How should you handle a medical emergency while driving?

• A. Dial emergency services while continuing to drive to your destination.
• B. Safely pull over, put the vehicle in park, and call for help.
• C. Ignore the emergency and drive to the nearest hospital.
• D. Speed up to reach help faster.

Answer: (B)

When a medical emergency happens while you’re driving, the priority is safety and getting professional help quickly. The best action is to safely pull over, put the vehicle in park, and call for help. Stopping at a safe spot removes the distraction of driving, so you can focus on the emergency and communicate your location and details to responders. Turning on the hazard lights helps other drivers know something is wrong and to proceed with caution. If you’re trained, you can start basic first aid while waiting for EMS, but don’t move the patient unless there’s an immediate danger.

Choosing to keep driving while calling, ignoring the emergency, or speeding to the hospital increases the risk of a crash and delays proper care, which can endanger the person in need and others on the road.