EMS News Briefs from Mike McEvoy

By EMS Coordinator Mike McEvoy, Ph.D., NRP, RN, CCRN
NYSAFC EMS Committee

EMS for Children Report

The New York State Department of Health EMS for Children (EMSC) published a booklet, "Minimum Pediatric Care Standards for New York State Hospitals, Emergency Departments and Intensive Care Units." Included are recommended transfer criteria that will be of interest to EMS providers. The booklet can be downloaded here.

Ebola Requirements Revised

Yup, you read that correctly. In case you missed it (and most likely, you did since it wasn't widely circulated), the commissioner of health issued a revised Ebola order on December 18, 2015, regarding Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) preparedness. It essentially mandates that EMS services conduct PPE donning and doffing training on hire and at least every 12 months thereafter. This must include actual donning and doffing observed by qualified trainers. The EMS service may limit the number of personnel trained, as long as adequate coverage is available at all times and all locations where a patient with confirmed or suspected EVD may be encountered. A plan must to be in place to implement Just in Time (JIT) training should the commissioner of health determine there is an increased threat of encountering a patient with EVD. EMS agencies serving hospitals designated by the commissioner as "Ebola assessment and/or Ebola treatment hospitals" have more stringent requirements for training and drills. If you care to read the commissioner’s memo, you can download it here. If you want the Bureau’s CliffsNotes® version, you can read it here.