J Korean Soc Emerg Med.  2015 Oct;26(5):430-436. 10.0000/jksem.2015.26.5.430.

Communication for Medical Advices between Prehospital Providers and Physician Medical Directors

• Jung SH
• Jeong J
• Chung JY
• Yun YH
• Lee JH

• KMID: 2191704
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.0000/jksem.2015.26.5.430

Abstract

PURPOSE
On-line medical control, in addition to indirect control like protocols, is known to exert a positive effect on the quality of prehospital care. Because the decision-making process of directing physicians depends on the information provided by prehospital providers via telecommunication, brief and organized reporting of significant points is of paramount importance.
METHODS
Telecommunications regarding direct medical control provided by emergency physicians in a university hospital were recorded from May 1 to June 30, 2012. All communications were between cellular phones. Analysis of the recorded dialogues was performed by an independent researcher.
RESULTS
A total of 115 cases were included for analyses. Affiliated fire offices were reported in 107 (93.0%) cases, while certification of responding officers was reported in only 62 (53.9%) cases. All five vital signs were reported in only 9 cases (7.8%), including blood pressure, heart rate, respiration rate, temperature, and oxygen saturation. Procedures delivered before telephone contact were reported in 30.4% of cases, and reporting rate of patient response to treatment was 16.5%. Estimated times of arrival to the destined hospital were reported in only 8.7%.
CONCLUSION
Reporting procedures regarding prehospital direct medical control should be concise and comprehensive, including essential elements like certification of the provider, consciousness and vital signs of the patient, and estimated time of hospital arrival.

Keyword

Emergency medical service communication systems; Physician executives; Emergency medical services

MeSH Terms

Blood Pressure
Cellular Phone
Certification
Consciousness
Emergencies
Emergency Medical Service Communication Systems
Emergency Medical Services
Fires
Heart Rate
Humans
Oxygen
Physician Executives*
Respiratory Rate
Telecommunications
Telephone
Vital Signs
Oxygen