Prehospital emergency care : official journal of the National Association of EMS Physicians and the National Association of State EMS Directors
-
Conditions requiring emergency treatment disproportionately affect low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), where there is often insufficient prehospital care capacity. To inform targeted prehospital care development in Ghana, we aimed to describe spatial access to formal prehospital care services and identify ambulance stations for capacity expansion. ⋯ The NAS in Ghana has expanded its population-level spatial access to the majority of the population; however, access inequality exists in both rural and urban areas that can be improved by increasing station capacity or adding additional stations. Geospatial methods to identify access inequities and inform service expansion might serve as a model for other LMICs attempting to understand and improve formal prehospital care services.
-
In September 2015 Philadelphia hosted the World Meeting of Families, which culminated with a two day visit by Pope Francis. Emergency medical services (EMS) planning for the event was a complex process that involved the cooperation of municipal, state, and federal agencies, as well as many private organizations. Because the visit was designated as a National Security Special Event, Philadelphia had to balance the priorities of the United States Secret Service and other law enforcement agencies to keep the Pope and visitors safe with the medical needs of visitors and the ongoing needs of the city. ⋯ The city's extensive planning efforts, combined with some good luck, overcame these many challenges. The World Meeting of Families and Papal visit were viewed as a success for the attendees and the city. Philadelphia's experience may be beneficial for other cities hosting such events in the future.
-
Some helicopter emergency medical services (HEMS) maintain an independent supply of blood for use during transport, although practice is variable and not well described. We aimed to characterize the blood-carrying practices by HEMS programs across the United States. ⋯ There is great variability in the utilization of blood by HEMS programs in the United States. Programs that serve more rural areas and programs with a larger percentage of interfacility transports are more likely to independently carry blood.
-
The purpose of this study was to qualitatively describe the underpinnings of the successful implementation of a collaborative prehospital spinal immobilization guideline throughout the emergency medical services (EMS) community in two counties in Colorado. We also describe lessons learned that may be beneficial to other communities considering similar initiatives. ⋯ Key informants described a convergence of factors as leading to the successful implementation of a prehospital spinal immobilization guideline. Lessons learned regarding how to overcome a tradition of competition and isolation to allow for success may be useful to other communities considering similar initiatives.
-
While emergency medical service (EMS) response times (ERT) remain a leading measure of system performance in many developed countries, relatively few studies have explored the factors associated with meeting benchmark performance for potentially time critical incidents. The purpose of this study was to identify system-level and patient-level factors associated with ERT, which are readily available at the time of ambulance dispatch. ⋯ System-level and patient-level factors available at the time of ambulance dispatch are useful predictors of ERT performance, which could be used to improve the timeliness of EMS response.