Pulsara Blog

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

If you’re an old-school paramedic like me, you remember when you finally upgraded to the Medcom system after an already overloaded single channel/multi-hospital HEAR network. When transmitting patient information to the hospital, I always asked myself, "Did I portray a good enough picture of the severity of the patient and nature of the problem using voice-only communications? Will the staff taking the report be able to remember what was said? What information did they actually write down and forward to the rest of the team?"

Oftentimes, it felt like my radio report was lost or stopped with the wrong person – so we’d have to delay patient transfer — and ultimately patient care — so we could repeat it again upon arrival and as other team members arrived. I often thought to myself, “There’s got to be a better way.”

EDITOR'S NOTE: Last month, EMS1, Fitch & Associates, and the National EMS Management Association released their fourth annual EMS Trend Report, proudly sponsored by Pulsara. We invite you to read, ponder, and share the following information brought to you by the most prestigious thought leaders in EMS.

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All levels of EMS stakeholders must bridge the gap between providers and administrators to overcome the hurdles facing the industry and to take advantage of the opportunities available.

Reading this year’s EMS Trend Report, I’m struck by the fact that there’s relatively little change in how we view ourselves and our industry from the previous year. That’s to be expected of course – one year usually makes very little difference in opinion making. But that lack of change is but one sign of a looming disaster that we are facing in prehospital medicine.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Special thanks to our guest blogger this week, Dean Meenach, MSN, RN, CNL, CEN, CCRN, CPEN, EMT-P. **

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EMS providers must have a thorough understanding of pain assessment tools and options for acute pain management, especially with the recent focus on opioid abuse.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Last month, EMS1, Fitch & Associates, and the National EMS Management Association released their fourth annual EMS Trend Report, proudly sponsored by Pulsara. We invite you to read, ponder, and share the following information brought to you by the most prestigious thought leaders in EMS.

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To retain personnel, EMS leaders must address factors beyond compensation, from work-life balance to training and support to take on new roles.

The 2019 EMS Trend Report confirmed that EMS professionals’ deep concerns about recruitment and retention in last year’s survey have not been alleviated. Once again, the ability to find and keep qualified people has survey respondents at all levels — from field providers, to medical directors to chiefs — worried. Not surprisingly, compensation is a common reason for leaving an EMS job. But it’s not the only one.

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

I have been involved in EMS in one way or another since 1994, and while technologies and techniques have continued to change and advance the field, one thing still persists today: EMS doesn’t have a unified “voice.” That’s where you come in.  

Let me explain…

EDITOR'S NOTE: Earlier this month, EMS1, Fitch & Associates, and the National EMS Management Association released their fourth annual EMS Trend Report, proudly sponsored by Pulsara. Read, ponder, and share the following information brought to you by the most prestigious thought leaders in EMS.

As healthcare professionals, we have a powerful opportunity to change things for the better. To improve the lives of patients and the healthcare system as a whole - by demanding better processes and changes to protocols that simply don't work. And, to improve quality in healthcare delivery.

EDITOR'S NOTE: This past April, Pulsara's Chief Marketing Officer, Kris Kaull, had the honor of being selected to present a TED talk at TEDxBozeman. A practicing Flight Paramedic, Kris chose to share one of his most memorable calls, and his top three tips for bringing order to chaos -- as learned by a career in emergency medicine:

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It was early October. The fall leaves had turned colors and the air was brisk. Bob and his family finished dinner, watched TV, and scooted off to their own rooms for the night. They were all in bed by 11. A calm normal night, until it wasn’t.

In a recent episode of Inside EMS, which was first published on EMS1.com, co-hosts Chris Cebollero and Kelly Grayson examine the current EMS models, and evaluate which may or may not have the components necessary to withstand the changes that come with a rapidly developing industry, shaped increasingly by modern technology and new protocols and research. 

A recent study examined the efficacy of low-dose ketamine administered intravenously as an alternative to IV fentanyl in the prehospital environment for severe pain. 

The retrospective review matched patients who received solely ketamine or fentanyl according to baseline levels of pain, on a one-to-one ratio and compared those pain levels to post-treatment pain scores. Results indicated that, compared to the group who received fentanyl IV, ketamine IV patients showed a significantly larger reduction in pain after treatment. Additionally, significantly more patients receiving the ketamine IV achieved at least a 50% reduction in pain compared to those receiving fentanyl IV (67% vs. 19%, p < 0.001).

Healthcare is burdened by the archaic means of communication. And everyone — from EMS to critical care teams to the discharge teams at the hospital — is feeling the effects. Luckily, hospital and EMS providers no longer need to be stuck in the dark ages of communication. Technology companies like Pulsara and Acuity Link work to streamline the most frustrating and broken parts of the patient care and communication processes from first medical transport through patient discharge.

Acuity Link’s CEO and co-founder, Alex Theoharidis purpose-built the company as a means to address mounting inefficiencies in the medical transportation request process. Today he shares his perspectives around what is needed to streamline non-emergency medical transport (NEMT) logistics in order to improve patient flow, and how solutions like Acuity Link work to elevate a customer’s patient transfer process – and ultimately the entire patient experience.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Special thanks to Courtney Chumley, FACPE, for writing today's blog post. You can connect with her on LinkedIn. 

With the arrival of EMS Week, comes a great opportunity to reflect on this year's theme: Beyond the Call, Crews and Caregivers placing service above self. It makes me incredibly proud to be part of a profession that recognizes these moments. However, as a manager it also has made me wonder how many moments are taking place every day that we miss. 

This theme makes me realize we can do a better job of recognizing many of the efforts by our EMS providers, and I am grateful that we have an entire week dedicated to doing just that. I truly believe that caregivers in our profession are stepping up every day without expectations to go above and beyond, and we can all do a better job of saying thank you to our colleagues. These moments can be the smallest of gestures that mean the world to someone else, or a huge effort made possible by entire departments joining forces. 

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

While the industry has grown and improved thanks to advances in technology and new procedures, one thing that continues to plague the EMS profession is shortage of staff -- and this particularly holds true in areas that depend on volunteers.

Although EMS continues to grow and evolve as a nationally recognized profession, the journey has not been without hiccups. With the rollout of the accreditation rule for EMS programs in the State of Texas, which requires EMS programs to be tied to a college for the Paramedic Certification, the issue has only become more apparent. Now, these programs are requiring students to obtain college degrees to receive their paramedic certification.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Special thanks to Courtney Chumley, FACPE, for writing today's blog post. You can connect with her on LinkedIn. 

Every first responder has gone through EMT and/or Paramedic school and remembers the very short section that covered how to explain to a family that their loved one has died. “Don’t use vague words. Make sure you use 'has died' and 'is dead.'” But after 20 years of field experience, that section did not equip us with nearly enough information to help these family members cope far into the future.

Throughout my career, I have spoken with many people who have suffered a sudden loss. I have heard the same information from them: they didn’t know what was going on. No one was talking to them and letting them be a part of the process. The family and bystanders wonder if they could have done more to help. Then, they wonder what happens next.

There was a turning point in my career 12 years ago where I was on-scene at an unexpected cardiac arrest in a 28-year-old male. He had the flu for a few days and collapsed in front of his young wife. We were doing our best to resuscitate him, when I heard his wife ask “I don’t know if any of you believe in God but can someone please pray with him real quick?” Before I could say a word back, someone else on scene replied “we don’t have time for that right now.”  To this day, I am still bothered by that momentary lack of compassion. All that was requested of us was to say a few silent words to him on behalf of her beliefs to help bring just a moment of comfort and hope to a terrifying situation. 

EMS1.com recently featured Pulsara's Founder and CEO, James in an episode of their Inside EMS podcast, where he discussed regional systems of care and how they impact effective communication. Below is an excerpt of the accompanying article, as well as the podcast episode for your listening pleasure. 

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In this episode, co-hosts Chris Cebollero and Kelly Grayson are joined by Founder and CEO of Pulsara Dr. James Woodson. Dr. Woodson shares his expertise by defining documentation and how it relates to good patient care, as well as the role and responsibility of providers to use effective communication and shares his opinions as to why EMS has trouble connecting with the care team.

There are several clinical studies of elderly populations that suffer from Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia which show that familiar and pleasant music can decrease agitation, reduce depression, increase movement and sociability, as well as improve cognitive ability and decrease problem behaviors BETTER than medicine.  Recently, I was privileged to encounter this phenomenon up close and in person.

For as long as I can remember, I’ve been a fan of music. I spent many years playing my own music, and I’ve spent thousands of hours at music festivals and live shows, connecting with the energy in each note. As a kid, I remember sitting in the backseat of my mom’s car and singing along to all of her favorite artists she’d play over and over on cassette tapes.

Anytime I hear those songs now, I remember what it felt like to sing them with my mom as we cruised along the roadways of southwestern Pennsylvania. I can vividly recall the carefree feeling, the happiness, the smiles, and most of all how the music would flow through us, deepening our mother-daughter bond with each note.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Thanks to our guest blogger this week, Rommie L. Duckworth, BS, LP. Rom is a dedicated emergency responder and award-winning educator with more than twenty-five years of experience working in career and volunteer fire departments, hospital health care systems, and public and private emergency services. Currently a career fire captain and paramedic EMS coordinator, Rom is an emergency services advocate, and contributor to research, magazines and textbooks on topics of leadership, emergency operations, and educational methodology. Rom is a frequent speaker at conferences and symposia around the world and can be reached via RescueDigest.com.

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

Mental health issues remain a concerning problem that plague first responders. As we continue to look at the issue as a whole, the motto has always been to sweep it under the rug and not let fellow coworkers know that something bothered you. It is time that we get past this "tough" exterior, and start taking care of ourselves.