Ask the Expert: How Can I Better Respond to Emergency Medical Technicians’ Calls for Help in Europe?
Hear how some ambulance and fire rescue services are using tablets in combination with RFID, barcode scanning, and video technology to help first responders support more patients without burning out.
When an ambulance is dispatched to a call, the assumption is that it will be fully stocked with the right equipment and medicines for emergency medical technicians, EMTs for short, to stabilize patients or perform life-saving measures in the field. But with the increased number of calls for service in many parts of the world, it’s becoming more difficult for EMTs to maintain proper stock in their ambulances – and that has patient care implications.
Why is such a fundamental task so hard to manage?
That’s one of the questions I’ve asked my two guests today to answer.
The other question?
Is there anything that can be done to reduce the wait times for ambulance services in the UK – or really anywhere in the world – where the calls for service are exceeding EMTs’ capacity?
Between standard population growth and the rapid aging of our population, there’s no doubt that every ambulance service can stand to hire more people, invest in more vehicles, and scale their service capacity. There are going to be more people who need paramedic services, especially as beds fill up and wait times increase at hospitals and urgent care centers.
But it’s not easy to train and hire more people or expand the ambulance fleet even when there is funding available. So, what can be done – or can anything be done – to make the current first responder force act bigger than it is? How do we speed up response times and help paramedics reach more patients each day? How do we avoid situations where paramedics and other ambulance staff arrive at the scene only to realize they don’t have what they need to treat patients because they didn’t stock enough, items are expired, and so on?
These are some of the questions I asked public safety solutionists Matt Wroughton and Oliver (Olly) Ledgard in our latest Clini-Chat podcast episode.
Matt was a firefighter who ultimately joined Zebra to help other first responders improve readiness. Olly has also spent the better part of 20 years working with government service providers such as ambulance crews, police, and firefighters to find ways technology can make their jobs easier.
Hit play on this episode now to find out:
- Which issues related to prioritization/routing, on-scene efficiency, patient transport/handoffs, and administrative burden can be fixed right now by ambulance and fire rescue service providers (with the right expert guidance and technology tools.)
- The targeted operational and technology system changes Matt and Olly have been helping government agencies and private ambulance services make to ensure first responders have everything they need to treat, stabilize, and help save patients in the field.
- The specific ways that first responders in EMEA and the U.S. are using RFID, tablets, and other connected technologies to improve consumables stocking, equipment cleaning/turnaround, and overall equipment availability in high-tempo environments.
- How body-worn cameras, radios, barcode scanners, GPS systems and other technologies are being consolidated into a single system to minimize how much first responders have to carry or worry about in the ambulance or field.
- What can smooth the patient handoff from ambulance crews to hospital staff (according to a first responder.)
- What can be done to make real-time data collection and patient record updates easier for clinicians in the field and hospital.
- How to use technology to better facilitate a community care model that improves case prioritization and enlists the support of other virtual or primary care clinicians to ease the burden on paramedics and hospital staff.
There’s also a transcript if you prefer to read what Matt and Olly shared.
DOWNLOAD TRANSCRIPT
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Editor’s Note:
You may also want to check out these related conversations and expert insights:
- Exclusive Interview: Three Former Public Safety Professionals Say These Technologies Could Have Made Their Jobs Easier and Safer
- Emergency Callout: New Technology to Enable Safer Patient Response
Lorna Hopkin
Lorna Hopkin is Product Marketing Advisor at Zebra Technologies with responsibility for Zebra healthcare solutions and advanced location technologies. Lorna joined Zebra in August 2018 as part of its acquisition of rugged tablet specialist Xplore Technologies.
Lorna is a chartered marketer and has two and half decades’ experience across a wide range of industries. At Zebra, she has launched a variety of products into the healthcare space and other verticals.
Lorna is a tireless advocate for health and fitness at Zebra and in her spare time participates in Ironman competitions and enjoys writing about her experiences at https://theordinaryironman.com/
