What’s Going On at the Office of EMS

There’s a lot of activity at the Office of EMS, so here are a few reminders and repeats, in case you missed a recent event or announcement:

If you aren’t doing so already, be sure to submit your EMS activation v.3.5 data to the National EMS Information System (NEMSIS). At publication time, all but six states and five territories have transitioned to NEMSIS v.3.5. States have until the end of 2024 to make the transition, and nearly every state is on track to do so. NEMSIS v.3.5 introduces the NEMSIS Universally Unique Identifier (UUID), which is created automatically with every v3.5 ePCR. This will make it easier to exchange data across disparate systems, allowing for the direct linkage of EMS, crash and trauma data nationally without requiring any personally identifiable information.
Improving the national EMS data standard has myriad benefits. The data your agency generates and shares improves evidence-based guidelines and post-crash care and helps EMS better understand risks in your communities as well as the mental and physical risks your clinicians experience in their work. You can also use this data to start or further a conversation with your state highway safety office to secure Section 402 and Section 405 grant funding that helps meet shared goals of safer streets and fewer deaths and serious injuries from motor vehicle crashes.

This year’s meeting will be held again in beautiful Park City, Utah, from October 22 to 25. This “work meeting” includes robust discussion and consensus-building across a range of topics related to EMS data collection and the use of data to inform issues such as EMS workforce challenges, system response, performance, and alternative EMS funding models. To learn more about the meeting, see a draft agenda and register, visit the NEMSIS site.

The EMS for Children (EMSC) program recently launched a first-ever national assessment of prehospital pediatric care readiness, which was part of the National Prehospital Pediatric Readiness Project (PPRP). All EMS and fire-rescue agencies across the country were asked to participate. Each agency that completed the assessment immediately received a score for their agency, including a gap report, and was benchmarked against a national average of other EMS agencies and those with a similar volume of pediatric patients. The PPRP also provides a toolkit with a wide variety of resources to guide improvement across seven domains, as well as a checklist. You can learn more about the assessment by watching the “EMS Focus” webinar, “How Ready Is Your Agency to Provide Pediatric Care? Build Your Clinicians’ Confidence When Treating Children.”