Primeras experiencias de niños helitransportados en Uruguay / First experiences of helicopter transportation of children in Uruguay / Primeiras experiências de crianças transportadas de helicóptero no Uruguai

Se presentan los primeros tres pacientes pediátricos helitransportados con traumatismo encéfalo craneano (TEC) grave asistidos en nuestra institución. Se muestra el protocolo de asistencia utilizado en el hospital para la recepción, estabilización y oportuno traslado previa coordinación con sectores públicos y privados de asistencia médica. Se solicita consentimiento informado a los padres para el uso de los datos en actividades científicas y publicaciones.

We present the first three pediatric patients transported by helicopter with severe cranioencephalic trauma assisted at our institution. The assistance protocol used in our Hospital for the reception, stabilization and timely transfer is shown after coordination with public and private health providers. Informed consent was requested from the children's parents for the use of the data in scientific activities and publications.

Apresentamos os três primeiros pacientes pediátricos transportados de helicóptero com traumatismo cranioencefálico grave (TCE) atendidos em nossa instituição. Descrevemos o protocolo de atendimento utilizado em nosso Hospital para o acolhimento, estabilização e transferência oportuna prévia coordenação aos setores público e privado de assistência médica. Solicitamos consentimento informado aos pais para o uso dos dados em atividades e publicações científicas.

Preparação do enfermeiro para o atendimento í múltiplas ví­timas no resgate aéreo / Preparation of nurses to meet multiple victims in air recue

Objetivo: Caracterizar a atuação do enfermeiro de bordo, com ênfase no atendimento à múltiplas vítimas. Metodologia: Estudo exploratório e qualitativo. Os dados foram obtidos por meio de questionários semiestruturados, aplicados nosenfermeiros debordo em Belo Horizonte/MG. Utilizada a técnica metodológica de Bola de Neve (Snowball Sampling) e analisesob o conteúdo de Laurence Bardin. Resultado: Dos enfermeiros atuantes no resgate aéreo, que aceitaram participar, a maioria são do sexo masculino, possuem a renda familiar média de nove salários mínimos, mais de um vínculo empregatício, experiência média de seis anos. A partir da análise dos dados, as categorias elencadas foram: Atendimento Sistematizado e Capacitação Aeromédica. Conclusão: É preciso reconhecer o papel do enfermeiro no atendimento as vítimas no resgate aeromédico. Vale ressaltar a importância da capacitação para alcançar a excelência, no ambiente hostil confinado.(AU)

Objective: To characterize the role of the nurse on board, with an emphasis on attending to multiple wounds. Methodology: Exploratory and qualitative study. Data were obtained through semi-structured, scientific questionnaires on board nurses in Belo Horizonte / MG. The Snowball methodological technique was used and analyzed under the content of Laurence Bardin. Result: Of the nurses working in the air rescue, who agreed to participate: the majority are male, have an average family income of nine relative, more than one job, average experience of six years. From the analysis of the data, according to the categories listed were: Systematized Service and Aeromedical Training. Conclusion: It is necessary to recognize the role of the nurse in the care aswounds in the aeromedical rescue. It is worth emphasizing the importance of training to achieve excellence in a confined hostile environment.(AU)

Objetivo: Caracterizar a atuação do enfermeiro de bordo, com ênfase no atendimento à múltiplas vítimas. Metodologia: Estudo exploratório e qualitativo. Os dados foram obtidos por meio de questionários semiestruturados, aplicados nosenfermeiros debordo em Belo Horizonte/MG. Utilizada a técnica metodológica de Bola de Neve (Snowball Sampling) e analisesob o conteúdo de Laurence Bardin. Resultado: Dos enfermeiros atuantes no resgate aéreo, que aceitaram participar, a maioria são do sexo masculino, possuem a renda familiar média de nove salários mínimos, mais de um vínculo empregatício, experiência média de seis anos. A partir da análise dos dados, as categorias elencadas foram: Atendimento Sistematizado e Capacitação Aeromédica. Conclusão: É preciso reconhecer o papel do enfermeiro no atendimento as vítimas no resgate aeromédico. Vale ressaltar a importância da capacitação para alcançar a excelência, no ambiente hostil confinado.(AU)

Justificación del casco de vuelo en misiones de helicópteros de emergencias médicas / Reasons for using flight helmets during medical emergency missions in helicopters

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Aeromedical helicopter transport of prisoners: The Mexico City experience.

INTRODUCTION: Helicopter medical transport of prisoner patients has unique logistical and medical challenges, as well as potential risks to healthcare providers. Prisoners have specific requirements for safe transport, and it is of paramount importance to know the variables related to transport related mortality since most prisoners that need air evacuation are critically ill. Because we understand that there is a potentially dangerous nature of transport of this population, and because of the unique nature of them, we aimed to provide a detailed insight on predictors of outcome in prisoners who were injured as a result of trauma and that needed to be transported via air medical transport in Mexico City. METHODS: A retrospective chart analysis was conducted using data from the Mexico City Police Helicopter Emergency Medical Service (HEMS) for air medical transport of felons that occurred between January 1, 2000 and December 31, 2013. Subject demographics, injury, procedures performed, transport time, Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS), and mortality were collected. Exploratory data analysis, Chi-square, and T-test were performed. Statistical significance was assumed to be p ≤ 0.05 for two-sided hypothesis. RESULTS: Fifty-three patients were included in this study. Forty-two were men and 11 were women. Median age of the patients was 30 ± 8 years. Total transport time was 23 ± 5 min. Gunshot wounds accounted for 39.6% of patients, stabbing wounds 28.3%, head trauma 7.5%, motor vehicle accidents 5.7%, blunt trauma (i.e., fist assaults) 5.6%, falls 5.7%, motorcycle accidents 3.8%, and prisoner-motor vehicle collisions 3.8%. Median heart rate was 114 ± 41 beats per minute (BPM), median systolic blood pressure (SBP) was 103 ± 14 mmHg, median diastolic blood pressure (DBP) was 70 ± 12 mmHg, and median GCS was 10 ± 5. Mortality rate was 16.9% (n = 9). The variables that were statistically significant, and therefore related to mortality were: heart rate > 130 bpm (p < 0.001), SBP <95 mmHg (p = 0.039), GCS <7 (p = 0.040), age > 42 years (range, 17-47 years) p < 0.001, and need for cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) (p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: As dangerous and challenging as it may seem, air medical transport of prisoners by a police crew physician, may be safe and reliable, since no complications or safety events were observed.

Measuring More than Mortality: A scoping review of air ambulance outcome measures in a combined Institutes of Medicine and Donabedian quality framework.

INTRODUCTION: Measuring the performance of air ambulance services are complex and dynamic due to the variability and interconnectedness of emergency systems. The aim of this study is to review the range and nature of air ambulance outcome measures published in peer review articles and construct a quality framework based on the results. A scoping review of the literature was conducted to identify outcome measures that evaluate the quality of air ambulance services. Combined frameworks from the Institutes of Medicine (IOM) and Dr. Avedia Donabedian were used to create a dashboard structure for a framework of air ambulance outcome measures. METHODS: A literature search strategy was undertaken, following PRISMA-ScR guidelines and included eight databases over the period 2001-2019. Qualitative content analysis was conducted in 4-phases: 1) table summary of selected article outcome measures, 2) content analysis themes, codes of outcome measures and independent variables 3) narrative description of main themes 4) visual dashboard diagram of service priorities and quality strategies, based on the findings. RESULTS: Thirty-four articles were screened by full text and eighteen met the selection criteria. Twenty codes emerged and were grouped to form eight consistent outcome themes; asset/ team type, access to definitive interventions, prehospital factors, mortality, morbidity, responsiveness of service, accessibility of service and patient disposition. CONCLUSIONS: A quality framework consisting of eight outcome measures was created, it also identified seven gaps which ordinarily require performance evaluation; patient comfort and satisfaction reporting, cultural awareness training, safety alarms in place to identify volume stress, optimal coordination of resources, cost of service analysis, comprehensive patient journey time and an adaptive referral system analysis. The measures in the framework provide a broad perspective of air ambulance performance we believe will help decision-making and planning to improve patients experience and outcomes.

Point-of-Care Testing Practices, Failure Modes, and Risk-Mitigation Strategies in Emergency Medical Services Programs in the Canadian Province of Alberta.

CONTEXT.­: Emergency medical services (EMS) programs have been using point-of-care testing (POCT) for more than 20 years. However, only a handful of reports have been published in all of that time on POCT practices in field settings. OBJECTIVE.­: To provide an overview of POCT practices and failure modes in 3 of Alberta's EMS programs, and to propose risk-mitigation strategies for reducing or eliminating these failure modes. DESIGN.­: Details about POCT practices, failure modes, and risk-mitigation strategies were gathered through (1) conversations with personnel, (2) in-person tours of EMS bases, (3) accompaniment of EMS personnel on missions, (4) internet searches for publicly available information, and (5) a review of laboratory documents. RESULTS.­: Practices were most standardized and robust in the community paramedicine program (single service provider, full laboratory oversight), and least standardized and robust in the air ambulance program (4 service providers, limited laboratory oversight). Common failure modes across all 3 programs included device inoperability due to cold weather, analytical validation procedures that failed to consider the unique challenges of EMS settings, and a lack of real-time electronic transmission of results into the health care record. CONCLUSIONS.­: A provincial framework for POCT in EMS programs is desirable. Such a framework should include appropriate funding models, laboratory oversight of POCT, and relevant expertise on POCT in EMS settings. The framework should also incorporate specific guidance on quality standards that are needed to address the unique challenges of performing POCT in field settings.

Helicopter Hoist Performance in Novice and Experienced Hoist Operators.

BACKGROUND: Helicopter hoist operators are highly skilled and critical crewmembers in search and rescue. However, hoist operator training programs are relatively underdeveloped in comparison to helicopter pilot training. It is critical that this simulator teaches the necessary skills for high-level performance given the dangers associated with helicopter hoist operation. As a result, we sought to validate and identify critical aspects of skilled hoisting.METHODS: Through expert consultation, we identified several measures of hoist operation, such as mission time, cable plumb, cable tension, cable hand position, and cable displacement. We compared hoist performance between experienced and novice hoist operators in a simulated hoisting mission with two levels of difficulty (with and without wind). The experienced group (eight men/one woman) was composed of nine active or former military hoist operators who were working in commercial search and rescue. The novice group was composed of seven subjects (two men/five women) from the general population and had no previous experience with hoisting operations or the simulator.RESULTS: We found that experienced hoist operators had faster mission time, similar cable plumb, lower tension, and less variable hand position. Further, experienced hoist operators pulled the cable inward in the wind while novice hoist operators pushed the cable away.DISCUSSION: These findings suggests that this simulator captures performance differences between skill levels and, as a result, is a first step supporting the use of this simulator for hoist operator training.King MT, Lenser S, Rogers D, Carnahan H. Helicopter hoist performance in novice and experienced hoist operators. Aerosp Med Hum Perform. 2020; 91(6):496-500.

Transport of COVID-19 and other highly contagious patients by helicopter and fixed-wing air ambulance: a narrative review and experience of the Swiss air rescue Rega.

BACKGROUND: The current COVID-19 pandemic highlights the challenges air ambulance services are facing when transporting highly infectious patients for several hours in enclosed spaces. This overview provides an example of a standard operating procedure (SOP) for infection prevention measures in HEMS missions during the COVID-19 pandemic. Furthermore, we describe different methods used by several organizations in Europe and the experience of the Swiss air rescue organization Rega in transporting these patients. Possible benefits of the use of small patient isolation units (PIU) are discussed, including the fact that accompanying medical personnel do not need to wear personal protective equipment (PPE) during the transport but can still maintain full access to the patient. Rega has developed and patented its own PIU. This device allows spontaneously breathing or mechanically ventilated patients to be transported in pressurized jet cabins, small helicopters and ambulance vehicles, without the need to change between transport units. This PIU is unique, as it remains air-tight even when there is a sudden loss of cabin pressure. CONCLUSION: A wide variety of means are being used for the aeromedical transport of infectious patients. These involve isolating either the patient or the medical crew. One benefit of PIUs is that the means of transport can be easily changed without contaminating the surroundings and while still allowing access to the patient.

The effect of emergency medical system transport time on in route clinical decline in a rural system.

BACKGROUND: The emergency medical system (EMS) Field Triage Decision Scheme (FTDS) exists to direct certain injured patients to high-level care facilities. In rural states, this may require long transport durations, with uncertainty about the effects on clinical decline. We investigate adherence to the FTDS and the effect of transport duration on clinical decline in helicopter emergency medical system (HEMS) and ground emergency medical system (GEMS) transport in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. METHODS: This institutional review board-approved study retrospectively analyzed deidentified data from the 2017 National EMS Information System for Kentucky. Patients were classified using step 1 FTDS criteria (respiratory rate [RR], <10 or >29 breaths per minute; systolic blood pressure (SBP), <90 mm Hg; or Glasgow Coma Scale [GCS] score, <14 points), by mode of transport (HEMS or GEMS), and by arrival at an appropriate center (levels I-III trauma center). Clinical decline was defined in both groups as an in route decrease in GCS of 2 points or greater, a SBP decrease of 1 SD or greater into or within the low range, an RR increase of 1 SD or greater into or within the high range, or an RR decrease of 1 SD or greater into or within the low range. RESULTS: Almost half (46.3%) of step 1 patients were transported to an inappropriate center; the most common reason recorded was "closest facility" (57.8%). The percent of step 1 patients who declined in route increased with prehospital time in both HEMS and GEMS (p < 0.001). Overall, 12.2% of step 1 patients declined during transport, most commonly because of decreasing GCS (median change, -5 points; interquartile range, -3 to -9, in GCS declining patients). Helicopter EMS patients were more likely to meet step 1 criteria at the scene (29.9% vs. 5.8% GEMS, p < 0.001) and to decline (27.8% vs. 6.1% GEMS, p < 0.001). CONCLUSION: This study demonstrates that, in a rural state, injured patients meeting FTDS step 1 criteria reach levels I to III trauma centers only about half the time. The FTDS step 1 criteria identified patients at higher risk of further prehospital clinical decline. Rather than decline after 1 hour, these data show that an increasing proportion of patients experience clinical decline throughout prehospital transport. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Therapeutic, Level IV.

The ticking clock: does actively making an enhanced care team aware of the passage of time improve pre-hospital scene time following traumatic incidents?

INTRODUCTION: Pre-hospital enhanced care teams like Helicopter Emergency Medical Services (HEMS) are often dispatched to major trauma patients, including patients with traumatic brain injuries and those with major haemorrhage. For these patients, minimizing the time to definitive care is vital. The aim of this study was to determine whether increased awareness of elapsed on scene time produces a relevant time performance improvement for major trauma patients attended by HEMS, and weather introducing such a timer was feasible and acceptable to clinicians. METHODS: We performed a prospective cohort study of all single casualty traumatic incidents attended by Air Ambulance Kent Surrey Sussex (AAKSS) between 15 October 2016 and 23 May 2017 to test if introduction of a prompting scene timer within the service resulted in a reduction in pre-hospital scene times. RESULTS: The majority of the patients attended were male (74%) and sustained blunt trauma (92%). Overall, median scene time was 25.5 [IQR16.3] minutes before introduction of the scene timer and 23.0 [11.0] minutes after introduction, p = 0.13). Scene times for patients with a GCS < 8 and for patients requiring prehospital anaesthesia were significantly lower after introduction of the timer (28 [IQR 14] vs 25 [1], p = 0.017 and 34 [IQR 13] vs 28 [IQR11] minutes, p = 0.007 respectively). The majority of clinicians felt the timer made them more aware of passing time (91%) but that this had not made a difference to scene time (62%) or their practice (57%). CONCLUSION: Audible scene timers may have the potential to reduce pre-hospital scene time for certain single casualty trauma patients treated by a HEMS team, particularly for those patients needing pre-hospital anaesthesia. Regular use of on-scene timers may improve outcomes by reducing time to definitive care for certain subgroups of trauma patients.

Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation in Transport Part 1: Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation Configurations and Physiology.

Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), a term used to describe oxygenation that occurs outside of the body, is an increasingly common means of supporting the most critically ill patients. Because of the invasiveness and high probability of serious complications during ECMO, ECMO is typically indicated only when there is a high likelihood of death with conventional treatment. With continued improvements in technology and increasing clinical experience, transport clinicians are increasingly likely to be called on to transport patients on ECMO. ECMO can be initiated in 2 distinct forms, venovenous or venoarterial, and can primarily support the respiratory system or the cardiac and respiratory systems concurrently. This review will cover the basic physiology and components of ECMO as well as the preparation for ECMO transport for adults.

Critical Care Transport Time Differences Between Ground, Helicopter VFR, and Helicopter IFR Transports.

BACKGROUND: In helicopter critical care and emergency medical services (HEMS) transportation, organizations aim for efficiency of the dispatch process. Most HEMS organizations do not provide transport under instrument flight rules (IFR), due to equipment and training cost. Boston MedFlight (BMF) provides IFR HEMS transport. We set out to determine if response time of IFR transport was superior to ground transport.METHODS: A retrospective analysis of quality improvement data was performed. Data was collected by two observers sitting in the BMF control room in varying shifts. A process map of the dispatch process, from the dispatch call to the vehicle en route was developed. Critical points in the dispatch process were determined and a variety of time differences to determine the length of processes in the dispatch calculated. We compared median time differences between visual flight rules (VFR) flight and IFR flight, between IFR flight and ground transport, and between VFR and Ground for these points using a Mann-Whitney U-test.RESULTS: During the study collection period, 443 transports occurred, of which 109 transports happened while the observers were present: 37 ground, 57 VFR, and 15 IFR. Due to weather, six IFR transports were declined. The overall time from dispatch call to vehicle en route was significantly increased for IFR flights [median: 30 min:8 s (interquartile range 19:06-49:04)] over both VFR flights [11:36 (9:24-17:06); P vs. IFR: 0.001] and ground transports [9:39 (6:59-14.51); P vs. IFR: 0.001]. Most of this increase was accounted for by increases in the time from dispatch to crew acceptance, and from rotor start to vehicle en route.DISCUSSION: IFR conditions resulted in significantly increased dispatch times over both VFR flight and ground transport. The increase is likely a result of weather check, filing an IFR flight plan, and IFR release. Dispatch algorithms should be adjusted for this time delay of IFR transports.Kamine TH, Thomas L, Davis C, Cohen J. Critical care transport time differences between ground, helicopter VFR, and helicopter IFR transports. Aerosp Med Hum Perform. 2020; 91(2):98-101.

Japanese civilian and US military interaction in the evacuation of casualties from Camp Fuji.

Historically, if US soldiers at Camp Fuji become severely ill or suffer trauma, they are transported by the ground ambulance, as the doctor-led air ambulance in eastern Shizuoka has never been permitted to land at Camp Fuji. However, it is widely recognised that severely ill or traumatised patients require time-dependent medical management. It was therefore agreed to undertake a joint exercise between the US medical assets of Camp Fuji and the doctor helicopters in eastern Shizuoka prefecture in evacuating a simulated severely ill or traumatised US soldier. The aim of this article is to describe the background and rationale between this collaboration between the civilian Japanese air ambulance and the US medical assets in Camp Fuji.

Safety profile and impact of low-titer group O whole blood for emergency use in trauma.

PURPOSE: Following US military implementation of a cold-stored whole blood program, several US trauma centers have begun incorporating uncrossmatched, group O cold-stored whole blood into civilian trauma resuscitation. We set out to evaluate the safety profile, transfusion reactions events, and impact of low-titer group O whole blood (LTO-WB) at our center. METHODS: In November 2017, we added LTO-WB to each of our helicopters and to our emergency department (ED) refrigerator, alongside that of existing red blood cells and plasma. We collected information on all patients with trauma receiving prehospital or ED transfusion of uncrossed, emergency release blood products between November 2017 and June 2018. Patients were divided into those receiving any LTO-WB and those receiving only red blood cell and or plasma (COMP). Serial hemolysis panels were obtained at 3 hours, 24 hours, and 48 hours. All data were run using STATA 12.1. Statistical significance was set at p < 0.05. RESULTS: One hundred ninety-eight patients received LTO-WB and 152 patients received COMP. There were no differences in age, sex, or mechanism. The LTO-WB patients had higher chest Abbreviated Injury Scale scores (median, 3 vs. 2; p = 0.027), as well as worse arrival base excess (median, -7 vs. -5; p = 0.014) and lactate (5.1 vs. 3.5; p < 0.001). The LTO-WB patients received less post-ED blood products than the COMP patients (median, 0 vs. 3; p = 0.001). There was no difference in survival (LTO-WB, 73%; COMP, 74%; p = 0.805). There were only two suspected transfusion reactions, both in the COMP group (p = 0.061). There was no difference in hemolysis panel values. Controlling for age, severity of injury, and prehospital physiology, LTO-WB was associated with a 53% reduction in post-ED blood product transfusion (odds ratio, 0.47; 0.23-0.94 95% CI; p = 0.033) and two-fold increase in likelihood of survival (odds ratio, 2.19; 1.01-4.76 95% CI; p = 0.047). CONCLUSION: Low-titer group O whole blood has similar evidence of laboratory hemolysis, similar transfusion reaction rates, and is associated with a reduction in post-ED transfusions and increase likelihood of survival. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Therapeutic, Level II.

Physician-staffed helicopter emergency medical services augment ground ambulance paediatric airway management in urban areas: a retrospective cohort study.

OBJECTIVES: Paediatric intubation is a high-risk procedure for ground emergency medical services (GEMS). Physician-staffed helicopter EMS (PS-HEMS) may bring additional skills, drugs and equipment to the scene including advanced airway management beyond the scope of GEMS even in urban areas with short transport times. This study aimed to evaluate prehospital paediatric intubation performed by a PS-HEMS when dispatched to assist GEMS in a large urban area and examine how often PS-HEMS provided airway intervention that was not or could not be provided by GEMS. METHODS: We performed a retrospective observational study from July 2011 to December 2016 of a PS-HEMS in a large urban area (Sydney, Australia), which responds in parallel to GEMS. GEMS intubate without adjuvant neuromuscular blockade, whereas the PS-HEMS use neuromuscular blockade and anaesthetic agents. We examined endotracheal intubation success rate, first-look success rate and complications for the PS-HEMS and contrasted this with the advanced airway interventions provided by GEMS prior to PS-HEMS arrival. RESULTS: Overall intubation success rate was 62/62 (100%) and first-look success was 59/62 (95%) in the PS-HEMS-treated group, whereas the overall success rate was 2/7 (29%) for the GEMS group. Peri-intubation hypoxia was documented in 5/65 (8%) of the PS-HEMS intubation attempts but no other complications were reported. However, 3/7 (43%) of the attempted intubations by GEMS were oesophageal intubations, two of which were unrecognised. CONCLUSIONS: PS-HEMS have high success with low complication rates in paediatric prehospital intubation. Even in urban areas with rapid GEMS response, PS-HEMS activated in parallel can provide safe and timely advanced prehospital airway management for seriously ill and injured children beyond the scope of GEMS practice. Review of GEMS airway management protocols and the PS-HEMS case identification and dispatch system in Sydney is warranted.

The reliability and accuracy of operational system data in a nationwide helicopter emergency medical services mission database.

AIM: The aim of this study was to evaluate the reliability and accuracy of documentation in FinnHEMS database, which is a nationwide helicopter emergency service (HEMS) clinical quality registry. METHODS: This is a nationwide study based on written fictional clinical scenarios. Study subjects were HEMS physicians and paramedics, who filled in the clinical quality registry based on the clinical scenarios. The inter-rater -reliability of the collected data was analyzed with percent agreement and free-marginal multi-rater kappa. RESULTS: Dispatch coding had a percent agreement of 91% and free-marginal multi-rater kappa value of 0.83. Coding for transportation or mission cancellation resulted in an agreement of 84% and free-marginal kappa value of 0.68. An agreement of 82% and a kappa value of 0.73 for dispatcher coding was found. Mission end, arrival at hospital and HEMS unit dispatch -times had agreements from 80 to 85% and kappa values from 0.61 to 0.73. The emergency call to dispatch centre time had an agreement of 71% and kappa value of 0.56. The documentation of pain had an agreement of 73% on both the first and second measurements. All other vital parameters had less than 70% agreement and 0.40 kappa value in the first measurement. The documentation of secondary vital parameter measurements resulted in agreements from 72 to 91% and kappa values from 0.43 to 0.64. CONCLUSION: Data from HEMS operations can be gathered reliably in a national clinical quality registry. This study revealed some inaccuracies in data registration and data quality, which are important to detect to improve the overall reliability and validity of the HEMS clinical quality register.

The Rapid Emergency Medicine Score: A Critical Appraisal of Its Measurement Properties and Applicability to the Air Retrieval Environment.

OBJECTIVE: The Rapid Emergency Medicine Score (REMS) was designed to predict in-hospital mortality using variables that are available in the prehospital setting. The objective of this article is to critically appraise the development and summarize the evidence regarding the measurement properties (sensitivity, reliability and validity) of the REMS. METHODS: A literature search was performed identifying all studies describing the REMS. The original validation study was critically appraised for its development. All other studies that reported any measurement properties of the REMS were also appraised for evidence of calibration, reliability, and validity. RESULTS: In total, 26 studies reported on the measurement properties of the REMS. Overall, the REMS was developed with robust methodology and has good sensibility with adequate content and face validity. It is easy to understand and feasible to be calculated within minutes of patient assessment. The REMS has the necessary measurement properties to be both a predictive and evaluative clinical index to measure prehospital severity of illness; however, no studies have adequately addressed the intra or inter-rater reliability of the score. CONCLUSIONS: There is evidence to support the use of the REMS as a predictive or evaluative instrument. In most studies, it performed as well or better than other illness severity scores in predicting mortality.

The Danish helicopter emergency medical service database: high quality data with great potential.

BACKGROUND: The Danish Helicopter Emergency Medical Service (HEMS) is part of the Danish pre-hospital response offering advanced patient care on scene and during rapid transport to definitive care. Monitoring HEMS performance and the quality of critical care has high national as well as international priority underlining the need for research in this field. The data quality of the Danish HEMS database is unknown. Furthermore, a set of quality indicators (QI) developed by an international collaboration group (EQUIPE) potentially for use in physician-staffed EMS, has recently been presented. The aim of the current study was to present the design and data quality of the Danish helicopter database, and to evaluate the coverage of available variables in the database according to the QIs proposed. METHOD: The study included all helicopter dispatches between October 1st 2014 and April 30th 2018. The database layout and data entering procedure, as well as the key variables and data completeness were described. Furthermore, missing data and misclassifications were addressed. Lastly, the 26 QIs proposed by the EQUIPE-collaboration were evaluated for coverage in the HEMS database. RESULTS: A total of 13,392 missions were included in the study. The database includes a broad spectrum of mission- and patient-specific data related to the pre-hospital pathway of acutely ill or injured patients in a national coverage. Missing data for the majority of variables is less than 6.5%. The percentage of completed report forms has increased over time and reached 99.9% in 2018. Misclassification were observed for 294 patients in the study period corresponding to 3,7%. Less than half of the QIs proposed by the EQUIPE-collaboration group were directly available from the database. CONCLUSIONS: Helicopter Emergency Medical Services in Denmark are a new and sparsely investigated health care provider. The database contains nearly all missions dispatched by the five regional Emergency Medical Dispatch Centres. Generally, the data quality is considered high with great potential for future research. Potential quality indicators as proposed by the EQUIPE-collaboration group could inspire the configuration and design of the next version of Hemsfile creating an even more solid basis for research and quality improvement.