There are serious questions surrounding Internet phone service in Calgary, as investigators try to determine whether a mix-up with a 911 call contributed to the death of a toddler.

On Tuesday night, the parents of 18-month-old Elijah Luck noticed there was something terribly wrong with the boy.

His aunt, Syliva Luck, called an ambulance using the family's Internet phone. But the call was not routed to Calgary's emergency services -- it went instead to a call centre in Concord, Ont.

Comwave, the telephone company, says Elijahs' parents registered the phone in Mississauga, Ont. When they moved to Calgary, the 911 service defaulted to their old address.

When Luck's emergency call somehow became disconnected, the operator called EMS in Ontario.

Calgary EMS is still investigating, as is Comwave, but the family says what happened to them should be a lesson for anyone that uses Internet phone services, called voice-over-Internet-protocol technology (or VoIP).

"I want them to be aware of this VoIP thing fully," said Luck on Thursday, "because it's being used all over the world and be aware of what's happening, because we don't want more lives to go like this."

With VoIP providers' emergency services, 911 calls are answered by the provider's call centre, which connects the call to the local EMS call centre. An investigation is underway into why that initial call for help never made it through.

"We have no record of ever receiving a call from a VoIP contact centre, we have done that groundwork, but now we have to go even further in our investigation," Chief Tom Sampson with the Calgary EMS told CTV Calgary.

EMS officials say Internet phone customers need to be better informed on how their 911 service works.

The painful episode began for Elijah's family when he woke up crying from his nap on Tuesday evening. Luck went to check up on him and told CTV Calgary that when she held him up, "he was turning blue and he went limp and he just, he just collapsed."

She called 911, but hung up after five rings. She went to call on a neighbour, and upon returning received a call from someone she thought was an operator with the city's emergency services.

She gave the operator the Calgary address, and said she was then told: "We are arranging it right away, so stay on the phone." The line the became disconnected somehow, but Luck thought an ambulance was on its way.

While she waited, a neighbour gave Elijah CPR. No help arrived, so after nearly 30 minutes a second neighbour called 911 for help from a landline. Almost six minutes later, an ambulance arrived. Paramedics gave Elijah advanced life support in the ambulance on the way to hospital. But he was already in cardiac arrest, and was pronounced dead.

The family is now wondering whether Elijah would be alive today had an ambulance arrived sooner.

"We can't get him back through any way, but we have to prevent this right? We have to," said Luck.

A funeral for Elijah Luck will be held on Monday.

VOIP customers are being urged to contact their provider any time they change addresses and update their information to ensure that they have the most current information.

Tips for VoIP Subscribers

1. Provide your accurate physical address to your interconnected VoIP service provider to ensure that emergency services can quickly be dispatched to your location.

2. Be familiar with your VoIP service provider's procedures for updating your address, and promptly update address information in the event of a change.

3. Have a clear understanding of any limitations of your 911 service.

4. Inform children, babysitters, and visitors about your VoIP service and its 911 limitations, if any.

5. If your power is out or your Internet connection is down, be aware that your VoIP service may not work. Consider installing a backup power supply, maintaining a traditional phone line, or having a wireless phone as a backup.

With a report from CTV Calgary


This is the ONE reason that I would NEVER have internet phone services!!!!
Having children in my house, no matter how much money I would save, it is not worth the risk to me!

 

[MedTechStudent]

This is really sad. 

Another reason that I will never have Internet Phone Service besides the main reason that I am computer illiterate.

 

[sober_ruski]

that and the phone would be dead in a power outage.

 

[Sub_Guy]

This was totally unnecessary.  I have been using VOIP for the past 4 years with Primus, and they offer basic 911 service and enhanced 911 service depending on your area.  When we first setup the service we were told that during an emergency we would have to provide our address to the operator during any emergency call, that only lasted a year until they brought their 911 service online.  Well worth the $29 a month.  These people should have been informed or at least looked into what 911 service they had.

As for service dropping off when the power goes out that can be rectified with a UPS, or your cell phone (considering most have a cell phone these days).

 

[ENGINEERS WIFE]

But, what do you do when you are unable to give your address?  ie: it's a little child making the phone call, you are incapacitated and unable to speak, or maybe you have a medical needs dog that is trained to phone 911(don't laugh, they are out there.  People put 911 into speed dial and when the dog can't wake up their human, they phone 911)  And let's face it, some people TOTALLY freak out in an emergency and can't be rational, and it's more than understandable when it's your little baby who's sick.

And even with a cell phone is doesn't tell the operator where you are when you have an emergency, it gives them your address listed on your phone bill.  So, unless you are able to give them your address your EMS could not get there on time.

I have never called 911 and I hope I never have too, but until internet, cellphone or whichever you choose gives your address when you phone, I will always have a landline.  For my own piece of mind.

 

[Sub_Guy]

Good point, but the big VOIP companies do offer reliable 911 service which give your address when a call is placed. 

 

[medic65726]

From my understanding there is no problem when using services that are offered by the cable TV companies like Rogers and Shaw because of how their systems are hooked up and that they are installed specifically at your home address. Vonage on the other hand, being portable, could be a problem.
My Shaw service has long lasting battery backup and if a power failure hits your phone switching station then you will be out of phone as well.

 

[aesop081]

I had vonage for 2 years. You dont have to give your adress when making a 911 call. If you move you simply have to update your adress by going to your account information online. The Vonage package you receive when you sign up is very clear about that. They even periodicaly sent out reminders of that.

 

[ENGINEERS WIFE]

So, if you don't have to give your address when you call 911 if you have internet phone service, why was the EMS sent to an address in ON? This family, that just have their baby die, HAD changed their address.  I don't know if their paperwork was done incorrectly or what, but sure is a shame and a hard lesson to learn.

 

[ENGINEERS WIFE]

CALGARY -- The parents of an 18-month-old boy who died while waiting for an ambulance that was sent to their old address in Mississauga are devastated at being blamed by their Internet phone company for the 911 mixup.

The former Mississauga family said they have documents showing they had informed the service provider of their current Calgary address. The finger-pointing adds another level of devastation to parents mourning the loss of their young son, a family friend said.

"It looks like the whole focus is shifting from his death and funeral to a finger-pointing game," said Jude D'Souza. "Nothing can change the fact Elijah is gone."

Elijah Luck died Tuesday night after a frantic 911 call placed through his family's voice-over Internet phone (VoIP) failed to reach Calgary's emergency dispatch centre.

Comwave boss Yuval Barzakay has said the company only had the address of the family's former Mississauga home, where they lived when they purchased the phone.

 

Comwave billing invoices sent to the Lucks tell a different story.

Two show a pair of addresses where the family lived after they moved to Calgary and an invoice dated March 30, 2008, shows the Lucks' current residence.

Paramedics finally arrived Tuesday night after a neighbour of the Lucks called 911 from a land line. By then, almost 40 minutes later, it was too late to save the boy.

"I don't know what the outcome would have been if an ambulance had arrived on time but if there was any chance, it was destroyed by a human mistake -- that's the sad part," D'Souza said.

Elijah was born premature and suffered health problems, the family said. An aunt said she called for help Tuesday after the child woke up and began having seizures. For now, the family is trying to focus on putting their little boy to rest, while waiting for answers about what happened to him medically and what went wrong

 

[aesop081]

So, if you don't have to give your address when you call 911 if you have internet phone service, why was the EMS sent to an address in ON?

I have no clue. I had Vonage service for 2 years ( as i mentioned) and understood clearly the implications WRT calling 911. I made sure that my adress on file was correct ( as requested by the company on their website and all the documents they sent me) but i never had to call 911 so...

 

[Sub_Guy]

It could be possible that their billing address was kept in a different database from the E911 database.  It just seems that this situation is an example of everything that can go wrong, did, all at the same time.

I can sit here all day asking myself questions, like why did the parents wait so long to call back?  Or why didn't they confirm the address on with the operator, I would think that would be common practice for the 911 operator, people move all the time while keeping the same number.

I have never had to call 911, but my current residence is less than 5 minutes from the hospital here, you can bet I would not be waiting 40 minutes if my kids needed assistance.

 

[c_canuk]

This happens periodically with VOIP...

If VOIP had been invented before dedicated Land lines we'd all be switching to land lines.

The only reason people are going with VOIP is it's cheaper, that is because all the new phone companies, VOIP or not are legalized parasites of the existing systems.

when MA Bell started up they got the exclusive rights to provide land lines from the Gov with the expectation that the most expensive portion of providing phone service, local calling, would be free and having one carrier country wide would provide the most reliable and stable service possible.

Fast forward to the last 10 years, after ma bell spend billions building the infrastructure, the people demanded competition because they felt they were being overcharged even though the Canadian phone system was the most advanced in the world.

Since the cost and logistics of creating a second infrastructure was impractical, the government granted right of access to all competitors. the mistake was making it free access instead of access for a fair price. Imagine you go to your town council and barter for the exclusive right to build the first and only gas station in your town with the expectation that you would provide free gas for public in town transportation, only to have the city break the deal on you in a couple years and not only allow competitors while demanding free gas, but demand you let them sell your gas from your pumps without paying you a dime.

So the phone companies are squeezing every dime they can where they can and our once world class phone system is crumbling, VOIP is a vastly inferior product compared to dedicated land lines in every way, but because they don't have to pay for infrastructure and can feed off those that do, they can offer service at a substantially lower price than those that are.

Once the companies that are supporting the infrastructure finally have enough of their profits siphoned off, they will go under, and everyone will loose out.

 

[hauger]

Cogeco physically "secures" your phone modem to your address....when they install the service, they use a cable lock on the modem meaning that you can't move the modem to a different location short of cutting and splicing the cable.  The modem then is tied to the physical address, so when you make a 911 call, the emergency service is sent to the location of the modem.  It's a nice way of idiot-proofing the VOIP service.

Whoever mentioned about the loss of VOIP in a power failure....the cogeco modem comes with a built in 6 hour battery backup.  If that doesn't get you through, I have two cell phones in the house as well.

 

[Sub_Guy]

VOIP is a vastly inferior product compared to dedicated land lines in every way, but because they don't have to pay for infrastructure and can feed off those that do, they can offer service at a substantially lower price than those that are.

I would not go as far to say that VOIP is a vastly inferior product in every way.  For $29.32 (after taxes) a month I get every feature, unlimited long distance in North America, and dirt cheap calls to Germany (for our nanny).  With Telus we were paying anywhere from $90-$150 a month for much less.

 

[c_canuk]

I would not go as far to say that VOIP is a vastly inferior product in every way.  For $29.32 (after taxes) a month I get every feature, unlimited long distance in North America, and dirt cheap calls to Germany (for our nanny).  With Telus we were paying anywhere from $90-$150 a month for much less.

yeah, it's cheaper, but that's because they don't have to pay for the service they offer. Eventually either those supporting the infrastructure that VOIP is legally stealing will go under and no one will have phone, or the Gov will realize their mistake and allow the infrastructure owners to start charging for access raising the rates.

The reason this hasn't happened yet is because a small percentage of customers are switching to VOIP.

That said, VOIP still has issues with quality. A dedicated land line is Guarantied 64 Kbps connection with physically dedicated connections for point to point with a government mandated up time of 99.99%

VOIP is a best attempt system with fluctuating service levels depending on system load.

a 6 hour backup either built in or user added cannot compete with 7 days of backup in the infrastructure anyway, which is another part of the infrastructure that the competitors use but don't pay for.

I don't really care as I don't have any vested interest in the phone companies, I just find it backwards that people are going to VOIP since it's a vastly inferior product based on my experience in the industry, just because it's cheaper now when it's going to be more expensive in the long run as the bill will be presented in the future one way or another.

I think text messaging on a cell phone is a step backwards as well... spend 20 minutes typing out a 1 minute conversation

 

[MedTechStudent]

I think the the bottom line here is that VoiP has its flaws, but so does regular phone services ($$)
Mistakes happen, incidents like this happen, some blame falls on the family and some falls on the VoiP system.  I'm sure works great for the people who have it, and at least the one thing people can learn from this is to keep their information updated.

 

[Sig_Des]

That said, VOIP still has issues with quality. A dedicated land line is Guarantied 64 Kbps connection with physically dedicated connections for point to point with a government mandated up time of 99.99%

VOIP is a best attempt system with fluctuating service levels depending on system load.

Not to mention that an international standard hasn't been confirmed. There are still 2 differing standards used. If a company invested in one, and the other was confirmed, they could stand to lose millions.

On a more technical level, VoIP tends to lose many packets, and as far as military applications, I can never see that as a good option. Personally, I prefer Voice over Frame Relay.

 

[1feral1]

Whay a local call was not placed thru a standard land-line in the first place I don't know.

Secondly how long was the child unconscious before discovered? What about CPR? Was it administered correctly? Did those who tried the CPR have the required St John's courses? If you don't know the correct way, and don't follow thru with the proper EAR, its most likely a waste of time. CPR on its own does not do much without the AR.

Would a local call placed on a standard telephone made a difference? It would have ensured a faster response time by the Ambos.

I guess we'll never know if the life of this kid could have been saved. I am not gonig to second guess anything.

I guess one should always use a local telephone for emergency calls, and ensure for the sake of their famillies, take the required courses provided locally.

Honestly, the INet telephone is the last thing I would have used.