Doctor being asked to assist aka Good Samaritan

I seem to remember something like this came up in a first aid course and the basic idea is that as long as you followed your training and did your best then you aren't liable for any negative outcomes

So from a first aid standpoint, if you were trained to provide CPR, judged the patient required CPR and provided it to the best of your ability then you're okay legally.

Where you could end up liable would be if you did something you hadn't been trained for like doing a heart thump or punch, which is no longer taught or advised

In general, malpractice cases for doctors revolve around them not following their own training or best practices, or they had some diminished capacity to provide care competently (i.e. they were drunk)

In fact, given the scenario above, I imagine the doctor would face more negative consequences if they refused to provide care when they could have

Doctors have professional indemnity insurance for this very reason. Things sometimes dot work out. Either a mistake is made or a chance has to be taken. A doctor coming upon a collapsed person will not have a medical history of that person, or be in a position to make a very accurate diagnosis and will only be able to try and stabilize the person pending transfer to hospital. A doctor will be liable in negligence unless what they did accords with a respected body of opinion within the profession.

The typical example is the hippocratic oath which people often believe contains the words "first, do no harm"

It doesn't, but there is reference to providing care to the sick when entering people's property

Depending on your interpretation, this could mean the requirement to provide care where you find someone in need if it

However it's important to remember the hippocratic oath isn't an actual oath taken by doctors. In general most doctors abide by a code of ethics for their country of practice, which is often based in part on the hippocratic oath

I don't know what code of ethics doctors in Ireland adhere to, however I wouldn't be surprised if there wasn't some provision that they should provide care when they can do so

As regards what a passerby should do if they (for example) saw an unconscious person on the street, calling an ambulance is absolutely near the top of the priority list

Its important to know your abilities and your limits. If you have no first aid training of any kind then you should not try to administer first aid without supervision as you could make the problem worse

One example I remember from first aid class was if the patient has a wound with something sticking out of it (e.g. a piece of metal or glass). The instructor was very emphatic that you should not try to remove the object as it could cause more damage. The objective then is to stop the bleeding and stabilise the patient until paramedics aarrive

In that context even a doctor could be limited in what they can do as they probably aren't carrying around a medical bag of equipment and medicines

"ringing for an ambulance doesn't strike me as the best way of getting 'immediate assistance'."

It's absolutely the best way of getting immediate assistance. They will get an ambulance moving to you AND will also provide direct and immediate advice, instruction and support by phone - up to and including CPR instructions if that's what the patient needs.

If a defib is needed and is available locally, steps should be taken to get that brought to the patient. If there are other trained carers, whether first aiders, paramedics, medics or others available locally, steps can be taken to get those resources to come to the patient.

What's a better option?

Yes it is. You get immediate guidance on the phone from a person who is skilled in giving advice in remotely managing in-the-field critical situations.

Some doctors are great at things like that. Some are useless outside a clinical setting supported by a full team.

Not true. If you ask for an ambulance, you get through to either DFB in Dublin or National Ambulance Service. You'll be speaking to a qualified paramedic, who has particular training in telephone support.

What's your chances in finding a passing doctor skilled in emergency aid, with the right equipment to do the job? That would be a fairly unusual situation. You might be waiting for an ambulance in the sticks, but it's still likely to be the fastest option, unless the patient can be safely moved directly.

You couldn't rule out legal action for refusal to assist either.

12 years ago a young girl died on O'Connell Street after her peanut allergy was triggered and she went into anaphylactic shock. A nearby pharmacy were asked to provide an epipen of (epinephrine autoinjection), but refused to give one out without prescription and the child died within minutes.

The pharmacist and the company were sued and settled for €50,000 without any admission of liability.

Most doctors won’t have professional indemnity insurance as they are employed under a contract of service to the HSE or other healthcare provider.