Prehospital emergency care : official journal of the National Association of EMS Physicians and the National Association of State EMS Directors
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The objective of this study was to characterize key health indicators in Emergency Medical Services (EMS) personnel and identify areas for intervention in order to ensure a strong and capable emergency health workforce. ⋯ These findings suggest a high prevalence of overweight and obesity, heavy drinking, binge drinking, and high BP among NC EMS personnel. Similar to fire service personnel, these rates are higher than the general US population. As such, they suggest areas where intervention would have the greatest positive impact on the health and performance of the EMS workforce.
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The purpose of the current study was to describe the injury patterns, EMS response and interventions to mass shooting (MS) and active shooter (AS) incidents. ⋯ MS and AS incidents are prevalent in the United States. Despite the fact that extremity wounds were common, documented EMS tourniquet use was uncommon. While MS events are high risk for responders, dispatch information was lacking in almost 15% of records. Responding EMS agencies were diverse, emphasizing the need to ensure all EMS providers are prepared to respond to MS incidents.
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Determining care disposition for pediatric patients during interfacility transport is often challenging. Severity of illness scoring can assist with this process. The purpose of this retrospective study was to compare currently utilized scoring systems and their ability to reliably match pediatric transport patients' severity of illness with the level of care necessary. ⋯ Elevated PedCTAS, TPEWS, and TRAP scores are strongly associated with PICU admission within the interfacility transport setting.
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In patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI), early detection and subsequent prompt treatment of elevated intracranial pressure (ICP) is a challenge in the prehospital setting, because physical examination is limited in comatose patients and invasive device placement is not possible. The aim of this study was to evaluate the quality and feasibility of optic nerve sheath diameter (ONSD) measurements obtained during the prehospital management of patients with TBI. ⋯ This study shows that it is feasible to obtain high-quality ONSD measurements in the management of patients with TBI in a prehospital setting. A randomized study evaluating the usefulness of ONSD to guide management of TBI in the prehospital phase may be of great interest.
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Pediatric emergency medical services (EMS) utilization is costly and resource intensive; significant variation exists across large-scale geographies. Less is known about variation at smaller geographic levels where factors including lack of transportation, low health literacy, and decreased access to medical homes may be more relevant. Our objective was to determine whether pediatric EMS utilization varied across Hamilton County, Ohio, census tracts and whether such utilization was associated with socioeconomic deprivation. ⋯ EMS utilization varied substantially across census tracts in Hamilton County, Ohio. A deeper understanding into why certain socioeconomically deprived areas contribute to disproportionately high rates of EMS utilization could support development of targeted interventions to improve use.