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3 min read

Kentucky Hospital Improves Treatment for Heart Attack Patients Through Collaboration and Technology [Press Release]

By Team Pulsara on Mar 30, 2017

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

St. Elizabeth Healthcare, in Edgewood, Kentucky, decreased the time to treat critical heart attack patients by 30 percent.

Edgewood, KY – Mar. 30, 2017 – In the past year, St. Elizabeth Healthcare in Edgewood, Kentucky, significantly decreased the time-to-treatment for heart attack patients, following an effort by stakeholders from every part of the care team to collaborate and improve processes that speed up care. This improvement was due also in part to the use of a mobile app, Pulsara, which puts timely, clear information in the hands of everyone responsible for caring for the patient, both inside and outside of the hospital.

For patients who arrived at St. Elizabeth Edgewood via ambulance, the average time from first medical contact (FMC) — defined as the moment emergency medical services (EMS) first arrives at the patient’s side — to the administration of artery-opening treatment in the hospital dropped 30 percent, from 103 minutes in the first quarter of 2016 to 72 minutes in January 2017. The American Heart Association (AHA) recommends aiming for a time-to-treatment of less than 90 minutes because it has been associated with better outcomes for heart attack patients.

Topics: Stroke STEMI EMS Press
3 min read

Pulsara Founder and CEO, James Woodson, MD, wins EMS10 Innovator Award [Press Release]

By Team Pulsara on Mar 23, 2017

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

[Bozeman, MT] — Mar. 23, 2017 — James Woodson, MD, Founder and CEO of Pulsara, was recognized as a recipient of an EMS10: Innovators in EMS 2016 Award at a ceremony at the EMS Today Conference & Exposition last month. Hosted by the Journal of Emergency Medical Services (JEMS) and sponsored by Physio-Control, a part of Stryker Corporation, the EMS10 awards recognize ten individuals who made significant innovative contributions in EMS in the previous year. Over 40 nominations were considered for this year’s award.

A panel of EMS professionals selected the ten distinguished winners, who “each displayed initiative, creative thinking, action-orientation and a desire to positively impact EMS, patients, and their communities,” according to JEMS.

Topics: EMS Press
1 min read

It’s About Time: Addressing the Communications Crisis in Healthcare and EMS [Video]

By Team Pulsara on Mar 16, 2017

According to The Joint Commission, 80% of serious medical errors involve miscommunication. Reports indicate that 250,000-400,000 deaths occur every year due to miscommunication, making medical errors the 3rd leading cause of death overall. These numbers are staggering and highlight what is at stake when communication doesn’t work.

Topics: Stroke STEMI EMS Communication
3 min read

PRESS RELEASE: Duke University Study Finds EMS Activation of Stroke Cases Using Pulsara Improves D2N Times

By Team Pulsara on Mar 14, 2017

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

[Bozeman, MT] — Mar. 14, 2017 Duke University School of Medicine researchers found that patients with stroke received faster treatment when emergency medical services (EMS) activated the stroke team from the field than patients who presented by other methods of arrival.

The researchers conducted a retrospective analysis of 12 major medical centers that used Pulsara’s Stop Stroke, a mobile application that allows EMS transporting a stroke patient to notify emergency department staff and stroke specialists with the tap of a button on a smart phone. Using data from March 2013 to May 2016, they found cases activated by EMS in the field resulted in significant reductions in door-to-CT scan and door-to-needle times as well as an increased likelihood of meeting door-to-needle goal when compared to cases activated in the emergency department.

Topics: Stroke EMS Press
1 min read

Colorado Springs Facilities Use Innovation to Provide Better Critical Patient Outcomes

By Team Pulsara on Mar 09, 2017

Editor's Note: The following excerpt originally appeared on the Healthcare Informatics website on March 7, 2017, and the article can be read in its entirety here. Pulsara is humbled by the incredible care teams in Colorado Springs who are tirelessly working and innovating to provide the best possible care for their community. A vision without action is worth very little. It is the hard work and dedication of these teams that is truly making the difference in acute care and in the lives of patients.

--

Hospital physicians and nurses know all too well that time can make a difference when treating patients suffering from a heart attack or stroke. Unfortunately, gaps in communication between emergency responders and hospital staff is a persistent and common problem and can slow down the process of getting accurate, pertinent patient information from the field, such as the emergency medical technicians and paramedics on the scene, to the hospital staff.

To tackle these challenges, hospitals from two different health systems have partnered with each other and with a dozen local emergency medical services (EMS) agencies to use mobile technology to coordinate their care teams to accelerate time to treatment for critical care patients and to provide better care for stroke and heart attack patients.

Topics: Stroke STEMI EMS Press
3 min read

Victorian Stroke Tele­medicine Program Allows 15-year-old to Make Full Recovery

By Hannah Ostrem on Mar 07, 2017

Why do we do what we do?

At Pulsara, our "WHY" is to empower TEAMS of caregivers to come together and achieve the best possible outcomes for critical patients as quickly as possible, and with reduced miscommunications and errors.

As clinicians, our "WHY" is to make a difference in the lives of all the patients and their families we touch.

For Pulsara staff and clinicians alike, our "WHY" is also to influence change where change is gravely needed. To move the needle and find new, better ways of treating patients.

One team has truly embraced this mission. The health system in Victoria, Australia, including the Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, recently revealed an incredible telemedicine success story:

Topics: Stroke STEMI EMS Australia
3 min read

New Mission: Lifeline Stroke Documents for Prehospital LVO care -- What You Need to Know

By Kris Kaull on Mar 02, 2017

This past week at the International Stroke Conference in Houston, Mission: Lifeline Stroke released two documents related to prehospital LVO care.

Topics: Stroke EMS
2 min read

Here's What Your Patients Wish You'd Gotten Them for Valentine's Day

By Team Pulsara on Feb 16, 2017

EDITOR'S NOTE: Special thanks to Scott Stanley for writing today's blog post. You can connect with him on LinkedIn. 

... No, it's not chocolates and flowers.

The medical research community is continually providing us with exciting new technology and clinical findings that can make our jobs in EMS easier and our treatments more precise. So why are we not always sharing these findings with our patients? Well I’m here to tell you, those 80’s parachute pants were great 35 years ago but it’s time to buy some new britches.

Topics: Stroke EMS
3 min read

All Hospitals Are Not Created Equal: Choosing the Wrong One Could Cost Patients Their Lives

By Shane Elmore, RN on Feb 14, 2017

We make decisions all day, every day. Most of them are taken care of in our sub-conscience, and we don't even have to think about them. But others decisions are more complicated: If you were to have an emergency for example, where would you go for your care? Why would you choose that hospital? What about when you're choosing for your critical patient? Several factors play into this decision, but too often people use the wrong information to make that choice. As a matter of fact, according to a recent New York Times article, going to the wrong hospital could cost patients their lives! That's right. Choose the wrong hospital for your patient's condition, and they're three times more likely to die. 

Topics: EMS
4 min read

Pulsara App Version 5.4 Includes New Functionalities and Simplified User Screens [Press Release]

By Team Pulsara on Feb 07, 2017

Bozeman, MT -- Pulsara announced last week the release of their app version 5.4. The company began the announcement by reminding readers of their purpose statement: "Our purpose [is] to improve the lives of patients and caregivers through innovative communication. We care about patient outcomes. Equally, we care about you and the burden you carry as a clinician. Our goal is to simplify your workflows during time-sensitive emergencies. While we're really good at what we do, you're even better at your job. That's why this update is packed full of features requested by you ... the end user."

The 5.4 app version includes key mobile features such as the ability to add vital signs to all STEMI and stroke activations, and lab values to all STEMI activations. The General Patient package included labs and vital signs before this update. Pulsara has also made all interfaces for creating cases and entering patient information more standardized and consistent. 

Topics: Stroke STEMI EMS Press
5 min read

Fixing pH Without an IV: 10 Things You Need to Know to Save Lives

By Hannah Ostrem on Jan 24, 2017

EDITOR'S NOTE: The following content originally appeared on EMS1.com as paid content sponsored by Pulsara. Special thanks to our guest blogger, Drew Rinella for EMS1 BrandFocus. Drew is the clinical coordinator for Bonner County EMS in rural North Idaho. He is a paramedic, public servant, and competition shooter. Drew is an advocate for quality in EMS and also blogs his crusade against bad EKGs in product advertising. 

Topics: EMS
2 min read

The Critical Role EMS Plays in Stroke Patient Survival [New Data]

By Brandon Means on Jan 19, 2017

We’ve known for a while now that when EMS providers are properly trained, they perform at a high level when it comes to treating and assessing patients. For example, past studies have shown that paramedics who had formal training in identifying STEMI on a 12-lead ECG could do so with the same level of proficiency as most ED Physicians (1). The same goes for identifying stroke. A similar study showed that paramedics were on par with ED physicians when it comes to identifying stroke using simple stroke scales such as the CPSS or FAST (2). 

Topics: Stroke EMS
2 min read

Advances in EMS Care Promise Better Outcomes and Cost Savings

By Hannah Ostrem on Nov 03, 2016

We've been saying it's coming for a long time (but we're also a little biased): There's a revolution in EMS thanks to new technologies and information that have propelled EMS into a much broader community role than transporting patients to the hospital. 

According to a recent article in the Wall Street Journal, EMS crews across the country continue to provide more and more advanced treatment before patients are taken to the hospital. In some cases, paramedics are even beginning to make house calls to provide medical attention to patients whose conditions are not life-threatening. Communities that have implemented this concept known as EMS 3.0, send medics to treat patients at home for shortness of breath, dehydration, abrasions, abdominal pain, minor fever, cold-like symptoms, minor falls, as well as helping to manage chronic conditions like diabetes, and ensuring patients who were recently discharged from a hospital are following their care instructions.

Topics: EMS
4 min read

Going the Extra Mile: How to Get Medics to Bring More Patients to Your Hospital

By Shane Elmore, RN on Sep 22, 2016

Recently in my travels I heard something that really stuck with me: “When a hospital goes the extra mile, patients will do the same.”

Think about that for a minute. Is your hospital one that truly goes the extra mile? What does that entail?

The best person to ask this question of is a Paramedic who services your hospital. There are several things that determine where a medic takes a patient who has trusted them with their lives:

Topics: EMS
3 min read

Montgomery County Hospital District EMS Publishes Study to Examine Pre-Hospital Evaluation of LVO Stroke

By Hannah Ostrem on Aug 23, 2016

 
Topics: Stroke EMS
3 min read

The Broken Radio Report and What We Can Learn from "Emergency!"

By Shane Elmore, RN on Aug 09, 2016

Just for grins and giggles, I signed in to Netflix recently and watched a few episodes of the medical drama from the 70's, "Emergency!" I'm a little young to remember the show when it was on the air, but when I started in EMS, my paramedic partner insisted that I watch some of it. It was a rite of passage. Of course, there was also Bringing Out the Dead starring Nicholas Cage and Mother, Jugs & Speed with Bill Cosby, but those are for another post.

Topics: Stroke STEMI EMS Sepsis Trauma Healthcare
5 min read

First Responder Health and Fitness: Who’s The Patient Now?

By Team Pulsara on Jun 14, 2016

EDITOR'S NOTE: Special thanks to Wes Gilbert for writing today's blog post. You can connect with him on LinkedIn.

I have been honored and privileged to spend 10 years of my life as a Firefighter and Paramedic. The risks and sacrifices were vast, but the reward was oftentimes overwhelming. From the carnage of twisted steel from entangled vehicles on a rainy interstate highway to seeing a patient who experienced a major stroke walk out of the hospital with little to no lasting deficiencies, I never ceased to be amazed at what the human body was capable of overcoming.

And while seeing our patients get healthy again never stops being one of the best feelings in the world, a bleak juxtoposition became apparent to me when looking at the health of the first responders caring for these patients. I began to notice that we had a serious epidemic on our hands. It appeared that more and more first responders were in poor health, and it was getting worse all the time. Perhaps one of the biggest reasons that I began to pay more attention to this was because I was right there in the mix: I was 35 pounds overweight, had stage 1 hypertension, lipid panel values that were terrible, and nutrition habits that would make even the best competitive eater shake his finger at me. And to make matters worse, I was only 30 years old! Something had to change and fast, or I was going to find myself riding backwards on a bed in the back of a big box that my law enforcement brethren referred to as “The Bus.” I could hear myself screaming internally “Who’s the patient NOW, buddy?”

Topics: EMS
1 min read

How to Fix the Dreaded "Weekend Effect" in Hospital Deaths

By Wes Wood on Jun 02, 2016

Feeling all alone out there on weekends/holidays/night shifts?

You’re not the only one. Any clinician involved in care of time sensitive emergent patients has experienced the frustration of delays in care during these “off times.” Unfortunately, strokes, STEMIs and traumas do not take time off. Two recent studies (here and here) released in London and Birmingham, UK allude to how process variations have resulted in a decrease in quality of stroke care. Specifically, the quality measurement of door to needle in less than 60 minutes took a hit, and was directly linked to day of week and time of day.

Topics: Stroke STEMI EMS Trauma Healthcare
1 min read

No Power? No Problem. Pulsara Has You Covered.

By Shawn Olson on May 27, 2016

We have a saying in Montana: If you don't like the weather, wait 10 minutes and it will change. And springtime in Montana often brings blizzards and hail storms one minute, followed by sunshine and blue skies the next. Seriously! 

Topics: Stroke STEMI EMS
2 min read

To the Heroes of EMS: Happy EMS Week and THANK YOU! [Video]

By Team Pulsara on May 19, 2016

Happy National EMS Week to all first responders out there from Team Pulsara! You are too often under appreciated, under paid, and work long hours in unpredictable conditions. You are heroes and we appreciate you more than you know! 

Topics: EMS