Walker County Emergency Medical Services takes an average of 10,000 calls per year. In every situation, the team must be properly equipped and make accurate assessments, which requires a high level of efficiency where technology and training are concerned. The details are staggering, and they all have to be reported in order to receive funding for their agency. The new software upgrade that EMS has integrated over the last few weeks is helping to streamline all those details into one user-friendly system that allows them to spend more time focusing on patients rather than paperwork.
This new technology comes from ESO, one of the largest software and data solutions providers for EMS agencies and fire departments in the U.S. In August the company acquired Occam Technologies, which included the best enterprise master patient index (EMPI) of its kind. EMPI is a database that is used to maintain consistent and accurate information about each patient registered by a healthcare organization. It can also link several smaller patient indexes together, such as those from outpatient clinics and rehabilitation facilities.
According to Rachel Parker, Director of Walker County EMS, the prior history of any patient they have ever picked up will pop up when a form of identification is entered. This gives them a better idea of what they are dealing with, especially if the patient is unconscious. This saves time in responding with the correct procedure, as well as, in reporting.
“The most apparent improvement we can measure is the amount of time we spend on a scene from arrival to transport. The national standard is ten minutes. Our average time was eight minutes and is now 5.45 minutes,” said Parker.
“The system also allows us to identify outliers that skew these numbers and understand what happened in these instances,” said Assistant Director Chris Toman. “The response for stroke patients is especially essential.”
Dr. Nhu Bruce, Medical Director of Houston Methodist The Woodlands Hospital said the crucial part of the new software is the loop of information it creates about the patient. The attending physician gets more information about what the techs encountered at the scene, and the techs get crucial feedback about their assessments over the next few days. This helps the techs and their superiors understand what went right, and what may have gone wrong, which improves future outcomes for every patient.
Bruce said the system can also cut down on guesswork in determining patient care once they arrive at the hospital. Bruce was responsible for setting up the primary stroke program at Huntsville Memorial Hospital before taking her current position four years ago.
Everything that was once transmitted verbally and transcribed in handwritten form is now in a central location on a handheld tablet: the condition of the patient when they arrived at the scene, medications that were in view, and the state of the surroundings.
“EMS has limited contact with the patient,” said Sterling Taylor, Director of EMS Solutions for Houston Methodist. “For them to see the entire course of the outcome boosts the effectiveness of care, especially in rural areas.”
Prior to the new system, emergency techs were not likely to know what became of their patients once they were admitted to the hospital. This feedback loop lets them know when they did the right thing and provides concrete information that drives their ongoing training.
The new software that ESO rolled out in August not only links vital patient information to doctors and first responders, it includes an incredible amount of data that can be used for training.
Emergency technicians previously had multiple usernames and passwords required to log into different systems to complete their continuing education and maintain proper compliance.
Now they have one login to a single portal that keeps them up to date on required training modules and access to thousands of hours of classes and webinars to improve their knowledge and skill sets. Administrators can easily tailor their training to ensure each member of their team is using consistent techniques that are pertinent to the type of situations they frequently encounter.
The upgrade also provides a better system for keeping track of inventory and maintenance for equipment and vehicles. For medical supplies, the inventory component acts much like a high end point of sale system in that it removes inventory in real time when it is taken out of storage and placed in an ambulance.
The system also provides a matrix that tracks usage, taking the guesswork out of ordering supplies and avoiding an instance where medications may expire.
For Logistics Coordinator Mark Scott, this saves more than two days of labor per month and makes a tremendous difference in efficiency. Required reporting to the state for operational funding is now automatic through the new system. Since all the information is entered as supplies are received and stocked, there is a single button to send state reports instead of spending hours compiling the information from separate systems.
Maintenance records for equipment and vehicles are also part of the new software, which allows proper scheduling for service and replacement.
This ensures that all of the medical equipment on board each vehicle is in proper working order and the vehicles are serviced in a timely manner.
When Parker was asked what they do with the time the new system is saving their department, she said that they spend it actively assessing their team and spending more time in additional training. Administrative staff now has time to ride along with their crew members and field supervisors spend more time with their team on a day to day basis.
They said that morale has also improved dramatically.
from
https://dentoncountynewsonline.com/walker-county-ems-announces-new-technology-huntsville-item/
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