Local Ambulance Service Research Articles

The rate, causes and predictors of ambulance call outs to residential aged care in the Australian Capital Territory: A retrospective observational cohort study.

Older people in residential aged care are susceptible to acute illness or injury which may necessitate an ambulance call out, assessment/treatment by a paramedic and transfer to a hospital emergency department. Understanding the case mix of residential aged care ambulance attendances is important for prevention strategies and for planning services. A retrospective observational closed cohort study was designed to investigate the characteristics of emergency ambulance call outs to 15 residential aged care sites in the Australian Capital Territory over a 12-month period. Data were collected from the local ambulance service and the aged care sites. Case load data were analysed to determine rates, clinical characteristics, ambulance attendance outcomes and the temporal distribution of call outs. A Poisson regression model was developed to investigate demographic, morbidity and medication-related risk factors associated with the number of ambulance call outs per resident. Annual ambulance call out costs were estimated. There were 1,275 residents, with 396 (31.1%) requiring at least one ambulance call out over 12 months. Of 669 ambulance attendances, the majority (87.0%) were transported to emergency departments. Trauma (23.9%), pain (16.9%) and infections (9.4%) were the most common primary assessments by the ambulance attendees. Cases/day were similar throughout the year and on weekdays compared to weekends/public holidays. The main predictors of ambulance call out were multi-morbidity, taking regular anticholinergic medicines, being male and younger age. Estimated costs of ambulance call outs/year were $475/resident and $40,375/residential aged care site. The most frequent primary assessments (trauma, pain, infections) may constitute priorities for developing prevention strategies and for treatment initiatives within residential aged care. Strategies to reduce anticholinergic medication prescribing may also be a potential intervention to decrease ambulance call outs and hospital emergency department demand. The ambulance usage data from this study may be useful to compare with future datasets to measure the impact of the introduction of new services.

Experiences of emergency care providers conducting critical care transfers in Gauteng Province, South Africa.

Background Critical care transfer (CCT) involves the movement of high-acuity patients between facilities. Internationally, CCTs are commonly performed by a dedicated team using specialised vehicles and equipment. These transfers comprise a significant portion of the work of local ambulance services; however, there is a dearth of literature on current approaches and practices. Objectives To investigate and describe the experiences of a sample of Gauteng Province-based emergency care (EC) providers conducting CCTs. Methods A qualitative descriptive design used thematic analysis to gather data from 14 purposely selected participants during semi-structured focus group discussions, which were recorded and transcribed verbatim. Data were coded and analysed using ATLAS.ti to generate themes and sub-themes. Results The two dominant themes that emerged from the study were that there is no common understanding or clear definition of a CCT in the local context, and that systemic challenges are experienced. Participants indicated that their undergraduate training did not sufficiently prepare them to conduct CCTs. Local ambulance services appear to lack a common definition and understanding of exactly what constitutes a CCT and how this differs from ‘normal’ ambulance operations. Participants felt undervalued and poorly supported, with several systemic challenges being highlighted. Conclusion The absence of a contextually relevant definition of what constitutes a CCT, coupled with potential curriculum deficits in undergraduate EC programmes, negatively impacts on the experiences of EC providers conducting CCTs. Acknowledging CCT as an area of specialisation is an important step in addressing some of the frustrations and challenges experienced by EC providers tasked with conducting such transfers. Further research into formal postgraduate programmes in CCT is recommended. Contributions of the study This study provides insights into the experiences of South African emergency care providers conducting critical care transfers (CCTs). The research highlights a need to develop a common understanding and definition accepted by industry of what constitutes a CCT and how CCTs differ from primary response incidents, including the need for additional education and a focus on the conducting of CCTs.

Medical students in the pre-hospital environment – An untapped resource for undergraduate acute care and interprofessional education

Background The King’s College London Pre-hospital Care Programme (KCL PCP) is a student-run programme that provides undergraduate medical students with the opportunity to attend observer shifts with the local ambulance service. This study evaluates the contribution of pre-hospital exposure to medical students’ clinical and professional development. Methods Students were asked to complete a Likert-scale based survey on self-reported exposure and confidence in various aspects of acute patient assessment, communication and interprofessional education, both before and after the programme; additional qualitative questions querying their experience were asked post-programme. Pre and post-programme Likert-scale responses were matched and statistically analysed, alongside a thematic analysis of qualitative responses. Results Exposure to ambulance service clinicians, confidence assessing acutely unwell patients, and confidence making clinical handovers all increased with statistical significance. Key areas of learning identified from the thematic analysis include increased confidence communicating with patients and families, and an enriched understanding of the work done by pre-hospital clinicians. Conclusions Time spent in the pre-hospital environment shadowing ambulance service clinicians positively contributes to acute care knowledge, inter-personal skills and interprofessional understanding. Rotating medical students through the pre-hospital environment could bridge education gaps in these areas in a manner that complements traditional pre-clinical and clinical teaching.

Idle peripheral intravenous cannulation: an observational cohort study of pre-hospital and emergency department practices

BackgroundUnused ('idle') peripheral intravenous catheters (PIVC) are those not used within 24 hours of insertion. There is little data on cannulation practices and idle PIVC rates in emergency settings, especially the pre-hospital environment.MethodsThis was an observational cohort study set in south-east Queensland, Australia using data from a large tertiary level emergency department (ED) and the local statutory ambulance service. Demographic, clinical and PIVC data were collected over two periods; 9 February–18 March 2017 and 5 January–4 February 2018. Adult patients were included if they were allocated an Australasian triage scale (ATS) category between 2 and 5, and had a PIVC inserted in the pre-hospital setting or ED. PIVC use was defined as idle if no fluids, medications or contrast were administered intravenously within 24 hours of insertion. Comparisons between pre-hospital and ED practice and idle PIVC status were undertaken using descriptive statistics and logistic regression.ResultsA total of 1249 patients with a PIVC (372 pre-hospital; 877 ED) were included. Overall, 366 PIVCs (29.3%; 95% CI 26.9%–31.9%) remained idle at 24 hours. In the pre-hospital group, 147 (39.5%) PIVCs inserted were not used pre-hospital, and 74 (19.9%) remained idle. In comparison, 292 (33.3%) PIVCs placed in the ED remained idle. ED staff more frequently inserted PIVCs in the antecubital fossa than paramedics (65.5% vs. 49.7%), where forearm PIVC insertion was more common pre-hospital than in ED (13.7% vs. 7.4%). Nursing staff inserted idle PIVCs at a rate of (35.1%) compared to doctors (29.6%) and paramedics (19.9%). Having a PIVC inserted in the ED was the only factor significantly (p ≤ .001) predicting an idle outcome (Odds Ratio: 2.4; 95% CI 1.7–3.3).ConclusionOne-third of PIVCs inserted within the emergency setting remained idle, suggesting unnecessary risk and costs. Pre-hospital and ED PIVC insertion practices differed, with idle PIVCs 2.4 times more prevalent if inserted in the ED than pre-hospital and with greater use of antecubital insertion. Reasons for these differences are not well understood and requires more targeted research.

UK ambulance service resuscitation management of pulseless electrical activity: a systematic review protocol of text and opinion.

Background:Out-of-hospital cardiac arrest patients with pulseless electrical activity are treated by paramedics using basic and advanced life support resuscitation. When resuscitation fails to achieve return of spontaneous circulation, there are limited evidence and national guidelines on when to continue or stop resuscitation. This has led to ambulance services in the United Kingdom developing local guidelines to support paramedics in the resuscitative management of pulseless electrical activity. The content of each guideline is unknown, as is any association between guideline implementation and patient survival. We aim to identify and synthesise local ambulance service guidelines to help improve the consistency of paramedic-led decision-making for the resuscitation of pulseless electrical activity in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest.Methods:A systematic review of text and opinion will be conducted on ambulance service guidelines for resuscitating adult cardiac arrest patients with pulseless electrical activity. Data will be gathered direct from the ambulance service website. The review will be guided by the methods of the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI). The search strategy will be conducted in three stages: 1) a website search of the 14 ambulance services; 2) a search of the evidence listed in support of the guideline; and 3) an examination of the reference list of documents found in the first and second stages and reported using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses. Each document will be assessed against the inclusion criteria, and quality of evidence will be assessed using the JBI Critical Appraisal Checklist for Text and Opinion. Data will be extracted using the JBI methods of textual data extraction and a three-stage data synthesis process: 1) extraction of opinion statements; 2) categorisation of statements according to similarity of meaning; and 3) meta-synthesis of statements to create a new collection of findings. Confidence of findings will be assessed using the graded ConQual approach.

Home care takes on the challenge of falls at home: innovative practice

Falls are prominent among the external causes of unintentional injury. Every year, about a third of adults in England over age 65 who live at home have at least one fall, and half of these have frequent falls. Falls are an urgent public health concern because of their medical and economic consequences, and with a rising older population, they are costly for health and care systems. This article describes an innovative initiative in the South-West of England in which a private home care provider and a local ambulance service collaborated to develop new training, protocols and suitable equipment in order to better manage falls.

Implementing treatment guidelines for ambulance services in a low- and middle income setting

Abstract Background The use of clinical practice guidelines in clinical and organizational decision-making improves the care of patients and patient safety. Guidelines make healthcare consistent and efficient. In many low- and middle income countries healthcare workers depend on guidelines developed in higher income countries. For these to be useful and accepted they need to be adapted to the local setting. The aim of the study was to implement pre-hospital treatment guidelines into an organization that was not currently using guidelines. The study was partnership between a Swedish pre-hospital training organization and local ambulance service organizations in Kosovo. Methods An iterative process of implementing the guidelines was used: Identify guidelines appropriate for the local organization.In sets of five, have the guidelines translated into Albanian.Adapt the guidelines to the local conditions and context.Approval of guidelines by an expert group.Begin using the guidelines within the target organization. Results The first set of five guidelines was translated, approved, and implemented into the organizations. To improve acceptance, both practitioners and decision-makers were involved in the process. Seven workshops were held, with a total of 104 participants. In follow-up discussions participants said they accepted the guidelines and that they would be useful in their daily work. Conclusions It is important to evaluate to what extent the guidelines have been accepted, understood, and used. The success and acceptance is due to the flexible procedure managing the full implementation process. Adapting guidelines to fit with local needs and requirements using local experts made the guidelines accessible and useful. The workshop discussions established justification and approval. Key messages Involve local experts in contextualising guidelines to increase acceptance from the start. Support building a robust local implementation organization to assist and administer change.

First-Pass Success Intubations Using Video Laryngoscopy Versus Direct Laryngoscopy: A Retrospective Prehospital Ambulance Service Study

ObjectiveIn emergency medicine, endotracheal intubation is the gold standard for airway management. First-pass intubation success is beneficial because it secures the patient airway more quickly and avoids complications associated with repeated attempts, such as bleeding and swelling of soft tissue. The key to first-pass success is the ability to visualize the laryngeal inlet. Visualization can be accomplished using traditional direct laryngoscopy or video laryngoscopy. The purpose of our study was to compare the rate of successful first-pass endotracheal intubations using a video laryngoscope with that using a direct visualization laryngoscope in a prehospital emergency setting. MethodsWe retrospectively reviewed data that had been prospectively collected in our emergency department regarding patients who underwent endotracheal intubation performed by personnel from a single local ambulance service from January 1, 2014, through December 31, 2015. ResultsOne hundred eighty-one patients were intubated using video laryngoscopy and 115 using direct visualization laryngoscopy. The first-pass endotracheal intubation success rate using video laryngoscopy was 12.6% higher than with direct laryngoscopy. ConclusionThis retrospective study shows that video laryngoscopy had a higher first-pass success rate than direct laryngoscopy. This is promising because decreasing failure rates provide better patient outcomes.

Implementing Guidelines for Ambulance Services

Introduction:If there is consensus about how to handle a patient with a specific condition, from the ambulance service point of view, it matters less for the patient which ambulance arrives to take care of the patient. Guidelines are a way of standardizing treatment or management of the patient for a given patient condition. Clear and implemented guidelines that promote the handling of the patients is done from best practice and are evidence-based according to the best ability of the organization.Aim:The aim of the current study was to implement guidelines into an organization that was not currently using guidelines. The study was conducted as a collaborative effort between a Swedish pre-hospital training organization and the local ambulance service organization in Kosovo.Methods:An iterative process of implementing the guidelines was applied: 1.Identify guidelines appropriate for the local organization. For each iteration, five guidelines are chosen.2.Have the five guidelines translated into Albanian.3.The guidelines are adapted to local conditions and context.4.The five guidelines are approved by an expert group.5.The five guidelines are implemented in the organization.Results:The initial iteration included was carried out in the form of a workshop where 22 persons (doctors and nurses) from the local ambulance service in Kosovo participated. During the workshop, the first three implementation steps were taken, while remaining steps were carried out by the local organization.Discussion:With the local management and ambulance personnel involved throughout the process, the implementation of guidelines were delivered in a more feasible way as well as more easily accepted and adhered to. Supporting a standardized treatment or management of the patient will benefit future patients. These standards should be based in evidence-based practice adopted to local conditions.

Service impact of the physician response unit since the implementation of a new operational model

To evaluate the impact of the new operational model on local ambulance, emergency department (ED) and hospital services, and estimate potential cost savings. The physician response unit (PRU) is a rapid response emergency service, staffed by a senior emergency medicine doctor and ambulance clinician. It aims to ‘take the emergency department to the patient’. In September 2017, a new operational model was implemented, extending operational hours from 08.30–16.30, Monday–Friday to 08.00–20.00, 7 days a week. Patient data was reviewed between 11 September and 30 …

PP24 Time: take-home naloxone in multicentre emergency settings: protocol for a feasibility study

BackgroundOpioids such as heroin kill more people worldwide than any other drug. Death rates associated with opioid poisoning in the UK are at record levels. Naloxone is an opioid agonist which can be distributed in take home ‘kits’. This intervention is known as Take Home Naloxone (THN).MethodsWe propose to carry out a randomised controlled feasibility trial (RCT) of THN distributed in emergency settings clustered by Emergency Department (ED) catchment area, and local ambulance service; with anonymised linked data outcomes. This will include distribution of THN by paramedics and ED staff to patients at risk of opioid overdose. Existing linked data will be used to develop a discriminant function to retrospectively identify people at high risk of overdose death based on observable predictors of overdose to include in outcome follow up.ResultsWe will gather outcomes up to one year including; deaths (and drug related); emergency admissions; intensive care admissions; ED attendances (and overdose related); 999 attendances (and for overdose); THN kits issued; and NHS resource usage. We will agree progression criteria following consultation with research team members related to sign up of sites; successful identification and provision of THN to eligible participants; successful follow up of eligible participants and opioid decedents; adverse event rate; successful data matching and data linkage; and retrieval of outcomes within three months of projected timeline.ConclusionsTHN programmes are currently run by some drug services in the UK. However, saturation is low. There has been a lack of experimental research in to THN, and so questions remain: Does THN reduce deaths? Are there unforeseen harms associated with THN? Is THN cost effective? This feasibility study will establish whether a fully powered cluster RCT can be used to answer these questions.

From ED overcrowding to jail overcrowding: a cautionary tale of a Serial Inebriate Programme (SIP)

IntroductionCommunity-based programmes have been implemented to curtail ED use by individuals with chronic public intoxication. Among these programmes is the Serial Inebriate Programme (SIP), which aims to reduce use of...

PP09 Pre-hospital diagnostic accuracy for hyperventilation syndrome

BackgroundHyperventilation syndrome (HVS) encompasses a wide variety of symptoms and is diagnosed by excluding organic causes for patients’ symptoms. Literature suggests that HVS should be diagnosed and treated pre-hospitally to...

Recruiting university students of medicine for a first responder project

Purpose of the study: Laypersons, referred to as First Responders (FR), are trained in CPR by local ambulance services and complete a FR-training. An app-based system notifies trained FRs, who then initiate high-quality cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and use automated external defibrillators, until the professional ambulance service arrives. The goal of the FR-project is to minimize the delay of basic life support (BLS) and improve patient outcome after cardiac arrest. So far, over 1000 citizens of Bern, Switzerland have been trained and are registered as active FR. In this observational study we assessed which media effectively motivates university medical students to train as FR.

Patient Presentations and Medical Logistics at Full and Half Ironman Distance Triathlons.

We describe logistical challenges, illness/injury rates, as well as medical and ambulance transfer rates (ATR) at an annual large-scale half/full triathlon in a remote location. Prospective observational study; registry data. Data on patient presentation rates, percentage of patients transferred by ambulance, transfer to hospital rates (TTHR), ATR, and medical usage rates were collected and analyzed. In total, 1923 athletes participated in the 2016 triathlon (1404 in the full-length race and 519 in the half) and 181 patient encounters were documented. The patient presentation rate (PPR) was 94 in 1000 patients, and 1.6% of patients seen onsite required offsite medical care. TTHR and ATR were 1.6 in 1000 and 0.5 in 1000, respectively. Gastrointestinal issues were the most common presentation (50/181; 27.6%), followed by musculoskeletal injury (46/181; 25.4%) and nonspecific dizziness (37/181; 20.4%). The incorporation of a coordinated event medical plan and team, with integrated on-course and at-finish coverage, may have minimized presentations of patients to local health care services; therefore, decreasing the effect on the local ambulance service and health infrastructure of the host community.

Using ambulance service PCRs to understand 999 call-outs to older people with dementia

Objectives: To use local ambulance service patient care records (PCRs) at an aggregate level to study the use of emergency medical services (EMS) by older people with dementia in two English counties. To understand how and where in the PCR dementia is recorded. To measure the proportion of patients aged 75 and over who had an emergency (999) ambulance response who have dementia recorded in the PCR. To carry out a descriptive analysis of any associations with age, gender, reason for the call, time of call, residential status or call outcome. Methods: Four days of PCRs from two counties (UK) for patients aged 75 and over were reviewed and non-patient-identifiable data extracted. Data for the total number of call-outs for those days were obtained from the computer-aided dispatch (CAD) system. Results: In 4 days' records for Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire (2 304 records), over one third of call-outs (830) were to patients aged 75 and over. Data were obtained from 358 paper records. Dementia was recorded on 14.5% of records and another 7.0% recorded details suggesting dementia or cognitive impairment. Around 15% of call-outs to ≥75-year-olds were to care homes. Ambulance crews attended higher proportions of ‘older old’ people than the local population percentages of 85 to 89-year-olds and ≥90-year-olds. The most common reason (27.5%) for a call-out was a fall. Conclusions: This is the first paper to look in detail at the numbers of older people with dementia seen by emergency ambulance crews as documented in PCRs. It gives a benchmark for others looking at ambulance service data and highlights possibilities and pitfalls of using ambulance service PCR data.

Emergency and Common Medical Care and Security Measures for Persons in Migrant Camps in the Czech Republic

Background: In reaction to the large increase of migrants in Europe in the year 2015, it was necessary to make some arrangements to reduce the security and social risks possibly ensuing from the migrant inflow into the Czech Republic. The migrant camps were established and several services started to be provided, including common and emergency medical care. The common medical care is provided by medical staff in camps, the ambulance services are provided by the local ambulance service on the basis of a special contract. Because of the increasing number of events when the ambulances were abused, it was necessary to limit the amount of such events. An unusual solution with checking the necessity of ambulance interventions was accepted with good results. Methods: The arrangement of verifying the legitimacy of the ambulance intervention was introduced and accepted after several cases of abusing the ambulance service by people in migrant camps were encountered. The evaluation of the necessity of sending an ambulance car to the camp was made by discussion between the head doctor in the camp and the ambulance service control centre. Results: The experience of doctors in refugee camps shows that the steps taken in order to prevent the abuse of emergency services work well. Simultaneously, no delay in the delivery of acute medical care has been registered after the agreed measures were adopted. Conclusion: This article focuses on the specific aspects of the system of common and acute medical care in the camps for refugees and migrants in the Czech Republic. In reaction to the large increase of migrants in Europe in the last year, it was necessary to make some arrangements to reduce the security and social risks possibly ensuing from the migrant inflow into the Czech Republic. First, it is important to have suitable facilities for migrating people. The fundamental requirement for a human being is medical care. Because of frequent abusing ambulances–where anesthesiologists work-by migrant people in camps, special rules and agreements for acute medical care in migrant camps had to be adopted. Those rules, unusual in the Czech Republic, have already saved a significant number of senseless ambulance interventions

Bleeding air ambulance patients: an audit of tranexamic acid use

Methods A retrospective audit was undertaken of all EHAAT missions during 2013. All cases where the patient was classed as ‘positive’ by the Regional Major Trauma Network triage tool (MT+ve) were included. The primary outcome was the administration of the first bolus dose of 1g TXA (or paediatric appropriate dose). Compliance was defined as ‘patients thought to have significant haemorrhage received TXA’. Compliance with the local ambulance service guidelines (trauma patients with hypotension or tachycardia) was also reviewed.

Prehospital Emergency Care in Shanghai: Present and Future

BackgroundIn Shanghai, prehospital emergency medical services are provided by the public Ambulance Services. The 60th anniversary of the local Ambulance Services is a good opportunity to provide an overview of the current trends in prehospital emergency medical care in Shanghai. ObjectivesIn this report, the features of Shanghai prehospital emergency medical care are described, as well as the Shanghai model of purely prehospital emergency medical care, including the communications and dispatch system, ambulance depots and ambulances, and prehospital rescue teams. Responses to major incidents including public health emergencies and natural disasters are also discussed, with the intention of highlighting future directions in emergency medical services, as well as the influence of international trends in emergency patient care. DiscussionAlthough Shanghai has the most advanced dispatch system in China (equipped with a Global Positioning System, Global Information System, and more) and can be expanded quickly in case of mass casualty incidents, there is, as yet, no uniform Emergency Medical Service (EMS) dispatching for the entire city. Nor are there certifications, degrees, or special continuing education programs available for EMS dispatchers. Although there are more and more ambulance depots spread all over Shanghai, the city struggles with inadequate prehospital emergency caregivers, because every ambulance has to be staffed with a qualified Emergency Physician, and there are also recruitment problems for ambulance physicians. ConclusionsAlthough faced with many challenges, substantial progress is expected in Shanghai prehospital emergency care.

Accuracy of prehospital diagnoses by emergency physicians

A correct prehospital diagnosis of emergency patients is crucial as it determines initial treatment, admitting specialty, and subsequent treatment. We evaluated the diagnostic accuracy of emergency physicians. All patients seen by six emergency physicians staffing the local emergency ambulance and rescue helicopter services during an 8-month period were studied. The ambulance and helicopter physicians had 3 and 4 years, respectively, training in anesthesia and intensive care medicine. The admission diagnoses were compared with the discharge diagnoses for agreement. Time of day of the emergency call, patients' age, and sex, living conditions, and presenting symptoms were evaluated as contributing factors. Three hundred and fifty-five ambulance and 241 helicopter deployment protocols were analyzed. The overall degree of agreement between initial and discharge diagnoses was 90.1% with no difference attributable to years of experience. The lowest agreement rate was seen in neurological disorders (81.5%), with a postictal state after an unobserved seizure often being diagnosed as a cerebrovascular accident. Inability to obtain a complete medical history (e.g. elderly patients, patients in nursing homes, neurological impairment) was associated with a lower agreement rate between initial and discharge diagnoses (P<0.05). Medical history, physical examination, ECG, and blood glucose enabled a correct diagnosis in most cases, but some were impossible to resolve without further technical and laboratory investigations. Only a few were definitively incorrect. A detailed medical history is essential. Neurological disorders can present with misleading symptoms and when the diagnosis is not clear it is better to assume the worst case.