Use of ketamine wafer for pain management by volunteer emergency medical technicians in rural Western Australia.

Objective: To describe the use of sublingual ketamine wafers administered by volunteer emergency medical technicians (EMTs) for pain management to patients in rural Western Australia (WA).

Methods: This retrospective cohort study included patients older than 12 years who were attended by volunteer EMTs in Esperance, Lancelin and Kalbarri, WA and received analgesic medications from 2018 to 2021. Patients who received ketamine wafers with/without other analgesics were compared to (i) patients who received only oral paracetamol and (ii) patients who received inhalational methoxyflurane without ketamine wafers with/without paracetamol.