United States
I am a paramedic, an adjunct instructor of secondary education majors, a former high school English and journalism teacher and a writer working in the field of emergency medicine.
When a major storm is coming, hospitals try hard to stay open, have their staff shelter in place, and not evacuate their patients. That is why preplanning, extensive training, and review of past practices are keys to success. On September 13 Hurricane Florence churned with the strength of a Category 4 storm toward the coast of North Carolina.
Joshua D. Hartman, MBA, NRP, and Hilary Gates, MAEd, NRP It's May already! You know what that means? We are only five months away from October's EMS World Expo. We have assembled yet another extraordinary educational, informational, and networking experience for you.
Host Faizan Arshad, MD, joined by EMS World's Hilary Gates and Josh Hartman, welcomes longtime EMS medical director Craig Manifold, DO, to discuss the risks and benefits of finger thoracostomy for tension pneumothorax.
Should EMS providers wear a body cam during patient encounters? Cypress Creek EMS (CCEMS) says yes. Join Clinical Training Coordinator Zach Dunlap from CCEMS as he discusses with Senior Editorial & Program Director Hilary Gates the clinical, safety and training benefits of body-worn cameras in EMS.
As we prepare and plan for 2021, a little foresight from industry leaders can help. Thankfully, 17 EMS industry leaders have agreed to share their insights and predictions on one or all of the following topics: How will big issues in EMS evolve? What might change or improve in 2021?
Last week EMS1's editorial director, Greg Friese, a friend, EMS leader, and sometimes competitor, wrote an editorial about the importance of EMS providers taking the COVID-19 vaccine. Today, Dec. 14, 2020, is a day we should all memorialize: It's the day the COVID-19 vaccine was first administered to the American public.
How does a conference go from in-person to virtual? With a lot of work, no doubt, but that made the 2020 EMS World Expo Virtual a success. Join host Mike McCabe as he interviews Senior Editorial and Program Director Hilary Gates for the story behind putting together this year's conference.
How did medical directors and EMS chiefs lead some of the biggest cities during the height of the pandemic?
Calling paramedics an "untapped resource" in the COVID-19 pandemic, paramedic Nikiah G. Nudell, MS, NRP, FACPE, and others recently published in the Journal of Rural Health a call to expand the paramedic scope of practice, specifically to include the operation of ventilators in the out-of-hospital setting.
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has announced sweeping changes to its reimbursement rules that will finally allow EMS to be reimbursed for transporting patients to alternative destinations, not just hospitals. Relaxing long-standing regulations surrounding the billing for allowable destinations, CMS called these initiatives "temporary expansion sites," or "CMS Hospital Without Walls," as they were made in response to the current COVID-19 pandemic.
On January 23, 2020, Jeff Behm, president and CEO of New Jersey's prominent Monmouth Ocean Hospital Service Corporation (MONOC) ambulance service, announced in a letter to his employees that the service would close on April 1 due to "a challenging financial environment caused by declining reimbursements and increasing payor restrictions."
Amid the news of the Black Lives Matter protests last week, I was chatting with my friend Anne Jensen, a paramedic with San Diego Fire-Rescue. Anne is a valued member of the EMS World editorial advisory board, and I often rely on her for expertise, especially in regards to mobile integrated healthcare and community paramedicine (MIH/CP).
Paramedic Paul Cary served 30 years in Aurora, Colo. for the fire department. In late March, at the age of 66, Cary drove an ambulance almost 2000 miles from Denver to New York City so that he could volunteer as part of Ambulnz's State of New York COVID Response team.
The EMS stories coming out of hard-hit cities like Seattle, New York and New Orleans seem unreal. Increased 911 calls, patients in severe respiratory distress, constant protocol changes: what is it really like for EMTs and paramedics in these cities? Hear it from three providers on the COVID-19 frontlines.
"Editor's Expressions" is a new weekly feature in which the EMS World editorial staff ruminates on current news, noteworthy events and everyday happenings with relevance to healthcare and EMS delivery. Feel free to react in the comment box below or e-mail editor@emsworld.com My aunt is a caregiver.
Every EMS provider wishes for accurate and complete data about a patient's history and medical conditions. Oftentimes, hospitals are in possession of these potentially helpful records, but traditionally do not shared these with EMS systems. Many wonder: what are the hurdles that prevent the bidirectional sharing of electronic health records?
Recent research on EMS providers revealed concerning findings about weight, blood pressure and lifestyle choices. Listen to study author Jane Brice, MD talk about her team's research methods. Also hear from newly-appointed Head of GMR Life, Rhonda Kelly, whose focus is on preventive measures for her providers.
Here we are, two months into the novel coronavirus outbreak, managing as best we can with the information we have. I am reminded of a similar situation of uncertainty we dealt with a few years back.
"Editors' Expressions" is a recurring feature in which the EMS World editorial staff ruminates on current news, noteworthy events and everyday happenings with relevance to healthcare and EMS delivery. Feel free to react in the comment box below or e-mail editor@emsworld.com.
Resident Eagle is a monthly column profiling the work of top EMS physicians and medical directors from the Metropolitan EMS Medical Directors Global Alliance (the "Eagles"), who represent America's largest and key international cities. Every month it will discuss the latest cutting-edge issues and findings in emergency care.
Senior Editorial and Program Director Hilary Gates interviews Oologah Talala EMS Director Kelly Deal about their move to smaller van-style ambulances. OTEMS' commitment to patient and provider safety during transport resulted in job applicants who applied to work for them specifically because of the ambulance redesign.
Albuquerque Fire Rescue is the first EMS agency in North America to perform ECMO in the field. How did they do it? With a specially-equipped ambulance, a pop-up tent and a specially-trained team of paramedics, physicians and cannulators. AFR EMS Chief Chris Ortiz and Dr. Darren Braude of UNM Hospital share their knowledge in treating 2 cardiac arrest patients in late 2019.
Denmark's small population (5.75 million) and land size (16,500 sq. mi., about the size of Maryland) might be one of the reasons its nationalized EMS system can focus on collaboration, high performance, and consistency. Couple that with a National Board of Health willing to innovate and recognize the unique skill sets of its EMS providers, and you get some notable results.
Kirkland Fire Department in Washington state was the first agency to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic, treating many patients in the Life Care center nursing home. Captain Joel Bodenman discusses lessons learned and offers advice for other EMS leaders in an interview with EMS World Senior Editorial and Program Director Hilary Gates.
Hey, readers: it's already March 1! Have you locked in your Early Bird rates for EMS World Expo? The conference is a month earlier this year, and I know how we tend to procrastinate. Consider yourself officially invited to the world's largest EMS-dedicated conference, September 14-18 in Las Vegas!
As the coronavirus pandemic continues to strain the entire healthcare system, one unique EMS specialty is being called upon to help: mobile integrated healthcare and community paramedicine (MIH/CP). While some MIH/CP programs in fire departments and EMS agencies are nascent and still finding their best fits for communities, many others are well-established and have improved patient care, lowered costs and improved overall population health.
When the leaders of Oklahoma's Oologah-Talala EMS (OTEMS) decided to order four transit-style Type II ambulances in a complete redesign of their previous box truck-style units, they knew getting employee buy-in might not be easy. After all, as one OTEMS paramedic put it, "We don't like to change."
"Car vs. bicycle." "Fall from height, unresponsive." "Shooting victim." "Motorcycle crash." These are some of the dispatches we hear, the calls we run, and the traumas we see. For EMS providers these words from a dispatcher prompt a heightened awareness and a quick check of an algorithm or mnemonic to get ready for the call.
The name of the game at the FDNY's Medical Special Operations Conference (MSOC) is realism in training. Providing the best training experience possible requires the coordinated effort of many teams, starting with the FDNY's leadership. The various disciplines within the department, EMS operations, hazardous-materials battalion, rescue school, fire academy, and EMS academy all work together to the benefit of the attendees.
Do you think you have a worthwhile topic and the ability to deliver it effectively to an EMS audience? Why not aim for the largest EMS event in the world? This interview with EMS World's Hilary Gates offers some background and how to get started.
It's been more than 20 years since publication of the landmark Emergency Medical Services Agenda for the Future -about time to update it, wouldn't you say? That process has been underway for a while now, led by a 10-deep expert panel, facilitated by a veteran EMS leader, and informed by frontline participants and stakeholders via meetings across the land.
Ever seen a particular response or EMS activity you haven't experienced and had questions about it? For curious readers who strive to know as much as possible about their profession, EMS World brings you a new series called "What's It Like To...?"
Pomp and pageantry befitting the largest EMS-dedicated event in the world accompanied the Opening Ceremonies of EMS World Expo 2018 in Nashville Oct. 31. "Welcome to Nashville, and we're glad you're here with us," said William Swann, director chief of the Nashville Fire Department, following the procession of the NFD Honor Guard with pipe and drum corps, and a rendition of the national anthem by Kris Allen, the Season 8 winner of American Idol.
When the Alexandria Fire Department's (AFD) local union received a check for $15,000 last October, it was inspired by a patient whose life had been saved by firefighters and medics eight months earlier. The donation was special because the patient, Chris Metsala, had less than a 10% chance to live after collapsing from a sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) on January 31, 2017.
Ready Responders hopes to redefine house call with EMS providers and nurses helping patients who don't have a medical emergency but still want to be evaluated for nonemergency complaints.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Association (NHTSA) is currently asking for stakeholder input on a how-to guide for EMS and 9-1-1 agencies to implement programs that improve telecommunicator and high-performance CPR. "" is a national initiative to help communities save lives of those who suffer sudden cardiac arrest (SCA).
Cases have spiked in the D.C. area, sometimes comprising 50% of a provider's calls in one shift.
Ever seen a particular response or EMS activity you haven't experienced and had questions about it? For curious readers who strive to know as much as possible about their profession, EMS World brings you a new series called "What's It Like To...?"
The unveiling on September 20 of the full draft of the EMS Agenda 2050 brought to Washington, D.C., a variety of EMS dignitaries, from NHTSA Office of EMS officials to key leaders in the field, from medical directors to EMS providers to hospital administrators.
"Car vs. bicycle." "Fall from height, unresponsive." "Shooting victim." "Motorcycle crash." These are some of the dispatches we hear, the calls we run, and the traumas we see. For EMS providers these words from a dispatcher prompt a heightened awareness and a quick check of an algorithm or mnemonic to get ready for the call.
The recipient of the Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation's People Saving People award is an Illinois teenager named Brendan Gould, who saved his dad's life with CPR. Brendan was at home in Barrington with his father, Tom Gould, on Feb. 6, 2016, when Tom suddenly collapsed.
EMS advocates gathered this morning on Capitol Hill at the first meeting of the Congressional EMS Caucus. Chaired by Rep. Timothy Walz of Minnesota, the EMS Caucus convened a variety of EMS advocates hailing from an alphabet soup of agencies, associations and groups: the National Association of EMTs (NAEMT), American College of Surgeons (ACS), National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), American Ambulance Association (AAA), Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and Department of...
EMS leads a community of responders that pull together before, during, and after a tragedy.
When a group of Michigan clinicians and researchers set a goal of doubling the state's sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) survival rate over the next three years, they knew it would take a team of dedicated, enthusiastic individuals and the help of others like them around the country who'd already found ways to improve cardiac arrest systems of care.
If you're reading this at EMS World Expo, challenge yourself and step out of your comfort zone.
Each year, peering out over the amazingly progressive audience attendees and the phenomenally talented speakers on the stage at the EMS State of the Sciences (Gathering of Eagles) Conference in Dallas, I ask myself how the meeting could get any better than what I am experiencing at that very moment.
Any EMS provider will admit that a pediatric emergency is scarier than an adult emergency. The child may not be able to communicate, the parents are in no shape to help, the assessment is more difficult, and on top of all of that, the dreaded weight-based medication math.
EMS providers may soon see mandated on-shift napping, sleep hygiene education and shorter shifts if sleep experts have their way. These are just some of the objectives to emerge from a research project that the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) began in 2013.
A church that had been converted to a meeting space seemed a particularly apt setting for a discussion on "reanimation," or, bringing cardiac arrest victims back to life. Baltimore's Westminster Cathedral recently hosted the University of Maryland's Emergency Cardiology Symposium on Cardiac Arrest.
When a new ambulance is built in this country, the manufacturer must adhere to state or national safety standards that prescribe criteria for passenger restraints, cot retention and equipment storage, among other things. No safety standards currently exist, however, for so-called "remounts": a recycled ambulance box installed on a new chassis.
When the call came in, the EMD felt helpless. The caller was screaming that his father had a seizure and wasn't breathing. "OK, sir, what's your address?" The caller spoke with a thick accent. It was more than a minute before the dispatcher could discern the name of the street.
"It is not a failure of knowledge, but a failure of action." -Art Kellerman, MD, MPH, Dean of the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Bethesda, MD The number of people who die every day from sudden cardiac arrest is equivalent to the crashing of two fully-loaded 747s: approximately 1,500 victims. This shocking analogy often used by medical and policy experts in cardiac arrest resuscitation highlights the devastating toll of sudden cardiac arrest (SCA).
Council also moves forward several other recommendations and elects new leadership Bypassing the 3-step, 12-18 month process normally followed to approve a recommendation, the National Emergency Medical Services Advisory Council (NEMSAC) issued a strongly worded advisory saying that both EMRs and EMTs throughout the nation should be able to administer naloxone to patients with suspected opioid overdoses.
The National EMS Advisory Council approves several advisories, including recommendations to require post-secondary education for paramedics and reclassify EMS as a medical provider with CMS Vince Robbins' first meeting as chair of the National Emergency Medical Services Advisory Council (NEMSAC) certainly was exciting, as the council finalized seven advisories and recommended several more as drafts, on topics ranging from reimbursement to data collection.
Being a rookie attendee at October's EMS World Expo in New Orleans proved to be an exciting and motivating experience. From the numerous classroom learning sessions to the vast Exhibit Hall, I was impressed with the innovation, improved technology and discourse available.
If you've ever asked yourself, Could I do that?, when attending a conference presentation, you'll be pleased to hear that the answer is yes. The same traits of selflessness and intellectual curiosity you possess as a caring EMS provider will translate into success as a speaker.