The standard run form has a portion for the patient to sign and authorize insurance billing. One of my buddies arrived once at base at the end of the day with "Patient unable to sign" written on his runsheet. That's standard procedure for patients who are incoherent or comatose, but his patient was well known for being lucid (and a little feisty). The following is the exchange between the EMT (we'll call him Mark) and his supervisor that evening.
Supervisor: "Hey Mark, why didn't (patient's name) sign the insurance release?"
Mark: "Well, she was unable to sign."
Supervisor: " How come?"
Mark: "She just couldn't"
Supervisor: " Why not - she's not that sick. Why couldn't she sign?"
Mark: "She just couldn't, ok?"
Supervisor: " You know Mark, we don't get paid unless the patient signs the release! Why is it that she couldn't sign the form?"
Mark: "DAMN IT MAN BECAUSE SHE WAS PICKING HER CROTCH AND I WASN'T
ABOUT TO HAND HER MY ONLY PEN!"
