MIDDLETOWN, Ohio — In life or death situations, a quick and effective response is everything.
It's why Premier Health Atrium Medical Center has been piloting an information-sharing program that it says raises the care game.
“Our EMS crews and all of our first responders ... the care they deliver pre-hospital is essential,” said Atrium Medical Director Jill Aston.
So Premier Health is making it more connected and comprehensive.
As part of a pilot, first responders from Middletown to Tipp City and beyond have been able to enter information on the patient they're transporting right into that patient's electronic medical record -- while they're out in the field.
The rapid transfer of data might include vital signs and EKG results as well as treatment and medication that have been administered.
Steve Ludwig, Middletown FD EMS captain, explained.
“What we do is create a download, upload it to the cloud and it gets electronically transferred and attached to the patient care report,” Ludwig said.
If emergency department doctors are up to speed on all the tests field crews have run, and all the details they've observed, they can make important health decisions more efficiently once the patient comes through the hospital doors.
“I think anything that improves communication in a patient's medical care is a wonderful thing and will just improve medical decision making, will create a better picture of the patient’s presentation and what is happening with them, and allow for better care,” said Aston.
Premier Health says it's the first system in the region to roll out the new interface. Dozens of agencies in a nine-county service area will take part in the six-month pilot.
It should help EMS crews improve their work, too, by allowing them to see and review the health outcomes of the patients they transported.
