Objective: The objective of this study was to identify out-of-hospital cardiac arrest characteristics for patients treated by collegiate-based emergency medical services (CBEMS) organizations. Participants: CBEMS organizations provided data via the National Collegiate EMS Foundation Cardiac Arrest Data Registry. Methods: CBEMS organization…

Objective: This study aimed to identify the types and frequency of acute medical events at a university with a collegiate-based emergency medical services (CBEMS) agency. Participants: Patients who requested assistance from the studied CBEMS agency, which provides emergency medical services coverage at a medium-sized urban university. Methods:…

In recent years, NHS Ambulance Trusts throughout the UK have consistently failed to achieve their response time targets for both actual and potential life-threatening calls. To avoid a media and public outcry, the NHS response has been to change the basic parameters upon which the response time targets are calculated. An action learning study,…

Context: Current practice in management of the spine-injured athletes appears to be inconsistent with literature. Moreover, evidence expands faster than integration into instruction, practice, and evaluation, likely leading to an overall lack of knowledge, both perceived and actual. Objective: The primary purpose was to evaluate athletic trainers'…

We present an instrument to allow individuals with autism spectrum disorder, their families and/or their caregivers to prepare emergency department staff for the care needs of this patient population ahead of acute presentation.

In healthcare, action teams are carrying out complex medical procedures in intense and unpredictable situations to save lives. Previous research has shown that efficient communication, high-quality coordination, and coping with stress are particularly essential for high performance. However, precisely and objectively capturing these team…

This article examines memory and distributed cognition involved in the writing practices of emergency medical services (EMS) professionals. Results from a 16-month study indicate that EMS professionals rely on distributed cognition and three kinds of memory: individual, collaborative, and professional. Distributed cognition and the three types of…

The conversion of paper-based medical records into electronic formats is set to bring many benefits to healthcare. This includes creating a more seamless exchange of electronic health records (EHRs) between providers, improving healthcare while lowering its costs, and providing patients with increased access to their EHRs. As more medical…

Context: Quality measures focused on outpatient settings are of increasing interest to policy makers, but little research has been conducted on hospital outpatient quality measures, especially in rural settings. Purpose: To evaluate the relevance of Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services' (CMS) outpatient quality measures for rural hospitals,…

Time delays in the treatment and transfer of trauma patients is a contributing factor responsible for many fatalities. Time delays are more characteristic of rural trauma systems due to factors such as greater distance, and delays in accident reporting. Efforts to reduce the trauma transfer process have resulted in many changes in protocol and use…

Emergency department (ED) screening for intimate partner violence (IPV) faces logistic difficulties and has uncertain efficacy. We surveyed 146 ED visitors and 108 ED care providers to compare their support for ED IPV screening in three hypothetical scenarios of varying IPV risk. Visitor support for screening was 5 times higher for the high-risk…

Objective: Emergency Departments (EDs) offer an opportunity to improve the care of patients with at-risk and dependent drinking by teaching staff to screen, perform brief intervention and refer to treatment (SBIRT). We describe here the implementation at 14 Academic EDs of a structured SBIRT curriculum to determine if this learning experience…

This student manual, the fourth in a set of 14 modules, is designed to train emergency medical technicians (EMTs) in Ohio. The module contains two sections covering the following course content: vital signs (temperature, pulse, respirations, and blood pressure) and patient assessment at the scene of an emergency. Each section contains objectives,…

This training manual for emergency medical technicians, one of 14 modules that comprise the Emergency Victim Care textbook, contains appendixes, a glossary, and an index. The first appendix is an article on communicating with deaf and hearing-impaired patients. Appendix 2, the largest section in this manual, is an introduction to medical…

This document is a textbook of emergency medical procedures to be used for training emergency medical technicians. The book is organized into 15 modules, each containing 1 to 10 units. Each module contains information illustrated with line drawings, a glossary, and references. The modules cover the following topics: the role of the emergency…