Emergency Medical Services (EMS) systems often utilize a structured approach to 911 call-taking and emergency medical dispatch (EMD). One such system, Medical Priority Dispatch System (MPDS®), categorizes 911 calls into EMD determinant codes based on problem and severity, with response priorities and resources determined at the local level through a predetermined response matrix. In this study, we proposed a methodology for utilizing historical clinical data to increase the accuracy of 911 call prioritization of patients with time-sensitive critical illness...
On January 31, 2022, beginning at about 1730hrs, southern Saskatchewan was overtaken by an extreme blizzard affecting a population of approximately 600 000 people.
As the snowstorm raged, the team working at Medical Communications South was closely watching the provincial Highway Hotline website for a real-time view of road conditions. This website displays a map of the Saskatchewan road network, with roadways color-coded to indicate current driving conditions. The team watched as the map rapidly changed from yellow, the color of common winter conditions, to white--travel not recommended—and again to
Over 25 years ago I started my first 911 center job in a large urban system in California. Our communication center was a secondary Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP), and as such, all 911 callers reporting a medical or fire emergency were transferred to our center from the 911 calltakers in the primary PSAP agency. With the rather auspicious title of System Status Controller, my primary role was to direct the dispatching and deployment of paramedic ambulances in the system. Most importantly, I was tasked with tracking the unit response time of every paramedic vehicle dispatched to each...
