Interfacility ambulance transport of mental health patients.

The transportation of mental health patients between facilities by emergency medical services personnel poses a unique risk to both patients and their providers. Increasingly, common injuries are occurring and difficulties are arising during this transition in care. Proximal causes exist that could be addressed to help mitigate many of the complexities that occur during this shift in care.

Community paramedics treat high acuity conditions in the home: a prospective observational study.

Objectives: As the US population ages and healthcare reimbursement shifts, identifying new patient-centred, cost-effective models to address acute medical needs will become increasingly important. This study examined whether community paramedics can evaluate and treat, under the direction of a credentialed physician, high acuity medical conditions in the home within an advanced illness management (AIM) practice.

Methods: A prospective observational study of an urban/suburban community paramedicine (CP) programme, with responses initiated based on AIM-practice protocols and triaged prior to dispatch using the Advanced Medical Priority Dispatch System (AMPDS).