I wasn't discounting the rule of nines. The burns are not immediately life threating, so moving the patient wouldn't happen unless the patient was going to be stuck there for a lot longer than it would take ems to arrive (long enough that the burns or increased internal temp would create the immediate problem. That's unlikely. Things could be done to minimize burned surface area without compromising the spine on the scene if the patient was on a very hot surface and say ems was 20-30 mins out.

I've done my share of backboards on substantial and minor mechanisms of injury and I think the take-a-away from this discussion is pretty simple. Don't move the patient unless you see the patient go down from non-trauma, ie, medical. If there's any hint of a non-medical problem meaning a traumatic injury, leave the patient as is and encourage him/her not to move. In general, treat for ABC if you've been so trained, otherwise leave the patient as is and have someone call 911 and return to the scene to tell you it's been done.



John did you work up in AK?